CIXCD Interface User Guide

This document is the "CIXCD Interface User Guide" (Order Number EK-CIXCD-UG-003) published by Digital Equipment Corporation in May 1990.

The manual serves as a comprehensive guide for Digital Customer Service personnel and users involved in the installation, maintenance, and operation of the CIXCD interconnect hardware option. The CIXCD is a parallel-to-serial interface designed to connect XMI bus systems (specifically VAX 6000 and VAX 9000 families) to the dual-path CI bus within VAXcluster configurations.

Key areas covered in the guide include:

• Introduction: A general overview of the CIXCD, its features (such as data integrity, arbitration, and packet-oriented transmission), detailed specifications (environmental, electrical, and bus characteristics), and a description of its physical hardware components like modules, header cards, cables, and jumpers.
• Systems Overview: Information on the VAX 6000 and VAX 9000 series systems that are compatible with the CIXCD interface.
• Installation Procedures: Step-by-step instructions for site preparation, unpacking the equipment, configuring the system, updating console microcode, and setting backplane jumpers.
• Verification and Acceptance Testing: Procedures for performing diagnostic verification and using system maintenance tools to ensure the CIXCD is functioning correctly after installation.
• Diagnostics: Detailed descriptions of various diagnostic programs, including CIXCD self-tests (XCDST), ROM-based diagnostics (RBDs), and macrodiagnostics (EVGEA, EVGAA, EVGAB, EVGAC) used for repair and functional testing.
• Functional Description: An in-depth explanation of how the CIXCD port adapter works, detailing the functions of its internal components such as the XMI responder and commander, XMI/CI interface logic, port microprocessor, memory, and control elements.
• Appendices: Provide supplementary technical information, including details on CIXCD registers and cluster upgrade requirements.