Rabbit Hole Computing:Quick Start Guide
So: You just got your box from Rabbit Hole Computing, opened it up, and inside were some wrapped-up circuit boards and maybe some parts. Now what?
Well, let's get you up and running!
SCSI Bus Devices
Step 1: Prep your SD card.
Load either your SD card or microSD card with a disk image. Make sure that you name it appropriately based on the device it's representing as well as its ID number on the SCSI bus. If you're using a hard drive image, name the image HD0.img, and if it's an optical drive image, name it CD0.iso or CD0.bin and CD0.cue depending on which format it's in.
Plug the SD card into the slot on the ZuluSCSI board.
Step 2: Prep the ZuluSCSI board.
Depending on how the system is connected together, you may need to run DB25 cables, IDC-50 pin cables, or use an interposer to switch cable types. Once you've determined whether or not you need to do this, plug the appropriate cable into the ZuluSCSI. Your ZuluSCSI model may only incorporate one type of connection.
The DIP switch block (or jumpers, depending on your device) will need to be set depending on how your host system is configured. Here's the short version for each switch:
- TERM: Termination on/off. If your device is the last one on the bus, or the only one on the bus, turn this switch on.
- DBG: If on, produce a debug log to a text file called
zululog.txtthat gets placed in the root directory of your SD card. - INITIATOR (RP2040-based devices only): Allows you to use your ZuluSCSI to capture an image of all SCSI devices currently in your system.
- DIRECT/RAW (ZuluSCSI 1.2 only): Enables direct access mode; allows you to use an SD card itself as a block device.
- QUIRKS (ZuluSCSI 1.2 only): This switch needs to be enabled on certain early Macintosh systems using a slightly-broken implementation of the SCSI standard to be able to use the unpatched versions of Apple HD SC Setup or Drive Setup.
If your device doesn't provide termination power, such as a Mac IIsi, you'll need to provide bus power to it either by populating the 4-pin Molex floppy power connector on your board or attaching a USB cable to the port on the front of the board. Otherwise, you're almost ready to go.
If you are looking to mount your ZuluSCSI board internally, the four mounting holes on any full-size ZuluSCSI board are designed to line up with the bottom holes of any 2.5" hard drive footprint. Any standard 2.5"-to-3.5" mounting adapter can fit the mounting holes on a ZuluSCSI board using M3 screws.
If you want to have an external activity LED, you can populate footprint J304 on the board with a standard 0.1" pin header and run a case LED to this header for that purpose. The cathode (negative) end of the LED is marked by a C on the board.
Step 3: Turn on your device!
Once you've prepared the SD card and attached your ZuluSCSI to the cable and host computer, switch things on and go! Your ZuluSCSI should be recognized by your SCSI implementation and the device will mount images as described above, and you should see your device(s) populate in your system.
IDE Devices
Step 1: Prep the SD card.
Load your microSD card with the disk images you're looking to use in the system. Make sure that their extensions match the device type that you're using. The ZuluIDE defaults to CD-ROM mode without configuration changes, so image names should end in either .ISO or .BIN/.CUE for this mode. All images you're using should be in the root folder of the SD card.
Step 2: Prep the ZuluIDE board.
Your ZuluIDE board comes set by default to occupy the master position on whichever IDE channel you choose to place it on. If you only have a slave slot available, make sure you move DIP switch 2 to ON to change it to the slave position.
If you're using a modified IDE cable that supports cable select mode or your system requires the use of cable select mode, turn DIP switch 1 on to enable cable select.
If you have the hardware interface, plug the Qwiic connector into either of the Qwiic sockets and set it nearby.
Step 3: Turn on your device!
Attach your device to the IDE bus, connect the 4-pin Molex floppy power connector with a cable coming off your power supply, make sure that the microSD card is plugged in, and go!