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The AlphaNT Source
published by Aaron Sakovich
site updated

Frequently Answered Questions relating to Alpha and Windows NT.

Update v3.18, April 29, 2000

By

Aaron Sakovich

host of

The AlphaNT Sources

Questions:

Basics

Q. What is an Alpha?

A. The Alpha family of microprocessors are a high-performance, 64 bit, super scalar, super pipelined, RISC processor from Digital Equipment Corporation. The microprocessor was designed with a clean slate with no historical "baggage" (i.e., extra functions built in hardware to maintain backwards compatibility with previous implementations of CPUs) making for an efficient design. The design was made with a minimal number of restrictions and in a very open fashion. This allows growth of the Alpha architecture as new technologies become available and prevents the family from experiencing growth limitations due to architectural decisions made years or decades earlier. (An example would be the addition of the MVI -- Motion Video Instructions -- to the 21164PC implementation that allow the chip to decode multiple live video streams plus encode an MPEG video in software, in real time!) This "no limits" approach also makes the microprocessor flexible -- it supports a variety of operating systems through it's innovative PAL, and SMP is designed into the basic architecture.
 
The Alpha microprocessor broke performance records when introduced in 1992, and continues to do so 6 years later. The architectural roadmap for the Alpha microprocessor extends for 25 years with performance gains of over a factor of 1,000 planned for already.
 
Q. What's the big deal about 64 bits?
A. The amount of information that the microprocessor can process in one instruction cycle directly translates into performance gains. While most people think that this is the important feature of a 64 bit processor over a 32 bit processor, it's really only a portion of it. The real advantage is in the address space. A 32 bit processor can access data using a 32 bit index -- roughly 4 billion addresses. A 64 bit processor's address space is 4 billion times that size! In today's computing world, most applications may not need 64 bits of address space (that's 18 x 1018 addresses!), but a lot of applications are running out of room with 32 bit addresses. (Note: Intel's Xeon processor implemented a 36 bit address space using the standard kludge they used with the 8080 -> 8086 -> 80286 jumps -- adding 4 bits to the address space in an attempt to stop-gap their technology until Merced arrives on the scene in 1997, 1998, 1999, uh, 2000?)
 
To show the difference between 32 and 64 bit addressing, here are some examples in terms that human beings can perceive:

32 bits

64 bits
Index the surface area of planet Earth to 1/5 mile (300 m.) squares. Index the surface area of planet Earth to 0.2" (5mm.) squares.
Provide a realtime clock accurate to 1 second for a period of only 136 years. Provide a realtime clock accurate to 0.001 seconds for about 1/2 a billion years (5.85 e+8).
Able to count the population of the earth. Excluding China. And India. Able to count the population of the earth, including all known species of animals.
Able to count Bill Gates' net worth to the nearest 10 dollars. Able to count Bill Gates' current net worth to about the microcent.
Able to address IP v4 style addresses (xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx). IP v6 optimized for 64 bit architectures.
Able to index a 4 GByte disk drive to the last character. Able to index the entire Internet (see: "Alta Vista's Speed", in excess of 200 GBytes as of 1997).
Able to address up to 3 GB SQL databases on x86 Able to address up to 28 GB databases like the joint Microsoft/Compaq TerraServer which catalog's the entire planet's surface.
 
Q. Why should I care?
A. The Alpha microprocessor runs a variety of operating systems, including Microsoft's Windows NT. The Alpha was one of the first RISC processors to run NT, and is currently the only RISC platform supported by Microsoft. The reason is simple -- Alpha is the only microprocessor in the industry to offer serious competition to Intel's x86 family of microprocessors. Alpha has consistently outperformed all of Intel's micros and every other microprocessor in the industry since its introduction in 1992. Current generations of Alpha microprocessors aren't standing still either -- even using code written for x86 platforms and translated on the fly for the Alpha, applications run at Pentium II performance levels! Applications written for the Alpha can realize 2 or more times the performance of x86 systems. With the new Alpha DECchip 21164PC microprocessors that Digital, Samsung, and Mitsubishi are releasing, the cost is lower than Pentium price points while providing better than Pentium II performance!
 
The bottom line is that you can get better performance on an Alpha at commodity prices. The combination of Alpha and Windows NT offers a real alternative to commodity PCs and high-end UNIX workstations, at a lower cost, while delivering higher performance. Some combination!
 
Q. What are all these "EV" and "21xxx" designations?
A. The commercial product designation of the Alpha processor is a 5 digit (and sometimes one or two letters) product number. This number always starts with a "21" (as in 21st Century), a single digit to indicate the generation of processor, then 2 more digits that are usually "64" (this sometimes varied with older processors to indicate subtle variations). Following the number may be a letter or two to indicate variations of the processor, also. The following table of all processors to date should help.
Designation Processor Process Technology (microns) Speed Range
LCA4 21066 0.75 166 MHz
LCA4s 21068 0.75 66 MHz
LCA45 21066a 0.50 233 MHz
EV4 21064 0.75 100-200 MHz
EV45 21064a 0.50 225-300 MHz
EV5 21164 0.50 250-366 MHz
EV56 21164 0.35 300-700 MHz
PCA56 21164PC 0.35 400-533 MHz
PCA57 21164PCa? 0.25 500-600 MHz
EV6 21264 0.35 450-600 MHz
EV67 21264a 0.25 800 MHz +
EV68 21264b 0.18 1000 MHz +
EV7 21364 0.25 1200 MHz +
EV8 21464 <=0.18  
EV = Extended VAX (quite the anachronism, since it has little in common with the VAX). No, not Electro Vlasic, although that's a nice story.
LCA = Low Cost Alpha
PCA = PC Alpha
Miscellaneous notes: EV56 was originally called the 21164a, but the "a" designation was subsequently dropped. The PCA57 was pre-announced early this year, but has not been formally announced.

Compatibility

Some of the most frequently asked questions are regarding compatibility -- using a non-Intel compatible processor for running Windows is something new to a lot of people. Many folks have a large installed base of applications or must adhere to 'Corporate Standards' for applications. For those with the freedom to buy the best application for the job, native Alpha applications will provide the best performance; for those who must live with legacy x86 applications, Windows NT does provide backwards compatibility.

Q. Can you run DOS or Windows programs on an Alpha?
A. Yes, with some caveats. Like any NT platform, you cannot run an application that directly accesses hardware -- a specific example would be a device driver for a video capture board -- Alpha native drivers are required.
 
Q. Can you run Windows '95 or NT applications compiled for Intel processors on an Alpha?
A. Yes, Digital has released FX!32, a 32 bit Intel application emulator and translator. This tool is available from Digital's FX!32 site. More information about FX!32 is available there, also.
 
Q. Can I run the native Word 97 and/or Excel 97 with x86 Office 97 components?
A. No; all these applications use the MSO97.DLL, a shared DLL for all office applications. Depending on which components you load first, the subsequent alternative architecture installation will overwrite this file, making the initial components fail.
If this kind of problem irritates you, you might want to visit the Open Letter To Microsoft and see how you can help change it!
Some have successfully installed the x86 applications (e.g., PowerPoint or Outlook) that they need to run, moved the MSO97.DLL to a temporary location, installed the Alpha native applications they need, then move the x86 MSO97.DLL to the /Program Files (x86) tree. YMMV, this configuration is unsupported, and there may be restrictions on what functionality is available in this environment.
Thanks to Peter Lizon and Jim Colwell
 
Q. Which Alpha systems will run NT?
A. Digital's original Alpha systems only ran Digital UNIX (nee DEC OSF/1) and OpenVMS. They were on the market for over a year before Windows NT was introduced on the platform in the summer of '93. In that time frame, several systems were introduced that did not run Windows NT. These systems included all the TurboChannel and FutureBus+ based systems, including:
 
DEC 3000 family (Flamingo, Pelican, HotPink, etc.)
DEC 4000 Model 610, 620, 710, and 720 (Cobra)
DEC 7000 series (Laser)

Any Alpha system with a PCI or EISA bus can run Windows NT -- this includes everything from the DEC 2000 Models 300 & 500 (aka DECpc AXP 150 or Jensen) all the way to the 14 processor AlphaServer 8400 (TurboLaser).

 
Q. Does my 'xyzzy' board work on an Alpha?
A. There are a lot of supported options for the Alpha. A good place to start looking is at the Microsoft Windows Hardware Quality Labs (WHQL) where they keep the latest copy of the Hardware Compatibility List (HCL).
 
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File & disk systems

Q. How do I partition my disks to use NTFS?
A. The ARC (Advanced RISC Computer) architecture standard calls for a System partition on RISC computers that uses the FAT file system. However, the specification does allow you to implement your Boot partition as an NTFS drive. Note the distinction between a System and Boot partition -- it may appear to be backwards when compared to most conventions. The System partition is the drive that contains the basic files required to load the operating system kernel; the Boot partition contains all of the operating system and application files. The requirement is for a 10 MByte System partition (allowing for multiple boots with different OS versions) and the remainder of the disk, the Boot partition.
To create the partitions, choose "Run a program..." and execute "CD:\ALPHA\ARCINST.EXE". Create your boot partition of all but 10 MBytes of the available space on your disk, then create your system partition with the remaining 10 MBytes.
After you have created your partitions, you can change the drive letters associated with them, making your Boot partition the C: drive (which makes the system more compatible with DOS and Windows programs' expectations), and the System, D:, or even E: after your CD-ROM.
 
Q. ARCINST doesn't work! What can I do?
A. There are a couple of problems with the ARCINST.EXE that is shipped on Microsoft's CD. Digital has posted a fixed version on their Enterprise Windows InfoCenter and a copy exists in Aaron's Alpha Applications Archive in the Utilities area.
This version will allow the initial boot disk to be formatted NTFS (see the caveat about the System partition above), will also allow for disks larger than 2 GBytes, and will allow you to create non-System partitions.
 
Q. How do I create boot floppies to install NT?
A. You don't have to!
You can install Windows NT directly from the ARC console. Watch the screen during the boot process; when the screen displays ARC MUltiboot Alpha AXP... On the menu, select the Supplementary menu option. This will give you another menu -- one of the items is Install Windows NT from CD-ROM.
If your system comes up in the SRM console (that is with a >>> boot prompt) just type ARC (on UDB, AXPpci, and Multia systems) or SET OS_TYPE NT (on all others) and hit the return key. When the boot prompt reappears, power cycle your system or type ARC. The ARC console will come up as the default from now on.
If you need to format the drive first, you can run ARCINST.EXE (which is on the CD). Instructions are included in the release notes.
 
Q. How do I use a {ZIP|JAZ} drive?
A. SCSI removable drive support is built in to NT and no additional drivers are required. The DISK.SYS driver found in NT can also support special features in drives that require special handling (like up to a 2K sector size, special hardware buffering on the drive, etc.) The more drivers and software ruinning on the system the more that can (and often will) go wrong, especially if they did not come with NT. Think in terms of less, not more. The functionality you lose by not using ZIP/JAZ tools is offset by the functionality gained using native format and disk admin tools. The copy machine utility (ZIP/JAZ) can be achieved just as well with native NT software, and only the software locking of disks makes a compelling argument for using these tools, provided you actually require software locked disks. You can only get NTFS (which is only useful for JAZ, not ZIP due to MFT overhead) with native NT formats as well as forced cluster sizes (only if you know what you are doing) with native NT format commands and the disk admin.
 
With Service Pack 4 of NT 4.0, you can now effectively use the ATAPI/IDE versions of the ZIP and JAZ drives on Alphas.
 
Delete and destroy all ZIP/JAZ tools software shipped with the drives and use native NT tools (see the File Archive on this site). No Norton tools (with antivirus drivers) are going to work either, this is Intel compiled code.
 
Do not use a parallel port drive -- it will not work. If you need inter-system portability, consider getting a parallel-to-SCSI converter and a SCSI drive. You'll realize better performance on those systems that do have native SCSI, and parallel performance on systems without.
Special thanks to Kirk Erichsen
Q. Is there any CD Recording software for Alpha NT?
A. There are currently 3 known solutions, and they offer varying capabilities depending on your needs.

Back to questions

Internet resources

Q. Where can I find applications (freeware, shareware, or demos) for the Alpha processor running NT?
A. Several places. Aaron alphaman Sakovich has created an archive of Alpha NT software accessible through the following sites:

Additionally, Walnut Creek CD-ROM has created an archive at http://www.cdrom.com/pub/windows/alpha/ (this archive has recently disappeared; watch to see if it reappears).

 
Q. Are there any Alpha NT specific resources on the Internet?
A. The new AlphaNT mail list is now available! All the subscribers to the old mail lists on "garply" and at Rockwell have been moved over to the new list. New subscribers should send an email to alphant-robot@alphant.com with the body text "SUBSCRIBE ALPHANT". A digest version is also available, and this can be set by sending "DIGEST ALPHANT" instead. Send email to the list at alphant@alphant.com. Complete instructions are available via the Mail List option on this site.

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Network tools

Q. Are there any good native terminal emulators?
A. Yes! In addition to several commercial applications, like KeaTerm from KeaSystems, there's also a native X server available -- eXcursion, now included in the PATHWORKS 32 distribution-- which will allow you to create an Xterm or DECterm on your host in addition to running other X/Motif applications. PATHWORKS 32 also includes VT320 and PowerTerm 525, both Alpha native.
 
Kermit-95 is now available for the Alpha processor from Columbia University. Van Dyke Technologies has released CRT, a VT220 emulator also. More can be found in the Internet tools section of the AlphaNT file archive.
 
Q. What Web browsers are available for Alpha NT?
A. There are many known browsers as of this writing. They include:
 
Q. How do I get Internet Explorer to work with Java apps?
A. Microsoft has released an add-in for IE that needs to be downloaded from their Website.
IE 3.0x: To do this successfully, you'll need to enable Active-X components before connecting to the page. Active-X components can be enabled by selecting the following menu path: View - Options... - Security - Enable ActiveX controls and plug-ins. Then, go to the Microsoft Java Website and get the page Downloading the Java VM for Internet Explorer 3.02, DEC Alpha NT 4.0 platform... The Java VM will automatically download and install on your machine. In typical Microsoft fashion, you will need to reboot to enable the functionality.
IE 4.01: Select the desired options from the Internet Explorer 4.0 Component Download page.
 
Q. What mail clients can be used?
A. Both of the 16-bit applications, Eudora Light and Pegasus mail, work fine on the Alpha platform. With NT v4.0, the Windows Messaging mail system is included, providing a native POP3 client. Netscape Navigator 3.0 includes a native mail client, and a PINE implementation is available from the file archive. Exchange v5.x client (available separately) and Outlook Express (IE 4.01) are also available from Microsoft.

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Printing and Scanning

Q. How do I add Intel (or other platform's) printer drivers to an Alpha system so my clients won't have to load them individually?
A. This does not allow you to run x86 printer drivers on an Alpha -- it allows x86 clients to load their drivers from an Alpha print server.

That depends on if you're running version 3.51 or 3.5 of NT (note that version 4.0 allows you to load drivers for any platform on the print server). To summarize, you need to select "Other..." for a driver, then select the appropriate Intel based driver. In detail (Intel example):

3.51:

  1. Create a new printer to use the Intel driver (Printer - Create Printer)
  2. Supply a new Printer Name:, select the appropriate Print To: destination, provide a Description:, then select Other... for a Driver:
  3. Change the directory to <cdrom>:\i386 from the Install Driver dialog (substitute the drive letter for your <cdrom>)
  4. Pick the appropriate printer from the Select Driver dialog
  5. Continue setting up the printer Setup..., Details..., and Settings... as usual

3.5:

  1. Create a temporary directory for Intel drivers (e.g., MKDIR D:\WIN32APP\DRIVERS)
  2. Expand the PRINTER.INF file from the installation CD to this directory (e.g., EXPAND E:\I386\PRINTER.IN_ D:\WIN32APP\DRIVERS\PRINTER.INF
  3. Proceed with steps #1 and #2 as in 3.51 above
  4. Change the directory to D:\WIN32APP\DRIVERS or whatever directory selected in #1 above
  5. Change the Source Directory: to <cdrom^gt;:\I386 in the Select Driver dialog, and continue with steps #4 and #5 as in 3.51 above
 
Q. What scanners can be used with an Alpha?
A. Most all SCSI scanners should work with FX!32 v1.4 now. This is one circumstance where a "driver" (i.e., the TWAIN driver) supplied as 32 bit x86 code works under FX!32. TWAIN "drivers" are not kernel-mode device drivers, which FX!32 can not process; they are user-mode components that simply export a known interface. An application that supports the TWAIN interface can load TWAIN "drivers" and do image acquires. A TWAIN "driver" knows how to drive a particular image acquisition device -- it can do this a number of ways: via ASPI, a kernel-mode driver, invoking another application, etc. If you have adevice which works on Alpha (via FX!32 or otherwise) and there is a TWAIN "driver" for that device, you should be able to make things work. FX!32 v1.4 contains a plugin-provider which should allow for cross-architecture TWAIN support.
 
The only hitch is that to date, it's only been able to work when the TWAIN manager DLL in \WinNT (i.e, TWAIN32.DLL) is x86 code.
 
This has been tested with both AGFA scanners that use the FotoLook software and the newer 32 bit HP scanner software that uses WinASPI. In theory, this should work with digital cameras, too. If you have other successes, let us know so that this FAQ can be updated!

Contributed by Tom Evans, tom.evans@digital.com

Back to questions

Hardware

 
Q. Is anyone making Alpha clones?
A. Yes! Check out this list of Alpha system vendors on the Alpha NT Sources page.
 
Q. Where can I get firmware updates for my Digital Alpha system?
A. Digital stores the latest revisions of firmware on ftp.digital.com/private/fwaxp. Note that the top level directory is "private" and protected so you can't just browse the server to find it -- you must specify the path exactly.
For Web surfers, you can also find Web references via Digital's Windows NT pages, which include both firmware and drivers.
Q. How do I enable sound on my{Multia|AlphaStation}?
A. The Multia and the AlphaStation series of workstations use an embedded chipset that emulates the Microsoft Sound System, a standard option available in the list of drivers included on the NT CD. The sound system is set to the same defaults as what the drivers expect.
Q. What modems easily work on Alphas?
Several basic types of modems work without any effort above a normal NT installation, as long as you follow some simple guidelines:
  1. External modems are platform and OS-independant -- Just change the cables.
  2. Watch out when buying ISA modems as they fall into 3 classes:
    1. Physically open up the box to see if the card has jumpers. If it doesn't, then it's strictly a "Plug & Pray" model and won't work with NT or an Alpha.
    2. The modem may also be of older design where it has the "classic" COM1-4 & IRQ jumper settings.
    3. Lastly, it may be a "hybrid" job with a single row of 14 jumper pairs, where if the first 10 jumper pairs are "jumped" the modem initializes into plug & play mode; or individual jumper pairs can be picked for manually selecting the COM & IRQ.
  3. Internal modems can accept standard settings utilizing port defaults for COM3 or COM4 so as not to conflict with existing COM ports.
  4. 56K modems (both x2 and K-Flex) will work in external models, but some may not be recognized in internal implementations.

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The Alpha NT Source

Last revised Friday, 30 June 2000

AlphaMan

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Windows NT is a trademark of Microsoft.

The AlphaNT Source website and its contents Copyright © 1998,1999,2000 by Aaron C. Sakovich
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