Frequently Asked Questions (Microsoft Products)

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1. Windows 3.x gives me an error message about the 32-bit disk access driver whenever it loads. How can I correct this?
A: The standard Windows 3.x driver for 32-Bit Disk Access was designed to be compatible with an older Western Digital controller standard. IDE drives larger than 528MB are not compatible with this driver. To enable 32-Bit Disk Access with larger drives requires a driver written by the manufacturer of the drive. For 32-Bit drivers for hard drives installed on ALR systems, you should contact, Western Digital, Conner Peripherals or Maxtor. SCSI controllers are also incompatible, but some manufacturers offer drivers that emulate compatibility.

2. I just added more memory to my EISA-based NT server. The machine sees the additional memory but NT does not. What's the deal?
A: After adding memory to an EISA based machine, you have to run the EISA Configuration Utility before NT will see the memory.

3. My system has a Cogent EM11O NIC. Windows 95 does not see the network.
A: This card is seen by the system as a DEC21140 based network card. The DEC driver will not work with the Cogent EM110. When installing a Cogent EM110 in a system with Windows 95 there are a couple of steps that you will have to do to see that the card is installed correctly.

  1. Go to a MS-DOS prompt, Change directories to your windows\inf on ALR installed systems the path is c:\windows\inf.
  2. Rename NETPCI.INF to NETPCI.OLD, type "EXIT" to return to Win95
  3. Go to "My Computer" then "Control panel", Double click on the "Network" Icon.
  4. Highlight the DEC adapter and then click on the "Remove" Button. This will remove the DEC network card from the system.
  5. Install the EM110 drivers disk in floppy disk drive. Let's say A:
  6. Click on ADD, then ADAPTER,,ADD,,HAVE DISK,,A:\win95
  7. Choose EMPCI.INF, When you have done that it will present you with two card choices, Choose EM1X10 (The first Card) and then install that card. Configure your Network as normal.
  8. Restart your system and login to the network.

4. My ALR Optima SL/DT/MT only lets me use 640x480, 16 Colors in Windows 95. How can I get higher resolution?
A: The ATI Mach 64 driver included with Windows 95 is not compatible with the current version of the ATI chip. You will need the driver included on disk #4 of the Super VGA Drivers diskettes included with the machine. The drivers are also available from ALR and ATI's Web sites.

5. I have an Optima SL running Windows 3.11 and I have experienced a "General Protection Fault error.". This error usually accompany with "USER.EXE" or "VGA.DRV".
A: When this happens, it means a memory conflict problem. In system.ini, under the 386Enh section, add this on the first line: EMMExclude=A000-FFFF. This statement instructs Windows not to use this area for Windows resources since other devices might use it.

6. I'm installing NT on a system with an Adaptec 2940 SCSI controller? Which driver should I use?
A: If the Adaptec has a SCSI BIOS version BEFORE 1.20, you should use the driver that comes with NT. If the BIOS version is 1.20 or later, use the drivers provided by Adaptec through ALR.

7. My Flyer SD tends to lock up the keyboard and mouse under Windows 3.1. What can be done?
A: The keyboard BIOS has been modified to correct this problem. Contact ALR for a replacement keyboard chip.

8. My screen flickers at the higher resolutions under Windows 95. There's no "Galileo" utility to set the refresh rate like there is in Windows 3.x. What do I do?
A: Unless the manufacturer of the video adapter provides their own utility to set refresh rates under Windows 95, you will need to use a DOS-based utility in the AUTOEXEC.BAT to set the refresh before entering Windows 95. The utility for the Optima is called S3REFRSH.EXE. Run it in DOS mode to make the changes to your AUTOEXEC.BAT file, then reboot your system.

9.When in Windows 3.x on an Optima SL, DT or MT and the DOS Prompt is opened and then closed, the Windows screen comes back up in weird colors.
A: This problem occurs when using the VGA driver that comes with Windows. If the ATI Mach 64 drivers that come with the system on drivers diskette #2 are installed, the problem goes away.

10. My ALR Revolution has Windows NT installed and a single processor. I want to add a second processor, what is the easiest way to update Windows NT to recognize the second processor?
A: ALR can provide a program called UPTOMP.EXE. It automatically updates Windows NT to run in Multiprocessor mode.



   
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