GVP Impact II Series User manual

FCC STATEMENT
WARNING: This equipment has been certified to comply with the
limits for aClass Bcomputingdevice, pursuantto subpart] of Part I 5 of
the Federal Communications Commissions rules.These rules and regu‑
lations are designedto provide reasonable protectionagainst radio and
television interference in aresidential installation. If not installed
properly, in strict accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, it
may cause interference. If you suspect interference, you can test this
equipment by turning it on and off. If this equipment does cause
interference, correct it by doing any of the following:
0Reorient the receiving antenna or plug.
0Change the relative positions for the peripheral and the receiver.
0Plug the equipment into adifferent outlet so that the peripheral
and receiver are on different circuits.
CAUTION:Onlyequipmentwith shield‐groundedcables (computer
input-outputdevices, terminals, printers,etc),certified to comply with
Class Blimits, can be attached to this device. Operation with non‑
certified equipment may result in communications interference.
Your house AC wall receptacle must be athree-pronged type (AC
ground). If not,contact an electrician to install the proper receptacle. If
amulti-connectorbox is used to connect the computer and peripherals
to AC,the ground must be common to all units.
If necessary, contact your dealer or an experienced radio‐TV
technician for additional suggestions. You may find the following FCC
booklet helpful: ”How to Identify and Resolve Radio-TV Interference
Problems.” The booklet is available from the US.Government Printing
Office, Washington, DC. 20402, stock no. 004-000‐00345-4.
This manual is the Copyright ©I991 of Great Valley Products, Inc. All Rights
Reserved. This document may not, in whole or in part, be copied, photocopied, repro‑
duced, translated, or reduced to any electronic medium or machine readable form,
without prior consent. in writing of Great Valley Products, Inc.
GVP, Impact,Impact Series II,DPRC, and FaaastPrep‘" are registered trademarks of
Great Valley Products. Inc.
Amiga is aregistered trademark of Commodore-Amiga, Inc. Commodore is a
registered trademark of Commodore Electronics Limited. Macintosh is aregistered
trademark of Apple Computers, Inc.

TABLE or CONTENTS
Introduction ...................................................................... 2
InstallingAdditional Fast RAM in GVP's Impact Series II
SCSI/RAM Controllers ........................................................ 3
Installingthe First Hard Drive on a
GVP Series IISCSI/RAM Controller ......................................... 5
InstallingAdditional Hard Drives on the GVP Impact
Series IISCSI/RAM Controller ............................................... 7
Installing the Impact Series II SCSI/RAM Controller Cards
in the Amiga 2000 ............................................................ 9
Using the PCBridgeboard with aGVP Hard Disk ......................... 15
Instructions for Ianus Version I............................................... 16
Installing the Ianus Software Version II .................................... 20
Partitioning and Formating Using FaaastPrep ............................ 22
Programmer's Documentation ............................................... 27
Tech n ica l Specifications ....................................................... 34
NOTE:
Please remember to send in your warranty registration card

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INTRODUCTION
The Great Valley Products (GVP) Impact Series II product line offers
awide range of high-performance add-on peripheral products for the
Commodore Amiga computer systems. This manual serves as the User's
Guide for the following products:
0ImpactSeries II A2000-HC+8. This product is GVP's flagship SCSI
controller. This controller has room to mount, directly on the
card, a3.5" SCSI hard drive aswell asthe capability to hold up to
eight (8) megabytes of Fast RAM.
0Impact Series II AZOOO-HC. This product is similar to the A2000‑
HC+8 but does not contain the expansion RAM capability. This
controller has room for a3.5" SCSI hard drive to be mounted
directly on the card.
Akey feature of all GVP Series II SCSI/RAM controllers is the new
GVP DPRC. The DPRC isacustom Dual-Port RAMController chip that was
designed exclusively by GVP and is currently only available on GVP Series
IISCSI/RAM controller products.The DPRC allows GVP to achieve some of
the fastest SCSI transfer rates of any controller in the Amiga market.

INSTALLING ADDITIONAL FAST RAM IN
GVP’s IMPACT SERIES ll SCSI/RAM CONTROLLERS
Adding RAM to the board is relatively simple and requires only a
few steps.
The RAM that should be used is lOOns (nanosecond) or faster, page
mode DRAM SIMMs. DRAM stands for Dynamic Random Access Memory
while SIMM stands for Single Inline Memory Module SIMMs are used
because oftheease of installationaswell asthe space they save. GVP uses
1Mx8 SlMMs. This means that there are 8individual DRAMchips soldered
to asmall circuit board These SIMMS can come in two different styles,
both styles are shown below:

Step 1:
The SlMMs must be inserted in aspecific order. They go in from
the innermost (CNlO) to the outermost (CN17) sockets (see diagram
at beginning of Chapter 5). The maximum configuration is eight mega‑
bytes and in this configuration all the SIMM sockets will be filled. With
two megabytes only the first two sockets (i.e. CN10and CN11)will be filled
and with four megabytes the first four sockets will be filled.
The SlMMs can only beinserted in one direction since they are keyed.
This key prevents the SlMMs from being inserted backwards and being
damaged. Once the SIMM is in its socket, apply slight pressure to the top
of the SIMM to ensure that it is properly seated. When the SIMM is being
seated, it will generally snap intoplace. SlMMs must be inserted in incre‑
ments of two (i.e. 2, 4, 6. 8).
Step 2:
Nowyou mustset the proper jumpers so that the system knows about
this new expansion memory. There are five jumpers on the board below
the word “TRAM The diagram at the beginning of Chapter 5indicates
where the jumpers are located. The chart below indicates the proper
jumper settings:
Memory SIMM Locations 15 16 I7 18 I9
0NONE
2CNlO-CNll ON
4CNlO-CN13 ON
6CNlO-CNIS OFF
8CNlO‐CNl7
Once the proper jumper settings have been made, you should
proceed to Chapter 5on how to install your ImpactSeries 1]board in your
Amiga 2000.

INSTALLING THE FIRST HARD DRIVE ON A
GVP SERIES II SCSI/RAM CONTROLLER
If you purchased your GVP Series II controller with no hard drive
attached and wish to attach ahard drive, just follow these few steps:
Step I:
First it is necessary to physically prepare your hard drive. The follow‑
ing items must be taken care of:
0The SCSI ID number should be set to zero
0The terminating resistor packs should be removed
(see Chapter 4)
In order to set the SCSI ID to zero, you should read the manual that
came with the hard drive. Usually, aSCSI ID of zero means that all SCSI
ID jumpers are removed,but refertothe owner's guide that comeswith the
drive. The same applies to the resistor packs. It is necessary to refer to the
owner's guide of the hard drive in order to find out how to remove the
resistor packs.
Once the SCSI ID is set and the resistor packs have been removed,
proceed to the next step.
Step 2:
Since the drive has to be mounted on the card and connected to two
cables, it is best to connect the cables first. Beginby connecting a50-pin
ribbon cable to the controller at the location specified in the figure shown
in the beginning of Chapter 5. The ribbon cable is keyed and so is the
connector on the GVP board, so it can only be inserted in one direction.
After the ribbon cable is attached to the controller, it is necessary to
attach the other end of the ribbon cable to the hard drive. The hard drive

has the same connector as the GVP board, so attach the other end of the
ribbon cable to the hard drive keeping in mind the key. Next,you should
connect the 4-pin power connector to the hard drive. This connector is
located on either side of the SCSI connector. Included with your GVP
Board was asmall four-wire cable with aconnector on either end. The
small end plugs intothe connector on the board and the large end plugs
intothe harddrive. This connector isalso keyedat the corners and can only
be inserted in one direction.
Once the two cables are connected, you can use the four screws that
came with the GVP controller to secure the hard drive down to the board.
if you are using the new one-inch high Quantum drives, only three
screws are required. The location for the forth screw is not drilled on
the drive, this is left blank intentionally.
Now reinstall the GVP Series [1controller as per Chapter 5.

INSTALLING ADDITIONAL HARD DRIVES ON THE
GVP IMPACT SERIES II SCSVRAM CONTROLLER
Up to seven SCSI peripheral devices can be attached to any GVP
Impact Series II controller. These devices may be hard disk drives,
tape drives, CD-ROMs, etc. There are afew concepts to understand
about the SCSI interface that should be explained before you do the
actual installation.
SCSI ID:
Each SCSI peripheral must have itsown SCSI ID. SCSI IDs range from
zero to seven. However, the Impact Series II controller itself uses SCSI ID
number seven. Therefore no other SCSI peripheral may use aSCSI ID =7.
Terminating the SCSIBus:
Since SCSI devices are chained one after another in a"daisy chain",
the last device needs some special attentionThe end oftheSCSI bus must
be terminated with terminating resistors. Terminating resistor packs are
small plastic packages, usually with eight pins coming out of them. The
figure below shows atypical resistor pack:
Note: Some SCSI peripherals do not have terminating pachs, instead they have
terminating plugs/connectors which serve the same purpose. Please refer to the appropri‑
ate user’s guide for more information.
Only the last SCSI device in the chain should contain the resistor
packs. It is essential that the terminating resistor packs are removed from
all but the last SCSI device. If there are both internal and external SCSI
devices, then the last external SCSI device is considered to be the last
device, therefore usingthe terminating resistor packs. This means that all

the terminating resistor packs have to be removed from all the other
SCSI devices. Please note that GVP removes all terminating resistor pachs on hard
drives that are mounted on our controllers so removing them is not necessary.
Cabling:
When multiple SCSI devices are used, there are special cabling
considerations to be taken into account. When only internal SCSI
devices are being used, a“daisy‐chain" cable is used. This cable is aflat
50-pin ribbon cable with multipleconnections. In other words, this cable
can be started at one SCSI device and then connected to asecond and
then to athird and soon.
If external SCSI devices are being used, they need adifferent cable.
The cable they use iswrapped in athin metal foil providingashield asper
FCC regulation.This isnecessary sothat the signals leavingyourcomputer
do not interfere with other electronic devices. This cable attaches to the
backofthe GVP ImpactSeries IIcontrollerthrough a25-pinconnector,The
other end of the cable usually has a50‐pin shielded connector which
attaches to the external SCSI device. Both the internal and external SCSI
cables are available through your authorized GVP dealer.

INSTALLING THE IMPACT SERIES [1 SCSI/RAM
CONTROLLER CARDS IN THE AMIGA 2000
This chapter will describe the physical installation of the impact
Series 11cards in the Amiga 2000. Wesuggest that you read this installa‑
tion first, so that you become familiar with it and then proceed to do the
actual installation.
The diagrams below show the outline of two typical Series 11boards
with the critical components highlighted.
Ill. Mii.
{’96 Autu mAJm‘o- "‘33:” silln‑
War sp‘riou booths Conmclor connector A2000 HC Serles II
ll Ill.” ii. iii m”
J5-J9 J4 J10-J12 cm Hard Drlvo
am RAM “10- SCSIID LED Autobool Power
smuswm Jumpers bootlng Jumpers Connector EPROM Connector A2000 HC+8 Series “

The first step is to determine which product you are going to install
and which options, if any, you are going to utilize. The reason for this is
that you should perform the installation in aspecific order, so that the
installation is assimple aspossible. The following is agood guideline to
use when installing any of the GVP impact Series ii products:
0install any options in the card first and then install the
card in the 2000.
In other words, if you are adding ahard drive to the card or if you
are adding RAM, do that first and then install the card in the 2000. if
you are installing both RAM and ahard drive, do the physical mounting
of the hard drive first, then add the RAM,and finally installthe completed
card in the 2000.
installing any GVP product requires only aPhillips head screwdriver.
if you do not feel comfortable working inside your Amiga, then have your
dealer install the board for you. it is essential that you ground yourself
to the Amiga's chassis before handling any GVP product. Please note
the following:
The components on the GVP board are static sensitive. When you
remove your GVP board from its box, you will notice that it is in a
special plastic bag. This bag protects the board from any static electricity
that might harm the board. It isimportantto removethe board inthe most
static-free environment possible. Also it is important to keep the original
packaging of the GVP board in case you must ship it somewhere.
Before opening up your Amiga, it is essential that the Amiga is
unplugged.
Wamlng:
Unplug the Amiga 2000 before removing its top cover to install any add-on product.
installing any product with the power on could possibly cause injury to yourself and
damage the equipment. Great Valley Products cannot be held responsible for any
damages or injuries caused byimproper installation ofthe impact Series ii boards. Such
improper installation will void all warranties both on the Amiga 2000 itself and on the
impact Series ii expansion boards.
iO

Step 1:
Disconnect the power cord from the Amiga. Next, disconnect the
keyboard cable, mouse cable and any other device plugged into the
second mouse port. It is essential that these cables be removed before
taking the cover off the machine.
Step 2:
The Amiga's case is secured by five screws. Two of these screws are
located on the right, bottom side and two are located on the left, bottom
side. The fifth screw is located on the back of the case at the top, center.
Please refer to the diagrams below for the screw locations:
flag 0
l:ll:ll:l000E
BACK
SIDE
ll

Step 3:
Nowyou must decide which slot in the Amiga 2000 you are going to
plug your new GVP board into. There are five slots that are capable of
holding the GVP board. See the diagram below for slot locations:
Power Supply [1
Note:
Since the GVP boards which have ahard drive mountedon them are wider
than normal single‐slot boards, it is necessaryto take into account what
will be to the right of the board. The GVP board will block the slot
immediately to the right of the board.
Step 4:
Onceyoudecide which slotyouare-going to use,you mustremovethe
thin metal plate which blocks the back of the slot. This thin metal plate
"hangs" on the rear portionof the case which is intendedfor securingadd‑
12

in boards. Removethe Phillips head screw that holds the appropriate slot
in place and lift out the slot blocker. Put the screw in asafe place as you
will need it later. Also the slot blocker you just removed should be saved
as you may need it if you ever remove the GVP board and want to block
the slot.
Step 5:
In order to install the board in the Amiga, you must insert the board
with the component side of the board tothe right. The board will slide into
the plastic guide at the front of the Amiga and "hang" on the rear of the
Amiga where you removed the slot blocker. Once the board is lined up in
the guide, apply slight pressure to the top of the card to “seat" it in the
slot. Make sure that it goes all the way into the connector and that the
metal bracket on the rear of the board correctly sits on the ledge at the
back of the 2000 case.
Next use the screw that you removed from the slot blocker to secure
the GVP card in place.
Step 6:
(This is only necessary for GVP cards that have an internal hard drive attached to them)
Next,the LED on the Amiga that displays when you are accessing the
hard drive must be connected. On the older 20005 the LED is green and
on the newer 2000s the LED is amber. This LED can be found just below
the power LED on the front panel of the 2000. If you look inside the case
just behind the small panel which holds the two LEDs in place. you will
find some wires coming from the LED Two of the wires connect to the
front of the motherboard. These are the power LED wires. The other two
wires, which come from the bottom LED, are to be connected to the
GVP board. On the board is aset of three pins labeled “LED" (see the
diagram at the beginning of the chapter). Take the wires you found
earlier and connect the black connector at the end of these wires to-the
3‐pin connector on the GVP board. Orientation of the connector is
not important.
13

Step 7:
Replace the cover of your Amiga paying careful attention not to
catch any wires between the cover and the base. Once the five screws
have been replaced, you should reconnect the power cord as well as the
keyboard and mouse.
The hardware installation is now complete. The next step is to
initialize the hard drive by using GVP's FaaastPrep. Please proceed to
Chapter 9for initialization procedures.
Warning:
lfa hard drive is mounted on your GVP Impact Series ll Board then your Amiga 2000
should never beshipped with the Impact Series 11board in your system. Before shipping
(ie. UPS, FedEx, US Mail, etc.) always remove the GVP board. This is because the
single metal bracket that holds the board in place is not strong enough to hold the board
during shipping. Serious damage may occur toboth the 2000 and the GVP board if this
advice is not followed.
14

USING THE PC BRIDGEBOARD
WITH AGVP HARD DISK
The GVP Impact Series II controller boards support Commodore's
A2088 and A2286 Bridgeboards by providing aconvenient way to create
virtual drives for the PCside to access. The term virtual drive refers to the
process by which an AmigaDOS file is created on the Amiga side to act as
aseparate hard drive for the PCside. In this way, aGVP-controlled SCSI
hard drive offers you fast, effective storage for both your Amiga and your
PC applications.
There are presently two versions of the [anus Software, the essential
installation software accompanying your Bridgeboard. In this section of
our manual, GVP has attempted to clear up the confusion that formerly
surrounded this process. Please check your lanus software to deter‑
minewhether it is Version Ior Version 2, and follow the corresponding
procedure for the rapid creation of your virtual drive.
NOTE: The following assumes that you have:
0successfully completed the hardware installation of the Bridge‑
board by following the instructions in its manual.
0successfully completed the hardware installation of your GVP
hardcard ORcontroller card /cable/drive assembly‐please refer
to the appropriate chapter in the table of contents.
-successfully set aside aformatted AmigaDOS partition of your
hard drive that will contain the PCvirtual drive file. Follow the
instructions for software installation in Chapter 9. We recom‑
mendthat the size of this allocated partitionbe between 5and 20
megabytes, depending on how much of your hard drive space you
are willing to allocate to your PCside. (Please note also that the
MS‐DOS limit is 32 megabytes).
15

7
INSTRUCTIONS FOR IANUS VERSION 1
Step 1 :
Insert the GVP Installation diskette in your floppy drive and double
click on its icon. Next, run GVP's Bridgeboard Install utility by double
clicking on the BB] icon. Follow the instructions prompted by the BBI
utility. When BBI is finished, proceed to the next step.
Step 2:
The next step involves adding asingle line to the “startup-sequence”
file in the "s" directory so that the virtual drive information is fed to the
Amiga side upon boot-ups This command line may already be present in
your “startup-sequence”, soyou mustcheck carefully aswe proceed. Type
ed sys:s/startup‐sequence
to enter intothe startup-sequence file. Cursor down through the various
lines to find aline that reads, Binddrivers. If Binddrivers is not present.
you should add it about 7-10 lines from the top (from the bottom if you
have an accelerator card installed) by typing asingle RETURN at the end
of the line you wish Binddrivers to follow, and then typing Blnddrivers
into the newly‐created empty line, (Refer to the AmigaDOS manual for
instructions regarding ED.)
Next, place the cursor after the Binddriverscommand and press the
return key to insert anew line after it. Now type into the empty line
the following:
run >nil: sys:pc/pcdisk.
This routine allows the Bridgeboard to read and write Amiga drive
information.To exit. again hit ESC, and then X, and then RETURN to save
the modified startup-sequence. (Note: If you enter a 0 instead of an X
all your edits will be lost and you will be able to start again.)
16

Step 3:
Place the MS‐DOS System Disk#1in the 5.25" [BMdrive. Rebootyour
computer (CTRL-AMIGA-AMIGA). Open the PCcolor or PCmono window
‐depending on what jumper settings you have selected by consulting
your Bridgeboard manual.
Step 4:
Always make backups! You can make abackup of the 5.25"
MS‐DOSdiskbytyping“diskcopy a: a:" atthe“A>"prompt. NOTE: The
quotation marks used throughout this section are only for your
reference; they are notto be typed.
Step 5:
Store the original MS‐DOS diskette in asafe place, and make sure its
COPY is in the 5.25" drive. This is your MS-DOS boot disk, and you will
now modify it to facilitate the use of avirtual drive. Still within the PC
window, type the following at the “A>" prompt being careful to use the
correct backslash key.
Copy con a:\config.sys
On the screen, you will receive anew line without aprompt, at which
pointyou should type the following lines of text exactly asthey are shown
below. The comment column separated with semicolons is just for your
reference and is NOT to be entered. After each separate line, press the
RETURN key.
YOU TYPE ;COMMENT
files =20 ;Maximum number of open files
buffers =20 ;Reserved memory for drive speed
device =idisk.sys ;Loads PC‐Amiga translator
device =ansi.sys ;Loads common graphics driver
"2 ;End ofthis file. *See next page *
l7