🚀 go-pugleaf

HELLLLLPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I really hope someone can help me with this problem involving
hardware. The computer is running Windows NT 3.51, but the problem has
existed since NT 3.1. I’m pretty sure the problem is related to an
upgrade from a 486/DX2/66 cpu to an Intel DX4/100, as the problem
started appearing shortly thereafter. What is happening is that the
computer crashes to the blue screen of death during a disk access. The
problem is intermittent. The computer sometimes runs for weeks without
a crash. It appears to occur when two programs are attempting to
access the disk at the same time. Today it happened when Word 6
attempted a disk write when Word was still executing a previous disk
write command. It also happens about 50% of the time during a backup.

Machine specifics:
Motherboard: NICE (now Lyon) SuperEISA, 1 meg external cache, AMI BIOS
RAM 64 megs in 16 4-meg SIMM’s
Hard disk: One Micropolis model 1936 (3.0 gig, SCSI-2)
Adaptec 2742AT host adapter running the Micropolis (device 0) and the
following internal devices (channel B):
   HP 35480a 4mm DAT tape drive
   NEC 3xi CD-ROM
   plus the following external SCSI devices (channel A):
   Syquest 88 meg drive
   (2) NEC CDR 74-1 CD-ROM readers
   HP Scanjet IIcx
Intel Etherexpress 16 card
Soundblaster AWE32 card
(2) SIIG I/O cards, one for COM1/COM2 and parallel port, the second 
   with COM1/COM2 disabled and set to IRQ5 (I think) to create an LPT2

   port.
Logitech Mouseman
Matrox Impression 3-meg card, running at 1280 x 1024, 8-bit color, 
   using NT drivers.

When NT crashes, the following is what the blue screen says:
--------------------------------------------------------------------
***STOP: 0x0000000A (0xFE091B14, 0x000000FF, 0x00000000, 0x804043C6)
IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL*** Address 804043C6 has a base at 80400000 -
hal.dll

CPUID: GenuineIntel 4.8.0 irql:1f   SYSVER 0xf0000421

Dll Base DateStmp - Name
80100000 2fc653bc - ntoskrnl.exe
80010000 2faae879 - SPARROW. SYS
80001000 2faae87c - ARROW. sys
8001d000 2faae8e2 - Scsiscan. sys
fbc20000 2faae8af - Floppy.sys
fbc40000 2fb16eef - Scsicdrm.sys
fbc60000 00000000 - Fs_Rec.SYS
fbc80000 2faae8a1 - Beep.sys
fbca0000 2faae8d9 - sermouse.sys
fbcc0000 2faae8b5 - Mouclass.SYS
fbcf0000 2faae88d - VIDEOPRT.SYS
fcd20000 2faae892 - vga.sys
fbd40000 2faae8ec - Npfs.SYS
fbd60000 2fb4dbb3 - SBAWE32.SYS
fbd70000 2faae97e - dlc.sys
fbdc0000 2faaee1e - asyncmac.sys
fbde0000 2fb52712 - ndiswan.sys
fbdf0000 2fae6a5f - nbf.sys
fbe30000 2fc1557b - tcpip.sys
fbe70000 2faae94f - netbios.sys
fbe90000 00000000 - Parallel.sys
fbeb0000 2faec8b1 - afd.sys
fbf00000 2fc3e3eb - srv.sys

Dll Base DateStmp - Name
80400000 2fb24f4a - hal.dll
80015000 2faae8ca - SCSIPORT.SYS
8000a000 2faae8c5 - Scsidisk.sys
80372000 2fc4f4b2 - Ntfs.sys
fbc30000 2faae8cb - 4MMDAT.SYS
fbc50000 2faae8a2 - Cdaudio.SYS
fbc70000 00000000 - Null.SYS
fbc90000 2faae8de - syndblst.sys
fbcb0000 2faae8b2 - i8042prt.SYS
fbcd0000 2faae8b4 - Kbdclass.SYS
fbd00000 2fbf8174 - mga.sys
fbd30000 2faae8fd - Msfs.SYS
fbd50000 2faae91a - ndistapi.sys
fbd80000 2fc12af6 - NDIS.SYS
fbda0000 2fc15d19 - Fastfat.SYS
fbdd0000 2faae90f - ee16.sys
fbe10000 2faae945 - TDI.SYS
fbe20000 2faaee1f - rasarp.sys
fbe50000 2fc0daf7 - netbt.sys
fbe80000 00000000 - Parport.SYS
fbea0000 2faae8d8 - Serial.SYS
fbec0000 2fba6818 - rdr.sys
-----------------------------------------------------------------

Because I strongly suspect something should have been changed in the
CMOS when the CPU was upgraded, I went into the CMOS and noted the
following settings. (I understand nothing about what these settings
do, and the documentation is no help either.)

AMIBIOS SETUP PROGRAM - BIOS SETUP UTILITIES
(included below are only settings that I suspect)
Advanced CMOS Setup:
   Memory Parity Error Check: Enabled
   Video ROM Shadow C000, 32K: Enabled
   [All adaptor ROM Shadow addresses]: Disabled
   System ROM Shadow F000, 64K: Enabled
   Boot Sector Virus Protection: Enabled

Advanced Chipset Setup:
   DRAM Speed: Slowest
   DRAM Write CAS Pulse Width: 2T
   DRAM Interleave: Enabled
   Cache Write Back: Enabled
   Cache Write Cycle: 3T
   Cache Burst Read Cycle: 2T
   KBCLK Selection: BUSCLK
   BUSCLK Selection: CPUCLK/6
   Non-Cacheable Area 1: DRAM
   Non-Cacheable Area 1 Size: 0KB
   Non-Cacheable Area 1 Start: Disabled
   Non-Cacheable Area 2: DRAM
   Non-Cacheable Area 2 Size: 0KB
   Non-Cacheable Area 2 Start: Disabled
   C000 Shadow RAM Cacheable: Disabled
   F000 Shadow RAM Cacheable: Disabled
   I/O Recovery Select: 11 BCLKS
   Fast Reset Emulation Select: Enabled
   Fast Reset Emulation Mode: 6us
-------------------------------------------------------------

I also went into the EISA Configuration Utility and noted the
following are the current settings for the Adaptec 2742AT (settings
noted only for those which I found suspect):

Edit Settings for: Adaptec 2740/2742 SCSI Host Adapter
   IRQ11
   Bus Release Time: 60 BCLKs
   Data FIFO Threshhold: 100%
   Host Adapter BIOS Base Address: D8000H

SCSI Channel A Configuration (Channel B is identical)
   SCSI Bus Parity Check: Enabled
   SCSI Selection Timout: 256 milliseconds
   SCSI Bus Reset at Power on: Enabled
   SCSI Bus Termination: Enabled

Primary Channel: B  (this is the internal connector)

BIOS and Device Configuration
   BIOS Configuration
      Support Removable Disks as Fixed Disk: All Devices
      Extended Translation for Drives > 1Gbyte: Enabled
      Support for More Than 2 Drives: Disabled
   Device Configuration
      (for channel A & B and devices 0-7, all are the same)
      Enable Disconnection        yes
      Initiate Sync Negotiation   no
      Maximum Sync Xfer Rate      10.0
      Include in BIOS Scan        yes
      Error if Device Not Found   no
      Send Start Unit Command     no
----------------------------------------------------------------

Things I have tried so far:

1) Called NICE (Lyon): They are no longer in the motherboard business
and blamed the whole thing on Adaptec.

2) Called Adaptec: They suggested setting the Maximum Sync Transfer
Rate for the tape unit down to 5.0. Didn’t make any difference.

3) Before installing NT 3.51, the problem was confined to backups.
Therefore, I decided to put the tape unit on a separate SCSI bus by
getting an Adaptec 1520 to hang it on. After incredible efforts I
finally found enough IRQ settings and addresses to get the two Adaptec
cards, the two I/O cards, the NIC card and the Soundblaster all
cooperating. Nevertheless, the problem continues. 

I am convinced that in all the above settings, something is wrong,
probably related to a timing issue of some sort. So before I throw
this whole thing in the river and get a Mac, can anyone who
understands hardware PLEASE HELP??????????????