Chapter 4 PA-RISC Computer Systems - OpenPA.net

PA-RISC Buses HP-PB
� 176-pin (44×4) female pin&socket card connector (DIO-II FF)
� 160-pin (40×4) male EBBL card connector (EISA FF)
� Bulkhead is above the card (DIO-II FF)
� Bulkhead is right of the card (EISA FF)
References
1. HP-UX Workstation HCL (Hardware Compatibility List) PA-RISC 91 (p. 195) Hewlett-Packard
Company (July 1998, 14th ed.)
2.6.4 HP-PB
HP-Precision Bus (HP-PB, sometimes HP/PB) is the I/O bus in many older 32-bit HP servers. Two form
factors/sizes of HP-PB expansion cards were sold: single and double.
� 32-bit data path width
� 32 MB/s maximum data rate
� 8 MHz maximum frequency
� 5 V signalling voltage
� 96-pin (32×3) female pin+socket card connector
References
1. HP-UX Workstation HCL (Hardware Compatibility List) PA-RISC 92 (p. 190) Hewlett-Packard
Company (July 1998, 14th ed.)
2.6.5 PCI
With PCI HP changed its HP 9000 workstation and server design to an industry standard expansion
and device bus. This allowed for using more off-the-shelf I/O chips and cards. Some of HP’s PCI
expansion cards for HP 9000 computers are actually relabeled third-party products or OEM designs
with a PA-RISC compatible firmware and HP-UX driver.
Proper HP-UX drivers are the limiting factor for generic third-party PCI expansion cards in PA-RISC
systems. In most cases drivers are only available for the HP-branded products. Open source operating
systems as Linux or OpenBSD support many more devices in their PA-RISC ports, since many drivers
were taken over from other architectures.
91 http://ftp.parisc-linux.org/docs/platforms/980723.pdf
92 http://ftp.parisc-linux.org/docs/platforms/980723.pdf
Table 2.9: PCI buses used in PA-RISC computers overview
PCI Clock Width Data ratemax Signalling
PCI-32/33 33 MHz 32-bit 133 MB/s 3.3 V/5 V
PCI-32/66 66 MHz 32-bit 266 MB/s 3.3 V
PCI-64/33 33 MHz 64-bit 266 MB/s 3.3 V/5 V
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