1. Win2000XP.zip Driver
2. Readme.txt File Contents

Readme.txt Driver File Contents (Win2000XP.zip)

Installation Information for RBD PCI Board and Drivers for Windows 2000 (TM)



BOARD INSTALLATION


IMPORTANT: It is highly recommended that installation of the PCI board and drivers be performed by a qualified technician. Also, note that you must be logged on as a user with admistrative rights in order to perform the installation of the driver. 

The RBD PCI board is a standard Plug and Play PCI card, and may be installed in any available PCI slot. The board does not use bus mastering, and so it can be installed in a shared PCI/ISA slot, however this is not recommended as a first choice.



DRIVER INSTALLATION


After rebooting the PC, the board should be recognized as new hardware ("PCI Bridge") and you will be prompted for a driver. Browse to the location of the driver files (if this is a floppy installtion, the driver files are in the Win2000 directory). The driver information file is "RBD147.inf", the driver file is "RBD147.sys".

After installation, you can use the Devices tool from the Windows 2000 Control Panel to determine that the installation was successful. There should be an "RBD147" device listed. Check the Properties of the device to ensure it is enabled.

If the device is not enabled and there is no error listed in the Properties (i.e. "This device could not be enabled..."), you can try enabling it manually from here, then rebooting. Note, however, that this can cause undesired side effects (see the Troubleshooting section below).

If the device is enabled but the system locks up or cannot be rebooted, simply boot Windows into "Safe Mode" to and disable the device. Then check the troubleshooting section below.



TROUBLESHOOTING


	* Board is not recognized by Plug and Play system after installing:

From Control Panel, choose Add New Hardware, and tell Windows to look for your new hardware. If it is still not detected, turn the PC off and try reseating the board or moving it to a different slot.



	* Board is recognized as an "Unknown Device" and will not install RBD147 driver:

Turn the PC off and try reseating the board. If this does not work there is likely a problem with the board itself. Contact RBD for further assistance.



	* Driver installs but cannot be enabled, Windows reports a problem with the device:
	* Networking or other system hardware no longer functions, Windows reports a problem with one or more of those devices:

This is most likely caused by an interrupt conflict. Windows may not report any conflicts however, because it may disable other hardware first.

If the RBD PCI board cannot be enabled, it should still report an IRQ number in it's Device Properties. Note this value, and see the Windows 2000 admin tools to list the hardware resources used. See if any of the IRQ numbers match that used by the RBD device.  The RBD board can share intterupts, however some other devices may not be able to and will cause a conflict if reporting incorrectly (this often happens with USB devices)

If another device has failed since installing the RBD PCI board, check the RBD device properties for the IRQ value, and see if any other boards are reporting the same value. Often, network boards will report that there is no value assigned since the device is not functioning.

Often, this problem can be solved by using a different slot for the RBD board, or for the conflicting hardware, or both. IF YOUR SYSTEM IS MANAGED BY AN IS DEPARTMENT OR YOU ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH YOUR NETWORK OPERATION, DO NOT MOVE THE NETWORK CARD (OR OTHER IMPORTANT HARDWARE) OR CHANGE SETTINGS. REFER THIS SERVICE TO A QUALIFIED PERSON

If swapping boards does not work, you may need to change your pc BIOS settings or update your BIOS, or take other action to affect the way the Plug and Play system assigns resources. Contact your PC manufacturer for assistance. Often, the solution is to remove an unused hardware resource (for example, the USB port), and/or change the way the Plug and Play system boots (from the BIOS or Windows). Also, there may be resource assignments for ISA boards no longer used by the system. Confiquration of these resources is usually part of the BIOS setup and/or operating system settings.



AN IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT RBD SUPPORT FOR PCI BOARD INSTALLATION:

The most likely cause of a problem with the RBD PCI board is a conflict with another PC resource, usually another PCI board. The Plug and Play operation of the PCI system is a function of the PC BIOS and operating system. PCI board manufacturers do not control the IRQ settings assigned under Plug and Play, and there are a limited number of IRQs available. As a matter of fact, it is even possible that there are no more IRQs avialable for additional hardware. Although the RBD PCI board can share interrupts, you may need to disable another device in order to install the RBD PCI board.

If you were able to successfully install the RBD drivers, it is usually the case that the board is functioning properly. While we will do all that is possible to assist you in enabling the device (including replacing the board if it appears there is a hardware problem), we cannot update your PC BIOS for you, nor assist in changing your Plug and Play system settings. There are a large number of BIOS confiqurations, PC manufacturers, etc., and they, along with Microsoft, are responsible for operation of the Plug and Play system under Windows 2000.

Also, keep in mind that if your system has been modified/maintained by an IS department (or equiv.), it is possible that you PC confiquration will not support the RBD PCI board - even if you originally purchased the system from RBD. Addition of network cards and other resources may render the PC unable to support the additional hardware. If this is the case, you will need to work with this department to decide what, if any, adjustments can to be made to the PC. Please keep in mind the laboratory is a somewhat specialized enviornment for a PC, as opposed to the usual business/administrative setting, and the "one-size fits all" approach to system confiqurations may not apply.

 



(Windows 2000 is a trademark of Microsoft Inc.)