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#1 2008-03-30 1:44 pm
- vjmacaddict
- Member
- From: California
- Registered: 2005-07-08
- Posts: 37
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PM9600 System Error Type -127
Our PM9600 was working just fine, until this morning. It started to boot, loaded all the extensions, then the bomb!! System error type -127.
I tried rebooting several times, same problem. Tried booting from Norton, Tech Tool Pro, and Disk Warrior, but the same error appears. I tried holding down the S key to turn off extensions, and also held down the C key to start from the CDs, but didn't work.
Any ideas? Is this PM toast? What can I do to get it to boot and try using a disk utility application?
-- Jim
+_+_+_+_+_+_+
-- vjamacaddict, G4 iBook, OS X 10.4.8, 768RAM, Bluetooth, Superdrive
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#2 2008-03-30 4:16 pm
- Mr. T
- Uses STOS implicitly
- From: omnipresent
- Registered: 2002-04-02
- Posts: 3658
Re: PM9600 System Error Type -127
Error codes -- I remember these...
-127 is a file system error (according to Apple). Sounds like software, but there could still be a deeper root cause.
What happens when you try booting from the CD. How does it fail? Doe it start to boot from the CD, but fail to finish? In this case, disconnect the internal hard drive and try booting again from the CD -- report back. If the machine will not even attempt to boot from the CD, then zap the pram. If that fails, then hold the CUDA button for several seconds, and try again.
Last edited by Mr. T (2008-03-30 4:18 pm)
while (1) {fork();}
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#3 2008-03-31 8:46 am
- pottymouth
- Uncreative
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- From: JP, MA
- Registered: 2002-02-06
- Posts: 17109
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Re: PM9600 System Error Type -127
Are you using the original keyboard and mouse?
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#4 2008-03-31 7:34 pm
- vjmacaddict
- Member
- From: California
- Registered: 2005-07-08
- Posts: 37
- Website
Re: PM9600 System Error Type -127
pottymouth wrote:
Are you using the original keyboard and mouse?
The keyboard and mouse shouldn't make any difference!! I'm using our trusty MacPride keyboard and MacAlly mouse. Now that I installed the USB card, I can use a USB keyboard and mouse.
I cracked open the 9600 .... The inside was already very clean!! I reseated the RAM, took the PRAM battery from my dead 7300 and replaced the dead PRAM battery in the 9600. Installed two HDs from my dead 7300, and added the USB card from the 7300. Also, took the RAM from the 7300 and added to the 9600, so now there should be 584MB of RAM on the 9600.
Put everything together .... Now the 9600 does boot .... One of the previous problems seems to be the CD-ROM ... Not sure, but maybe it is not connected internally correctly? That probably explains why I couldn't boot from any of the CDs!!! I will need to open up the 9600 and change the plug for the CD-ROM to see if that works.
I'm running Disk Warrior from another internal HD (from my original G3 Blue & White, which is dead). Seems to be working ok. I need to figure out how to get the CD-ROM working, so I can try booting up from DiskWarrior, Norton, or TechTool Pro, and run the disk utilities and repairs.
I'd like to get a new, small HD (40-60GB, IDE?) for this 9600, maybe even a new SCSI HD (6-9GB?). Any suggestions??
-- vjmacaddict
+_+_+_+_+_+_+
-- vjamacaddict, G4 iBook, OS X 10.4.8, 768RAM, Bluetooth, Superdrive
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#5 2008-03-31 11:37 pm
- Mr. T
- Uses STOS implicitly
- From: omnipresent
- Registered: 2002-04-02
- Posts: 3658
Re: PM9600 System Error Type -127
Yes, the CD-ROM would've been my next guess. Glad you figured it out, though.
As far as hard drives go, I take it you have an IDE adapter card (if you're running the HD from your B&W)? In that case, don't waste your money on a small, sluggish SCSI HD -- go with IDE. As for which brand, I'm partial to Western Digital, but HD quality is more a function of cost, than anything else. For a "classic" machine like yours, I'd get the cheapest one you can find that meets your storage needs. Newegg usually has some good deals, and you might find some deals in your sunday paper, as well.
while (1) {fork();}
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#6 2008-04-01 5:18 am
Re: PM9600 System Error Type -127
Unless you mean SATA, a good SCSI card/drive easily beat out anything IDE. You get what you pay for (in terms of both money and effort).
.tsooJ
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#7 2008-04-02 7:42 pm
- dv
- Negusa Negest
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- From: Minneapolis, MN
- Registered: 1999-08-30
- Posts: 16976
Re: PM9600 System Error Type -127
vjmacaddict wrote:
pottymouth wrote:
Are you using the original keyboard and mouse?
The keyboard and mouse shouldn't make any difference!!
Famous last words. 
Seriously - if something is wrong with the kb or mouse, especially but not only if you're using the ADB variety, all sorts of crazy-assed stuff can happen.
"Now commences the process of cutting off the head, which generally takes from an hour to an hour and a half by an expert workman with a sharp blade." -Reuben Delano, Wanderings and Adventures
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#8 2008-05-05 8:44 pm
- Tom_N
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- Registered: 2002-01-24
- Posts: 887
Re: PM9600 System Error Type -127
There were varying levels of SCSI.
As I recall, Apple motherboards always used the lowest two levels ... SCSI-1 and SCSI-2. The PM 9600 probably has SCSI-1 (5 MB / second) for the external port and SCSI-2 (10 MB / second) for the internal drives. I think there were forms of SCSI that went up to 160 MB or 320 MB per second, but for those, you needed to install an expensive ($500?) controller card.
Note that USB 1.x is 1.5 MB / second. So even SCSI-1 smoked USB (on transfer rate) for scanners and external hard drives.
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