[mythtv-users] PVR-350 TV Out

SredniV sredni.vashtar at comcast.net
Thu Jan 8 14:23:41 EST 2004


Hi All,

    About a year ago, I was setting up some extra drives on my linux server
(which uses a VIA chipset).  I was plagued by "timeout waiting for dma"
errors when doing lots of disk IO.  Bascially, the IDE system got some kind
of error, and then took the time to reset the entire IDE bus.  This takes a
few seconds each time, which throws a monkey wrench in anything that expects
a good flow of data.  The current situation that you all are discussing
sounds familiar, so I figured I'd chip in my solution.  Maybe it will help,
maybe it won't.

    The problem seemed to be that ATA-100/133 IDE controllers (at least the
ones on my board) are very sensitive to IDE cable lengths.  I believe the
IDE specification states that they shouldn't be longer than 18 inches.  Some
manufacturers make them longer than this.  I switched my setup around so
that I currently use the middle connector on the IDE cables only (it's about
a 10-12 inch run).  Currently, I have a single (master) drive on each IDE
controller in the system.  Once I made these changes, I very rarely see any
DMA issues.  It's happened about two or three times in the last year since
the change.

    So, maybe that's something for folks to try:  Shorter IDE cables, or
shorter runs to the actual drives.

    Jason

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Torbjörn Jansson" <torbjorn.jansson at mbox200.swipnet.se>
To: "'Discussion about mythtv'" <mythtv-users at mythtv.org>
Sent: Thursday, January 08, 2004 10:36 AM
Subject: RE: [mythtv-users] RE: RE: PVR-350 TV Out


> Before the summer when I used my 60gb disk in my linux computer I got
errors
> in the logs about the harddrive and I think it said something about dma.
> Mainboard has via chipset.
>
> I ignored all errors about since everything worked just fine.
> But after some months I got a major filesystem corruption and fsck didn't
> want to have anything to do with the disk.
> So I had to reformat it. After that I installed a 120gb disk and I haven't
> had any errors like with the 60gb disk.
>
> So don't ignore the errors as I did, I lost lots of stuff.
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: mythtv-users-bounces at mythtv.org
> > [mailto:mythtv-users-bounces at mythtv.org] On Behalf Of Tony Maro
> > Sent: Thursday, January 08, 2004 5:42 PM
> > To: Discussion about mythtv
> > Subject: Re: [mythtv-users] RE: RE: PVR-350 TV Out
> >
> > Bill Mackintosh wrote:
> >  > As the originator of this thread, I'd be willing to do the
> > write-up
> > Jarod.
> >  > I've been corresponding with another user in the same boat
> > I am, and
> > we seem
> >  > to have pinned the problems down to DMA errors.  At
> >  > http://ivtv.writeme.ch/tiki-view_faq.php?faqId=1#q25 it
> > lists certain VIA
> >  > chipsets as the probably culprits, and I do have one of the ones
> > mentioned.
> >  >
> >
> > That's interesting... I'm having DMA errors on my primary hard drive,
> > and my system is experiencing the "waited 2 seconds" apparent frontend
> > freeze.
> >
> > And it's a VIA 8366 chipset.
> >
> > However disabling DMA to the HD didn't stop the freezes.
> >
> >
>
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