Cairnsmore1 - Quad XC6SLX150 Board

[spiccioli]

I have just put what I think is the simplified instructions for Windows users to flash the Twin build into Cairnsmore1. It's linked on http://www.enterpoint.co.uk/cairnsmore/cairnsmore1_support_materials.html .

I have not tested the flow yet of this document so there might be something I missed but I will test it on myself probably in the morning. If anyone using it spots anything let me know and I will update it accordingly.

yohan,

on page 11, of Virtual Box Installation Windows, there still is a space between -I and xc6lx150.bit.

spiccioli

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[yohan]

I have just put what I think is the simplified instructions for Windows users to flash the Twin build into Cairnsmore1. It's linked on http://www.enterpoint.co.uk/cairnsmore/cairnsmore1_support_materials.html .

I have not tested the flow yet of this document so there might be something I missed but I will test it on myself probably in the morning. If anyone using it spots anything let me know and I will update it accordingly.

yohan,

on page 11, of Virtual Box Installation Windows, there still is a space between -I and xc6lx150.bit.

spiccioli

It's sorted and I also changed the bistream filename to be correct as well. Changed font as well to make spaces more obvious.

[yohan]

Pricing structure post a standard performance level bitstream is now published on http://www.enterpoint.co.uk/cairnsmore/cairnsmore1.html. I will post here in this thread when the changeover happens.

Anyone who has ordered already remains at the offer price even if delivery is later and is paid for July-September.

The re-order offer remains in place until the end of September. For anyone that doesn't know about it you can order the same amount again July to September as what you have ordered and paid for under the current pre-order offer. This offer is closed now to new orders. Only orders already placed will benefit.

[ebereon]

After some more testing I'm stuck at 79Mh/s with the shipping bitstream.

twin_test don't work in temp or SPI mode. I get ~20 shares really fast, then the unit turn on the orange led and I get no more shares. The red led on the fpga's is still flashing but not hashing.

SPI programming is working without any problems.

[gigantic]

Hi   

ok, at this stage i eliminate all other possibilites, the problem is CGminer for me,, when i downloaded it from enterpoint, it had 2 files, the twin and shipping, but when try to run it, it says libcurl.DLL is missing, so i downloaded the regular cgminer, and placed all the files inside the enterpoint cgminer, and its working for several minutes, after that, the USB is disappearing completly, with no way but to shutdown the computer in order to see the crairnsmore1 again on the device manager, so the problem is CGMiner! any help i appreciate!

oh, and this is the command i am runing-

cgminer_twintest -o pit.deepbit.net:8332 -u xxxxxxxxxxxx -p xxxxxx --disable-gpu -S \\.\COM20 -S \\.\COM21 -S \\.\COM22 -S \\.\COM23


Please help!

Thanks

[testconpastas2]

ebereon twin_test is working for me.  ( more or less)  

It's true it isn't too stable. After some time  one or some of them stops accepting shares. they seems to be hashing ( according to cgminer) but no shares are acepted. usually the fpga/boards failing are always the same.

I'm begining to think its some kind of overheating (it seems to fail more without Air Condit.) or usb issue ( sometimes usb makes sounds like installing.)   when enterpoint implement temperature control and up/down cable we could check it.

Im grouping boards to try to find a pattern.

my 12 boards running before they began to fail

http://img443.imageshack.us/img443/2310/cairnsmore12.jpg

[testconpastas2]

Hi  

ok, at this stage i eliminate all other possibilites, the problem is CGminer for me,, when i downloaded it from enterpoint, it had 2 files, the twin and shipping, but when try to run it, it says libcurl.DLL is missing, so i downloaded the regular cgminer, and placed all the files inside the enterpoint cgminer, and its working for several minutes, after that, the USB is disappearing completly, with no way but to shutdown the computer in order to see the crairnsmore1 again on the device manager, so the problem is CGMiner! any help i appreciate!

oh, and this is the command i am runing-

cgminer_twintest -o pit.deepbit.net:8332 -u xxxxxxxxxxxx -p xxxxxx --disable-gpu -S \\.\COM20 -S \\.\COM21 -S \\.\COM22 -S \\.\COM23


Please help!

Thanks

most of my first problems were my usb hubs.

i had to "Un-power" mine becouse when they were powered i couldnt plug more than 4 or 5.

I disconected all unused devices to free IRQs  ( bluethooth, motherboard COM and LPT ports...)  i dont know what was but now things are working better. ( at least i can plug all my boards)

Sometimes usb fails and i have to unplug all of them and then start pluging one by one

[testconpastas2]

gigantic : try  to plug only clairnsmore's  (cm) to  one usb hub  ,  if cm  disconnects then unplug all of them and uninstall the usb hub  from windows...

after uninstalling check for new hardware and usb hub will be installed again. Then plug  cm's one by one and  after that you should have all com ports available .

if you have just programmed  your cm then turn it off after you had changed the sw1 3 to on.

[hm]

thank you, ebereon, for finding the bug in enterpoints documentation.

Board #62-0017 status:

• successfully flashed firmware version 1.1
• successfully flashed twin_test to all FPGAs permanently
• mining with enterpoints cgminer release on eligius pool, started 17:30 UTC (~1h ago)
• both "CM 0 thread 0" and "CM 1 thread 1" are hashing
• eligius  "15 minutes average": 17:45 ~140MH/s, 18:00 ~120MH/s, 18:15 ~160MH/s, 18:30 ~205MH/s, 18:45 ~175MH/s

I'm curious if the average will be at around 380MH/s in some hours.
Looking at the few averages since I started hashing, I would expect around 190MH/s.
Wouldn't this be too low for twin_test bitstream?
OTOH, perhaps I just have to keep hashing a day or so to get more luck and better averages.

[ebereon]

Update to my board #62-0015:

• successfully flashed controller firmware version 1.1 (some days ago)
• successfully flashed twin_test to FPGA0 and 3 permanently
• Switch settings for twin_test.bit
• mining with enterpoints cgminer is not working, only 10-20 shares, then it stops
• LED showing the first 10-20 shares: the orange turn off when red flashes on job, green flashes once when share is found
• LED showing after 10-20 shares: the orange turn off when red flashes on job, orange turn on again after 0.1 - 1 second, no green and no more shares
• same on cgminer 2.4.3 and mpbm and bfgminer 2.4.3

I tested futher with SW6 1 on (57600 baud). This is also the fpga frequency, I tested it with my modified cgminer 2.4.4 with changed the baud rate in the icarus driver to 57600 and then i used the --icarus-timing short. It changed the timing to the dubble as when i used 115200 baud rate on the cgminer 2.4.3 (115200 baud). So it should now operate at ~ 190Mh/s.

• LED showing on my mod. cgminer: the orange turn off when red flashes on job, green flashes once when share is found
• only from time to time the orange led is turn on in the middle of jobprocessing, but turn off again on new job(red flashing)

This let me more think on a frequency problem with my board, but why it was working better earlier (some days ago)? Now I can do anything but I don't get my board working with 115200 baud and 380Mh/s again as befor? Even with the temporary mode  

Is there someone with the same behavor? If you want to test with my modified cgminer and SW6 1 on? Here is the link to the windows binary and the source -> http://www.wuala.com/ebereon/Shared/bitcoin/cgminer/ (only icarus support is compiled in!)

[hm]

Is there someone with the same behavor? If you want to test with my modified cgminer and SW6 1 on? Here is the link to the windows binary and the source -> http://www.wuala.com/ebereon/Shared/bitcoin/cgminer/ (only icarus support is compiled in!)

my results after quick and superficial test:

• enterpoints cgminer only works when SW6#1 is on.
• ebereons cgminer with or without --icarus-timing=short only works when SW6#1 is on.
• SW6#1=off does not work for enterpoints cgminer and ebereons cgminer.
• ebereons cgminer with --icarus-timing=short seems to hash between 120 and 190Mh/s total for the last 30 minutes. tomorrow evening I can give more hash rate averages.

I wonder if high quality usb cables make a difference to cheap chinese usb cables in terms of hash rate or other things? I know that some USB printers are very picky with usb cables. and which type of usb cable is the one included?

Have to sleep now for some hours ... tomorrow is the first day on my new job.

[ebereon]

Is there someone with the same behavor? If you want to test with my modified cgminer and SW6 1 on? Here is the link to the windows binary and the source -> http://www.wuala.com/ebereon/Shared/bitcoin/cgminer/ (only icarus support is compiled in!)

my results after quick and superficial test:

• enterpoints cgminer only works when SW6#1 is on.
• ebereons cgminer with or without --icarus-timing=short only works when SW6#1 is on.
• SW6#1=off does not work for enterpoints cgminer and ebereons cgminer.
• ebereons cgminer with --icarus-timing=short seems to hash between 120 and 190Mh/s total for the last 30 minutes. tomorrow evening I can give more hash rate averages.

enterpoint have 2 cgminers.

• cgminer_shipping_build.exe (57600 baud, very old 2.3.4 and without --icarus-timing option)
• cgminer_twintest.exe (115200 baud, very old 2.3.4 and without --icarus-timing option)

SW6#1 on = 57600 baud
SW6#1 off = 115200 baud

My dirty cgminer is like the enterpoints "cgminer_shipping_build.exe" but from the actual git 2.4.4 with --icarus-timing option. So you need to set the switch SW6#1 on = 57600 baud! It's only for those with problems like me.

I wonder if high quality usb cables make a difference to cheap chinese usb cables in terms of hash rate or other things? I know that some USB printers are very picky with usb cables. and which type of usb cable is the one included?

I tested 5 different usb cables, with and without powered hub. No changes on the behavor here.

[eldentyrell]

Hello,

Please tell me which FPGA pin is used for the primary clock input and what frequency that clock input runs at.

Please email me the answer; I don't read this thread.

[ebereon]

Update on my hashrate now:
1 hour average = 166Mh/s (SW6#1 on, with my dirty cgminer - nothing else is working except shipping bitstream at 76Mh/s)

[hm]

Sorry, I didn't have the same problems as you, so my tests probably won't help you.
I was still using the first released cgminer from enterpoint (2012-06-14/15).
your dirty cgminer just stopped solving shares, and orange leds are on. I'll abort it now and test enterpoints newer cgminer.
have a good night.

[ebereon]

Hello,

Please tell me which FPGA pin is used for the primary clock input and what frequency that clock input runs at.

Please email me the answer; I don't read this thread.

@eldentyrell: thanks for taking a look in here  

@yohan: please give eldentyrell that information!

[Keninishna]

oddly for me to flash my spi I had to have all switches down on SW1 and SW6. Just for some input.

[yohan]

Hello,

Please tell me which FPGA pin is used for the primary clock input and what frequency that clock input runs at.

Please email me the answer; I don't read this thread.

@eldentyrell: thanks for taking a look in here  

@yohan: please give eldentyrell that information!

Details sent.

[yohan]

Ok a couple of things we have observed partially from all your comments and things we have see here:

First thing is on Linux machines there may be a problem with USB3 ports. We think that might be a Linux driver problem.

Powering up the 12V supply to your Cairnsmore1 before plugging in USB may help as will a reasonable power USB hub. We think there is an inital surge that in some PCs upsets the host controller. With the 12V powered first the on-board regulator supplies the power rather than a big impluse demand on the USB. A powered USB hub shields the host from the main part of the inital surge which is why it helps. Power hubs can have different rating but if sepcs are available go for one with 500mA capability, or better, on each port.

 

[spiccioli]

Ok a couple of things we have observed partially from all your comments and things we have see here:

First thing is on Linux machines there may be a problem with USB3 ports. We think that might be a Linux driver problem.

Powering up the 12V supply to your Cairnsmore1 before plugging in USB may help as will a reasonable power USB hub. We think there is an inital surge that in some PCs upsets the host controller. With the 12V powered first the on-board regulator supplies the power rather than a big impluse demand on the USB. A powered USB hub shields the host from the main part of the inital surge which is why it helps. Power hubs can have different rating but if sepcs are available go for one with 500mA capability, or better, on each port.

yohan,

I'd say powered usb hubs are a must, I cannot attach more than three boards to my pc if not through a powered usb hub (if I try all kind of problems happen to the point that the whole pc freezes - btw, it's not a PC but an HP thin client, this could be part of my problem).

How much power (max power) does the board take from the usb port?

spiccioli.