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Chapter 3
Application
The LCS Resource Subsystem has a multisegmented passive backplane. Each segment in the backplane is completely independent of the other segments. Each segment must include a single board computer to drive the remaining slots in the segment.
Up to eight completely independent processors can reside in one LCS Resource Subsystem. With a Cubix BC Series bus controller installed, each segment in the Subsystem is an ATcompatible system. Each processor may be dedicated to a single function, such as a dedicated gateway to a mainframe or WAN, or a dedicated dialin processor for remote communications.
There are hundreds of possible configurations and options available for the LCS Resource Subsystem. These application notes can help set up and configure an application.
Sample Configurations
Subsystem with Telebit ACS. Page 3 2.
Subsystem as External Netware Router with QL Series boards. Page 3 8.
Subsystem as Fax, Tape Backup, Gateway, and WAN Server. Page 3 13.
The LCS Resource Subsystem used in this configuration is a Resource Seven, which contains sixteen slots divided into seven segments. Therefore it can support seven CPUs. This sample configuration uses Cubix BC 3030 boards to provide seven 386SX processors. Six of the segments consist of two slots each, with a BC 3030 board and a LAN adapter in each segment. The seventh segment has a BC 3030 with three additional slots.
All seven CPUs are independent. Each has its own processor, memory, COM port, video port, and floppy disk drive. The subsystem is functionally equivalent to seven standalone PC workstations on the network.
The Telebit Asynchronous Communications System (ACS) provides dial-in/dial-out functionality via intelligent serial I/O boards. These I/O boards provide a modem interface for the ACS communications. In this example, two I/O boards with eight serial ports each are installed with a BC 3030 and NIC in one segment of the Resource Seven Subsystem. This four-slot segment functions as the ACS Communications Server. The remaining six segments will be assigned by the ACS software as dial-in workstations.
Figure 3-1 Subsystem with Telebit ACS.
Installing the ACS SubSystem
BC 3030 Boards and Network Interface Controllers
Install a BC 3030 board and a NIC card in each of the seven segments. To maximize memory for the workstation, setting the NIC memory option (if required) to C800 is recommended.
Telebit ACS Board
Install the Telebit ACS board in one slot of the fourslot segment. Check the Telebit ACS manual for the proper switch settings for the ACS board. At this point, the four-slot segment should contain a BC 3030, a NIC card, and an ACS board. A second ACS board may optionally be installed in the fourth slot.
Connecting to the LAN
Connect the installed NIC cards to the network following the cabling information provided with the NIC boards.
Make Workstation Boot Diskettes
The BC 3030 boards will function as Novell workstations. Each BC 3030 should have a Workstation Boot Diskette created for it which contains an IPX.COM file for the particular network interface card (NIC) being installed with the BC 3030. If a current version of the IPX.COM for this NIC already exists, copy it to the Workstation Boot Diskette. Otherwise, use Novell's SHGEN or WSGEN to create an IPX.COM file using the instructions in the Novell manuals.
Create seven Workstation Boot Diskettes for the workstations in the subsystem. The following samples are files used to boot the workstations using the DOS 5.0 operating system. DOS 5.0 will support loading the NetWare files (IPX and NETX) into upper memory to increase the amount of memory available for running application programs.
Workstation Boot Diskette:
Figure 3-2 Workstation Boot Diskette.
Booting the Workstations
To boot the seven BC boards in the subsystem as workstations on the network:
If a monitor and keyboard are connected to each BC board
Insert Workstation Boot Diskettes into each segment's diskette drive and turn on power to the subsystem.
Each segment should boot as a normal Novell workstation. Log on to the network.
If only one monitor and keyboard are available to use for testing
1. Connect the monitor and keyboard to the BC 3030 in the first segment.
2. Insert a Workstation Boot Diskette into that segment's diskette drive and turn on power to the subsystem.
The segment should boot as a normal NetWare workstation. Log on to the network.
3. Repeat these steps for each segment to insure that each BC 3030 boots and is able to connect to the network.
Summary
Seven workstations are now booted on the network. Each should be a fullyfunctional workstation.
The final part of the installation is to incorporate the Telebit software into the LCS Resource Subsystem environment. Ensure that the Cubix hardware is fully functional before starting the software installation.
For any questions or problems with the Cubix hardware portion of the installation, please call Cubix Customer Service at 8008290551.
Installing Telebit ACS Software
Follow the instructions in the Telebit documentation for installing the ACS software on the network.
F An appendix in the Telebit ACS manual contains a quick installation guide that helps shorten the ACS installation using easytofollow steps.
The four-slot segment in the Resource Seven Subsystem contains the ACS board; this is the ACS Communications Server. The software installation procedure uses the diskette drive, keyboard and monitor connected to that segment (Drive 1).
The other six segments in the Subsystem will boot as workstations. The ACS software will assign them as needed as dialin workstations.
The modems for the ACS Communications Server connect to the ACS board. The ACS software does not use the COM ports on the individual workstations. All communications are handled by the ACS board and software.
The individual workstations in the Subsystem will each load the ACS PDWSINF program and a copy of PCAnywhere, as explained in the ACS installation manual.
Telebit's Technical Support number is 4087344333.
The Resource One Subsystem used in this configuration has a single segment. This segment contains sixteen slots, with a Cubix BC 3030 board in one slot, a NIC in one slot, and up to fourteen QL Series boards in the remaining slots.
The BC 3030 is a 386SX processor functioning as a NetWare router and interfacing with the LAN via the NIC card.
The QL Series boards function as NetWare workstations used for remote communications. The QL Series processors are slave cards which use the bus to transfer network packets to/from the BC 3030 NetWare router. The router then directs these packets (via the NIC) to the appropriate NetWare file server.
The COM port on each QL Series processor is connected to a modem. Users can dial-in through the modem and use a QL processor to host their network applications. Several remote communications software packages are available for this purpose.
The Resource One Subsystem can accommodate fourteen QL Series boards. Cubix offers several QL Series products. The QL 3002 product used in this example provides two 386SX communications processors on a single board. A Resource One Subsystem fully populated with QL 3002 boards can accommodate 28 remote users in a single LCS Resource Subsystem drawer.
Figure 3-3 Subsystem as an External NetWare Router with Cubix QL Series Boards.
Installing Cubix QL Series Boards
Check off the following steps as the installation progresses. Following all of the steps in the proper order will ensure a smooth and troublefree installation.
Use the QL Series Installation Guide and the diskettes provided with it to complete this installation. The following steps are intended for reference only. Please use the QL Series Installation Guide when performing the actual QL installation.
DOS Steps
¨ 1. Format two blank diskettes to use during the installation. The diskettes must be formatted as follows:
a. One 360K or 720K diskette with the DOS system files. Label this diskette QL Series Workstation Boot Diskette. Copy the necessary DOS memory management files to this diskette.
b. One highcapacity (1.2 or 1.44) diskette with the DOS system files. This diskette will be used to boot the Subsystem as an External Bridge. Label this diskette Bridge System Boot Diskette.
¨ 2. Make working copies of the original diskettes using the DOS DISKCOPY command.
NetWare Steps
¨ 3. Execute NetWare's BRGEN (2.15c) or ROUTEGEN (2.2) program to create a Netware boot file (BRIDGE.EXE or ROUTER.EXE) for the External Bridge System.
¨ 4. Copy the BRIDGE.EXE (or ROUTER.EXE) and the NetWare shell file (NETX.COM) to the Bridge System Boot Diskette.
¨ 5. From a workstation, log on to the network as SUPERVISOR. If there are multiple servers on the network, log on to the server where the QL Series files will run.
Cubix Steps
¨ 6. Execute the Cubix installation program to create and copy all of the necessary Cubix files to the network server.
¨ 7. If there are multiple servers on the network, copy the QL Series files in the \LOGIN subdirectory on the default server to the \LOGIN subdirectory on all other servers.
Hardware Steps
¨ 8. Connect the modems and phone lines to the Subsystem and QL 3002 COM ports following the instructions in the QL 3000 Series Installation Guide.
¨ 9. Connect the LCS Resource Subsystem to the network, and boot the BC 3030 using the Bridge Boot Diskette. Ensure that the system loads all the selected LAN drivers, and connects properly to the server.
Testing The Installation
¨ 10. From a workstation on the network, run QLVision to ensure that all the QL 3002 processors booted properly.
Loading Application Software
¨ 11. Install the communications or application software following the instructions provided with the software. If a communications program is being installed, it is suggested that it be installed in a subdirectory under \LOGIN.
¨ 12. Create individual batch files for the QL Series processors in the \LOGIN subdirectory.
¨ 13. Reset the QL 3002 processors using QLVision, causing them to read and execute the batch files created.
¨ 14. Use QLVision to take control of the QL 3002 processors to ensure that they are loading the application software properly.
The Resource Four Subsystem used in this configuration contains twelve slots divided into four segments, and therefore can support four 386SX CPUs. Each segment consists of three slots, with a BC 3030 board and NIC card in each segment. This leaves one slot available per segment. This example utilizes the extra slot in each segment to provide a network fax, a WAN (X.25, T1, etc.), a mainframe gateway, and a tape backup.
Figure 3-4 Resource Four Subsystem.
This document, and all Web contents, Copyright © 1997
by Cubix Corp., Carson City, NV, USA.
