Issues running SpinRite 6.1 Rel 2 on Zimaboard

[Steve]

Have continued testing the SP61-RT1.EXE with the following (confusing?) results:
2 hours 30 minutes – 2nd error occurred
0 hours 1 minute – 3rd error occurred
0 hours 0 minutes 10 seconds for 4th error
0 hours 0 minutes 14 seconds for 5th error
Immediate production of 6th error
0 hours 0 minutes 10 seconds for 7th error
0 hours 4 minutes for 8th error
0 hours 3 minutes for 9th error

Thanks VERY MUCH for sharing these encouraging new results. It appears that the second edition of SpinRite's new built-in RAM test is successfully detecting that ZimaBoard's problems -- and more successfully than your first try suggested! I'm working on a 3rd edition which will be optimized for speed, and this will wind up being permanently incorporated into SpinRite. I'll let you know once I have the performance optimized release ready. Thanks!

 

[Steve]

@the_physio:

After seeing that the 2nd try was successfully detecting RAM trouble on your ZimaBoard, I spent some time working to make it faster. The idea is that testing faster means that marginal reads and writes would be more likely to be found more quickly. So, this -RT2 release is now running about 6.5 times faster than -RT1: https://www.grc.com/dev/SpinRite/SR61-RT2.EXE while doing as good a job with testing for any trouble.

I would love to have you see, as you did previously, whether this one appears to be better at catching your ZimaBoard's misbehavior... as in faster to find trouble. Thanks!!

 

[the_physio]

Hmmm...4.5 hours running SR61-RT2 without an error (1,346,000 patterns tested). I'm going to kick start it for a couple of 15 minute periods & then try running it with a HDD connected to the Zimaboard just in case this somehow affects it - possibly leave this last configuration running over night. I'll post an update in the morning.

 

[Steve]

@the_physio:

If you have both SR61-RT1 and -RT2 on the same boot drive, it would be very interesting to have you try -RT1 — that was finding trouble — after -RT2 fails to do so to see whether -RT1 finds what -RT2 does not, within the same time environment.

I'm doing different things with -RT2 in the interest of performance -- things like cache-line alignment -- so it might be that what -RT1 was doing wound up being better than -RT2, despite -RT2's much improved rate of testing.

 

[the_physio]

An update of testing over the last 24 hours:

1. Ran MemTest86 again overnight & it produced errors (see attached).
2. Turned off the Zimaboard while at work.
3. Came home & downloaded SR61-RT2.
4. SR61-RT2 run for 4:30 (4 hours & 30 minutes) – no errors.
5. SR61-RT2 run for 0:15 – no errors.
6. SR61-RT2 run for 0:15 – no errors.
7. SR61-RT1 run for 0:15 – no errors.
8. Performed SR61 benchmark on USB drive & then SR61-RT1 run for 0:15 – no errors.
9. Warm reboot, performed SR61 benchmark on USB drive, & then SR61-RT1 run for 0:15 – no errors.
10. Attached 500GB HDD to Zimaboard & then SR61-RT2 run for 0:15 – no errors.
11. Started SR61 Level 5 on HDD & after 10 minutes 3 “B” defective indicators with the associated dire warnings.
12. SR61-RT2 run for 8:15 (overnight) – no errors.
13. SR61-RT1 run – after 1:30 REPORTED ERROR.
14. SR61-RT1 run – after 1:00 REPORTED ERROR.
15. Currently just initiated another SR61-RT2 test – we will see how it goes.

Bottom line:

• The Zimaboard still fails the MemTest86 test.
• SR61 (Rel 2) on Level 5 still produces inconsistent errors (ie the affected sectors are never the same from test to test) stating the HDD is unreliable (although it passed Level 5 on a PC).
• SR61-RT1 still produced 2 errors but it took between 1:00 to 1:30 of run time for each.
• SR61-RT2 to date has produced no errors after 13:30 of testing over 5 different tests & 1 test currently in progress.
• Trialling some factors to see if they would speed up an error report have proved inconclusive (such as allowing the Zimaboard time to “cool down”; allowing the Zimaboard time to “warm up”; performing a benchmark on a drive first; connected a HDD to the Zimaboard; performing a partial Level 5 scan on the HDD first).

Food for thought.

 

[Steve]

FANTASTIC work, @the_physio. Someone in the NNTP newsgroups also has a machine where -RT1 will detect an error but -RT2 does not. So on that basis I'm going to scrap that route of "optimization" and return to the code that runs more slowly but DOES find problems. Then I'm going to work to speed it up a bit more. So I'll have an -RT3 to test, after this week's podcast, so probably Wednesday. Thanks, again!

 

[DarkwinX]

so probably Wednesday.

I'm fairly sure this translates to Aus Thursday

 

[the_physio]

Sounds like a good strategy Steve as I haven’t been able to generate an error from -RT2. The latest run went for 5:30 (5 hours & 30 minutes).

I did do further -RT1 testing & although not fast it has been reliably generating an errors. The latest batch of 5 tests all generated an error within 0:35 to 2:07.

Look forward to -RT3 & the latest podcast – which if I’m not mistaken hits the east coast of Australia late Wednesday afternoons.

 

[the_physio]

Just an update that the -RT2 did finally produce an error – I left it running when I went to work & while I can’t say how long it took it was definitely within 9:12. Better late than never.

 

[Steve]

Just an update that the -RT2 did finally produce an error – I left it running when I went to work & while I can’t say how long it took it was definitely within 9:12. Better late than never.

Thanks for the report. At least we know it's not completely non-functional! <g> I'll be producing -RT3 shortly. I spent some time on the code yesterday.

 

[Steve]

https://www.grc.com/dev/SpinRite/SR61-RT3.EXE​

This SR61-RT3 RAM test release restores the testing methodology which was successfully used by RT2 and it adds the final screen embellishments of a total running time (upper left) and total errors found (upper right). I'll be merging this into SpinRite for its next release.

@the_physio: Naturally, I'd love to see (confirm) whether this proposed final RAM testing system performs as well as RT2 did. (It certainly should.)

 

[TProbst67]

Hey Steve -- Illegal Opcode running -RT3 after a couple of hours.

I mentioned it in the newsgroups, and providing screenshot here.

Regards,
Thomas

 

[the_physio]

Steve, did you mean RT1 instead of RT2 in your references above?

SR61-RT3.EXE downloaded & results so far:

• Within 0:02 (0 hours 2 minutes) it had detected an error.
• As I was about to go out I didn’t photograph the screen (sorry), just kicked off another test which likewise appears to have reported an error before I could leave the room.
• “Looks like there will be plenty more of these in short order” I thought as I did went to do my shopping. On my return (about 2:00 later) the screen was still predominantly red but showing what I’d swear was different information to what was on it when I left – refer to attachment SR61-RT3a.jpg of an “Attempt to Execute Illegal Opcode!” warning.
• I was unable to remove this warning (using ESC, Enter, Ctrl-Alt-Del) & had to do a cold reboot.
• Started another test which ran without error until approximately the 1:00 (1 hour) mark when it again reported an “Attempt to Execute Illegal Opcode!” warning – with some slightly different data – refer to attachment SR61-RT3b.jpg.
• Again, I needed to do a cold reboot to remove this warning.
• Initiated another test & it ran without error – but at EXACTLY 1:00 (1 hour or 1:00:00 on the displayed run time) it generated a third “Attempt to Execute Illegal Opcode!” warning – refer to attachment SR61-RT3c.jpg.

I’ll keep running -RT3 until I hear otherwise.

 

[the_physio]

I think the files I attempted to attach to my previous post were too large, so these smaller images should still do.

 

[Steve]

https://www.grc.com/dev/SpinRite/SR61-RT4.EXE

EDIT!! RT4 is also NOT CORRECT. IT SHOULD BE OKAY FOR UP TO 60 MINUTES. I"LL HAVE RT5 SHORTLY!

@the_physio and @TProbst67 : I believe that I found and fixed the cause of the illegal opcode. I'm not certain of that, yet... But I definitely found and fixed something that COULD have been blasting the testing code when an error was found. This SR61-RT4 should be used in place of any earlier versions. Let's see whether IT ever generates the illegal opcode.

Thank you!

 

[ColbyBouma]

Multiple people have reported that it crashes at exactly 1 hour. Doesn't that point to an overflow?

 

[Steve]

Multiple people have reported that it crashes at exactly 1 hour. Doesn't that point to an overflow?

Ah. I saw one report of that, Colby. Thanks. I'll recreate that and see what's up. Thanks!

 

[Steve]

RT4 is also NOT CORRECT. IT SHOULD BE OKAY FOR UP TO 60 MINUTES. I'LL HAVE SR61-RT5 SHORTLY!

 

[Steve]

If at first you don't succeed...

https://www.grc.com/dev/SpinRite/SR61-RT5.EXE​

I apologize for wasting everyone's time with the rushed out RT3 and RT4 releases. They were insufficiently tested. I've done a better job with RT5. It's the only one worth using, and it should run for (many) days without trouble. Thanks!!

 

[the_physio]

Update for SP61-RT5.EXE:

• First test produced an error within 43 minutes (refer SR61-RT5a).
• I needed to go out for an hour so I left it running just to see what happened – came home to see nothing had changed other than the timer on the left advancing.
• Second test has been running for over an hour without any errors. I did watch for the 1 hour mark but as with the first test there was no “Attempt to Execute Illegal Opcode!” warnings. This test is still running without error with 1 hour & 5 minutes on the timer.

I’ll update when something changes.