Apple Network Server 700/150 "Shiner" on eBay UK

[MacMan]

Anyone who's listened to the most recent episode of RetroMacCast will have heard all about these by now. There's one of them on eBay UK at the moment, :LINK. Since it is so large it is pickup only. Unfortunately it is a bit out of my way but someone on the forum may be closer if they would like to give it a home!

 

[The Macster]

Wow, a Network Server! :O Can't imagine anyone having space for something that size though...

 

[Quadraman]

Holy crap! Shiner.info says they ran AIX. Unfortunately shipping would be so high for me it would cheaper for me to buy a discount airline ticket and go pick it up in person and bring it back in the cargo hold of the plane than to have it shipped.

 

[MacMan]

Haha, yeah. They don't come up very often on eBay and I think this is the first time I've ever seen one on eBay UK. It would make a nice (and functional) coffee table for someone...

 

[alk]

Holy crap! Shiner.info says they ran AIX. Unfortunately shipping would be so high for me it would cheaper for me to buy a discount airline ticket and go pick it up in person and bring it back in the cargo hold of the plane than to have it shipped.

Nevermind that it's pickup only. ;-)

As for AIX, they couldn't have picked a more dead-end operating system choice. Thanks, Apple. IBM won't support it on AIX over 4.1.5, Mac OS won't run on it (though it would be interesting to try OS X with some workarounds by installing it on a 9500 first and rumor has it that some people have managed to get it boot 7/8/9 by swapping ROMs), and apparently it is even difficult to install Linux!

But don't get me wrong, it is otherwise a very awesome machine. I wanted (and still do, I suppose) one to run as a webserver in my basement.

Peace,

Drew

 

[MacMan]

But don't get me wrong, it is otherwise a very awesome machine. I wanted (and still do, I suppose) one to run as a webserver in my basement.

The website http://shiner.info/ runs on an ANS, quite appropriately. One of these things would be a great web server and you could quite easily serve a busy website for a large company on one.

 

[trag]

Mac OS won't run on it (though it would be interesting to try OS X with some workarounds by installing it on a 9500 first and rumor has it that some people have managed to get it boot 7/8/9 by swapping ROMs), and apparently it is even difficult to install Linux!

Can't be done, unless the ROM one means is a special, never-released ROM especially made to allow the ANS to boot the Mac OS.

The Open Firmware in these machines does not dynamically allocate interrupt signals. The interrupt assignments are fixed in the firmware.

The ANS has interrupts assigned differently than one would find in the PM9500. So, if one attempted to boot an ANS with a PM9500 ROM, it would work up to the point where the machine attempted to service one of the interrupts which is connected differently on the ANS from the PM9500.

Now, a 9500 ROM with the interrupt assignments rewritten should work--and if one could add drivers for the on-board F&W SCSI chips and built-in video that would be even cooler.

BTW, if anyone ever runs across that special ROM, or someone who has one of those special ROMs, please let me know. I have the means to copy it into shiny new ROM modules, which will plug into the stock ROM slot.