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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Georgia><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Georgia'>We have AMD dual Opteron hardware with AMD 8131+8111 chipsets
attached. Using LinuxBIOS, we have a slight problem, that APPEARS to be
related to the last 64Kbytes of RAM. Our kboot based environment, running in
32 bit instruction set, seems to randomly crash, and the implicated area of
memory is this last 64KB.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Georgia><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Georgia'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Georgia><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Georgia'>When we run a commercial BIOS on nearly identical
hardware, we see that that BIOS has created in the E820 table an ACPI
Non-Volatile-Storage area covering this last 64KB. LinuxBIOS is NOT doing that;
LinuxBIOS is treating all of the space as simple USABLE space.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Georgia><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Georgia'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Georgia><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Georgia'>In trying to figure this out, we have used the AMD HDT
tool to read the last 64KB. We (SOMETIMES) the system crashes when we read
this area using HDT.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Georgia><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Georgia'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Georgia><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Georgia'>Can someone please explain what this area is for and why
it’s strange to read even using a hardware debugging tool? Is it REALLY in
use for the ACPI NVS, and can we simply tell Linux to ignore it (map it out) by
creating an entry in E820 table so it won’t be used (we don’t use
ACPI suspend/resume)?<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Georgia><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Georgia'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Georgia><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Georgia'>Thanks very much for any information.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Georgia><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Georgia'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoAutoSig><font size=3 color=black face=ge><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:ge;color:black'>Alan Mimms, Senior Architect</span></font><font
face=Garamond><span style='font-family:Garamond'><br>
</span></font><b><font color=red face=ge><span style='font-family:ge;
color:red;font-weight:bold'>F5 Networks, Inc.</span></font></b><font face=ge><span
style='font-family:ge'> <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on"><font
color=black><span style='color:black'>Spokane</span></font></st1:PlaceName><font
color=black><span style='color:black'> <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Development</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Center</st1:PlaceType></span></font></st1:place><br>
<st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on"><font color=black><span
style='color:black'>1322 North Whitman Lane</span></font></st1:address></st1:Street><br>
<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on"><font color=black><span
style='color:black'>Liberty Lake</span></font></st1:City><font color=black><span
style='color:black'>, <st1:State w:st="on">Washington</st1:State></span></font></st1:place><font
color=black><span style='color:black'> 99019</span></font></span></font><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoAutoSig><font size=3 color=black face=ge><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:ge;color:black'>v: 509-343-3524 f: 509-343-3501<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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