🚀 go-pugleaf

I imagine that this is inappropriate for this news group, but I don't
know which group would be more appropriate.

I am looking for some general information on workstation hardware
diagnostics.  I am looking mainly for literary references, but also
would greatly appreciate any other comments.  The types of things that
I am looking for are:

- What do vendors currently supply which do hardware diagnostics on
  Sun, HP, DEC and IBM workstations?  This includes both software and
  hardware diagnostic tools.  Which tools are most useful: hardware or
  software?  Are there any standard tools with standard commands?  Do
  hardware tools have a standard interface (perhaps connecting to an
  RS-232 port)?

- What is the level of detail of the results of the diagnoostic tools?
  Can they pinpoint a precise "field replaceable unit" which needs to
  be replaced or are they more general (ie. bad memory, bad tape
  drive)?  What are the "field replaceable units" in some of the more
  popular workstations?

- Where can I get a list of typical hardware problems with their
  symptoms and probability/frequency of occurance?

- Is there a tendency for hardware manufacturers to move more
  diagnostics in-board?  What is still not provided that needs to be?

- Are there any standardized tests?  This includes committee
  organization standards as well as defacto and those within a
  manufacturer.  Is OSI or OSF doing anything in the area of
  standarizing diagnostics?  What are the "state of the art" test
  methods or common practices used today?

Thanks, I will appreciate any leads or comments.

-- Vasile