MS2005 Man

Version 2005
TECHNICAL MANUAL
By
COPYRIGHT © 2005 MICRO 2000, INC

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PRINTED IN CANADA.
MICRO 2000, INC.

1100 E. BROADWAY, 3RD FLOOR
GLENDALE CALIFORNIA 91205
PHONE: (818) 547-0125

FAX: (818) 547-0397
www.Micro2000.com
DOCUMENT #MAN-MS v.2005 06/2005

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION .......................................................................... 11
About Micro 2000, Inc. ................................................................. 11
About Micro-Scope ....................................................................... 11
CHAPTER 1 ................................................................................. 13
STARTING MICRO-SCOPE.................................................................... 13
On-Line Documentation ................................................................ 13
Tutorial Video ...................................................................................... 14
Product Manual..................................................................................... 14
Other Products From Micro 2000 ......................................................... 15
Website ................................................................................................. 15
Loading the Micro-Scope Software............................................... 15
CMOS Setup......................................................................................... 15
Boot Selection Menu ....................................................................... 16
Option 1 ...................................................................................... 16
Option 2 ...................................................................................... 16
Option 3 ...................................................................................... 17
Option 4 ...................................................................................... 17
Option 5 ...................................................................................... 17
Option 6 ...................................................................................... 17
Option 7 ...................................................................................... 18
Option 8 ...................................................................................... 18
Option M..................................................................................... 18
Full Version vs. Limited Edition ................................................... 18
Registration.................................................................................... 18
Making Backups ............................................................................ 19
Miscellaneous ................................................................................ 20
Upgrading............................................................................................. 20
Running under DOS or Windows ......................................................... 20
Warm Boot ........................................................................................... 21
Help ...................................................................................................... 21
Navigation ............................................................................................ 21
CHAPTER 2 ................................................................................. 24
SYSTEM CONFIGURATION ................................................................... 24
Compare Settings........................................................................... 24
Device Settings Compared.................................................................... 25
System Information ....................................................................... 27
System Board Information.................................................................... 27
Processor Information........................................................................... 28
Memory Information ............................................................................ 29
Video Information ................................................................................ 29
Floppy Drive Information..................................................................... 30
Fixed Disk Information......................................................................... 30
2
IDE Information ................................................................................... 30
CD ROM .............................................................................................. 31
Port Information ................................................................................... 31
Miscellaneous Information ................................................................... 31
DMI Information ........................................................................... 32
Hard Disk Parameters.................................................................... 33
Identification Menu ....................................................................... 34
IDE Information............................................................................... 34
SCSI Information............................................................................. 35
Plug-N-Play ..................................................................................... 35
Active ROM Search....................................................................... 38
Beginning and Ending Address ............................................................ 39
ROM Identified..................................................................................... 39
Device Assignments ...................................................................... 39
Press C (Check Interrupts).................................................................... 40
Press U (User Defined)......................................................................... 40
Screen Layout for Device Assignments................................................ 41
Memory Vector..................................................................................... 42
Partition Table ............................................................................... 42
Master Partition Boot Sector................................................................. 42
Partition/Volume Boot Sector............................................................... 44
Listings for FAT 16 and 32................................................................... 46
Listings for FAT 32 Only ..................................................................... 47
Partition Editing Controls ..................................................................... 48
CMOS Display/Edit....................................................................... 48
Display CMOS Contents ...................................................................... 49
Edit CMOS Contents ............................................................................ 49
Compare Features .......................................................................... 50
Add System .......................................................................................... 50
Verify System....................................................................................... 51
CHAPTER 3 ................................................................................. 52
BATCH MENU ..................................................................................... 52
Run All Tests ................................................................................. 52
Run Continuously................................................................................. 53
Set Pass Count ...................................................................................... 53
Select Tests.................................................................................... 54
Load Batch Tests .................................................................................. 54
Save Batch Tests................................................................................... 55
Test Selection ....................................................................................... 55
Run Selected .................................................................................. 57
Report Features.............................................................................. 57
Create Report........................................................................................ 57
Log Report............................................................................................ 59
Error Log ....................................................................................... 61
Error Halt Enabled/Disabled.......................................................... 61
3
CHAPTER 4 ................................................................................. 62
DIAGNOSTIC TESTS ............................................................................. 62
System Board Tests ....................................................................... 62
Microprocessor Test ............................................................................. 63
Numeric Processor Test ........................................................................ 63
RTC RAM Test .................................................................................... 63
CTC Controller Test ............................................................................. 63
DMA Controllers Test .......................................................................... 63
Interrupt Controllers Test ..................................................................... 64
Speaker Test ......................................................................................... 64
PS/2 Mouse Controller Test.................................................................. 64
Keyboard Controller Test ..................................................................... 64
Memory Tests ................................................................................ 65
Cache Memory ..................................................................................... 65
Expanded Memory ............................................................................... 66
Extended Memory ................................................................................ 66
All Tests........................................................................................... 67
Pattern Test ...................................................................................... 67
Pseudo-Random Test ....................................................................... 67
Xor'ed Address Test......................................................................... 67
Bit Test ............................................................................................ 67
Grid Test .......................................................................................... 67
Floppy Tests .................................................................................. 68
Drive Select .......................................................................................... 68
Media Select ......................................................................................... 68
User Defined......................................................................................... 68
Format Diskette .................................................................................... 69
Format Partial ....................................................................................... 69
Butterfly Seek Test ............................................................................... 69
Read Test .............................................................................................. 69
Safe Write Test ..................................................................................... 70
Fixed Disk Tests ............................................................................ 70
Drive Select .......................................................................................... 71
Set Interleave ........................................................................................ 71
Bad Sector Map (MFM/RLL/IDE/SATA)............................................ 71
Format Fixed Disk ................................................................................ 72
Format Entire ................................................................................... 72
Format Partial .................................................................................. 72
Use Controller BIOS........................................................................ 73
Fixed Disk Diagnostic Tests ................................................................. 73
Butterfly Test ................................................................................... 73
Read Test ......................................................................................... 74
Write Test ........................................................................................ 74
Safe Write Test ................................................................................ 74
Controller Test ................................................................................. 75
IDE / SCSI Tests............................................................................ 75
Select Drive .......................................................................................... 76
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IDE/ATAPI Device.......................................................................... 76
SCSI/ASPI Device........................................................................... 76
Determine Parameters........................................................................... 77
Device Tests ......................................................................................... 77
Butterfly Seek Test .......................................................................... 77
Read Test ......................................................................................... 77
Write Test ........................................................................................ 77
Sound Card Tests........................................................................... 78
Serial Port Tests............................................................................. 78
Select Port............................................................................................. 79
Set Parameters ...................................................................................... 79
Set Port Configuration ..................................................................... 79
Set Baud Rate .................................................................................. 79
Set Data Bits .................................................................................... 79
Set Stop Bits .................................................................................... 80
Set Loopback ................................................................................... 80
Run Loopback Test............................................................................... 80
Keyboard to Port................................................................................... 80
Keyboard ......................................................................................... 80
Mouse .............................................................................................. 80
Modem............................................................................................. 80
Serial Port Test Results......................................................................... 81
Internal/External Line Status ........................................................... 81
Modem Status .................................................................................. 81
Error Count ...................................................................................... 81
Data Window................................................................................... 81
Port, IRQ, I/O, Baud and UART...................................................... 81
Modem Connect Tests ................................................................... 82
Modem Test.......................................................................................... 82
Line Test............................................................................................... 82
Send ASCII Test................................................................................... 83
Send File Test ....................................................................................... 83
Parallel Port Tests.......................................................................... 83
Set Parameters ...................................................................................... 83
Select Port........................................................................................ 83
Set Port Configuration ..................................................................... 83
Set Loopback ................................................................................... 83
Run Loopback Test............................................................................... 83
Data Latches Test............................................................................. 84
Control Latches Test ........................................................................ 84
Status Latches Test .......................................................................... 84
Interrupt Level Test ......................................................................... 84
Signal Status Window...................................................................... 84
Network Card Tests ....................................................................... 84
USB Controller Tests..................................................................... 85
Video Tests.................................................................................... 85
Video Memory...................................................................................... 86
Page Memory Test ........................................................................... 86
5
Linear Memory Test ........................................................................ 86
Video DAC Test ................................................................................... 86
Display Attributes ............................................................................ 87
Screen Alignment ............................................................................ 88
Text Modes Test .............................................................................. 89
SVGA Graphics Modes Test ........................................................... 89
Screen Paging Test........................................................................... 90
Other Device Tests ........................................................................ 91
Keyboard Test ...................................................................................... 91
Joystick Test ......................................................................................... 91
Printer Test ........................................................................................... 92
CHAPTER 5 ................................................................................. 94
UTILITIES MENU ................................................................................. 94
Memory Display............................................................................ 94
Memory Display Navigation ................................................................ 95
System ROM BIOS and ROM BIOS Extensions ................................. 95
SCSI/ESDI Setup Routine Segment/Offset .......................................... 96
Available Memory................................................................................ 96
Floppy Editor................................................................................. 97
Drive Select .......................................................................................... 97
Media Select ......................................................................................... 97
Display/Edit.......................................................................................... 98
Fixed Disk Editor......................................................................... 100
Drive Select ........................................................................................ 100
Display/Edit........................................................................................ 100
SCSI / IDE Device Editor............................................................ 101
Device Select ...................................................................................... 101
Run Benchmarks.......................................................................... 102
Processors ........................................................................................... 103
Fixed Disks......................................................................................... 103
Memory .............................................................................................. 103
Video .................................................................................................. 103
PC Health Status.......................................................................... 104
Rebuild MasterBoot..................................................................... 104
Floppy Head Cleaner ................................................................... 105
Debugging Functions................................................................... 106
Execute Interrupts............................................................................... 106
Read/Write to Real Memory............................................................... 107
Read/Write to Protected Memory ....................................................... 107
Secure Wipe................................................................................. 107
Long Secure Wipe .............................................................................. 108
Long Wipe with Format...................................................................... 108
Entire/Partial....................................................................................... 108
Save/Restore CMOS.................................................................... 108
Save/Restore MBR ...................................................................... 109
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CHAPTER 6 ............................................................................... 111
QUIT ................................................................................................. 111
Exit to OS .................................................................................... 111
Reboot System............................................................................. 111
CHAPTER 7 ............................................................................... 113
TROUBLESHOOTING .......................................................................... 113
Hardware vs. Software ................................................................ 113
Operating System Independence ................................................. 113
Isolating the Cause....................................................................... 114
Verify and Document .................................................................. 114
Technical Support........................................................................ 115
CHAPTER 8 ............................................................................... 116
SYS. CONFIG. REFERENCE ................................................................ 116
Compare Settings......................................................................... 116
System Information ..................................................................... 116
DMI ............................................................................................. 117
Active ROM Search..................................................................... 117
IRQ Assignments......................................................................... 117
Multiple devices ................................................................................. 118
Serial Devices ..................................................................................... 118
Parallel Devices .................................................................................. 118
Mice.................................................................................................... 118
LAN Cards.......................................................................................... 118
Partition Tables............................................................................ 118
Partition Status.................................................................................... 118
Starting Head ...................................................................................... 118
Starting Sector .................................................................................... 118
Starting Cylinder................................................................................. 118
Ending Head ....................................................................................... 119
Ending Sector ..................................................................................... 119
Ending Cylinder.................................................................................. 119
Start Absolute Sector .......................................................................... 119
Number of Sectors .............................................................................. 119
Boot Signature .................................................................................... 119
Volume Boot Record ................................................................... 119
Bytes Per Sector.................................................................................. 120
Sectors per Cluster.............................................................................. 120
Reserved Sectors................................................................................. 120
Number of Copies of FAT .................................................................. 120
Maximum Root Directory Entries ...................................................... 120
Total Number of Sectors..................................................................... 120
Media Descriptor Byte........................................................................ 120
Sectors per Track ................................................................................ 121
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Number of Heads................................................................................ 121
Number of Hidden Sectors ................................................................. 121
Volume Boot Signature ...................................................................... 121
FAT 32 Volume Boot Sector Info ............................................... 121
Partition Flags..................................................................................... 121
Version of FAT 32 Drive.................................................................... 121
File System Info Sector ...................................................................... 122
Backup Boot Sector ............................................................................ 122
Logical Drive...................................................................................... 122
Extended Signature............................................................................. 122
Partition Serial Number ...................................................................... 122
Volume Name..................................................................................... 122
FAT Name .......................................................................................... 122
CMOS Edit .................................................................................. 122
Diskettes ............................................................................................. 122
HD0/HD1 ........................................................................................... 123
Base Memory...................................................................................... 123
Extended Memory .............................................................................. 123
Video Adapter .................................................................................... 123
Coprocessor ........................................................................................ 123
CMOS Display ............................................................................ 123
Compare Features Test ................................................................ 125
CHAPTER 9 ............................................................................... 127
DIAGNOSTIC ERRORS........................................................................ 127
System Board Errors.................................................................... 127
CPU Tests........................................................................................... 127
NPU Tests........................................................................................... 127
RTC Errors ......................................................................................... 128
CTC Errors ......................................................................................... 128
DMA Errors........................................................................................ 128
Keyboard Controller Errors ................................................................ 128
Interrupt Controller Errors .................................................................. 129
APM Errors (Advanced Power Management) .................................... 129
Memory Tests .............................................................................. 129
Base Memory Tests ............................................................................ 129
Cache Memory ................................................................................... 129
Expanded Memory ............................................................................. 130
Extended Memory Errors ................................................................... 131
Floppy Error Codes ..................................................................... 132
Fixed Disk Error Codes ............................................................... 135
CD-ROM Error Codes................................................................. 139
Printer Codes ............................................................................... 140
Serial Tests .................................................................................. 140
UART Errors ...................................................................................... 140
Line Status Errors ............................................................................... 141
Misc. Serial Test Errors ...................................................................... 142
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Modem Status Errors .......................................................................... 142
Modem Connect Tests ................................................................. 143
Modem Test........................................................................................ 143
Line Test............................................................................................. 144
On-line Tests ...................................................................................... 144
Parallel Port Tests........................................................................ 145
Signal Status ....................................................................................... 145
Function Tests .................................................................................... 146
Network Card Tests ..................................................................... 146
USB Controller Tests................................................................... 148
Video Tests.................................................................................. 148
APPENDIX A.............................................................................. 150
WARRANTY & LICENSING ................................................................ 150
WARRANTY .............................................................................. 150
LICENSE AGREEMENT ........................................................... 151
USB-SCOPE DIAGNOSTIC SOFTWARE

INTRODUCTION ........................................................................ 154
About Micro 2000, Inc. ............................................................... 154
About USB-Scope ....................................................................... 154
CHAPTER 1 ............................................................................... 156
OVERVIEW OF USB .......................................................................... 156
Host Controller ............................................................................ 156
Ports and Cables .......................................................................... 157
Auto Detection............................................................................. 157
Auto Detection............................................................................. 158
Power and Resources................................................................... 158
Standards ..................................................................................... 159
Companion Controllers................................................................ 159
Transfer Modes............................................................................ 160
CHAPTER 2 ............................................................................... 161
USING USB-SCOPE ........................................................................... 161
Making Back-up Copies .............................................................. 162
Starting USB-Scope..................................................................... 162
Reports......................................................................................... 164
CMOS Setup................................................................................ 165
CHAPTER 3 ............................................................................... 166
IDENTIFY AND TEST .......................................................................... 166
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Controller Information................................................................. 166
Test Menu.................................................................................... 167
Identify Root Devices .................................................................. 168
CHAPTER 4 ............................................................................... 169
TESTING THE HOST CONTROLLER..................................................... 169
PCI............................................................................................... 169
USB PM....................................................................................... 169
USB HOST.................................................................................. 170
ROOT HUB................................................................................. 170
CHAPTER 5 ............................................................................... 172
THE HARDWARE DEVICE .................................................................. 172
The Device................................................................................... 172
Host Port Tests ............................................................................ 172
Ending the Program..................................................................... 173
WARRANTY & LICENSE AGREEMENT .................................. 174
Limited Warranty on Hardware................................................... 174
Limited Warranty on Software .................................................... 174
General Warranty Information .................................................... 174
SOFTWARE LICENSE AGREEMENT ...................................... 176
Contact Information..................................................................... 177
10
Introduction
Congratulations for choosing Micro-Scope 2005. This diagnostic is
designed for professional-level trouble-shooting of IBM-type
personal computers, and has been the choice of technicians
worldwide since the first version was introduced several years ago.
Although the program is very intuitive and user-friendly, we strongly
suggest studying this manual to be sure no useful features are
overlooked. This will provide a much improved understanding of
how to best use Micro-Scope, and who knows, it might even add to
one’s understanding of Personal Computers.
About Micro 2000, Inc.

Formed in September 1990, Micro 2000 Inc. was chartered to
provide the personal computer industry with professional-quality
diagnostic tools, which were virtually non-existent at the time for
that segment of the computer industry.
As the “personal” computer evolved into the powerful machines of

today and became an indispensable fixture in the corporate world,
Micro2000 has maintained its position of industry leadership through
award-winning technical support and by staying consistently on the
cutting edge throughout the rapid advances in PC technology.
Meanwhile, our basic philosophy has not changed at all. Whether it

is diagnostics, network administration tools or educational and
certification courses, our goal has always been to provide our
customers with the best state-of-the-art products of their kind
available in the world, and always at an affordable price.
About Micro-Scope
Virtually all application programs for the PC are written to run under
one of the popular operating systems, most often either DOS or one
of the versions of Microsoft Windows. The operating system
handles all of the interfacing with the hardware, transferring data on
and off the disk, into and out of memory etc.
11
Introduction
This frees the application (and the user) to concentrate on the tasks
that are specific to that application and avoids duplication of the
most basic functions from one application to the next. However,
when attempting to diagnose the hardware, the buffer provided by
the operating system actually becomes a handicap, making it
impossible for an application to directly access the various
peripherals and motherboard components.
The way that we solved this problem with Micro-Scope was to write
a bootable operating system that specifically allowed direct control of
the hardware, and to include this operating system as an integral part
of the diagnostic software. This way, the operating system and the
application are focused together on the same task, which is to
provide you with the most precise control and most accurate
information about the state of the PC’s hardware.
An additional benefit of our own bootable operating system on the

diskette is that the diagnostic routines can be used on any PC with a
CD-ROM drive as a boot device, regardless of the installed operating
system. The same comprehensive tool can be used on systems
running Windows, DOS, Linux, UNIX, OS/2 and others.
This approach of mating an operating system to a complete suite of

diagnostic routines had been widely accepted with mainframe
computers, but had never been successfully done with personal
computers until Micro-Scope was released in 1991. The result was
that Micro-Scope immediately became the best-selling diagnostic
software package for PCs, and (frequently upgraded) has remained in
this position ever since.
12
Chapter 1
Starting Micro-Scope
Please read this chapter before running Micro-Scope for the
first time.
The first section describes the documentation contained on the CD,

and how to access it. The second section gives the various options
for loading and running the Micro-Scope software.
On-Line Documentation
With the system booted up to its resident operating system, insert
the CD. If the system features Autoplay, the Attention screen
shown on the previous page will appear automatically. If Autoplay is
not featured, locate and double-click the autoplay.exe file on the CD.
SCREEN – ATTENTION
The Micro-Scope software is intended to be used while booted to its
own operating system, and the screen above is a reminder to anyone
attempting to run it under Windows. The screen will also appear
while accessing the on-line documentation.
13
Chapter 1
The information in the README.TXT file is already described in

this chapter of the manual. Since you are reading the manual,
README.TXT can be ignored.
To access the rest of the documentation on the CD, click Next to

bring up the Autoplay Menu screen shown on the following page.
SCREEN – AUTOPLAY MENU

The right-hand side of the screen lists the documentation options
available on the CD. Click on any selection from this menu to bring
up the corresponding content.
Tutorial Video – This is the Toolkit Tutorial for using the Micro-
Scope software and the Universal Post-Probe card. The video run
time is approximately one hour and requires a video player, such as
RealPlayer or Windows Media Player that can use the .mpg format.
If you are a new user of the Micro-Scope software, the video

provides an excellent overview of the program’s many features, and
tips on when to use them.
Product Manual – A duplicate of the hard-copy manual is included

in PDF format on the CD. This is a handy field reference in case the
hard-copy manual gets left at home. The CD also contains a copy of
Acrobat Reader.
14
RemoteScope Demo – The CD contains a free 5-seat copy of the

powerful network management and remote control program called
RemoteScope. If your duties include network administration, give it
a try and see how much easier your job can be.
Other Products From Micro 2000 – Open this menu item to learn
about other products relating to computers or computer training.
Website – Provides a one-click link for access to the Home page of

Micro 2000’s website.
Loading the Micro-Scope Software

For the full version of Micro-Scope on CD, no installation procedure
is required before running the software on any PC with a bootable
CD-ROM. Simply put the CD disc in the CD-ROM drive and turn
on the computer. Micro 2000’s proprietary operating system on the
disc includes a boot-load routine, which will bring up the system
with that operating system in control.
Most brand-name systems sold in the last 5 years will have a

bootable CD-ROM drive, but this feature sometimes must be
enabled in CMOS, as described below.
CMOS Setup
Changes to the CMOS are made through the CMOS Setup program,
also called the BIOS Configuration program. This program can be
entered by pressing the correct key during system bootup. The right
key will vary from one system to the next, but is usually named in an
onscreen prompt.
Once in the setup program, locate the menu items that set the boot
priorities or sequence, and make sure that the CD-ROM drive has a
higher boot priority than the C drive. Normally the CD-ROM will
be 2nd, after the floppy drive, and the C: drive will be third.
Note: If using the Limited Edition version on floppy diskette, or if the

system requires a floppy because the CD-ROM is not bootable, see the
appropriate sections later in this chapter.
15
Chapter 1
Boot Selection Menu

When Micro-Scope boots, it will first present the screen below.
Micro-Scope Diagnostic Suite 2005 CD Boot Menu
Micro-Scope Diagnostics
Select ( 1 ) for Graphics Mode
Select ( 2 ) for Text Mode
Select ( 3 ) for Information/Utility Program
Select ( 4 ) for Batch/Testing Program
USB-Scope
Select ( 5 ) for USB-Scope
Utilities
Select ( 6 ) to Create Micro-Scope on Bootable Floppy Disk
Select ( 7 ) to Create USB-Scope on Bootable Floppy Disk
Select ( 8 ) Base Memory Test
Press ( M ) to Load a Mouse Driver
Option 1 – This is the normal choice when loading Micro-Scope

using a graphical interface. As the program loads, it will do a
thorough inventory and analysis of the system hardware. If the
program halts during the loading process, it could be because there is
insufficient memory (Micro-Scope requires 512 KB) or an error
occurred at the address shown on the screen. If this happens, use
Option 8.
Once the memory has been checked, the Title Screen shown on the
next page will be displayed as the system peripherals are sampled.
The amount of time this takes will depend on the speed of your
system. Please be patient and don’t touch the keyboard while the
bottom of the screen displays the line saying “Please Wait While
Analyzing”, except for the M key which must be pressed at this time
if you wish to use the mouse for navigation. When the sampling
process is complete, the program will progress to the main menu,
covered in Chapters 2-6.
Option 2 – This option has all the same features as the graphics
mode, but is all in text format. There are 3 primary reasons for using
this mode; 1) To enable Micro-Scope to run faster, 2) To use less
conventional memory, and 3) If the video display does not support
Vesa mode.
16
Option 3 - Loading the entire Micro-Scope program requires the use

of overlays that are brought into RAM on an as-needed basis. This
requires that the CD remain in the drive while the program is in use.
Options 3 and 4 eliminate the use of overlays by loading only certain

portions of the program. This allows the CD to be removed, which
is an advantage when working on multiple systems. To further save
space in conventional memory, Options 3 and 4 are run in Text
mode.
Option 3 will load the items that are accessed through the System
Configuration menu and Utility menu. The items available on these
menus are described in Chapter 2 and Chapter 5, respectively.
TITLE SCREEN
Option 4 – As with Options 3 and 4, this loads a smaller portion of
the program so that the CD can be removed for testing additional
machines. Option 4 loads those items that are accessed through the
Batch menu and Diagnostic menu. These are covered in Chapters 3
and 4, respectively.
Option 5 – Use this option to run USB-Scope Diagnostic Software.
Option 6 - This provides access to the routine used to make copies

of the Micro-Scope CD onto a floppy diskette. The copying
procedure is covered later in this chapter.
17
Chapter 1
Option 7 - This provides access to the routine used to make copies

of the USB-Scope CD onto a floppy diskette. The copying
procedure is covered later in this chapter.
Option 8 – Errors in Base Memory will often prevent a diagnostic

program or operating system from loading.
This option provides a way to pinpoint fatal errors in base memory

by loading a compact memory test routine that takes up only 2 KB
of RAM and performs a basic test on the remainder of the base
memory.
Option M – If using Graphic Mode, selecting this option will load

the mouse drivers.
Full Version vs. Limited Edition

Micro-Scope comes in two versions, the full professional version and
the Limited Edition. The full version comes on a bootable CD and
is the tool favored by most professional PC technicians. The
Limited Edition is an introductory version on a floppy diskette, and
is included in many educational courses. Both of these versions have
the same diagnostic routines, with a few minor exceptions which are
discussed at the appropriate points in the text.
The full version CD can be used an unlimited number of times, and

allows backup copies to be made on floppy diskette. The Limited
Edition only allows the software to be loaded and run a specified
number of times, and does not allow copies. Also, the Limited
Edition must be registered, as described below.
Registration
The very first time the Micro-Scope Limited Edition diskette is
loaded, it will stop on the Title Screen to allow for registration of the
diskette, rather than going on to the main menu. Once the “Please
Wait While Analyzing” prompt has gone away, the cursor will move
to the registration line. Type in your name (or the company name,
whoever is going to be the registered licensee for the diskette) using
alphanumeric characters (no punctuation), and press Enter. The
program will go to the main menu.
18
Once registered, each time the diskette is loaded it will briefly display
the Title Screen with your registered name, and will then progress to
the main menu automatically.
Making Backups
If you have the full version of the program and wish to use it in a
system that does not have a bootable CD-ROM, you can make a
backup copy of the program on a floppy diskette for this purpose.
Backups must be made using the proprietary backup routine

included on the diskette. Copying the software with other disk-copy
or imaging programs is a violation of the licensing agreement and in
most cases will result in an unusable copy.
To create a copy of the Micro-Scope program on a bootable floppy

diskette:
1. First locate a PC with a bootable CD-ROM. Most brand-

name PCs sold in the last 3-5 years should qualify. Put the
CD in the bootable CD-ROM drive and reboot the system.
2. At the Boot Selection Menu, press 6 to load the Bootable
Floppy Disk Utility program.
3. Enter the drive of the disk drive. You only need to enter the
drive itself (i.e. B). The boot CD emulates a floppy drive
and is drive A. So, the first actual floppy drive is drive B.
After specifying the drive, press enter to make a copy.
4. When complete, remove the diskette and label it per the
terms of the Licensing Agreement, found in the product
manual and on the software envelope that contained the
CD.
5. To use the floppy version, insert the diskette in a PC's A
drive and reboot the PC.
Because of space limitations on the 1.44 MB diskette the floppy

version will run in text mode, which is functionally identical but
without the colorful background. Also, when the program boots up
from a floppy, it will display only Options 1 and 2 from the boot
menu.
19
Chapter 1
Miscellaneous
Upgrading
Major upgrades of the Micro-Scope are usually issued each year.
These are available for a nominal fee to Micro-Scope licensees in
good standing. We recommend staying with the latest upgrade, in
order to keep up with the rapid pace of change in PC hardware
design. In addition, throughout the year we may occasionally post
patches and minor product improvements to our website at
www.micro2000.com. These can be downloaded at no cost to
update any floppy backup copies.
Look in the Tech Support section of the web site for the latest
downloads, and be sure to note the installation instructions posted
there for each particular upgrade.
Running under DOS or Windows

Micro-Scope is designed for the highest degree of accuracy when the
system is booted to FreeDOS. It is possible to run the MS.EXE file
from the MS-DOS Prompt within Windows 9x or ME (not in NT,
2000, 2003, or XP). This can, however, lead to inaccurate results on
certain tests and benchmarks due to the masking effects of those
operating systems.
There is also the option to load DOS device drivers for hardware
that is not recognized by Micro-Scope. Doing so will enable Micro-
Scope to test devices using proprietary DOS drivers from the device
manufacturer, which will produce more accurate results.
However, the tests for some hardware devices require the software
drivers for those devices to be loaded. Examples are expanded
memory, SCSI controllers, SATA, and some sound cards.
If necessary, you can boot to Windows and start Micro-Scope with

the Windows RUN command or by locating and double-clicking the
ms.exe file on the diskette. Windows Safe Mode will load the basic
Mouse and Video drivers and is preferable to the full Windows boot
if these are the only drivers needed.
If Micro-Scope is opened under Windows, it will bypass the Boot

Selection Menu and go straight to the Main Menu screen.
20
Warning: Before using a diskette copy of Micro-Scope under DOS or

Windows, it must be Write Protected by using the slider to open the
square hole in one corner of the diskette. Using the Micro-Scope diskette
under Windows without write-protection can render the diskette unusable,
and void the warranty.
Warm Boot
There also may be times when it is beneficial to run under Micro-
Scope’s own OS, but with hardware in the same state it was
initialized to by the resident OS. This can be accomplished with the
procedure known as a warm boot.
1. Boot to DOS or Windows.

2. Insert the Micro-Scope diskette into the A: drive.
3. Press CTRL+ALT+DEL (DOS) or choose Restart from
the Windows shutdown menu.
Help
Micro-Scope contains context-sensitive help. Wherever you are in
the program, pressing the <F1> key will bring up a screen with
information about that portion of the program. Pressing the Escape
key will take you out of the Help screen and back into the program
at the same point you left it.
The further you go down the menu tree or into one of the
information or test set-up screens, the more specific will be the Help
information that you see. If the information is too specific, return to
the program and use the Escape key to back up a step or two. Then
press F1 again and see if the Help data at that step is more pertinent.
Navigation
All selections within Micro-Scope are made from the Main Menu or
one of the sub-menus. The Main Menu is the starting point and has
5 choices:
System Configuration, Batch Menu, Diagnostics, Utilities,
and Quit
If Option 3 was selected during bootup, the Batch and Diagnostics

choices will be missing, and if Option 4 was selected, System
Information and Utilities will be gone.
21
Chapter 1
Each of these menu items has its own submenu, covered in its own
chapter in the manual.
Moving around the screens is done with the Arrow keys, or with the
mouse if the M key was pressed during startup. One item (only one
item) will be highlighted at any time.
Menus have gray backgrounds with black text, within the Micro-
Scope program itself (i.e. not the Autoplay or Boot Selection menus).
The highlighted item will be shown in white text with a black border.
However, in this manual the tonal values of most screens have been
altered for clarity.
The highlighted item is selected by a mouse left-click or by pressing

the Enter key. This will open up a submenu, start the selected item
(either a test or an information screen), or open a data entry window
for that item.
Items with submenus will have an arrowhead pointing to the right.
SCREEN – MAIN MENU

Press the Escape key to exit the selection and return to the next
higher level in the menu hierarchy.
22
In cases where the item consists of a series of screens (such as

System Information), moving from one screen to another is done
with the Page UP and Page DN keys. Across the bottom of the
screen, a prompt will remind you of which keys will do what.
Data Entry screens may require Y/N or other alphanumeric data to

be entered into boxes. In a few instances, values in a screen can be
toggled or incremented by using the Plus and Minus keys. These
will be mentioned in the appropriate sections.
23
Chapter 2
System Configuration
SCREEN - SYSTEM CONFIGURATION MENU

The System Configuration section of Micro-Scope and its sub-menus
provide access to complete information about the System Settings,
CPU and NPU, ROMs, IRQs, Hard Drive Partitions, CMOS, POS
Registers and System Peripherals. The wealth of information
displayed is determined from POST, CMOS, and a series of routines
run by Micro-Scope on the specific devices, and is vital for
troubleshooting, upgrading or just for a thorough understanding of
your computer system.
In this section the program allows editing of information in the

standard areas of CMOS and in the partition areas on the fixed disks.
Compare Settings
This display is split into three sections.
The middle section displays information on those devices listed on

the left. This information was detected by the BIOS during POST,
and in some instances, determined by Micro-Scope upon loading the
software.
24
The right side of the window shows the current CMOS setting.
This information is used to determine if the current setting matches
the detected hardware. Incorrect settings for a device may be the
cause of a system failure.
If an asterisk (*) appears after the information displayed on the left

side of the screen, then there is a mismatch between detected
hardware and the CMOS or switch settings.
If a device is failing it may not be detected even though it is set in the

CMOS or switches, and therefore would not show up in this
window. Running the appropriate diagnostic test will verify the
failure.
SCREEN - COMPARE SETTINGS

Device Settings Compared
Here is a list of the devices that will be displayed if they are detected:
Math Co-Processor – The left side of the screen will display the
type of NPU detected by Micro-Scope. The right side of the screen
will show installed or not installed. If an NPU is displayed on the
left side of the screen and an asterisk appears beside it, the NPU is
not set in CMOS and will not be used by many software programs. If
an NPU is present and is not displayed on the left side of the screen,
the NPU is failing.
25
Chapter 2
Removable Drives – The left side of the screen displays the

number of floppy drives detected by the BIOS during POST. The
right side of the screen shows the CMOS setting for the first two
drives, or number of floppy drives set in the XT switches.
Fixed Disks – The left side of the screen displays the number, not
type, of fixed disks detected by POST and Micro-Scope. The right
side of the screen shows the CMOS type for the first two drives. An
asterisk may be an incorrect CMOS setting or a drive or controller
failure.
Video Adapter – The left side of the screen displays the type of
video adapter (MDA, HGA, CGA, EGA, MCGA, VGA, and VGAs
with extended modes such as SVGA and XGA).
The maximum mode supported is also displayed after the type of

adapter. The right side of the screen displays the current setting for
the video. If the video displayed on the left side of the screen is a
VGA or above, the right side should show EGA/VGA.
Base Memory – The left side of the screen displays the amount of
Base Memory detected by POST from 0k to 640k. If the two sides of
the screen do not match, the memory may be failing, or is reserved
by a device or software program. It should be noted that boot
viruses such as Stoned, or Michelangelo commonly use 2k of base
memory.
Extended Memory – The left side of the screen displays the

amount of Extended Memory detected by POST from 1 megabyte
on. An asterisk is usually indicative of a bad RAM chip. The
extended memory test will verify the failure.
26
System Information
SYSTEM INFORMATION SCREEN #1

The System Information windows provide an overview of the
system. The information is separated into three screens containing
system board information, processors and bus information, floppy
drive, fixed disk and miscellaneous hardware information. The
information comes from POST, CMOS, device drivers and a series
of routines run by Micro-Scope. Use PgUp and PgDn to alternate
between the three screens. Following is a description of the
information displayed.
System Board Information

System Type – The IBM or equivalent IBM system type will be
displayed at the top of the window, such as "PSII model 95" or
"IBM AT". The manufacturer will be displayed where possible.
BIOS Name – The section displays the name of the BIOS

manufacturer.
BIOS Date – The section displays the date the BIOS revision was
released. Some manufacturers have made changes to their BIOS
without issuing a new version number, so date information is
sometimes crucial. Additional BIOS information will be located in
memory at segment F000 and can be accessed using the Memory
27
Chapter 2
Display Utility described in Section IV of this manual. The data will

be found in the ASCII field in the right-hand side of that display.
BUS Type – The BUS types present in the system will be displayed.
These will include ISA, EISA, MCA, PCI, USB and PCMCIA.
Video (VLB) and VESA LB are not displayed since they are merely
an extension of the CPU internal or (local) BUS.
DMI Version – This gives the DMI version being used to collect
system information. More information on this feature will be found
under the DMI Information menu item, described later in this
chapter.
Manufacturer – This give the motherboard manufacturer name,

model number and serial number to the Report and System
Information.
Enhanced Disk Drive Version – Displays the EDD version, which

provides the ability to access drives over 8.4GB in size.
Processor Information
CPU – Displays Basic CPU type (for example: 80486, Pentium II,
Pentium IV, Celeron, AMD K6-3, AMD Athlon). If possible the
diagnostic will determine the manufacturer and revision of the CPU.
This is dependent on the CPU. With multiple processors, the entry
will show the quantity (up to 4) but will display the CPU type only
once.
Processor Speed – Displays the speed of the CPU installed in the

system. The speed displayed is based on the results of an ID routine
performed by Micro-Scope upon boot-up, and is different than the
Benchmark done under System Board Diagnostic and Batch tests. If
the turbo switch is off, or there is an incorrect setting in the
extended CMOS, the speed of the system will be affected and the
CPU will run slower than its rated speed. If the system is configured
correctly, the CPU speed displayed should match its rated speed.
System Speed – The speed of the system bus is displayed. Except

for some older systems where the bus and CPU speed are equal, the
CPU speed will be a multiple of this figure.
28
Cache – Determines the cache memory for L1, L2, and L3.
Memory Information
Base Memory – This section displays the amount of Base memory
detected by POST.
Extended Memory – Displays the amount of Extended Memory

detected by Micro-Scope. Memory must be continuous. Some
memory managers create a memory "hole", and Micro-Scope will not
report that portion of memory above the hole. However, that
memory can still be selected for testing by the diagnostic.
Expanded Memory – This section displays the amount of

expanded memory reported by the expanded memory driver. If
expanded memory is present and drivers are loaded, the page frame
used by the expanded memory driver will be displayed. If drivers are
not loaded, the display will report "Not Active".
Video Information
Video OEM Name – This displays the name of the BIOS ROM
chip on the video adapter. If available, the number and revision of
the video chipset will also be shown.
Testable Video Memory – This section displays the amount of

video memory detected by Micro-Scope. Some video cards do not
have full access to their video memory without the aid of a VESA
driver (e.g. some ATI cards).
Video Maximum Mode – This displays the maximum mode for the
video adapter. This information is determined by Micro-Scope at
boot-up. Micro-Scope is designed to detect and test up to 64
megabytes of video memory.
Display – Displays the type of video monitor - Analog

Monochrome, Analog Color, Digital Monochrome, Digital Color,
STN, TFT, Internal or External for laptop displays.
AGP Bus Version – If the system has AGP capability, this gives the
version of bus used for the AGP and its speed.
29
Chapter 2

Floppy Drive Information
This section will display the type (i.e. 1.44M, 2.88M) of floppy drives
installed in the system. Micro-Scope is designed to detect and test up
to four floppy drives.
The drives are designated Drive 0 through Drive 3. This is the actual
system terminology for the drives, although they are referred to as
A:, B: etc. by most operating systems for the convenience of the
users.
Fixed Disk Information

This section displays the type, model (if applicable), parameters,
speed, and size of up to four fixed disks. Detailed information for
up to seven fixed disks is available in the fixed disk tests.
IDE Information
Up to eight IDE devices can be shown, which may overlap with the
drives shown in the section just above.
30

CD ROM
This section displays if a CD/DVD ROM is present in the system.
Micro-Scope will identify IDE and SCSI devices, but some
proprietary devices will not be detected unless their drivers are
loaded.
Port Information
Serial Ports – Displays the number and the I/O address of all serial
devices found by POST. It should be noted that some operating
systems will change the values determined by POST in order to
control the serial port access.
Modem – Any hardware modems will be listed. Winmodem or

other software modem will not be detected.
Parallel Ports – Displays the number and the I/O address of

parallel ports found by POST. It should be noted that some
operating systems will change the POST values in order to control
access to the ports.
Miscellaneous Information
Keyboard – This section displays the type of keyboard installed in
the system. This will state standard or enhanced.
31
Chapter 2
Network Card – Shows the network card installed. If no network

card is installed, it will display None.
Sound Card – This section displays the type of sound cards detected
by Micro-Scope. This will state "SoundBlaster", etc. if the
appropriate sound card is present. If no sound card is detected, this
will display None.
Firewire – If a Firewire serial bus is installed, it will show the I/O

address and IRQ being used by the Firewire controller.
DOS Version – If the system was booted to DOS, this gives the
version of DOS present on the system. If the system was booted to
the Micro-Scope OS (called MicroDOS), it will display the floppy’s
MicroDOS version.
DMI Information
DMI INFORMATION SCREEN #2

DMI stands for Desktop Management Interface, which is a standard
method of collecting and presenting information in systems that are
configured to allow it. The amount and accuracy of the information
depends on the manufacturer and system integrator and so will vary
from one system to the next.
32
Any information available will be presented in three screens, which

can be cycled through using the PgUp and PgDn keys.
Hard Disk Parameters
SCREEN - HARD DISK PARAMETERS

Older BIOS versions can only interface with drives up to 528MB in
capacity. For larger IDE drives, the drive controller will translate the
cylinder, head and sector information, in a scheme known as Logical
Block Addressing (LBA). Microscope can report the information
either way. To see the BIOS data, press <B>,and press <L> for the
LBA format. The default is LBA when the diagnostic is first loaded.
33
Chapter 2
Identification Menu
SCREEN - IDE IDENTIFICATION

IDE Information
There can be up to eight IDE devices on the system. Initially, the
screen will show the parameters for the Primary Master device. To
see the others one at a time, select Primary Slave, Secondary Master
or Secondary Slave.
If there is no device in the selected position, the screen will report

'NO DEVICE ATTACHED', as shown in the screen shot above.
This will also occur if the program is running under Windows rather
than booted to its own OS, because Windows will mask the fact that
the device is IDE.
34
SCREEN – SCSI INFORMATION

SCSI Information
This section displays all SCSI devices installed in the system, of
which there can be up to 16. The number of each SCSI device is
listed as well as what type of device it is. Pressing the D key and
then the number of a device will bring up a screen of additional
details about that device.
Plug-N-Play
The Plug-N-Play screen shows the identification, type and attributes
for all plug-and-play devices installed. Pressing the D key and
entering a device number will bring up a screen of detailed
information about that Plug-and-Play device.
35
Chapter 2
SCREEN – PLUG-N-PLAY INFORMATION
SCREEN – PLUG-N-PLAY DETAIL
36
SCREEN – PCI INFORMATION

PCI Information
This screen shows the identification, address and IRQ for each card
installed in the PCI bus. Three lines are used for each device, with 5
devices showing at a time. Pressing any key will scroll down to
display additional devices.
From left to right, the top line gives the bus slot number, the device
and class/subclass numbers (supplied by the manufacturer), and the
device name and sub-name.
The second line shows the IRQ used by that device, and the
beginning address of up to three ROM address ranges used by the
device. Any address range not being used will show as all zeroes.
37
Chapter 2
SCREEN – USB INFORMATION

USB Controller ID
This screen displays information about the USB Host Controllers
installed in the system.
From left to right, the right-hand window lists: the Bus #, I/O
address, vendor ID, device number, and manufacturer.
Active ROM Search
SCREEN – ACTIVE ROM SEARCH
38
This window displays adapters with an active ROM BIOS.

Adapter ROMs function as extensions to the main BIOS interrupt
support but are physically located on the adapter or controller.
Adapters and controllers with ROM will occupy memory addresses
from C0000 to DFFFF in IBM systems and up to EFFFF in
compatible systems.
Beginning and Ending Address

ROMs start with a signature of 55AA in memory. The Active ROM
Search looks for this signature in 16 byte increments, displays the
segment where the signature is found, reads offset 2 from the
beginning of the segment in order to determine the length of the
ROM, and displays the ending offset of the ROM.
When installing adapters it is important to determine where the

existing ROM BIOS extensions are located so that address conflicts
in memory can be avoided. Most adapters have provisions for
alternate addressing.
ROM Identified
As well as listing the address, the Active ROM Search will attempt to
identify the ROM. If it cannot, use the Memory Display Utility
(described in Section IV) and enter the beginning segment.
Information about the ROM will be listed in the ASCII field on the
right side of the Memory Display screen.
Device Assignments
This window will display information on the serial ports, parallel
ports, hardware modems (but not WinModems), mice, LANs, CD
ROMs, sound cards and SCSI adapters installed in the system. The
information displayed for each device is the IRQ usage, current IRQ
status, DMA usage, I/O port usage, Device name and the Memory
vector (pointer to the interrupt service routine for the IRQ). Please
note that IRQ2 is reserved for the slave Interrupt Controller, and any
device assigned to IRQ2 will be re-routed and actually appear as
IRQ9.
39
Chapter 2
SCREEN – DEVICE ASSIGNMENTS

The Device Assignment window provides the information to
determine hardware conflicts that exist in a system, determine the
correct setup for software drivers, and for installing new adapters in
a system.
Press C (Check Interrupts) – This runs a series of routines to

determine the device assignments. These Check Interrupt routines
will actually cause each device to generate an interrupt and access a
DMA channel in the same way the device normally operates. If a
device has not been incorporated into the test, the system may lock
up. If this occurs, please inform tech support so the device may be
incorporated into the next version of the diagnostic. Pressing C will
find serial ports, parallel ports, modems, LANs, mice, sound cards
and CD ROMs.
Press U (User Defined) – Pressing C will find all devices

incorporated into Micro-Scope. The User Defined is used after the
Check IRQ in order to toggle a specific I/O port. This should be
performed before installing an adapter at the I/O port to ensure no
other device is using the I/O port.
This will not affect the screen if the I/O port is not in use. However,
Micro-Scope may lock up if the port is used by a non-standard
device.
40
Screen Layout for Device Assignments

IRQ – IRQs 0 through 15 are displayed on the left of the screen.
The interrupt priority for a system with one 8259 PIC chip is IRQ 0,
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7. The interrupt priority for a system with two
8259 PICs is IRQ 0, 1, 2, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7.
The second 8259 PIC (IRQs 8 through 15) is cascaded to IRQ 2 of
the first 8259 PIC. IRQ 2 controls IRQs 8 through 15. If a device is
set to IRQ 2 it will be redirected to IRQ 9. This allows 2 to remain
open for servicing IRQs 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15.
NOTE: When a device driver is loaded it may, depending on the driver,
enable an IRQ. LAN adapter drivers enable an IRQ when loaded. Bus
mouse drivers enable one, and in some cases two, IRQs (IRQ 3 and IRQ
4). This last case would cause a conflict if another device was using the
second IRQ that was enabled. Other device drivers will only enable the
IRQ when the device is in actual use.
Status – The Status column displays the disabled or enabled state of

the interrupt masked register (IMR) in the 8259 PIC. Devices which
periodically request an interrupt will keep the IMR for the designated
IRQ enabled (Timer, Keyboard, Cascades, Floppy, Coprocessor and
Fixed Disks). IRQs not in use or IRQs which have devices that do
not enable the IRQ until the device is in actual use will display
Disabled.
I/O Port – This displays the I/O port address assigned to each
device. When applications, device drivers or the O/S need to access
a device they send a command to the I/O port for that device.
NOTE: Only standard I/O ports are checked for serial, parallel and
LAN devices. If one of these devices uses a non-standard I/O port, toggle
the non-standard I/O port with the User Defined option and the IRQ that
the device uses will then be displayed.
Devices – The Devices column initially displays the dedicated IRQ

devices (Timer, Keyboard, IRQ 2 Cascade, Floppy, RTC, IRQ 9
Cascade, Coprocessor, Fixed Disk). These IRQs cannot be used for
anything else even if the devices are not installed, except for IRQ 9.
If a device is set to use IRQ 2 the device will be redirected to IRQ 9
on AT systems. Pressing C will update the column with all devices
that respond (a maximum of 3 devices can be displayed per IRQ).
41
Chapter 2
An IRQ conflict will happen if two or more devices attempt to use

the same IRQ.
Memory Vector – The IRQ VECTOR column will display the

memory vector that the 8259 PIC sends to the CPU. The CPU uses
the memory vector as a pointer to the ISR. The only memory
vectors displayed while booted under Micro-Scope will be from the
BIOS or from an adapter with ROM that substitutes its own
memory vector. Operating Systems, device drivers and software
programs will also substitute memory vectors. Load Micro-Scope
under the Operating System with all device drivers and software
programs loaded to display the new memory vectors.
Partition Table
A PC can have four physical drives (maybe more by the time you
read this). Each drive can have up to four physical partitions (0, 1, 2
and 3). The master boot record is the first partition and points to
three additional partitions. Each partition contains a single operating
system. DOS 3.3 and earlier versions only have two partitions (0 and
1). Physical partitions can be broken down even further by the
operating system into logical partitions. Only physical partitions are
displayed.
Master Partition Boot Sector

The BIOS loads the master partition boot sector to memory address
0000:7C00 from the hard drive. The master partition boot sector
contains the master boot loader (see Chapter 5, Section F: Rebuild
Master Boot) and master boot record.
The master boot record starts at cylinder 0, head 0, sector 1, offset

01BE. This area contains four 16 byte entries. The first entry is the
first partition table. The second, third, and fourth entries point to
additional partition boot sectors. The master boot record ends with
a 55AA signature byte. The BIOS will not execute the sector
program if it does not find the 55AA at offset 01FE. The master
boot record window displays the drive number (0 or 1), partition
number (0, 1, 2 or 3), the four 16 byte entries and the 55AA
signature byte. A 16 byte entry can be broken down into ten
separate parts.
42
SCREEN – MASTER BOOT RECORD DISPLAY/EDIT

Partition Status (byte) – Indicates the bootable (80) or non-
bootable (00) status of the partition.
Starting Head (byte) – Indicates which head on the drive that the
physical partition begins.
Starting Sector (6 bits) – Indicates which sector on the drive that

the physical partition begins.
Starting Cylinder (10 bits) – Indicates which cylinder on the drive

that the physical partition begins.
Partition Type (byte) – Indicates the type of operating system for

that physical partition, and also whether it uses a 16-bit or 32-bit
FAT (File Allocation Table).
Ending Head (byte) – Indicates which head on the drive that the
partition ends.
Ending Sector (6 bits) – Indicates which sector on the drive that the
physical partition ends.
Ending Cylinder (10 bits) – Indicates which cylinder on the drive

that the physical partition ends.
43
Chapter 2
Start Absolute Sector (double word) – Indicates the number of

sectors from the beginning of the drive to the physical partition.
Total Number of Sectors (double word) – Indicates the number of

sectors from the beginning of the physical partition to the end of the
physical partition.
Volume Boot Signature – This should read 55AA on any bootable

partition.
Press D to select the physical drive. Press the + or - key to change

the drive number. Press enter to execute.
Press P to select the partition and display the PARTITION TABLE

screen (see following section). Press the + or -key to change the
partition number. Press enter to execute.
Press E to edit the master boot record. Cursor to area to be

changed. Press + or - to change the boot indicator or system
indicator. Type in numbers for all others.
Press W to write the new master boot record over the old master
boot record on the drive.
WARNING: Improper changes to the master boot record can

make the drive inaccessible.
Partition/Volume Boot Sector

A partition on a hard drive must have a partition boot sector
followed one head later by a volume boot sector. If either of these
areas is corrupted the partition will not be accessible. These areas
can be corrected but first you must understand what a partition boot
sector and volume boot sector contain.
The master partition boot sector is also the first partition boot
sector. This sector contains the bootloader, first partition table,
pointers to additional partition boot sectors and a 55AA boot
signature.
44
Additional partition boot sectors contain a partition table, pointers to

logical partitions and a boot signature.
A volume boot sector is located exactly one head (track) after a

partition boot sector. A DOS volume boot sector contains a
program, a disk parameter block and the 55AA boot signature. The
program will attempt to load IBMDOS.BIOS and IBMDOS.COM.
The disk parameter block allows DOS to read and verify the capacity
of the disk volume as well as the locations of the two FATs. The
55AA boot signature ends the volume boot sector.
In the Master Boot Record screen, pressing “P” will cause the
display to shift to the Partition Table for a single partition, and also
show details of the Volume Boot Sector for that partition. The
amount and arrangement of these details will vary depending on
whether the partition uses FAT 16 or FAT 32. The first entries
below apply to both FAT 16 and 32, followed by information for
FAT 32 only.
SCREEN – FAT16 PARTITION TABLE EDITOR

The drive number, partition number, OEM (original equipment
manufacturer) name and DOS version will be displayed at the top of
the window, just below the line that tells whether this is FAT 16 or
FAT 32. Below that starting on the left are the listings for the
Volume Boot Sector, followed by the Partition Table information
carried over from the Master Boot Record screen.
45
Chapter 2
Listings for FAT 16 and 32

Bytes per Sector – Indicates the number of bytes per sector. This
value is normally 512. This value must be a power of 2.
Sectors per Cluster – Indicates the number of sectors per cluster.

This value must be a power of 2.
Reserved Sectors – Indicates the number of sectors reserved for the
boot sector. This value is normally 1.
Number of Copies of FAT – Indicates the number of copies of

FATs. This value is normally 2.
Max Root Dir. Entries – Indicates the maximum number of root

directory entries. This value is normally 512.
Total Number of Sectors – Indicates the total number of sectors in

the volume.
Media Descriptor Byte – Indicates the disk parameters. Bytes vary

for floppy disk. Hard disk always use 0xF8.
Sectors per FAT – Indicates the number of sectors in each FAT.
Sectors per Track – Indicates the number of sectors on each track

of the disk.
Number of Heads – Indicates the number of heads for the hard

drive.
Number of Hidden Sectors – Indicates the total number of sectors

that the partition boot sector uses and jumps over to reach the
volume boot sector. This number is normally the same as sectors
per track.
Volume Boot Signature – The volume boot sector must end with a
55AA volume boot signature.
46
SCREEN – FAT 32 PARTITION TABLE EDITOR

Listings for FAT 32 Only
Sectors Per FAT – The number of sectors covered by each File
Allocation Table.
Partition Flags – Bits 0-4 indicate the active FAT copy, and Bit 7
shows whether FAT mirroring is enabled.
Version of FAT 32 Drive – Four hex digits give the major and
minor FAT version numbers.
Start Cluster Root Directory – This 4-digit hex number shows the
Cluster Number of the start of the Root Directory.
File System Info Sector – This is number of the sector containing

the details of the file system.
Backup Boot Sector – FAT 32 contains a second Boot Sector as a

backup. This gives the location of that backup.
Logical Drive – If the logical number of the drive is different than

the physical number, it will appear here.
Extended Signature – This should be 29h.
Partition Serial Number – The serial# of the partition.

47
Chapter 2
Volume Name – If the disk volume has been given a name, it will
appear here. If not, this entry will state “No Name”.
FAT Name – The type of File Allocation Table will show here.
Should be “FAT 32”.
Partition Editing Controls

Press D (physical drive) To select the physical drive, press the + or
- key to change the drive, enter to execute change.
Press P (logical partition) to select the partition. Press the + or -

key to change partition. Press enter to execute change.
CMOS Display/Edit
ATs, EISAs, MCAs, and upgraded XTs include a Real Time Clock
with 64 bytes of CMOS RAM. The Real Time Clock keeps track of
the time and date. The standard CMOS RAM area stores the Real
Time Clock information, Real Time Clock status registers and
System configuration information. A battery supplies power to the
RTC/CMOS chip to maintain this information. ISA systems often
include an extended CMOS area. Standard and Extended CMOS
areas are accessed through port 0070h and 0071h. EISA and MCA
systems have additional CMOS areas that require a reference disk.
This function now allows setting of the date to include the digits for
the year 2000.
48
SCREEN - DISPLAY/EDIT CMOS CONTENTS

Display CMOS Contents
The Display CMOS Contents window will display the standard
CMOS area. This is what CMOS is set to, not what is actually in the
system. Six CMOS areas are displayed in this window.
Date and Time – Indicates the date and time stored by the Real
Time Clock.
Diskette A and B – Indicates the number and media type of floppy

drives set in CMOS.
HD 0 and 1 – Indicates the number and drive type of hard drives set
in CMOS.
Base and Extended Memory – Indicates the amount of base and

extended memory set in CMOS.
Video Adapter – Indicates the type of video adapter set in CMOS.
Coprocessor – Indicates the installed or not installed status of the

Coprocessor in CMOS.
Edit CMOS Contents

To edit CMOS, use the arrow keys to highlight the selected
information, and press the +, -, or number keys to change it. Press
49
Chapter 2
Enter to accept the changes, or Escape to exit without the changes.

Although Micro-Scope will utilize the new values immediately, DOS
will not use the updated information until the POST updates the
hardware configuration equipment list during the next REBOOT.
Press D (Display CMOS Bytes) to display the standard area of 64

bytes of CMOS memory.
The standard area of CMOS RAM in the RTC stores the values
needed by the BIOS when accessing system peripherals. These
values will cause problems if they are corrupted. Corruption of
CMOS will occur if the battery loses power or there is a power surge.
Compare Features
This feature allows the comparison of the hardware configuration of
any system with the information contained in a configuration
comparison file, or template. In this manner, the hardware
configuration of a newly assembled system can be quickly confirmed
by a manufacturer. This also allows for verification of any returned
systems.
Add System
Add System is used to create or add to a comparison file using the
data from the System Information screens of the current system
under test. A prompt will ask you if this data is correct. If it is, press
Y. The next prompt gives a choice between Drive 0 and Drive 1.
These correspond to the first and second floppy drives, A and B.
You will then type in the file name, with the .BIN extension already
provided. If the file does not exist, it will be created.
The last step is to enter a model number. This must be a unique

name that does not match any models previously entered in this
configuration file.
If you need for some reason to create or use a file that is located on
the hard drive, this can be done by running the Micro-Scope
program under DOS or in Windows Safe Mode, rather than booting
to the Micro-Scope OS. In this case instead of individual prompts
you will see a text box in which to enter the drive, path and filename.
You will then see the prompt for the model name.
50
Verify System
This function will compare the hardware configuration of the current
system with a model stored in the previously created comparison file.
Select the drive, and type in the file name. You will then see a list of
all the models stored in that configuration file.
Select the model that corresponds to the system under test and press
Enter. If an exact match is found between the current system and
the configuration of the selected model, the routine will indicate a
passed status. If a match is not found, errors will be displayed and
logged which will indicate any discrepancies.
As with Add System, if booted to DOS or Windows it is possible to

access a file on drives other than the floppies. As before, the entire
drive, path and file name must be entered.
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Chapter 3
Batch Menu
SCREEN - BATCH MENU

The batch menu is designed for running multiple tests in a
continuous or pass-bound mode. This option is useful for testing
newly assembled systems and for diagnosing systems with
intermittent errors.
The options are available to select specific tests to be performed, and

to save the selected tests to a floppy disk. These selections can then
be loaded again in order to facilitate specific batch test routines.
The option is available to create a report of the system tests that are
run, and to save this report to a parallel printer or floppy disk.
Run All Tests

The RUN ALL test selection will perform all non-destructive and
non-interactive test routines. This will test the following equipment if
it is detected by the diagnostic.
Systemboard, Cache Memory, Base Memory, Extended and/or

Expanded Memory, Floppy Disk(s) Read and Write (Partial/Entire)
52
Batch Menu
Butterfly Seek, Fixed Disk(s) Read, Butterfly Seek and Controller

tests, CD ROM Butterfly Seek and Read, Sound Card check, Internal
Serial, Internal Parallel, and Video Memory test. Each of the tests is
more fully explained in the Diagnostic Menu.
Choose SELECT TESTS if destructive testing is required. A

prompt will ask if you want to run Write or Partial tests, on both the
floppy and hard drives.
NOTE: A formatted disk is required in all floppy drives and a CD must

be placed in the CD ROM drive for the Run All Tests option
All errors will be logged to the error log until the error log is full.
The error log can hold up to 16 errors per test. If the Error Halt has
been selected, additional errors for the test will be displayed on the
screen.
Run Continuously
The Run Continuously Option will run all or selected tests up to
65535 times. This might take about a year on a 166mhz Pentium
machine, if all tests were performed. The test can be aborted by
pressing the escape key.
This option is designed for burn-in testing of new systems, when it is

desirable, to force heat-related problems to occur.
Set Pass Count

The Set Pass Count option allows up to 65535 passes to be selected.
The diagnostic will perform all tests or the pre-selected tests until the
pass count is reached or the Escape key is pressed.
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Chapter 3
Select Tests
SCREEN – SELECT TESTS

The Select Tests Menu allows selection of specific tests to be run.
Non-destructive and destructive testing can be chosen from this
menu.
Destructive testing will write over selected media data. Formatted

diskettes are required for floppy tests. Loopback plugs are required
in order to perform external serial and parallel port tests. CD ROM
disks are required for CD ROM tests. Errors will be logged to the
error log. Press the space bar to toggle the checkmark for each test
to be selected.
Load Batch Tests

This option will load a previously saved Batch file from a floppy
diskette. This is designed for convenience of running specific tests in
a batch mode. This option will ask for the floppy drive where the
file to be loaded is stored.
Once the drive is selected the prompt will ask for the name of the
file to be loaded. If running under DOS, the complete path must be
entered for the location where the file is stored. Once the file has
been loaded the Run Selected tests option can be performed without
further need of setup.
54
Batch Menu
Save Batch Tests

This option allows any currently selected tests to be saved to a file on
a floppy diskette. This file can then be loaded from the floppy disk
at a future time. This is designed to expedite the setup of specific
batch tests. This option will display a window to select the drive to
save the file.
Select a drive and press enter. A prompt will appear asking for the
name of the file to be saved. The file name will be referred to by the
Load Batch option. If running under DOS, the complete path must
be entered for the location where the file is to be saved.
Test Selection
SystemBoard Tests – The SystemBoard tests includes the CPU,
NPU, DMA chips (8237), PIC chips (8259), PIT chips (8254), RTC
chip (146818), 8042 chip and the speaker. If it is determined that 32
bit chips are present then the tests will be performed in 32 bit mode.
Memory Tests – The Memory Tests allows the selection of the type
of memory to be tested. Any tests available on a particular machine
may be selected.
A. Cache Memory will be tested if the particular machine

has CACHE RAM present.
B. Expanded Memory will test the ability of the expanded

memory driver to page Extended Memory into Base
Memory if an LIM 4.0 or compatible driver is installed. This
test is not recommended for "burn in" of new or repaired
systems since the extended memory test is more thorough.
C. Extended Memory tests are performed in protected

mode. It is necessary to boot the diagnostic from M2000
O/S or to DOS without loading memory drivers
(himem.sys, EMM386.exe) in order for the test to function.
Floppy Tests – The Floppy Tests requires the selection of the

floppy drives and the selected tests to be run. Format and Write
tests will destroy all data on the diskette. The appropriate media type
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Chapter 3
must be specified for the diskette on which the tests are to be

performed.
The selections are made by pressing the space bar and then pressing
enter to go to the next option window.
NOTE: Incorrect selection of the media will result in false errors being
reported for the floppy tests.
Fixed Disk Tests – The Fixed Disk Tests requires the selection of
the fixed disk drives and the tests to be run.
The selections are made by first pressing the space bar on the desired
section and then pressing enter to continue to the next option
window.
NOTE: The Format and Write tests will destroy all data in the selected
area of the fixed disk(s) selected.
IDE Device Tests – Individually select one IDE device for testing:
Primary Master, Primary Slave, Secondary Master or Secondary
Slave.
SCSI Device Tests – Select from up to 16 SCSI devices by

highlighting the device listing and pressing the space bar. Available
tests are Read, Write and Butterfly Seek.
Sound Card Tests – This allows testing for the Sound Card .
Serial Port Tests – The Serial Port Tests requires the selection of
the serial ports and the selected tests to be run. External tests
require the loopback plugs to be present on the selected serial ports.
Parallel Port Tests – The Parallel Port Tests requires the selection
of the parallel port and the selected tests to be run. External tests
require the loopback plugs to be present on the selected parallel
ports.
56
Batch Menu
Video Memory Test – The Video Memory Test will test the
amount of memory on the video adapter detected by Micro-Scope.
Additional video tests require an operator. Go to Section III
Diagnostics, Video Tests and run the tests manually.
Other Device Tests – Individually select tests for the Sleep Button,
Joystick, Keyboard, Mouse and Printer
Network Card Test – This tests the registers and

EEPROM of the network card.
USB Controller Test – The basic functions and commands

of the USB Host Adapter are tested.
Run Selected
The Run Selected choice will begin the selected tests immediately, as
soon as one of the two options below is enabled. The errors will be
logged to the error log.
Run Continuously – The Run Continuously option will run the

selected tests for 65535 passes or until the escape key is pressed.
Set Pass Count – The Set Pass Count option will run the selected
tests for a specified number of passes or until the escape key is
pressed.
Report Features
The report features menu allows the creation, saving, loading and
logging of a report. The options in this menu are Create Report and
Log Report. This feature is designed for the creation of a report on
systems that have been tested using the Run All or Run Selected
options. If running under the M2000 O/S the report format can be
saved to or loaded from a floppy diskette.
Create Report
This function will create the report format. The name, address and
phone numbers may be input for both the testing facility and the
client. Pressing Enter on this option will bring up the Testing
Facility window.
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Chapter 3
SCREEN – CREATE REPORT

To create an original report select the edit function, type in the
appropriate information, and press enter. Then press (A) to accept
the information and continue on to the Client window. The client
window is handled in the same manner.
Press E (edit) to edit the appropriate window.
Press S (save) to save report format.
This option will save the information in the current window to a

floppy diskette. The Testing Facility and the Client Information is
saved separately so it may be loaded independently of the other
option. Choosing this option will prompt for the floppy drive to
save the file to, and the name of the file to be saved. Press enter
after each entry to accept the parameter and continue to the next
window. If running under DOS, the report may be saved to any
valid floppy, fixed or network drive by entering the completed path
to where the file is to be saved.
Press L (load) to load an existing report format.
This option will load an existing report format from a floppy

diskette. If this option is chosen, a prompt will appear asking for the
58
Batch Menu
floppy drive where the file exists. Pressing enter on a drive will bring
up the file name prompt.
Enter the name of the file which contains the desired report format.
Pressing enter at this time will load the report format. If running
under DOS, the report may be loaded from any valid floppy, fixed or
network drive by entering the complete path where the file is stored.
Press C (clear) to clear the window.
This option will clear any information in the current window. This
will not affect the other option windows in the report format.
Press A (accept) to accept the information in the window.
This option accepts the information in the current window and

continues on to the next window. This is used when all of the
necessary information has been input into a window.
NOTE: The client information and the testing facility information may be
saved or loaded individually.
Log Report
This option allows the entire report to be saved as a file or displayed
on the screen or sent to a parallel printer. While running under the
M2000 O/S, the report may also be saved to a floppy diskette. If
running under DOS, the report may be saved to any valid floppy,
fixed or network drive by entering the complete path for where the
file is to be saved.
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Chapter 3
SCREEN – LOG REPORT

Selecting any of the options in this menu except ‘Display to Screen’
will bring up submenus.
The report is logged in a four page format.
Page 1 - The first page contains the testing facility and client
information along with information regarding the system tested. The
date, time and number of passes is also stored on page one.
Page 2 - The second page contains the equipment installed in the

system tested. This will include the same information found in the
System Configuration window.
Page 3 - This page contains the tests that were performed and a Pass
or Fail status for each test. If an error was detected for any of the
tests, the appropriate page in the error log will be added to the
report. For example, if three tests found errors, three pages would
be added to the report, detailing the type of error that occurred.
Page 4 and above - These will be detailed information on the errors

found.
Display on Screen – Select this option to display the test results on

the monitor screen.
60
Batch Menu
Log To Disk – This option will save the report to any floppy
diskette or FAT partition. Pressing enter will bring a prompt asking
for the filename and where the file should be saved
(i.e. B:\Report.txt). Pressing enter again will ask for the name of the
report file to be saved. If running under DOS, the report may be
saved to any valid floppy, fixed or network drive by entering the
complete path where the file is to be saved.
NOTE: Files saved to a floppy can be loaded at a later date and then
printed if necessary.
Log To Printer - Select the printer option to print the report to a

parallel printer. If this option is selected a prompt will ask for the
port where the printer is connected. Select the proper port and the
diagnostic will print the report.
Error Log
The Error Log window will display all errors detected from the Run
All Tests and Run Selected Tests. The Error Log can hold a
maximum of 16 errors for each test performed. This log will be
added to a report if errors were detected during testing.
Error Halt Enabled/Disabled

By selecting Error Halt Enabled, the operator is choosing to halt the
batch when the first error is detected. If Error Halt is disabled, each
test will continue until the error log for that specific test is filled (16
errors). Enabled will stop on the error and Disabled will continue
testing.
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Chapter 4
Diagnostic Tests
SCREEN – DIAGNOSTICS MENU

The Diagnostic menu contains tests for the System Board, Memory,
Floppy and Fixed disks, SCSI and IDE devices, Sound Cards, CD-
ROMs, Serial Ports, Parallel Ports, Video Adapter and Monitor,
Keyboard, Mouse, Joystick and Printer. Low level formatting of
Floppy and Fixed Disks may also be performed.
System Board Tests
SCREEN – SYSTEMBOARD TESTS

62
Diagnostic Tests
The System Board Tests window runs a series of routines to test the
CPU, NPU, DMAs, PICs, RTC/CMOS, 8042 (Keyboard controller)
and the speaker. XTs will only have one DMA and one
programmable interrupt controller. AT systems will have two
DMAs and two PICs. Newer systems will usually use an integrated
peripheral controller. This one chip contains two 8237 DMAs, two
8259 PICs, two PITs and RTC/CMOS.
Microprocessor Test – The Microprocessor Test will run a series of

routines to test the CPU chip, from the 8088 to the latest Pentium
IV, AMD64 or Cyrix processor.
The CPU chip performs all the system's logical operations. The tests
include a test for the registers (both 16 and 32 bit), logical
instructions, arithmetic functions and the instruction set for each
type of CPU. Multi-processor systems are also tested and failures are
assigned to a particular CPU.
NOTE: The arithmetic test includes a routine to detect the 386 divide
bug.
Numeric Processor Test – The NPU Test will run a series of

routines to test the numeric processor. The coprocessor can do
mathematical operations 10 to 100 times faster than the CPU. This
takes the strain off the CPU. Most modern programs can detect and
use a coprocessor. Programs that cannot detect and use a
coprocessor will do all the mathematical operations through the
CPU.
RTC RAM Test – This tests the RTC against the CTC to ensure the
RTC is keeping proper time and the CMOS RAM is tested for any
failing bits.
CTC Controller Test – The CTC test will run a series of routines to
test the Clock Timer Circuitry chip or chips.
DMA Controllers Test – The DMA test will run a series of routines
to test the Direct Memory Access chip or chips. The 16 bit functions
are tested where appropriate. DMA chips allow direct transfer of
data from memory to memory or device to memory without the
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Chapter 4
CPU. This allows the CPU to do other tasks while the DMAs
handle certain transfers. Each DMA has four channels.
NOTE: If two devices try to use the same DMA channel at one time, one
or both devices will not work.
PC's and XT's use one DMA chip and the standard setup is:
Channel 0 Refresh, Channel 2 Floppy. Channel 3 and Channel 1 are
available for use by fixed disks, CD ROMs etc.
ATs, ATXs and other modern form factors use two DMAs and the
standard setup is:
Channel 0 Available 16-Bit,

Channel 1 Available,
Channel 2 Floppy,
Channel 3 Available,
Channel 4 Cascades lower 4 channels to upper 4 channels.
Channel 7 Available 16-Bit.
Interrupt Controllers Test – The Interrupt Controller test will run

a series of routines to test the 8259 PIC chip or chips. PIC chips
allow interrupt requests to be sent to the CPU by devices needing
service. This test ensures that the IRQ lines are toggling correctly
within the PIC.
Speaker Test – This sends a pattern of distinguishable tones to the

speaker. If a tone is not heard when the test is in progress, the test
failed.
PS/2 Mouse Controller Test – This tests the ability of the PS/2
mouse controller portion of the keyboard controller to communicate
properly with the device.
Keyboard Controller Test – This tests the keyboard controllers

ability to communicate with the keyboard and tests the ability of the
keyboard controller to toggle the A20 line correctly.
64
Diagnostic Tests
Memory Tests
SCREEN – MEMORY TESTS

The Memory Tests menu provides a series of basic routines to test
Cache, Expanded and Extended memory. Expanded Memory
should be tested while booted to DOS, but the others should be run
after cold-booting to the Micro-Scope operating system.
Note: If base memory (below 640KB) needs to be tested, boot to Micro-
Scope and use: Option 8 Run Base Memory.
Cache Memory
Testing Cache Memory uses the same selection menu and the same
battery of tests that are used by the Extended and Expanded
Memory Tests. See the test descriptions below in the section for
Extended Memory.
The difference between the Extended and Cache Memory Tests is

that when testing extended memory, the cache must be flushed after
each cycle to ensure that reads are performed from system RAM and
not from the Cache. For this reason, each of the Cache tests will run
much faster than the same test for Extended Memory.
To ensure that the cache is controlled by Micro-Scope rather than by

the Windows operating system, Micro-Scope must be booted to its
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Chapter 4
own OS rather than run in a Windows DOS box when performing

the Cache tests.
Expanded Memory
This routine will test the Expanded Memory Driver's ability to
correctly page the extended memory into base memory. In order to
test expanded memory, it is necessary to load the driver with a Warm
Boot, using the following steps.
1. Boot to DOS with EMS driver loaded.

2. Load Micro-Scope under DOS (A: MS),
3. Select Diagnostics, Memory Tests, Expanded Memory.
If the test is attempted after a cold boot to the Micro-Scope

operating system, a message will appear stating that the Expanded
Memory Driver is not loaded.
SCREEN – EXPANDED MEMORY

Extended Memory
The Extended Memory Tests are for system RAM above 1024k.
Select the desired test and press Enter to start. The screen displays
the test in use, area being tested, offset and segment being tested,
and pass count. You may abort the tests at any time by pressing the
Escape key.
66
Diagnostic Tests
By default, the amount of memory detected by CMOS and by Micro-

Scope is displayed in the test window. You may enter the amount of
memory you wish to test, including those portions of memory which
cannot be detected by the BIOS. The area between 640k and 1024k
is reserved for BIOS ROM. If the BIOS is shadowed into extended
memory or the 640k-1024k area is relocated, then that memory also
will not be tested since it is in use by a ROM.
All Tests – This will run the entire battery of tests, except for the
long versions of the Bit and Grid tests.
Pattern Test – The patterns include Walking Ones, Inverse Walking
Ones and Checkerboard.
Pseudo-Random Test – Memory is filled with semi-random data
and checked. Then, each address is given new data, and checked
along with the previous address.
Xor'ed Address Test – The bytes of each address are Xor'ed
together with a test byte, which is then stored at that address. The
test makes eight passes with different test bytes.
Bit Test – Sequentially changes each bit of each word in memory.
Detects one bit changing another bit in memory. The long version
includes an extra toggle with a cache flush in between.
Grid Test – Checks for mislinked bits that are physically adjacent.
NOTES:
1. Incorrect setting of the DMA and Read/Write cycles may render a
system non-bootable. If this occurs, and all other attempts to correct the
problem fail, drain the CMOS Battery.
2. On 386 systems, it is advisable to manually disable cache during

extended memory testing, to ensure that the data being tested is actually in
RAM and not in cache. In 486 and later systems, Micro-Scope will do this
automatically.
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Chapter 4
Floppy Tests
The Floppy Tests menu allows drive selection, media selection,
formatting, Butterfly, read and write tests to be performed on the
various floppy drives and floppy diskettes.
Place a DOS formatted diskette in the drive to be tested. A blank

diskette can be used but the format option will have to be executed
before any other tests are performed.
SCREEN – MEDIA SELECT

Drive Select – The Drive Select menu allows the selection of floppy
drive 0, 1, 2, and 3. A PC can have a maximum of 4 hardware-
configured floppy drives. Press Enter with the cursor on the
selected drive to be tested.
Media Select – The Media Select window allows the selection of

5.25 360K, 5.25 1.2M, 3.5 720K, 3.5 1.44M, and 3.5 2.88M media
types. The predefined drive settings are for standard AT drive types
that are directly supported by the BIOS on the motherboard. Press
Enter with the cursor on the selected media type to be tested.
User Defined – This option allows the user to define the media type
manually, for testing of non-standard floppy drives. Selecting this
option will highlight the media area to be manually set on the left
side of the window. Press the character and number keys to change
68
Diagnostic Tests
area. Use the cursor key to move to the different media areas. Press
Enter when finished.
Format Diskette – The Format Diskette window will do a low-level

format on the floppy diskette. The Format Entire option will format
the entire floppy diskette. A warning message will be displayed.
Press Y (Yes) to low-level format the floppy diskette and destroy all
data. Press N (No) to cancel operation.
Format Partial – Will format the selected area of the floppy

diskette. Use the number keys to select Start Cylinder, End Cylinder,
Start Head and End Head. Press Enter to execute. Press Y (Yes) to
low-level format floppy diskette and destroy selected data. Press N
(No) to cancel.
NOTE: This is not a DOS format. The Diskette will have to be

reformatted with DOS to be used on a DOS system.
Butterfly Seek Test – The Butterfly Seek Test will read the first
sector, the last sector, the second sector, the second from last sector,
and proceed to read inward in this pattern. The test pattern will
continue until the heads reach the middle of the drive. The test will
then start reading outward using a reverse pattern.
The advantage of the Butterfly Seek Test is that it will cause the head
and electronics on the floppy drive to work vigorously. while doing
all the functions of a read test. The increased activity will help in
detecting alignment problems and intermittent electronic failures.
Read Test – The Read Test window will read the floppy drive in a
sequential pattern. This will test the read functionality of the floppy
drive and find errors on the floppy diskette.
1. The Read Entire option will read the entire floppy diskette.
2. The Read Partial option will read the selected area of the
floppy diskette. Use the number keys to select the Start
Cylinder, Ending Cylinder, Start Head and End Head.
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Chapter 4
Write Test – The Write Test window will write to the floppy
diskette in a sequential pattern. This will test the write functionality
of the floppy drive and find errors on the floppy diskette.
1. The Write Entire option will write to the entire floppy

diskette. A warning message will be displayed. Press Y
(Yes) to write to the entire floppy diskette and destroy all
data. Press N (No) to cancel operation.
2. The Write Partial option will write to the selected area of the
floppy diskette. Use the number keys to select the Start
Cylinder, End Cylinder, Start Head and End Head. Press
Enter to Execute. Press Y (Yes) to write to the selected area
of the floppy diskette and destroy selected data. Press N
(No) to cancel operation.
Safe Write Test – This procedure will copy the diskette contents
into the system RAM, perform a write test on the diskette, and then
read the original data back onto the diskette. This option is useful
for testing the write functions of the floppy drive when a blank
diskette is not available.
Fixed Disk Tests
SCREEN – FIXED DISK DRIVE SELECTION
70
Diagnostic Tests
The Fixed Disk Test menu contains routines for drive selection,
setting interleave (MFM and RLL drives), determining parameters
(MFM and RLL drives), mapping bad sectors manually, formatting,
and diagnostic tests for butterfly seek, read, write, safe write and
controller tests.
The Fixed Disk Selected window will display the drive type set in
CMOS, the type of drive (MFM, RLL, IDE/SATA, ESDI, and
SCSI), the BIOS parameters (the parameters used by the interrupt 13
functions), the Native settings (the parameters stored on the drive),
and the BIOS settings (the parameters used by the BIOS on
controller card for the drive). IDE/SATA drives will also display
information specific to IDE/SATA drives.
Drive Select (0 through 6) – The Drive Select option will allow the
selection of Fixed disk 0 through 6. It may be necessary to load a
software driver in order to gain access to the drives beyond the first
two.
Set Interleave (MFM/RLL) – The Set Interleave option will

highlight the Interleave area in the Fixed Disk Selected window.
Press the number keys to change the interleave. Press Enter to exit
out of Set Interleave option. Low-level format the drive to change
the interleave. If the interleave for an MFM or RLL drive is set
incorrectly the drive will operate at a reduced speed.
NOTE: Formatting a drive to change the interleave will destroy all data
on the drive. IDE/SATA drives always have an interleave of 1. ESDI
and SCSI are set through the controller BIOS.
Bad Sector Map (MFM/RLL/IDE/SATA)

The Bad Sector Map window will allow the mapping of bad sectors.
Each sector to be mapped must be entered individually. The Read
Test has an automatic mapping feature. Most IDE/SATA drives
will automatically map out bad sectors during a low-level format.
There will be instances where the bad sectors will have to be
manually mapped out.
A low-level format must be performed to map out bad sectors that

were entered into the Bad Sector Map.
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Chapter 4
Press Left and Right cursor keys to select Cylinder, Sector, Head and
BFI (automatically calculated by Micro-scope).
Press the number keys to set Cylinder, Sector, Head and BFI in bad
sector map. Press Up and Down keys to select entry (1, 2, 3, etc.).
Format Fixed Disk
SCREEN – FORMAT FIXED DISK

Format Fixed Disk – The Format Fixed Disk option will run a
specific routine to low level format each of the 5 drive types (MFM,
RLL, ESDI, SCSI and IDE/SATA drives).
Format Entire – The Format Entire Disk option will low level
format the entire hard disk for MFM, RLL and IDE/SATA drives.
The Micro-Scope will run the proper routine for each drive type. A
warning message will be displayed. Press Y (Yes) to low-level format
and destroy selected data on the hard disk. Press any other key to
cancel operation.
Format Partial – The Format Partial Disk option will low-level

format the selected area on MFM, RLL and IDE/SATA drives. Use
the number keys to select Start Cylinder, End Cylinder, Start Head
and End Head. Press Enter to execute. A warning message will be
displayed. Press Y (Yes) to low-level format selected area and
destroy selected data. Press any other key to cancel the operation.
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Diagnostic Tests
Warning:
All of the format options are destructive. No data will remain on a
drive, which is low-level formatted.
Use Controller BIOS – Use Controller BIOS option will jump to

the setup/low-level format routine located on the BIOS on the
controller adapter card for ESDI and SCSI drives. Enter the
Segment Address and Offset Address for the location of the jump
byte. Go to Section IV, Memory Examine, ESDI/SCSI Setup
Routine Segment and Offset to find segment and offset address.
Use the character and number keys to set segment and offset. Press
Enter to execute. The BIOS setup low-level format routine will now
be displayed.
Note: Not all ESDI and SCSI controllers have a setup and low-level
format routine to access. Future Domain SCSI controllers do not have a
controller setup/format routine. Use the format entire option for Future
Domain SCSI controller cards.
Fixed Disk Diagnostic Tests

Butterfly Test – The Butterfly Test window will read the first
sector, the last sector, the second sector, the second from last sector
and proceed to read inward with this pattern until the test reaches
the middle of the drive. The test will then start reading outward
using a reverse pattern.
The Butterfly Test will cause the heads and electronics on the hard
disk to work vigorously. The increased activity will help in detecting
intermittent, alignment and electronic failures. This test will do all
the functions of a read test.
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Chapter 4
SCREEN – READ TEST

Read Test – The Read Test window will read the hard disk in a
sequential pattern. This will test the read functionality of the hard
disk and detect bad sectors.
The Read Entire option will read the entire hard disk. The Read
Partial option will read the selected area of the hard disk. Use the
number keys to select the Start Cylinder, End Cylinder, Start Head
and End Cylinder.
Write Test – The Write Test window will write to the hard disk in a
sequential pattern. This will test the write functionality of the hard
disk and detect bad sectors.
The Write Entire option will write to the entire hard disk. A
warning message will be displayed. The Write Partial option will
write to the selected area of the hard disk. Use the number keys to
select the Start Cylinder, End Cylinder, Start Head and End Head.
Press Enter to execute. A warning message will be displayed. Press
Y (Yes) to write to the selected area of the hard disk and destroy
selected data. Press N (No) to cancel operation. Be aware that this is
an extremely detailed, accurate, and time consuming test.
Safe Write Test – This test will read the hard drive contents into
system RAM one portion at a time, perform a Write test on that
74
Diagnostic Tests
portion of the drive, restore the contents to the drive, and then go to
the next portion. Just as with the destructive write test, there is a
choice of Safe Write Entire or Safe Write Partial. Be aware that
data can still be lost if there is a malfunction of the read or
write heads.
Controller Test – The Controller Test will test the hard disk
controller for MFM, RLL, ESDI and SCSI drives, which all have a
separate controller adapter card.
Four tests are run. Controller Diags is a self test run by the
controller on the drive. Write/Read Buffer test will write to the
controller buffer then read what was written then compare the two.
Recalibrate Drive will retract all the heads of the drive. Reset Drive
will reset all registers on the controller.
Notes
1. If the buffer on the fixed disk becomes filled with errors, this test will clear
the buffer for further testing.
2. IDE/SATA drives have the controller built onto the drive and mostly
inaccessible to this test. The IDE/SATA adapter card is tested but it
contains only a line buffer (amplifier) and passing the Controller Test does
not confirm that an IDE/SATA controller is error-free.
IDE / SCSI Tests

This group of tests is actually useful on a variety of removable media,
including Zip and LS-120 drives. The tests require that a copy of the
media is inserted in the drive. The media can’t be defective or test
failures will result. When testing a CD-ROM drive, Autoplay must be
disabled to run the tests in a Windows DOS box. If the Micro-
Scope is booted to its own operating system, autoplay is not an issue.
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Chapter 4
SCREEN – CD-ROM / ATAPI / SCSI TESTS

Select Drive
This provides a choice between IDE/ATAPI Device and
SCSI/ASPI Device. If the wrong one is selected, the program will
inform you there is no such device installed, and it’s a simple matter
to hit the Esc key and make the other choice.
IDE/ATAPI Device – If the device is an IDE type, it will be in

one of 4 positions: Primary Master, Primary Slave, Secondary Master
and Secondary Slave. Again, if an incorrect choice is made the
program will say so.
Most often the CD-ROM drive will be installed as a secondary

master, or as primary master if no IDE hard drive is installed. A
CD-ROM will seldom be installed on the same channel as a hard
drive because of throughput problems.
SCSI/ASPI Device – Select any of up to 16 devices by entering the

device number, from 0 to 15. The System Information Screen #2
will tell you which SCSI devices are installed on the system, and their
Device Number. If no device is present corresponding to the
selected number, or if the appropriate driver has not been loaded,
the program will report “No ASPI Driver Loaded”.
After selecting an IDE or SCSI drive, Escape back to the SCSI/IDE

submenu and select the test to run.
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Diagnostic Tests
Determine Parameters
This selection will query the drive to determine the number of
sectors and the sector size. If run after one of the tests, it will also
display the error code, if any, from the test.
Device Tests
Regardless of whether the drive is an IDE or SCSI device, the same
three tests are available.
Butterfly Seek Test – This test performs a Read function,

combined with vigorous accordion-pattern exercising of the heads.
It is useful for diagnosing alignment and intermittent problems.
Partial or Entire testing of the drive is available.
Read Test – The choices are Read Entire Drive and Read Partial
Drive. If the partial test is selected, you will be prompted to enter a
Starting and Ending sector.
Write Test – Like the Read test, the Write test offers Entire or
Partial. The Write test cannot be used on CD-ROMs, but is useful
for other removable-media devices.
Note: Be aware that if these tests are run in a Windows DOS box, some
IDE-type CD-ROM drives, ZIP drives and other removable drives may
appear to Micro-Scope as SCSI devices.
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Chapter 4
Sound Card Tests
SCREEN – SOUND CARD TEST

This selection tests for the presence of a SoundBlaster-compatible
sound card or cards. If one is detected, the type of card and I/O port
setting for the card will be displayed.
The testing will toggle the registers in the card to determine the
functional state of the card. This will cause tones to be produced by
the sound card(s). If a card is not detected, a message will appear
designating the absence of the card. In addition, pass/fail results will
be shown for the Register Test, Interrupt Test and DMA Test.
Serial Port Tests

The Serial Port Tests will allow testing of the internal and external
line status of modems and serial ports. The Serial Port Tests window
will allow the selection and/or display of the port, I/O address, IRQ,
baud rate and UART type.
Micro-Scope will query the I/O port(s) and determine the actual
IRQ usage of the installed devices.
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Diagnostic Tests
Select Port
The Select Port option will allow the selection of port 0, 1, 2 and 3.
Press enter with the cursor on the desired port to select the port for
testing.
Set Parameters
The Set Parameters option will allow the setting of Port
Configuration, Baud rate, Parity, Data Bits, Stop Bits and Loopback.
Set Port Configuration – This will allow the setting of the I/O
Address. Use the character and number keys to set I/O Address.
Press Enter to execute.
Set Baud Rate – Allows the setting of the baud rate for a modem.
The maximum baud rate setting is 115200. The baud rate defaults to
57600 if not set. Press Enter with the cursor on the selected baud
rate. The Set Parity option will allow the setting of parity for a
modem. None is for no parity set. Odd is for a parity check that
equals an odd number. Even is for a parity check that equals an even
number. Press Enter with the cursor on the selected parity.
SCREEN – SERIAL PORT LOOPBACK TEST

Set Data Bits – This option will allow the setting of the Data Bits
for a modem. The Data Bits are the number of bits (7 or 8) sent
through the modem. Press Enter with the cursor on the selected
Data Bits.
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Chapter 4
Set Stop Bits – Will allow the setting of the stop bits for a modem.
The Stop Bits are bits (0 or 1) telling the modem when to stop.
Press Enter with the cursor on the selected stop bit.
Set Loopback – Determines whether the Internal or External

Loopback test will be done. The External loopback test requires the
proper loopback plug to be installed on the selected serial port.
Run Loopback Test

The Run Loopback option will run a series of routines to test the
selected serial port. The test data being sent to test the serial port
will be displayed in the data window. The results of the test will be
displayed in the Internal/External Line Status window, Modem
Status window and Error Count window. The bottom line will
display information for the selected Port, IRQ, I/O, Baud and
UART.
Keyboard to Port
The Keyboard to Port option will allow testing of the keyboard,
modem, and mouse hardware without the software driver being
loaded. The test will begin as soon as the Enter key is pressed with
Keyboard-to-Port highlighted, so the setup to determine which
device is tested must be done first.
Keyboard – The keyboard can be tested by selecting a port with a

loopback plug. The keyboard will now be able to type to the data
window.
Mouse – The mouse can be tested by selecting the port used by the
mouse, then selecting the Keyboard to Port test. The data window
will now display characters and numbers when the mouse is moved.
Modem – For the most complete test of the modem, do a warm

boot to load the modem driver, and use the suite of Modem Connect
Tests described in Section H. To use the Serial Port tests for a basic
test of the modem, select the port used by the modem, then use the
Set Parameters feature to set the Port Configuration (I/O Address),
rate, Parity, Data Bits and Stop Bits for the modem, and then start
the Keyboard to Port Test. The data window is now a modem
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Diagnostic Tests
terminal that does not require the modem software driver, and can
be tested by .typing in ATDT, International Code (1 for U.S.A.), area
code and phone number (Example: ATDT18185551212).
Note: The example phone number is not a valid modem data line.
Serial Port Test Results

Internal/External Line Status – The Line Status window will state
Internal or External depending on the type of loopback test that was
selected. The left column describes the circuit being tested and the
connected circuit. The right column displays the active or error
status of the test.
Modem Status – The Modem Status window will display the

modem test for selected port. The left column describes the circuit
being tested. The right column displays the active or error status of
the test.
Error Count – The Error Count window will display the test being
done and the count of the test. The left column describes the test
being done. The right column displays the test in process, count of
the test and pass or error.
Data Window – The Data Window displays the Run Loopback test
and Keyboard to Port test.
Port, IRQ, I/O, Baud and UART – The Port, IRQ, I/O, Baud
and UART line will display the present setting for the window. The
UART (Universal Asynchronous Receiver Transceiver) chip number
for the serial device is displayed.
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Chapter 4
Modem Connect Tests
SCREEN – MODEM CONNECT TESTS MENU

Although the modem is a specialized serial port device and the basic
functions can be tested using the Serial Port test, the routines listed
below allow a more comprehensive on-and-off line check of the
modem circuitry and the phone line.
Only hardware modems will be tested. WinModems or other

software modem simulators will not be detected even if their drivers
are loaded.
Modem Test – This checks the basic command response of the

modem unit. The available speeds and modes will be listed. Some
ATI commands are unique to each brand of modem, so the test may
show a failure if the modem uses an ATI command that Micro-
Scope is not familiar with. This would not indicate a failure of the
modem.
Line Test – Tests the connection to the phone line, and the receipt
of dial tone.
Note: This test expects a standard dial tone. Connecting to a hotel PBX
or other non-standard switchboard can cause the test to fail, and may risk
damage to the modem.
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Diagnostic Tests
Connect Test – Put in the phone number of a remote modem and

start the test. This will verify the ability to connect to a remote site
and receive an acknowledgement. The modems on each end must
be in compatible modes and able to match speed.
Send ASCII Test – This sends a packet of ASCII data to the

remote modem, to verify transmission.
Send File Test – This sends a file called Sample.txt to the remote
computer. Accuracy of transmission can be verified at the remote
end.
Parallel Port Tests

The Parallel Port Tests will run a series of routines to test signal, pin,
status, port, interrupt, I/O port, internal, external, data latches,
control latches, status latches and interrupt level.
Set Parameters
Select Port – Choose from Port 0, 1 and 2. Press Enter with cursor
on selected port.
Set Port Configuration – Use character and number keys to set the
I/O address of the port. Press Enter to execute.
Micro-Scope will test the selected I/O port and determine the actual
IRQ usage for that port.
Set Loopback – Determines the selection of either the internal or

external loopback test. Press Enter with cursor on selected loopback
test. The External test requires the parallel loopback plug to be set
on the selected parallel port.
Run Loopback Test

The Run Loopback Test will perform a series of routines with the
selected port. The Status Latches Test and the Interrupt Level Test
will only be performed with the External Loopback option. The
results of these tests will be displayed in the lower right window.
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Chapter 4
SCREEN – RUN PARALLEL LOOPBACK TEST

Data Latches Test – Checks the port’s Data Bit Registers.
Control Latches Test – Shows that the port can latch the control
byte.
Status Latches Test – Checks signals being returned from the

device attached to the port (or from the loopback plug).
Interrupt Level Test – Tests that an interrupt coming from an
attached device will be properly handled by the port.
Signal Status Window – The window on the left lists each of the
signal lines of the port, down the left–hand column. The middle
column lists the pin number for each line, and the right-hand column
shows the status of each line during the test. The status will read
either Active, Inactive, or Error.
If the Internal Loopback option was selected, five of the control

lines should be listed as inactive: Acknowledge, Device Busy, Paper
End, Select and Error Signals.
Network Card Tests

This test of the network interface controller displays a box in the
upper left corner showing the Node Address of the network card
84
Diagnostic Tests
and separate pass/fail results of testing the NIC registers and

EEPROM.
The test supports a variety of NIC chipsets, including Intel, National

Semiconductor, Realtek and some SMC and 3COM cards.
In addition to the tests listed above, Intel, 3COM and national cards
also have an internal self-test which is activated and reported by
Micro-Scope.
USB Controller Tests

The tests for the USB controller will identify, first of all, whether the
controller is the Open Host Controller Interface (OHCI), Universal
type (UHCI) or Enhanced (EHCI). This information will be
displayed across the top of the Test Results window.
Then, the test will exercise the basic controller commands and make
sure these are functional. The commands tested are: Reset, Restart,
Run/Stop, Suspend and Resume. The pass/fail results for each
command will be posted in the window.
Video Tests
SCREEN – VIDEO TESTS
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Chapter 4
The Video Tests will check video memory, attributes, character set,
screen alignment, text modes, graphics modes and screen paging. A
visual inspection will be required for all tests except video memory.
Video Memory
Page Memory Test – This will test all the video memory on the 1st
video adapter that can be accessed using standard BIOS calls.
During the test, broad bands of color will appear as the video
memory is filled with various test data.
Linear Memory Test – This uses the Extended Memory Tests

routines to check all mapped video memory that can be accessed
with VESA calls. A greater variety of patterns will be seen as the
tests cycle through, and if the system is VESA compatible, the
amount of memory tested will also be greater than with the page
memory test.
SCREEN – VIDEO PAGE MEMORY TEST
Video DAC Test

The static RAMDAC chip on a video card used for Digital to Analog
Conversion is scanned for both addressing and data bit failure in this
test.
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Diagnostic Tests
SCREEN – DISPLAY ATTRIBUTES

Display Attributes – The Display Attributes window will display
the attribute bits (0 through 7), hex, results, descriptions and
foreground colors for the video adapter.
The Attribute bits are broken down into four groups, listed on the
left portion of the screen. Bits 0, 1 and 2 set the foreground. Bit 3
sets the intensity. Bits 4, 5 and 6 set the background. Bit 7 sets the
blink. The Hex column gives the hexadecimal value of the eight
attribute bits.
The Results column in the center of the screen shows what the
attribute looks like for each combination of bits. This can be
compared visually with the description line in the right-hand column.
The foreground colors along the bottom display the 16 different

colors and the bit set for that color. Combined with the background
colors (16 different colors) there are a total of 256 combinations of
colors.
Be aware that some tonal values in the screen shot on the next page
have been reversed for print clarity.
Display Character Set – The Display Character Set will write the 256
character ASCII character set to video memory. The video adapter
will display this set on the screen. A visual inspection is necessary to
determine if the characters are being displayed correctly.
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Chapter 4
SCREEN – DISPLAY CHARACTER SET

Screen Alignment – The Screen Alignment test displays a grid
pattern for visual inspection. Look at the edges and see if there is
one line, which is correct, or a divergence, which is incorrect. The
left and right arrows keys will change the foreground attribute. The
up and down arrow keys will change the background attribute, and
the plus or minus keys will change the character displayed.
Note: To check alignment of the electron guns, use a background attribute

of 5 (magenta). If the convergence is off center a red line (lower left of screen)
a blue line (upper right of screen) or both will appear at the screen edge.
SCREEN – SCREEN ALIGNMENT
88
Diagnostic Tests
Screen Focus – A series of three test patterns (not shown) can

cycled through by pressing any key. At the end of the series the
program is returned to the Video Tests menu.
SCREEN – TEXT MODES TEST

Text Modes Test – The Text Modes Test will display the 80 x 25
and 40 x 25 text modes. If it is determined that the video hardware
will support the 132x25 text mode this mode will also be displayed.
Press any key to advance from one mode to the next, or the Escape
key to leave the test.
SVGA Graphics Modes Test – The Graphics Modes Test will

display various different graphics modes. The pixels (640 X 480),
color (16 colors), mode (12h) and type (VGA) will be displayed in
the windows. The High, Medium and Low intensity will also be
displayed in a window. If it is determined that the video hardware
will support 1024x768x16 or 256 colors, and 1280x1024x16 or 256
colors, these modes will be implemented and displayed.
Press Enter to move from one display to the next.
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Chapter 4
SCREEN – SVGA GRAPHICS MODE

Screen Paging Test – The Screen Page Test will display a window
filled with 0s, 1s, 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s, etc. Each page is a different page of
video memory. Press Enter to page to the second window filled with
2s. Press Enter again to continue paging.
SCREEN PAGING TEST (2s)
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Diagnostic Tests
Other Device Tests

The Other Device Tests Menu has four selections: Joystick Test,
Keyboard Test, Mouse Test and Printer Test.
SCREEN – KEYBOARD TEST

Keyboard Test – The Keyboard Test opens a window on the left of
the screen that will contain a box displaying the name of any key
pressed, the scan code representing any key pressed and the
corresponding ASCII character for any key pressed. If the name
displayed in the box does not match the key pressed, the key in
question has failed, or the keyboard controller has failed.
Note: When the escape key is pressed during the keyboard test, it will not
be displayed if it is functioning properly. Pressing the Escape key will exit
the test.
Joystick Test – The Joystick Test will detect if a control device is

presently attached to the game port in the system. A window will
appear in the left portion of the screen with an inner box for each
button and an X and Y coordinate for the current screen cursor
position. Moving the joystick will affect the X and Y coordinate
displayed in the window. Pressing either button will cause the
appropriate box status to state “Active”. If these displays do not
occur, the joystick is failing.
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Chapter 4
Mouse Test – This will test any mouse detected by the mouse
driver. Starting with Version 11, Micro-Scope includes a generic
mouse driver so the manufacturer’s driver does not need to be
loaded. In earlier versions of Micro-Scope, if a mouse driver was not
loaded an error message would appear stating "No Mouse Was
Detected or No Driver Installed".
If a mouse is detected, a window will appear in the left portion of the

screen showing the X and Y coordinates for the current screen
cursor position. These should vary as the mouse is moved. There
are three inner boxes corresponding to the Left, Right and Center
mouse buttons. These should say “Inactive”, changing to “Active
“while the mouse button is being pressed. If the screen coordinates
do not track with the mouse movement or if the button status does
not change, the mouse is failing.
SCREEN – MOUSE TEST

Printer Test – Pressing enter on the Printer Test will display a menu
which allows for the selection of the parallel port to which the
printer is attached. The printer cannot be a network printer but
must be local to the system running Micro-Scope.
Place the cursor on the appropriate port and press enter to select the
port for the printer test. The IRQ, Port and I/O address will be
displayed for the current selection.
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Diagnostic Tests
Press "P" to begin the printer test. If any printer lines are failing, an
error message will display on the screen. Otherwise, the on-screen
message will state "Printer Status Passed".
The printer test will send an ASCII string to the printer. Any
discrepancies or breaks in the string printed by the printer is
indicative of a failure.
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Chapter 5
Utilities Menu
SCREEN – UTILITIES MENU

The Utilities section contains routines to perform various diagnostic
or system maintenance functions.
These include options to display memory contents, edit media (for

floppy, fixed disks, SCSI and IDE devices), benchmark system
components, rebuild the master boot record, clean floppy heads, and
configure the monitor display for color or monochrome. There is
also a selection of debugging functions that allow you to exercise
very specific I/O addresses, interrupts, etc.
Memory Display
The Memory Display window will display the 1024K real mode
memory from segment 00000 through segment F0000. The left hand
side is in hex. The right hand side is in ASCII. The segment, offset
and actual address (20 bit) is displayed at the bottom.
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Utilities Menu
SCREEN – MEMORY DISPLAY
Memory Display Navigation
Press S (Segment) to select the segment. Press Character and

number keys for desired segment. Press Enter to execute.
Press O (Offset) to select the offset. Press character and number

keys for desired offset. Press Enter to execute.
Page Up and Page Dn keys will move the window in 256 byte
intervals (000, 0100, 0200, etc.).
Arrow keys (Cursor Up and Cursor Down) will move the window in
16 byte intervals (000, 0010, 0020, etc.).
Home will move to the beginning of the current segment.
End will move to the end of the current segment.
System ROM BIOS and ROM BIOS Extensions
SYSTEM ROM BIOS copyright information will be located at or

near Segment F000.
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Chapter 5
ROM BIOS extensions on adapters are identified in Section I, Active

ROM Search.
Copyright Information about adapters with ROM BIOS will be

located between the beginning and ending segment in Memory
Display.
SCSI/ESDI Setup Routine Segment/Offset
Most Adapters for SCSI and ESDI drives have a setup routine
located on the ROM BIOS. To access this setup routine, go to the
USE CONTROLLER BIOS option on the Fixed Disk diagnostic
menu. The segment and offset are required, which can be found
under Active ROM Search on the System Configuration menu.
Look for the beginning segment of the SCSI or ESDI adapter
(example: C800). Go to this segment in Memory Display. Look at
top line in the hex field.
The second E9 (near jump) or EB (far jump) is the standard offset to

jump to the setup routine (example: first E9 or EB is under column
3, second E9 or EB is under column 5, offset is 0005). The segment
and offset in the preceding examples would be segment C800 and
offset 0005.
Available Memory
It is possible to determine if memory is currently being used by a

program by using the memory display. If it is necessary to load a
device driver or program in the area between 640k and 1024k, first
use the Active ROM search to find any memory used by ROMs.
Load all device drivers and programs before running Micro-Scope.

Use the Memory Display and page down in the areas in question. If a
pattern of FFFF is found for an entire 256 byte block, there is an
excellent chance that this area is not utilized. This assumption is
based on the fact that properly written code will zero out any buffer
that is used to store data within the length of the program. If code is
resident in an area it will have various characters on the screen. If
the area is used as a buffer, the screen will be filled with zeros. If the
screen is filled with FFFF then it is not utilized, or the program
96
Utilities Menu
utilizing the area did not zero out the buffer area which may cause
problems within the program, so it is very unlikely that this will
occur.
Remember that F000:0000 to F000:FFFF is reserved for system

ROM. Portions of this area may be used. However, to be sure the
system ROM is not utilizing the area, use the memory display and
look for a pattern of FFFF for an entire 256 byte block.
Floppy Editor
The Floppy Editor window can display and edit media on the
selected floppy diskette.
Drive Select (0, 1, 2 and 3)
The Drive select option allows the selection of floppy drive 0, 1, 2

and 3.
Press Enter with the cursor on the selected drive to be displayed or

edited.
Media Select (360, 720, 1.2, 1.44, 2.88)
The Media Select window allows the selection of 5.25 360K, 5.25
1.2M, 3.5 720K, 3.5 1.44M, and 3.5 2.88M. The User Defined
option allows the user to define the media type manually. Press
Enter with the cursor on the selected media type to be displayed or
edited.
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Chapter 5
SCREEN – MEDIA SELECT

The User Defined option will highlight the media area to be
manually set on the left side of the window. Press the character and
number keys to change area. Use the cursor to move to the different
media areas. Press Enter when finished.
Display/Edit
The Display/Edit window displays the information from the floppy
diskette in hex on the left side of window and ASCII on the right
side of window. The initial information comes from the keyboard
buffer. Press R (Read) to read the first sector on the floppy diskette.
The Next Access line (next area to be displayed or edited) and the
Current Access line (present area being displayed or edited) are
located below the hex and ASCII fields. Options to Modify, Read,
Write, Cylinder, Sector and Head are located at the bottom of the
window.
Press F (Find) to do a search for particular content on the diskette.

A pop-up menu will give you a choice of entering your content as
ASCII, Hex, or Continue, to locate additional occurrences of the
same data. You can then enter a starting cylinder if you don’t want
to search from Cylinder 0.
Press M (Modify) to bring cursor up on the top left corner of the

Hex field. Cursor to area to be modified and press the character and
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Utilities Menu
number keys to edit information in the window. Press Enter to exit

the Modify option.
SCREEN – FLOPPY EDIT/FIND

Press A (ASCII) to bring cursor up on the top left corner of the
ASCII field. Cursor to area to be modified and press the character
and number keys to edit information in the window. Press Enter to
exit the Modify option.
Press R (Read) to read the information from the Next Access line to
the Current Access line and display the information in the hex and
ASCII fields.
Press W (Write) to write the information from the hex and ASCII
fields to the floppy diskette. A warning message will be displayed.
Press Y (Yes) to write information to the floppy diskette. Press N
(No) to cancel write operation.
Press C (Cylinder) to highlight the cylinder in the Next Access line.

Press the number keys to change the cylinder. Press Enter to exit
cylinder option.
Press S (Sector) to highlight the sector in the Next Access line.

Press the number keys to change the sector. Press Enter to exit
sector option.
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Chapter 5
Press H (Head) to highlight the head in the Next Access line. Press
the Number keys to change the head. Press Enter to exit head
option.
Press L
Fixed Disk Editor

The Fixed Disk Editor can display and edit media on the selected
hard disk.
Drive Select (0 - 6)
The Drive Select option will allow the selection of drive 0 through 6.
Press Enter with the cursor on the selected drive to be displayed or
edited.
Display/Edit
Once the drive has been selected, the Fixed Disk editor operation is
identical to the Floppy Editor. The options are repeated here for
convenience.
Press F (Find) to do a search for particular content on the drive. A

pop-up menu will give you a choice of ASCII, Hex, or Continue, to
locate additional occurrences of the same data. You can then enter a
starting cylinder if you don’t want the search to start at the beginning
of the drive.
Press M (Modify) to bring up cursor on the top left corner of the

hex field. Cursor to the area to be modified and press the character
and number keys to edit the information in the window. Press Enter
to exit Modify option.
Press A (ASCII Modify) to bring up cursor on the top left corner of

the ASCII field. Cursor to the area to be modified and press the
character and number keys to edit the information in the window.
Press Enter to exit.
Press R (Read) to read the information from the Next Access line to
the Current Access line and display the information in the hex and
ASCII fields.
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Utilities Menu
Press W (Write) to write the information from the hex and ASCII
fields to the hard disk. A warning message will be displayed. Press
Y (Yes) to continue, and N (No) to cancel.
Press C (Cylinder) to highlight the cylinder in the Next Access line.

Press the number keys to change the cylinder. Press the Enter key to
exit cylinder option.
Press S (Sector) to highlight the Next Access sector. Change the

sector with the number keys. Press Enter to exit.
Press H (Head) to highlight the head in the Next Access line. Press
the number keys to change the head. Press the Enter key to exit
head option.
SCSI / IDE Device Editor

This utility is comparable to the floppy and hard drive editors that
can be used on a variety of removable drives. A prompt will ask for
the type of device.
Device Select – Choose between an IDE / ATAPI Device or a

SCSI / ASPI Device. If the IDE / ATAPI is selected, you will then
need to designate one of the following: Primary Master, Primary
Slave, Secondary Master or Secondary Slave. If selecting SCSI /
ASPI, you will be required to enter the number of the drive, between
0 and 15.
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SCREEN – SCSI DEVICE SELECT

After entering the drive number, press Escape to enter the editor.
The options are:
Press F (Find) to do a search for particular content. You may enter

a starting sector for the search or accept Sector 0.
Press R (Read) to see the Hex and ASCII text of the media section
being displayed.
Press W (Write) to change the contents of the displayed section.
Press (S) to enter a specified sector number.
Run Benchmarks
The Run Benchmarks option provides a tool for measuring the
throughput capabilities of various system components including
processors, memory, fixed disks, and video. The menu allows the
selection of Run All or individual components.
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Utilities Menu
SCREEN – RUN BENCHMARKS

Processors – will benchmark the CPU and NPU. The window will
display the number of instructions executed per second and the
current operating frequency of the processors.
Fixed Disks – This option will benchmark the fixed disks. The
display will show, in kilobytes per second, the rate at which data is
transferred between the fixed disk and system.
Memory – Benchmarks the system memory. The display will show,

in kilobytes per second, the rate at which data is transferred between
the CPU and system memory.
Video – This option will benchmark the video adapter transfer rate.
The display will show, in kilobytes per second, the rate at which data
is transferred between the video memory and the system memory.
Note: During the video benchmark, the monitor screen may blank out for
a few seconds. This is normal.
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PC Health Status
This feature displays up to 3 temperatures, 3 fan speeds, and 8
voltage readings for systems equipped with a hardware monitoring
IC. This IC must be a Winbond or compatible type such as the Via
686 or SiS South Bridge Chip, National LM79, LM81 or LM87,
Dallas Semiconductor DS1780, Analog Devices ADM1024,
ADM1025, ADM1026 or ADM9024, Genesys Logic GL525 or
Phillips NE1619.
In machines not equipped with a monitoring IC, the program will

report “No supported Hardware Monitoring IC has been found in
the system”.
SCREEN – PC HEALTH STATUS

Rebuild MasterBoot
The Rebuild MasterBoot option will rewrite the first 446 bytes of the
master boot sector with a generic DOS boot loader program.
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Utilities Menu
SCREEN – REBUILD MASTERBOOT

The Master Boot Sector contains a boot loader program (446 bytes),
Master Boot Record (64 bytes) and a 55 AA boot signature (2 bytes).
When the BIOS looks at the Master Boot Sector on the C drive and
finds a 55 AA boot signature at 01FE, the BIOS turns control over
to the boot loader program at 0000. The boot loader program then
loads the Master Boot Record at 01BE. If the boot loader program
is missing or corrupted, the Master Boot Record will never be loaded
and the C drive will not boot. It is still possible to boot to the A
drive then go to the C drive.
Press Y (Yes) to rewrite the Master Boot Sector. Press any other key
to cancel write operation.
Floppy Head Cleaner

This utility exercises the floppy heads for one complete pass in an
efficient pattern for using a head cleaning diskette to clean the
read/write heads on your floppy disk drives.
With this feature, the normal floppy cleaning diskette can last up to
20 longer (it is recommended that you do not use abrasive head
cleaning materials).
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Chapter 5
Floppy drives that are suspected of being defective should be cleaned

first in order to determine that the problem is not simply dirty heads
obscuring the signal.
Debugging Functions
Sometimes to isolate a malfunction, it is useful to pinpoint and
exercise a specific Interrupt, I/O address or memory address. That
is the purpose of the Debugging Functions, which allow direct
triggering or interrogation of hardware.
This utility can be used to give you the state of a device, reset the
device, or help to pin down the exact cause of a failure that Micro-
Scope has caught.
Execute Interrupts – This function allows the user to specify the

execution of any BIOS or hardware device interrupt-based call, and
to see the results of that call.
SCREEN – EXECUTE INTERRUPTS

There are 256 interrupt levels. The first 16 are reserved for IRQs,
although these can also be triggered with the Execute Interrupt
utility.
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Utilities Menu
In/Out to I/O Address – This feature allows you to write to, or

read from, a specific I/O location. One byte of information will be
transferred, making it possible to pinpoint failing ports, registers, etc.
Read/Write to Real Memory – One byte of information can be

written to or read from a location in the first 1MB of memory, by
entering the segment and offset of that location.
Read/Write to Protected Memory – One byte of information can

be written to or read from a location in upper memory (over 1MB).
This feature cannot be used if a memory driver or paging-type
memory manager is loaded.
WARNING: These debugging features are very powerful troubleshooting

aids but can also be dangerous, with the potential to lock up a device or even
the entire system. Do not use them without complete documentation of the
functions being manipulated.
Secure Wipe
This feature provides a way to sterilize a hard drive that contains
classified or sensitive information. There are three levels of security
available, with the more thorough methods taking more time.
SCREEN – SECURE WIPE
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Short Secure Wipe – This will over-write the data twice, which is
sufficient to obscure it from anyone without access to a sophisticated
data recovery laboratory.
Long Secure Wipe – The data will be over-written six times, which
will prevent its recovery by techniques available in the private sector.
Long Wipe with Format – This option makes a total of seven

passes: six over-writes followed by a pass that does a low-level
format of the drive, and meets the most stringent national security
requirements for declassifying a drive.
Entire/Partial – Any of the choices above can be applied to all or
part of a drive. If Partial Drive is selected, you will enter the start
and ending cylinder and head.
Before the Secure Wipe operation begins, a warning will appear to let
you know that the data on the drive is about to be destroyed. Press
Y to continue or N to abort.
Save/Restore CMOS
This feature provides the capability to save the CMOS contents into
a backup file, and to restore the saved contents back to the CMOS.
Backing up the CMOS is recommended before replacing the CMOS
chip or battery, and before making major changes to the CMOS
configuration. A backup file should also be kept for emergencies
and updated after major changes to system hardware.
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Utilities Menu
SCREEN – SAVE CMOS

Save CMOS Contents – Select Save CMOS Data, and enter the
complete drive, path and filename for the location where the backup
file will be created. This can be on any floppy or hard drive that was
detected by Micro-Scope during bootup.
Restore CMOS Contents – To put the previously saved CMOS

contents back into CMOS, select Restore CMOS Data, and enter the
drive\path\filename where the data was saved.
Save/Restore MBR
SCREEN – SAVE/RESTORE MBR

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Chapter 5
The contents of the Master Boot Record for any hard drive or floppy
drive in the system can be saved to a backup file, and then written
back to the Master Boot Record of that drive or another drive.
This offers protection against a Master Boot Record that is missing

or corrupt, for instance from a boot record virus, and also provides
an easy way to port a Master Boot Record from one drive to another.
Save MBR – When the Save MBR option is selected, a box opens
with a list of floppy drives 0-3 and hard drives 0-5, which is the
maximum number of each drive that can be configured by hardware.
Choose the drive whose MBR you wish to save and press Enter.
In the filename box, type in the complete drive\path\filename of the

storage location. A file will be created at that location containing the
MBR contents.
If the location was entered incorrectly or a drive was selected that

does not exist on the system, a prompt will appear to let you know
that the file could not be created.
Restore MBR – Select a drive and then the location for the backup
file. The contents of the specified file will replace the current MBR
on that drive. Note that this can be an MBR saved from a different
drive.
For more information about the Master Boot Record, see the section
on rebuilding the Master Boot Record, earlier in this chapter.
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Chapter 6
Quit
Micro-Scope offers two methods for terminating the program. One
of these will reboot the system, and the other will exit to the resident
operating system, if Micro-Scope was running under that OS rather
than its own OS.
These two choices will be found by selecting the item QUIT on the
main Micro-Scope menu. Because certain routines in the diagnostic
are sensitive about the way the program is terminated. it is
recommended that one of these two options is always used to
terminate the diagnostic rather than the power switch, Reset button
or pressing CTL/ALT/DEL.
Exit to OS
The option to Exit to OS will not be displayed if the diagnostic is
booted from the M2000 O/S.
It will only be displayed if the diagnostic is loaded under another

operating system (DOS, OS2, etc.). This option allows the operator
to quit Micro-Scope and exit to the OS without rebooting the
system. However, changes to CMOS made with the Edit CMOS
feature will not be utilized by the operating system until the system is
rebooted.
If Micro-Scope is running under another operating system it is

possible to cause corruption to the file management system of that
operating system if the computer is rebooted directly from Micro-
Scope. This feature is also useful for determining the effect of
network software on a system without affecting the network upon
exit.
Reboot System
The option to Reboot System will terminate the diagnostic program
and reboot the system. The reboot is a cold boot, not a warm boot.
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Chapter 6
Any changes to CMOS will be updated to the system during POST

as the system reboots.
If another operating system was open during the running of Micro-

Scope, rebooting is an effective way to ensure that any changes
caused by the tests will not stay loaded to affect operations of the
system.
SCREEN – QUIT MENU
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Chapter 7
Troubleshooting
This chapter contains some tips for using the Micro-Scope to
troubleshoot and isolate problems in a computer system.
Hardware vs. Software

The first step in solving many computer problems, and often the
most difficult step, is to determine whether the cause of the problem
lies with the hardware components or with the software, either the
operating system or an application.
Hardware Failure is defined as a malfunction of a physical

component, either mechanical or electronic. Hardware failures are
usually (but not always) consistently repeatable, although some may
only occur when the failing part reaches a certain temperature.
Software Failure can be defined as the failure of a program to

correctly control the system in which the program is running.
Sporadic, apparently random failures can be either software or

hardware. If the problems only show up after the computer has
been on a while, they are probably heat-related hardware failure.
Hard errors that always occur at a certain point in the execution of a
program will probably be software. If the failure disappears when
the mix of programs open on the system is changed, then you should
suspect a bad memory location, which is a hardware problem.
Operating System Independence

Micro-Scope has a tremendous advantage over any DOS or
Windows-based diagnostic when it comes to separating hardware
and software problems. Because Micro-Scope has its own operating
system, any problems due to software are automatically eliminated.
If a problem still occurs while testing with the Micro-Scope, you can
be sure that the cause is in the hardware component being tested.
On the other hand, if the hardware tests OK, you can safely say that
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Chapter 7
it’s a software problem, without worrying that the operating system

is masking the symptoms.
Isolating the Cause

There are several tools, or ways of approaching a problem, that will
help to narrow down the cause.
1. Determine the Nature of the Problem. The first big division,

as mentioned above, is whether it’s hardware or software. Once the
problem is determined to be software, Micro-Scope is going to be of
limited use at best, since it was designed for troubleshooting
hardware.
If the problem is hardware, Micro-Scope can be very helpful indeed.

If the symptoms point to a particular system component, run tests
on that component to pin down the source. If no particular
component stands out as a suspect, use Micro-Scope’s batch feature
and either Select All or choose a list of all components that might
possibly cause the symptoms. This may take a while to complete,
but Micro-Scope will run the tests for you and log the results, while
you do other work.
2. Suspect the simplest causes. If the symptoms can be explained

by one single cause, that is much more likely than an explanation
that requires two or more things to be faulty at the same time. And
look for the obvious. If the test says a key is stuck, check the
keyboard first even though it is theoretically possible for the
keyboard controller to give you the same symptoms.
3. Check the easy things first. For instance, if the power isn’t
coming on, see that the system is plugged in before you open the
cabinet. If a floppy drive is failing, try cleaning the heads before
ordering another drive. This may not eliminate all wild goose chases,
but at least they will be shorter.
Verify and Document

Once the adjustments have been made or the suspect component
has been replaced, run the test again and see that the system passes.
This step can save much embarrassment and wasted time.
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Troubleshooting
We also strongly recommend keeping a log of problems and their

solutions. The same type of failures will tend to recur many times
during a career, and this type of documentation will become a gold
mine of information.
Technical Support
If you are not sure how to make the best use of any feature in Micro-
Scope, or if you feel the results are questionable, please call the
appropriate Technical Support line (either your vendor or Micro
2000, Inc.) and get your questions answered.
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Chapter 8
Sys. Config. Reference
A wealth of information is available from the various headings of the
Micro-Scope System Configuration menu. This chapter contains
notes on what to expect in each category.
Compare Settings
An asterisk beside one of the entries on the DETECTED side of
this display indicates a mismatch between the detected hardware and
the CMOS settings.
If the DETECTED side states there is no device, and the CMOS

side shows a device, either the CMOS is set incorrectly or the device
is failing.
If a device is shown in the DETECTED side and the CMOS side

states NONE or 0 for the device, then the CMOS is set incorrectly.
Use the appropriate diagnostic test to determine what the CMOS
should be set to.
System Information
The information presented on the three System Information screens
is derived from an inventory done by Micro-Scope during boot-up
and should exactly match the installed hardware. There are a couple
of exceptions to this.
If there is a bad block of RAM memory, it is possible that Micro-

Scope will report the amount of total RAM as the amount below the
defective block.
The stated CPU speed is done by performing a benchmark and then

comparing it to a table of speed ratings for CPUs of that type. If the
chip is being over-clocked or is performing significantly slower than
it should, the reported speed will not match the manufacturer’s rated
speed for the chip.
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DMI
Unlike the System Information screens, the information reported in
the DMI section is taken from a database supplied with the system
by the manufacturer and/or system integrator. Its completeness and
accuracy depend entirely on the manufacturer and not on Micro-
Scope.
If the installed hardware has been updated, added to or changed in

any way after leaving the factory, the DMI will still report the old
configuration. This can be detected by seeing conflicting
information on the System Information and DMI screens.
Active ROM Search

If it is known that an adapter has a ROM and it is not detected in
this screen, the ROM is either set to Disabled on the adapter or the
ROM does not start with 55AA. Use the memory display to search
the area where the ROM should exist, for further verification of an
inactive ROM. If the memory display does not show any
information other than FF’s, the ROM is not active.
It is possible that the actual ROM length may differ from the length
displayed in this screen. The length of the ROM is determined by
the ROM-length byte in the ROM. This will indicate the length of
the ROM code, although the ROM may actually use additional
memory space.
Use the memory display to search beyond the length of the ROM for
a pattern of FFFF. If a pattern of 0000 is found directly after the
ROM, it is most likely a buffer for the ROM. Any memory with any
pattern other than all FF’s is being used.
IRQ Assignments
Any serial, parallel or LAN device installed on a standard I/O port in
a system should be detected using the CHECK INTERRUPTS
function. If the device is on a non-standard port, use the USER
DEFINED feature to check for the device.
Remember that parallel devices need a loopback in order to be

detected.
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Chapter 8
If a device is not detected, then use the appropriate diagnostic test to

determine if the device is missing or failing. If the diagnostic passes,
this indicates that another device is using the same IRQ.
Multiple devices cannot use the same IRQ at the same time.
Serial Devices can share an IRQ, as long as only one device is in use
at any given time.
Parallel Devices of any kind must have their own IRQ, since there
is no specific Start and Stop sequence built into the standard
parallel device that can be used to indicate to other parallel devices
when not to use the line.
Mice must be set to their own IRQ, because the interrupt for mouse
devices is toggled continuously.
LAN Cards also must have their own IRQ because the network
toggles the interrupt on a continuous basis.
Partition Tables
The following descriptions can be used as a guideline for correcting
errors in either a Partition or Volume Boot Sector.
Partition Status – This value should state Bootable on the partition

that the system gives control at Power-On. This is normally the first
partition of the drive.
Starting Head – The starting head of a DOS partition is normally

Head 1. This head must contain the Volume Boot Sector for the
O/S to operate properly.
Starting Sector – This should state Sector 1 and must contain the
Volume Boot Sector.
Starting Cylinder – This is the starting cylinder of the partition, and

Head 1 of this cylinder must contain the Volume Boot Sector.
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Partition Type – This is normally set to BIGDOS for DOS

versions above 4.0. Partitions less than 16 MB will be set to either
DOS 16 or BIGDOS.
Ending Head – This should be the last head number of the disk,
and therefore should be equal to the value of the numbers of heads
minus 1. For example, if there are 6 heads on a drive, they are
numbered 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 so the Ending Head is number 5.
Ending Sector – This value should equal the number of Sectors per
Track.
Ending Cylinder – This is the last cylinder of the partition. If there

are multiple partitions on the disk, the next partition should start on
the cylinder directly past this value. If this is a single-partition disk,
the value should be equal to the number of cylinders set in CMOS,
minus 2.
Start Absolute Sector – This is the absolute starting sector of a

partition. This sector is counted from the first sector beyond the
Master Boot Record for the partition. If a partition starts on Head 1
of Cylinder 0, the Start Absolute Sector is 17. This value should
match the number of Sectors per Track in most cases.
Number of Sectors – This is the total number of sectors in a

partition. All sectors beyond the Volume Boot Sector are counted.
The first sector counted should be the first sector of the first FAT
and should start with F8. This value must equal the total Number of
Sectors value in the Volume Boot Sector for the operating system to
function correctly.
Boot Signature – This value must be 55AA in order for the BIOS
to give control to the Master Boot Code. Any other value will render
the disk non-bootable to the operating system present on the disk.
Volume Boot Record

The Volume Boot Record is the main record for a partition. It
designates the size of the partition, size and number of FAT records,
Root Directory size, etc. This information can be used to diagnose
and correct a problem with the Volume Boot Record. The first
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Chapter 8
section pertains to both FAT 16 and FAT 32, and the following
section is for FAT 32 only.
Bytes Per Sector – This value should equal 512 bytes for standard
DOS partitions. This may be equal to 1024 or more with non-
standard or non-DOS partitions such as Novell, Disk Manager, etc.
Sectors per Cluster – This is the quantity of sectors that will be read
by the operating system at a time, and is therefore the smallest
quantity of disk space that can be allocated to any data transfer.
Standard DOS versions above 3.3 will normally be set to 4 sectors
per cluster.
Reserved Sectors – This value should be 1 since it reflects the

quantity of sectors reserved from the partition. Reserved sectors will
not be written to by the operating system under normal
circumstances. The only reserved sector of a standard partition is
normally the Volume Boot Sector.
Number of Copies of FAT – This value should be 2 since there are

always two copies of the File Allocation Table in all standard
operating systems.
Maximum Root Directory Entries – This value will be 512 for all
DOS versions and most other 16-bit operating systems, and 0 on 32-
bit operating systems.
Total Number of Sectors – This is the total number of usable

sectors in the partition, minus the track reserved for the Master Boot
Record. It should equal the number of sectors in the Master Boot
Sector entry for this partition. This value may be determined by the
following formula:
CxHxS–S
where C = total cylinders (Ending Cylinder # + 1)
H = total number of heads (from CMOS)
S = number of sectors per track (CMOS)
Media Descriptor Byte – This is the value of the byte that starts
each FAT, normally F8 on fixed disks. This can be compared to the
first byte of the first FAT in order to verify accuracy.
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Sectors per FAT – This is the quantity of sectors contained in each

File Allocation Table. This value can be verified by using the Sector
Editor to locate the first sector of the first FAT, use the Plus key to
count the value, and press Read. This should place the buffer at the
first sector of the second FAT, which should match the first sector
of the first FAT.
Sectors per Track – This value should match the CMOS value for
Sectors per Track, and should equal the number of sectors that
actually exist on each track of the disk.
Verification of this value can be performed by using the Sector

Editor. Start at the first sector on the drive, incrementing the
Sectors by this number and perform a read. This should place the
buffer at the Volume Boot Sector if the Sectors per track value is
valid.
Number of Heads – The total number of heads on the drive. This

should be one more than the Ending Head, because the first head is
Head 0.
Number of Hidden Sectors – This value is the total of all sectors

hidden from the operating system software. It should equal the
number of Reserved Sectors.
Volume Boot Signature – This is the signature that must end any
valid boot record. If this value is anything other than 55AA, the
partition will not be accessed properly by the BIOS on the
motherboard.
FAT 32 Volume Boot Sector Info

Partition Flags – This is 2 hex digits, with bits 0-4 indicating which
copy of the FAT is active. Bit 7 shows whether FAT mirroring is
enabled or disabled. When FAT mirroring is disabled, the FAT
information is written only to the copy indicated by Bits 0-4.
Version of FAT 32 Drive – Two hex digits. The High Byte shows
the major version, and the Low Byte shows the minor version.
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Chapter 8
Start Cluster Root Directory – These 4 digits give the Cluster

Number of the start of the root directory.
File System Info Sector – This is the number of the sector

containing the information on the File System, usually the second
sector of the partition.
Backup Boot Sector – FAT 32 contains a backup copy of the Boot

Sector, whose location is specified here.
Logical Drive – This is the logical drive number assigned to the

given partition, a 2-digit hex value.
Extended Signature – This additional byte indicates that the

partition contains three more fields, containing the following
information.
Partition Serial Number – This is a serial number assigned to the

partition. It is used primarily for tracking removable media.
Volume Name – This should match the volume label in the root
directory. If none has been assigned, it will say No Name.
FAT Name – This should say FAT 32, but other values would not
normally be a problem because the data is not used by Microsoft
operating systems.
CMOS Edit
The time and date should be current. If not, the correct time and
date can be entered in this screen. If the time and date will not stay
current, use the Display CMOS Bytes feature to check the
RTC/Battery status and the appropriate byte of CMOS RAM.
Diskettes – This reflects the information stored at offset 10h of

CMOS RAM. If a diskette type is entered in this screen but the
information changes when the cursor is moved, the CMOS RAM is
corrupt and the CMOS/RTC chip should be replaced. If the
information remains intact after being changed, but reverts to the
previous setting when the system is rebooted, then either the CMOS
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battery is failing or the floppy controller is failing. Use the Display

CMOS feature and Floppy Tests to verify the failure.
HD0/HD1 – This information is contained in CMOS bytes 19

(HD0) and 1A (HD1). If this information will not stay set when the
cursor is moved then CMOS is corrupt and the chip should be
replaced. If the information changes when the system is rebooted,
then the fixed disk, controller or a device driver such as Disk
Manager is causing the problem. Use the Fixed Disk Tests to verify
the situation.
Base Memory – This reflects information contained in CMOS

RAM locations 15h and 16h. If the information changes when
rebooting, either the BIOS is not detecting the correct amount of
memory during POST or the CMOS battery is failing.
Extended Memory – This information is stored at CMOS RAM

locations 17h and 18h. If the information changes when rebooting,
either the BIOS is not detecting the correct amount of memory
during POST or the CMOS battery is failing.
Video Adapter – Contained in CMOS RAM location 14h. If

information changes when rebooting, the video adapter or battery is
causing the problem. Use the CMOS Diagnostic Byte and the Video
Tests to verify.
Note that in dual video systems, this setting should reflect the
highest value supported by the video adapters installed.
Coprocessor – Shows CMOS RAM location 14h. Problems could

be the NPU or CMOS battery. Use the Information screen and the
NPU diagnostic in Systemboard Tests.
CMOS Display
Any changes made in the CMOS Edit screen should be reflected in
the appropriate place in the CMOS display screen. If the
information cannot be entered, or reverts when the cursor is moved,
this indicates a failure of the CMOS/RTC chip itself. If the
information is retained when the cursor is moved, but reverts when
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Chapter 8
the system is rebooted, the cause is either the CMOS battery or the
hardware to which that entry applies.
0Dh – The RTC/BAT byte should be set to a value of 80h if the

battery is good. Any other value indicates either a bad battery or
corruption of this location of CMOS RAM. Use the Diagnostic Byte
to verify battery status.
0Eh – The Diagnostic Byte should have a value of zero. If it is any

other value, the device in question should be checked with the
appropriate diagnostic routine. Following is a list of the possible
values and their causes:
01h – EISA or PS/2 adapter register is not accessible. The adapter is

failing. Use diagnostic tests to verify
02h – PS/2 or EISA adapter/configuration file mismatch. The file

for the adapter being configured is not the correct file, or the adapter
is failing.
04h – CMOS Time does not match the DOS clock. Either the DOS
time is set incorrectly or the CMOS/RTC or CTC chip is failing.
Reset the DOS clock and retry.
08h – Fixed Disk Controller failed initialization. The controller is

failing. If the drive is IDE, the controller is on the drive itself.
10h – CMOS Memory does not match POST memory size. This
indicates either a bad bit in memory or an incorrect CMOS setting.
Use the memory test to isolate the problem.
1Dh – BIOS POST found CMOS configuration incorrect. The

information found during POST does not match the information set
in CMOS RAM. Use the System Configuration feature to resolve it.
40h – CMOS CRC failed. The bytes located at CMOS RAM

locations 2Eh and 2Fh are the checksum value. A failure indicates
corruption of the CMOS RAM, and replacement of the CMOS/CRC
chip.
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80 h – The CMOS battery has lost power. This may be the battery
or a defective CMOS/RTC chip. Use byte 0Dh to verify if the
battery is bad.
Compare Features Test

When the system under test does not match the Master Compare
File, one of the following errors will be shown on the screen:
File Open Failed – The ctest.bin file was not found in the same
directory as the ms.exe file.
Model Not Found – The System Model Number does not appear
in the Master Compare File.
Computer Type – The BIOS, BIOS date, model, sub-model or

revision information did not compare.
Processor Type – The CPU data did not compare.
NPU Type – The NPU data did not compare.
Bus Type – The Bus Type data did not compare.
Floppy Type – Either the number or type of floppy drives did not
match the Master Compare File.
Hard Drive Type – The fixed disk type, model, parameters or

number of drives did not compare.
Video Type – Mismatch of the video BIOS, mode capabilities or
amount of video memory.
Memory Size – The amount of Base, Cache, Extended or Expanded

memory did not compare.
Serial Ports – Either the number of serial ports or the I/O address
data did not match.
Parallel Ports – The number of parallel ports or the I/O address

data did not compare.
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Sound Card – The presence or absence of the sound card (or the
type of card) was not what was expected.
CD ROM Type – The number or type of CD-ROM drives did not

compare.
Keyboard Type – The type of keyboard detected was not what was
expected.
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Chapter 9
Diagnostic Errors
This chapter describes the various error indications that will be
encountered while running the tests on the Diagnostic menu. Where
possible, the most likely cause of the failure is given as well.
System Board Errors

CPU Tests
Microprocessor Test – A microprocessor failure will usually
prevent the software from loading, and will require a hardware tool
such as the POST-Probe to diagnose the problem. If this failure
does appear, it indicates a problem with the CPU chip.
Register Test – The Register Test will exercise the internal registers
of the CPU. Failure is a defective CPU chip.
Arithmetic Test – Indicates a bad CPU chip. Be aware that some

revisions of the 80386 have an error on 32-bit divides, which will
cause this test to fail but is not otherwise a problem if the system has
been running properly.
Logical Test – This tests the logical functions of the CPU chip,
which should be replaced if the test fails.
NPU Tests
Coprocessor Test – Tests the general functionality of the NPU
chip.
Not Installed – The NPU chip was not detected by the software.
This indicates a hard failure of the NPU chip, except in those few
systems with no NPU installed. Verify with the System
Configuration feature.
Register Test – Tests the NPU registers and indicates failure of the
chip.
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Arithmetic – Tests the floating-point calculations of the NPU.

Failure indicates replacement of the chip.
RTC Errors
RAM Data Failure – There is a failing data bit in the memory
associated with the Real Time Clock, located in the CMOS/RTC
chip.
RAM Address Failure – This indicates a failing address line in the

memory associated with the RTC.
CRC Checksum Failure – The CRC checksum does not equal the
expected total.
CTC Errors
Port B Test Failed – This indicates a failure of the secondary port
of the Clock Timer chip.
CTC Register Failed – Testing the internal registers of the CTC

chip.
CTC Timer Failed – Indicates failure of the timer circuitry of the

CTC chip.
DMA Errors
Register Failure – Indicates a defective DMA chip.
Page Register Failure – Usually means a defective DMA chip, but

some early PCs may fail due to an incompatibility with the test even
though the chip is OK.
Keyboard Controller Errors

Keyboard Controller Test Failed – Indicates either a defective
keyboard or a failing keyboard controller chip (8042). Use the
Keyboard test to differentiate.
PS/2 Mouse Test Failed – Tests the PS/2 mouse portion of an

Enhanced Keyboard Controller. Failure may be the controller chip,
mouse port socket or cable, or the mouse itself. To isolate the
problem, run the test again with no mouse attached.
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Diagnostic Errors
Interrupt Controller Errors

Register Test Failed – This indicates a defective PIC chip.
APM Errors (Advanced Power Management)

Cycle Fan On Failed – The failure could be the fan control circuit
or the fan itself. If possible, the fan should be observed during the
test to determine if it is responding to the command.
Cycle Fan Off Failed – The failure could be the fan control circuit
or the fan itself. If possible, the fan should be observed during the
test to determine if it is responding to the command.
Memory Tests
Base Memory Tests
Refresh Errors – If a refresh error occurs while testing Base
Memory, the memory controller or the PIT chip are the likely
suspects.
Data Errors – Indicates a failure of a memory chip. The segment,

offset, expected data, received data and XOR are given. The XOR is
all bits within the offset that failed.
Address Errors – The failing address line will be indicated on the

screen. This could be due to a bad trace or buffer circuit on the
motherboard, or in some cases by a defective SIMM or DIMM.
Parity Errors – Almost always a failure of the memory chip. The

segment, offset, expected data, received data and XOR are provided.
Cache Memory
A Cache Memory failure could be either the static RAM or the
Cache Controller. The segment within the cache, the offset,
expected data, received data and XOR are given. The XOR is all bits
that failed within the given offset.
The Cache Memory tests are functionally the same as those for
Extended Memory, except that the cache is not flushed during the
test.
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Expanded Memory
Note: To properly perform the Expanded Memory tests, first perform a

warm boot so that the EMM drivers are loaded.
Page Frame – This error indicates that the page frame (block within
Base Memory) could not be allocated. Try changing the page frame
in the Expanded Memory software setup, since this area may be used
by another device or program.
Number of Pages – This error indicates that the number of pages

allocated by the Expanded Memory driver is incorrect.
EMM Version – If this error occurs, the expected version of the

EMM driver could not be detected by the diagnostic.
Handles and Allocation of Memory – This error indicates the

Expanded Memory driver is unable to allocate a memory block.
Reduce the number of handles and try again.
Map Memory to Physical Memory – The EMM driver could not

allocate a memory block. Either the memory block is being used or
the EMM driver is failing.
Compare Memory – This error means there was a failure of the

Compare performed on the data written to memory. Test the
indicated area as Extended Memory.
De-allocate Memory – This error will occur if the EMM driver

cannot de-allocate a block of memory, and indicates a failure of the
EMM driver. Conform that the EMM driver has been loaded with a
warm boot.
Refresh Error – There is either a failure in the refresh circuitry or

the EMM driver is not addressing the correct location where data
was written prior to this error occurring. Use the Extended Memory
test to verify this error.
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Diagnostic Errors
Extended Memory Errors

Unlike expanded memory, the Extended Memory tests will NOT run
if the EMM drivers are loaded. Always do a cold boot to Micro-
Scope’s own operating system before testing Extended Memory.
All Extended Memory tests will state the Offset from 1 Megabyte,
the Segment, the EXP (expected data), REC (received data) and an
XOR (the failing bit). Use the Offset to determine the bank in
which the failure occurred, the Segment to determine the 64K block
within the bank, and the XOR to determine the specific bits that are
failing. For example:
Offset = 0001 First megabyte beyond 1MB.

Segment = 1000 Second 64K block in Offset.
XOR = 10 Bit 4 is failing.
The actual memory segment may be affected by the computer’s

paging layout.
Refresh Error – Either an intermittent error is occurring at the

given location, or the refresh circuitry for the memory is failing. If
this error occurs at different locations each time, the fault is in the
refresh circuits.
Parity – The memory location indicated has a defective parity cell.
Data Bit Error – The Data Received does not match the Data
Expected for the given location. The XOR will show the conflicting
bit(s).
A20 Line Not Open – The keyboard controller would not allow the
CPU to enter Protected Mode. Either the keyboard controller chip
is malfunctioning or the A20 line is defective.
Note: Faster Tests Available
Extended Memory has long and short versions for the Bit test and the Grid
test. The reason the long versions are so time-consuming is because of the
need to flush the cache after each step to ensure that the test is looking at
RAM rather than the cache.
If the cache is disabled in CMOS, these same tests can be run from the
Cache Memory Tests menu, but will take place in RAM since cache is
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disabled. In this way, the tests will be completed in a much shorter amount
of time. The cache must be re-enabled once the tests are completed.
Floppy Error Codes

Many of the errors that might be found during these floppy tests can
be caused either by the drive or by the floppy controller. Many more
errors occur with the drives, because of their mechanical complexity
and close tolerances. However, if there is a second floppy in the
system and the error shows up on both drives, the most likely
suspects are the controller or the floppy cable.
Code 01: Invalid Function Error – The command sent to the

floppy drive was not accepted. The most likely cause is either the
drive unit or the cable.
Code 02: Address Mark Not Found – The diagnostic could not
find the Address Mark for the given sector. This is most likely from
a defective or unformatted diskette. Retry the test with another
freshly-formatted diskette.
Code 03: Disk Write Protect – This error should only occur during
the Write Test or Format, and indicates that the drive is sending a
‘write-protected’ signal to the controller. If the diskette is actually
write-protected, this is functioning normally. If the diskette is not
write-protected, there is a problem either with the drive or the
controller. If the error occurs during a Read or Butterfly Seek test, it
is most likely the controller at fault.
Code 04: Sector Not Found – This error could occur if the selected
media type does not match the diskette in the drive, if the diskette is
unformatted or has defective sectors, or if the floppy heads are out
of alignment.
Note: To determine if a floppy drive is aligned properly, format a diskette

in a known good drive, to use as a standard. If a drive can read diskettes
that have been formatted on that drive, but fails when tested with the
standard diskette, the drive is misaligned.
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Diagnostic Errors
Code 05: Reset Failed – The floppy drive will not reset before
starting the format operation. This could be caused by the drive, the
cable, or the controller.
Code 06: Disk Change – This should occur if the door on the
floppy drive is opened during the test. If the door was not
deliberately opened, there is a probably a mechanical problem with
the drive. If the door was deliberately opened during the test and
this error did NOT occur, there is a problem either with the drive or
the controller.
Code 07: Drive Param Activity Failed – This indicates either a

failure in the floppy controller or improper media settings in the
CMOS. Verify the media settings and try the test again.
Code 08: DMA Overrun – This error would occur if another

device, such as a tape drive, was set to the same DMA channel as the
floppy drive. If such a device was recently added to the system, the
first thing to try would be removing the device and running the test
again. Floppy drives use DMA channel 2, so no other devices
should be set to this. If no other device is using the same channel,
then the floppy drive’s control circuitry is failing.
Code 09: Data Boundary Error – This indicates that another

device is using the same DMA channel as the floppy drive. See
DMA Overrun above for solutions.
Code 0A: Bad Sector Flag – Bad sectors should be flagged and not
accessed, even during the diagnostic tests. If this error occurs, it
most likely indicates a failure in the controller.
Code 0B: Bad Cylinder Detected – This code could mean a faulty
controller, a damaged diskette or a malfunctioning actuator arm in
the floppy drive.
Code 0C: Invalid Media – This error should not occur with the
Micro-Scope diagnostic regardless of the media placed in the drive.
The fault could be with the drive, controller or cable.
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Code 0D: Invalid Number of Sectors – This error could mean a

malfunction of the drive, cable or controller, either on the system
under test or on the one in which the diskette was formatted.
Code 0E: Control Data Address Mark – Retry the test with
another freshly-formatted diskette. A second failure implicates the
floppy head alignment or an electronic failure.
Code 0F: DMA Arbitration Out of Range – Could be hardware

failure, but first check the setup of the system, and remove any
recently installed devices to eliminate conflicts.
Code 10: Uncorrectable CRC Error – This is most likely a

defective diskette. Replace the diskette with a known good sample.
If the error re-occurs, clean the heads and try again. A third failure
indicates a malfunction of the floppy drive.
Code 11: ECC Corrected Data Error – This is most likely a

defective diskette. Replace the diskette with a known good sample.
If the error re-occurs, clean the heads and try again. A third failure
indicates a malfunction of the floppy drive.
Code 20: Controller Failure – Although this message occurs when

the controller has failed to properly control the drives, the problem
could be in the drive or the cable as well as the controller.
Code 40: Seek Failed – The floppy drive was not able to find the
desired cylinder. The problem is most likely a defective floppy
diskette, followed by a mis-aligned floppy drive or mechanical failure
of the actuator arm. Least likely causes are a defective cable or
controller.
Code 80: Timeout Error – This is most likely to happen if there is

no diskette in the drive, or it is inserted incorrectly.
Code AA: Drive Not Ready – Indicates electronic failure in the

drive, controller or cable.
Code BB: Undefined Error – Either the floppy controller or cable.
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Diagnostic Errors
Code CC: Write Fault – A failure occurred while attempting to

write to the drive. Source of the problem could be electronic or
mechanical.
Code E0: Status Register Error – The floppy controller is not

sending the proper signal to the BIOS during the floppy’s busy state.
The fault is with either the controller or the cable.
Code FF: Sense Operation Failed – Most likely a defective

diskette or the heads need cleaning. If these fail to resolve it, the
problem is electronic failure in the drive.
Fixed Disk Error Codes

This section lists the errors that could be encountered during the
Fixed Disk diagnostic tests or during a drive format, along with
suggestions for correction. Keep in mind that with IDE drives, the
control circuitry is in the drive, not on the motherboard. Also,
when errors occur because of incompatibility between drives, the
error will sometimes disappear if the order of the drives is changed
(swapping Master and Slave, or Primary and Secondary). Of course,
the proper changes must then be made with jumpers and settings.
Code 01: Invalid Function Error – The command sent to the drive
was not accepted. The most likely cause is either the drive unit or
the cable. If the system is a PS/2, the BIOS will not support the
direct format of the drive.
Code 02: Address Mark Not Found – The diagnostic could not
find the Address Mark for the given sector. On MFM and RLL
drives that do not use a voice-coil head actuator, it could mean the
heads are misaligned. A low-level format will correct the problem.
It could also mean that the drive type is not set in CMOS. On IDE
drives, this error is a physical defect and the address should be added
to the Bad Sector map before doing a low-level format.
Code 03: Disk Write Protect – This error should never occur while
testing a hard drive, and would indicate electronic failure in the drive
control circuitry.
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Code 04: Sector Not Found – This can occur if the servo
information on the platter for that sector is damaged or there is an
electronic failure in the drive control circuitry. It could also be mis-
aligned heads (MFM or RLL drives). A low-level format may be able
to correct the problem. If the error occurs during a low-level format,
it is a fatal error and the drive should be replaced.
Code 05: Reset Failed – Usually caused by electronic failure in the

control circuitry. If there are two or more hard drives in the system,
this error may indicate an incompatibility between a Master Drive
and its Slave.
Code 06: Disk Change – This error should never occur during
testing of a hard drive.
Code 07: Drive Param Activity Failed – Either the drive

parameters are set incorrectly in CMOS or the controller does not
correctly translate the parameters. Verify the settings and try the test
again.
Code 08: DMA Overrun – This error would occur if another device
is trying to use the same DMA channel as the disk drive or if the
drive controller is failing. If a new device was recently added to the
system, the first thing to try would be removing the device and
running the test again.
Code 09: Data Boundary Error – This indicates that another

device is using the same DMA channel as the fixed disk. See DMA
Overrun above for solutions.
Code 0A: Bad Sector Flag – On the fixed disk, this is not an error.
It shows that the flagged sector has already been added to the Bad
Sector Map and is not being used by the system. If it is known that
the sector is good, the flag can be removed by performing a low-level
format without first setting this sector in the Bad Sector Map.
Code 0B: Bad Cylinder Detected – This error code should not
occur during the Fixed Disk tests.
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Diagnostic Errors
Code 0C: Invalid Media – This error code should not occur during
the Fixed Disk tests.
Code 0D: Invalid Number of Sectors – This error indicates that

the fixed drive is set incorrectly in CMOS or the controller is
improperly jumpered. If these causes are eliminated, then an
electronic failure exists in the drive, controller or cable.
Code 0E: Control Data Address Mark – The servo information is

damaged or there is an electronic failure. If the error occurs in
different locations of the drive, suspect electronic failure. If it’s at
the same place each time, run a low-level format to map out the bad
sector. If the error occurs during a low-level format, it is a fatal error
and the drive should be replaced.
Code 0F: DMA Arbitration Out of Range – Could be hardware

failure, but first check the setup of the system, and remove any
recently installed devices to eliminate conflicts.
Code 10: Uncorrectable CRC/ECC Error – This is most likely a

physical defect in the requested sector, which can be corrected by
mapping during a low-level format. With MFM or RLL drives, it may
indicate mis-alignment of the heads.
Code 11: ECC Corrected Data Error – The requested sector had
an error that was within correctable limits for the ECC circuitry. If
data integrity is of extreme importance, the sector can be marked bad
during a low-level format.
Code 20: Controller Failure – Although this message occurs when

the controller has failed to properly control the drives, the problem
could be in the drive or the cable as well as the controller. If there
are two or more drives, it may result from an incompatibility
between a Master Drive and its Slave.
Code 40: Seek Failed – This could result from a physical defect on
the platter, which can be corrected by a low-level format, or by a
failure of the seeking circuitry of the drive.
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Code 80: Timeout Error – This error will occur when the drive
does not respond to the controller commands. Before replacing
hardware, check the CMOS setup and the IRQ status for the drive
and also check that the drive and controller jumpers are correctly
configured. Before retesting, run the Controller Test to reset the
drive.
Code AA: Drive Not Ready – Run the controller test to reset the
drive. If the failure persists, it indicates electronic failure in the drive,
controller or cable.
Code BB: Undefined Error – Either the fixed disk controller or

cable.
Code CC: Write Fault – A failure occurred while attempting to

write to the drive. Source of the problem could be electronic or
mechanical.
Code E0: Status Register Error – The fixed disk controller is not
sending the proper signal to the BIOS. The fault is with either the
controller or the cable.
Code FF: Sense Operation Failed – This error should never be

reported during the Fixed Disk tests.
Controller Internal Diags Failed – The controller circuitry is

failing, or there is an incompatibility between two drives.
Controller Write Buffer Failed – This indicates a failure of the

write buffer on the drive itself, not the controller.
Controller Read Buffer Failed – This indicates a failure of the read

buffer on the drive itself, not the controller.
Controller Compare Buffer Data Failed – This indicates a failure

of the fixed drive’s buffer circuitry, on the drive itself, not on the
controller card.
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Diagnostic Errors
Controller Recalibrate Failed – The drive’s heads failed to

properly seek Track 0. Either the heads or Track 0 of the platter is
damaged. Either is a fatal error for the drive.
Controller Reset Failed – The drive failed to respond to the reset

command. This failure could occur in the drive, the controller or the
cable.
CD-ROM Error Codes

Code 01: Unknown Unit – The software driver does not recognize
the CD-ROM drive. This can occur if attempting to access a drive
which is not installed.
Code 02: Drive Not Ready – The CD-ROM drive did not return a
Ready signal. There are several possibilities: mechanical or electronic
malfunction in the drive, controller or cable, incorrect hardware
settings, or a corrupted or incorrectly configured software driver.
Code 03: Unknown Command – The software driver did not

recognize a control command. Sometimes a defective controller,
most often a corrupted driver.
Code 04: CRC Error – Usually a defect in the data area of the disc.
If the error still occurs with a known good disc the CD-ROM should
be cleaned. Continued failure after cleaning indicates a malfunction
of the drive itself.
Code 05: Bad Request Header Length – The controller software

was unable to execute a command due to an incorrect Request
Header response.
Code 06: Seek Error – The drive was unable to seek the sector
requested by the test.
Code 07: Unknown Media – The software driver did not recognize
the media type. Retry with a known good disc (data disc, not music).
Code 08: Sector Not Found – The requested sector’s ID was not
found. It could result from a defective disc, dirty or misaligned head,
or electronic failure.
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Code 0B: Read Fault – Due to a failure of the Read circuitry in the
drive.
Code 0C: General Failure – The driver cannot recognize or

communicate with the CD-ROM drive.
Code 0F: Invalid Disc Change – This occurs when the door is
opened and re-closed during the test. If the door was not disturbed,
there may be a mechanical problem with the door or a bad electrical
connection in the drive or the cable.
Code 15: Invalid Drive – Usually indicates an attempt to access a

drive that is missing or incorrectly installed.
Code FB: Dirty lens or dirty media. Try a new CD. If failure still
occurs, clean lens in drive.
Printer Codes
Code 01/02: Timeout Error – The printer failed to respond.
Check the cable and the printer’s Online status.
Code 08: I/O Error – The printer command was unable to gain
I/O access.
Code 20: Out of Paper Error – The printer is returning an Out-of

Paper signal.
Code F6: Print Test Aborted – The Escape key was pressed during
the test.
Code FF: Printer Would Not Initialize – Indicates the printer is

not responding to commands.
Multiple Errors – A combination of two or more error codes were

returned during the test.
Serial Tests
UART Errors
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Diagnostic Errors
UART Failure – There was no response from the Universal

Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter chip. Use the System
Information screen to verify that the port actually exists.
FIFO Failure – The FIFO circuitry of the UART has failed, and the
UART or Serial Controller card should be replaced.
Line Status Errors

The following signals each describe one line of the serial port. If the
port is functioning properly, each of these lines should report as
Active at the conclusion of the Loopback Test. An error means that
the given signal did not appear when expected, which could be due
to the connector, the UART chip, or attempting an external test
when no loopback plug is attached. It is important that the test is
done with a loopback plug attached rather than an actual serial
device.
In describing the various signals, Terminal refers to the computer

terminal (bus). Set or Device refers to the peripheral attached to the
port. The number corresponds to the pin number of a 9-pin
connector.
1. Carrier Detect – Indicates a carrier is present, which is needed

for proper communication through the port.
2. Receive Data – The serial device has received the data.
3. Transmit Data – This signal indicates that a transfer of data is
in progress. A failure would allow other serial ports to use the
interrupt simultaneously.
4. Data Terminal Ready – The terminal is ready to receive data.
5. Signal Ground – Not tested or reported, but required for all
other signals. Check this if all eight signal lines fail.
6. Data Set Ready – The device is ready to receive data.
7. Request To Send – The terminal wishes to transmit.
8. Clear To Send – The serial device acknowledges the Request
to Send.
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9. Ring Indicator – Used by modems to determine if a call is

coming through the line. If this signal is missing, the modem
will not answer the call.
Note: RI/87307 TERI Flaw – A ring indicator failure that appears
only with the National Semiconductor 8730x series of Super I/O
Controller chips, because these do not comply with design standards. The
error does not appear to affect the function of current modem devices.
Negative Current Transmit Loop – Only used in XT and earlier

machines, to indicate data transfer. It has been replaced by the
Transmit Data signal.
Misc. Serial Test Errors

Overrun – The Data Receive Register is full, but data is still being
sent. Either the CS signal is not functioning or the sending device is
malfunctioning.
Parity Error – Indicates that the attached devices are not set to the
same parity.
Framing Error – One or more serial devices are not responding

properly to the setting of the Start and Stop bits.
Handshake – The port failed to respond to the XON and XOFF

software flow control signals.
Break Detected – A break was detected during data transmission.

A mouse connected to the serial port is often a cause of these errors.
Data Errors – The Sent and Received data bytes were not the same.
Modem Status Errors

When the Serial Port Test is run, it will also report the condition of
the Modem Status Lines listed below. If the modem is not in use
during the test, the four Inverted lines should be reported as Low,
and the Delta lines should be reported as Inactive.
Delta Clear To Send – A Request to Send was acknowledged by

the modem.
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Diagnostic Errors
Delta Data Set Ready – The modem is ready to receive data.
Delta Ring Indicator – An incoming ring was detected.
Delta Carrier Detect – A carrier signal was detected.
Inverted Clear to Send – The CTS line has been toggled.
Inverted Data Set Ready – The DTS line has been toggled.
Inverted Ring Indicator – The Ring Indicator signal has been

toggled.
Inverted Carrier Detect – The Carrier Detect circuitry was toggled.
Modem Connect Tests

Although the modem can be tested as a serial device as explained in
the previous section, the Modem Connect Tests menu offers five
sets of tests for more comprehensive testing of a host-based modem.
These are the Modem test, Line test, Connect test, Send ASCII and
Send File tests. The last three require the modem to communicate
with a remote modem.
Modem Test
The largest group of tests in this set is the Sync/Async Tests, which
use the ATI Command Set to request information from the modem.
These may vary from one manufacturer to the next, but the most
common version is given here.
Because the ATI commands can vary from one manufacturer to the
next, error responses should be analyzed carefully and if possible
compared against other modems of the same model. Another thing
to watch for is whether the modem is connected to an active line, for
instance to an ISP. In this case, errors can result from the receipt of
signals not expected by the test. The Sync/Async Test is an off-line
test, and the phone line should be disconnected if necessary to
prevent spurious signals.
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Sync/Async
ATI 0 – Manufacturers Product Code
ATI 1 – ROM Checksum
ATI 2 – RAM Checksum
ATI 4 – Current Settings. Includes:
FAX INT Settings
Baud Rate
Parity
Dial Settings
Speed
ATI 5 – NVRAM Settings
ATI 7 – Configuration and Internal Product ID
ATI 9 – Plug-N-Play Status
Data Compression (ATXC) – Tests the modem’s data compression

circuitry.
Fax Modem Test – Checks the FAX functions of the modem.
Internal Loopback – Uses an internal loopback to test the modem

I/O.
Reset Modem – Tests the Reset function of the modem.
Line Test
This set monitors two functions of the modem.
1. Can it connect to the phone line and detect a dial tone?

2. Can it reset and release the phone line?
If this test fails, first check the phone cable and its connections on
both ends.
Note: This test expects a standard phone-company-supplied dial tone.

Connecting to a private PBX can cause this test to fail, as well as risking
damage to your modem.
On-line Tests
These tests require entering a phone number that will connect to
another modem.
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Diagnostic Errors
Connect Test – This test confirms that the modem has connected
to a remote site and received an acknowledgment. If the test fails,
run the Line Test to help isolate the problem. If the Line Test
passes and the Connect Test fails, check that the modems on both
ends are in compatible modes and able to match transmission
speeds.
Send ASCII Test – This goes one step beyond the Connect Test,
and sends a packet of ASCII data to the remote site. If the previous
test passed and this one fails, there may be a resource conflict or
marginal transmission capability.
Send File Test – This test sends a file called Sample.txt to the
remote site. This file can be printed out and checked visually for
accurate transmission. If this fails where the ASCII test passed,
suspect the data settings for either of the modems.
Parallel Port Tests

Signal Status
Following are the various lines of the parallel port that are toggled
during the test. The first five are incoming signals (from the external
device to the port) and will be listed as Inactive if the test is run in
Internal mode. The others are outgoing and will be listed as Active
at the conclusion of the Loopback test, if they are functioning
properly.
Acknowledge – The device received the data byte and is ready for
another.
Device Busy – If this signal fails, the port will send data when the
device is not ready to receive it.
Paper End – The printer is out of paper.
Select – The device indicates it has been selected to receive data.
Select In – Selects the device to receive data.
Error Register – The device uses this line to let the system know it
has flagged an error.
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Strobe – Enables the transfer of one byte of data.
Data Bits 0-7 – These are the parallel data lines.
Auto Feed – Notifies the printer to do auto-feed. If this signal fails,

the printer will perform manual feed only.
Initialize Printer – This signal alerts the printer to perform its

internal initialization routine.
IRQ Enable – Tells the system an interrupt will be generated when

the external device returns an Ack signal.
Function Tests
The Status Latch Test and Interrupt Level Test must be run with an
external loopback plug. If the test is run in internal mode, these tests
will say Bypassed. If the test is run in External mode without a
loopback plug in place, the tests will fail.
Data Latches Test – Tests the port register that holds a data byte
for transmission.
Control Latch Test – This register holds the Control byte,

containing signals such as IRQ Enable and Initialize Printer. The
failing signal will be displayed in the test status window.
Status Latch Test – Latches the incoming status lines, such as

Device Busy, Ack and Paper Out. The failing signal will be
displayed. If all fail, check to see if the test was run in external mode
without a loopback plug.
Interrupt Level – Checks that the device responds with an

interrupt. A failure could be the port or PIC circuitry but is more
likely the device or cable.
Network Card Tests

Each of the failure codes listed below will be the result of a hardware
failure on the NIC card.
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Diagnostic Errors
1 = Register Test Failure – onboard command registers are

malfunctioning.
2 = EEPROM Test Failure – EEPROM chip not responding.
3 = SRAM Test Failure – Malfunction of onboard RAM.
4 = FIFO Test Failure – FIFO stack not responding with correct

data.
5 = Rcv RAM Buffer Failure – Malfunction of the buffer for

incoming data.
6 = Xmt RAM Buffer Failure – Malfunction of the buffer holding

data for output.
7 = NIC Node Address Failure – The card did not respond with
the correct MAC address.
8 = I/O Address Failure – An incorrect address or the I/O ports

are not functioning.
9 = Interrupt Failure – The card did not respond with the expected
interrupt.
10 = Not From a Windows DOS Box – The test was attempting to

run the Windows MS-DOS prompt.
11 = No Supported NIC Adapter – The installed network card is

not a type recognized by Micro-Scope.
13 = Port Self-Test Failure – The card did not pass an internal

diagnostic of its I/O ports.
14 = Internal Diagnostic Failure – The card did not pass some

part of its own internal diagnostic.
15 = Dump Data Bytes Failure – The card did not comply with a
command to dump its buffer contents.
147
Chapter 9
16 = Configure Command Failure – Did not respond to

Configure command.
17 = Transmit Data Failure – Unable to output data to the

network cable.
18 = Receive Data Failure – Unable to latch incoming data.
USB Controller Tests

Each of the following errors is the result of the USB Host Controller
failing to respond correctly to one of the basic commands. These
tests do not test attached devices and do not require any USB
devices to be attached.
1 = Host Reset Failure – Controller did not respond correctly to a

Reset command.
2 = Host Restart Failure – Controller did not respond to a Restart

command after being stopped.
3 = Host Run/Stop Failure – Either the Run command, Stop

command or both were ineffective.
4 = Host Suspend Failure – Controller unable to suspend

operations.
5 = Host Resume Failure – Controller unable to resume after a

Suspend command.
Video Tests
Memory Failure – A data mismatch within the video memory. The
error message provides the offset, data expected, data received and
XOR.
Display Attributes – The attributes are displayed in the middle

column, the attribute bits in the left column, and a description on the
right. The attributes must be visually matched to the description.
148
Diagnostic Errors
Display Character Set – The entire ASCII character set should be

displayed. Any errors are probably due to the video adapter card.
Screen Alignment – Check the horizontal and vertical grid lines to

ensure that they remain parallel, especially toward the corners of the
screen.
Convergence – Using the screen alignment test, change the

background attribute with the up and down arrow keys. If a red or
blue line appears at the edge of the screen, the colors of the electron
gun do not converge properly.
Text Modes – The standard 8-character set should be displayed on

each line, offset by one character from the line above it.
Graphics Mode – The display will show 16 labeled colors, allowing

the color balance to be adjusted either by eye or by comparison with
a standard color chart.
Screen Paging – The screen will initially show 25 lines of zeroes.

Pressing any key (except Esc) will cycle the display through the digits
0-7.
149
Appendix A
Warranty & Licensing
Please read the warranty and licensing information completely before
breaking the seal on the diskette package. Be advised that while we
intend this to be the best product of its kind, we do not claim that
Micro-Scope will find every problem or detect every device that may
be present.
WARRANTY
This Software product is warranted for 30 days, against defects in
workmanship and against noncompliance with the specifications as
stated in this manual.
THE SELLER MAKES NO OTHER WARRANTIES,

EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING THE
IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR
FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
Micro2000, Inc. SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR TORT,

INDIRECT, SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES
SUCH AS LOSS OF PROFITS OR LOSS OF GOODWILL
FROM THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE
SOFTWARE FOR ANY PURPOSE.
Some states may not allow this disclaimer so this language may not
apply to you. In such case, our liability shall be limited to the refund
of the Micro2000, Inc. purchased price.
150
Appendix A
LICENSE AGREEMENT
Do not open the sealed envelope or use the product until you have
read this licensing agreement. If you open the envelope or use the
product Micro2000, Inc. will assume that you have agreed to be
bound by this standard agreement. If you do not accept the terms of
this license, you must return the package unused and unopened to
the party from whom you received it, within 30 days of the purchase
date.
Ownership: Micro2000, Inc. or its licensors own all right, title and
interest including all worldwide copyrights, for the Software and all
copies of the Software.
Grant of License: Micro2000, Inc. grants to you (the purchaser)

and you accept a license to use the programs and related materials
delivered with this License Agreement, as the sole user thereof. If
you wish to make the programs and/or materials available to
additional users, you must license additional copies or request a
multi-user license from Micro2000, Inc.
Term: This License Agreement is effective from the day you receive
the product, and continues until you return the original magnetic
media and all copies, and related materials that were included with
the media, to Micro2000, Inc. If you violate any of the provisions of
this agreement, Micro2000, Inc. shall have the right to terminate the
license at the time of violation or any subsequent time, at its sole
discretion.
Your Agreement: You agree not to transfer the Software in any

form to any party without the prior written consent of Micro2000,
Inc. You further agree not to copy the Software in whole or in part,
except for backup copies, unless Micro2000, Inc. consents in writing.
Each of these backup copies must have a label placed on the
magnetic media showing the program name, copyright, and
trademark designation in the same form as the original Software.
You will use your best efforts and take all reasonable steps to protect
the Software from unauthorized reproduction, disclosure, reverse
engineering or distribution, and you agree not to disseminate,
decompose or transmit the software in any form or by any means.
You understand that the unauthorized reproduction of any portion
151
Appendix A
of the Software and/or transfer of any copy may be a serious crime,

as well as subjecting you to damages and attorney fees.
Updates: Micro2000, Inc. will from time to time make updated

versions of its products available. Updates may be purchased by
licensees in good standing at nominal prices which are fixed in
relation to increased functionality.
Micro2000, Inc. will contact its customers from time to time to

inform them of the availability of appropriate product updates.
Misc.: This is the sole and entire agreement between you and
Micro2000, Inc., and it cannot and shall not be modified by purchase
orders, advertising or other representations of anyone, except by
written amendment signed by a company officer of Micro2000, Inc.
This License Agreement shall be governed by California Law.
Contact: Micro 2000, Inc. welcomes any suggestions that will help
us to better meet the needs of our customers and the marketplace.
Please send any information regarding product enhancement to:
Quality Control Division

Micro 2000, Inc.
1100 E. Broadway, 3rd Floor
Glendale, CA 91205
152
153
Introduction
Congratulations on your purchase of the USB-Scope. This is a
professional quality diagnostic tool which is very intuitive and simple
to use and yet is, we believe, the most comprehensive and effective
product available today for field-testing USB functions in a PC.
About Micro 2000, Inc.
Formed in September 1990, Micro 2000 Inc. was chartered to

provide the personal computer industry with professional-quality
diagnostic tools, which were virtually non-existent at the time for
that segment of the computer industry.
As the “personal” computer evolved into the powerful machines of

today and became a fixture in corporate, government and
educational environments, Micro 2000 has maintained its position of
industry leadership through award-winning technical support and by
staying consistently on the cutting edge throughout the rapid
advances in PC technology.
Meanwhile, our basic philosophy has not changed at all. Whether it

is diagnostics, remote desktop management software or educational
and certification courses, our goal has always been to provide our
customers with the best state-of-the-art products of their kind
available in the world, and always at an affordable price.
About USB-Scope
The USB-Scope is the latest addition to Micro 2000’s line of PC

diagnostic tools, and maintains our tradition of effective, cutting-
edge technology at an affordable price. There are two components
of the USB-Scope product. One is hardware and one is software.
Software – The software portion is able to function as a stand-alone

product, and by itself surpasses all other USB diagnostic products on
the market in its ability to accurately identify and troubleshoot
multiple USB controllers installed in a PC system.
154
Introduction
The software comes on a bootable CD, and includes a copy of the

same proprietary operating system used in the award-winning Micro-
Scope diagnostic suite. There are two advantages to this. First,
because it boots to its own OS, it can be used on any PC regardless
of the resident operating system, whether UNIX, Linux, OS/2, DOS
or any version of Windows.
Second, because our bootable OS was designed specifically for

diagnostics, it avoids a problem inherent in all of the operating
systems listed above when used to run a diagnostic program. All of
these operating systems were designed to act as a buffer between the
hardware and the user applications. While this is normally beneficial,
it is counter-productive when trying to diagnose the hardware. No
hardware diagnostic program running under these general-purpose
operating systems can be as effective as one running under an
operating system written specifically for diagnostics.
Hardware – For the most complete testing of USB controller

functions and circuitry, it is necessary to have a responsive device on
the outside of the port to simulate the various conditions a controller
might encounter. The USB-Scope includes a small USB memory
device to exchange data and respond to commands from the
diagnostic program.
The device can be hot-plugged into any USB port attached to the
system, and will validate not only the controller but also the port
connectors and all cabling between the device and controller.
155
Chapter 1
Overview of USB
To make the best use of the features of USB-Scope it is necessary to
understand some basics of USB technology. Technicians who are
thoroughly familiar with this technology can skip to Chapter 2 where
we begin to discuss the use of the USB-Scope.
Host Controller
The acronym USB stands for Universal Serial Bus. It’s considered a
bus because multiple devices can be connected to it, but in function
it resembles the serial and parallel ports that it replaces in ‘legacy-
free’ systems. It uses a controller, called a host controller, that is
connected to the main system bus. Theoretically as many as 127 USB
devices can be connected to a single controller, using hubs and a star
cabling scheme.
The host controller may be built into the motherboard or it may be

an add-on card, usually plugged into the PCI bus. The first hub is
integrated into the controller, and is called the root hub. Of course,
it is possible to add more that one host controller in which case there
would be more than one root hub.
156
Overview of USB
Additional hubs may be free-standing units or may be built into

peripherals such as the keyboard or monitor.
Ports and Cables
Each hub will have one or more connectors, called ports, into which
USB cables can be plugged. USB cabling uses a very simple scheme
with only four wires. Two of the lines are for power (5VDC) and
the other two are for data. The connectors are asymmetrical so they
can only be plugged in one way. The connectors also use a different
design for the end pointing toward the computer (upstream) and the
end toward the device (downstream).
The next diagrams show the rectangular upstream A-type connector,

the square downstream B-type connector, and a newer rectangular
mini-B connector used to connect cell phones, PDAs and other
devices too small to accommodate the conventional Type B.
Type A Type B Mini-B
157
Chapter 1
Auto Detection
There are some other features of USB that set it apart from the older
serial and parallel ports. Devices can be hot-plugged, meaning they
can be connected and disconnected while the system power is on.
When a device is connected it will be automatically detected and
configured by the controller, so there is no need to go through the
‘add/remove hardware’ routine each time. These two facts together
make USB an ideal technology for things like digital cameras and
PDAs that are typically only connected intermittently.
When the USB controller detects that a device has been added to the
bus, it assigns the device an address and queries it to find out just
what is out there on the other end of the cable. The device responds
with short messages called descriptors, which contain all of the
information the controller needs to configure and manage this
device. There are several types of descriptors, classified by the type
of information they convey.
Power and Resources
Some USB devices get their power from the USB cable itself and do
not need external power, another advantage over the older port
technologies. The amount of power allowed to each device is limited
though, so high-power devices will still rely on an external power
source.
System resources are assigned to the host controller rather than to

individual devices, eliminating the hazard of conflicts when adding
devices. Each host controller needs only a single IRQ and I/O
address.
If you are wondering how a USB device can interrupt the CPU to get
its data cycles handled, the answer is that it can’t. It is up to the
controller to keep track of all the devices it has, and to query them in
turn. This process is called polling. When a device wants to
communicate, it puts the data into a buffer and waits for the
controller to poll it. If the data transfer requires a system interrupt,
the controller generates the interrupt.
158
Overview of USB
Standards
There are two USB standards in use today, and both use the same
connectors and cabling. The main difference is in speed. The earlier
standard is USB 1.1, which supports a low speed of 1.5 mega-bits
per second and a full speed of 12 Mbps. The more recent USB 2.0
provides a substantially faster high speed of 480 Mbps.
To further complicate things, there were two specifications for

controllers developed for USB 1. One of these is called the
Universal Host Controller Interface, abbreviated UHCI. It was
developed by Intel, and it simplifies the hardware design by assigning
more of the functionality to the software driver. Another type called
the Open Host Controller Interface or OHCI was developed by
Microsoft in conjunction with Compaq and National Semiconductor.
It simplifies the software by adding complexity to the hardware.
For USB 2.0, yet another specification was needed, resulting in the
Enhanced Host Controller Interface or EHCI. This one had input
from both Microsoft and Intel, as well as Compaq, Lucent and NEC.
Companion Controllers
Part of the specification for USB 2.0 is that it must be backwards

compatible to allow the continued use of USB 1 devices, and this has
been accomplished in a rather interesting way. A USB 2.0 controller
actually contains the functions of one or more USB 1.1 controllers,
called companion controllers.
If the primary controller sees from the descriptor that the device is a
low-speed or full-speed device, it hands the control of that device off
to one of the companion controllers, and keeps its own capacity
reserved for high-speed devices. Companion controllers may be
either UHCI or OHCI.
These are fully functional controllers, by the way, and each one
needs its own IRQ and I/O port. You should also know that a high-
speed device identifies itself to the controller first as a full-speed
device, and then adds the data that it is also a high-speed device.
This allows high-speed devices to be used with USB 1.1 controllers.
159
Chapter 1
Transfer Modes
There are four different types, or modes, of data transfer. These are
Control, Interrupt, Bulk and Isochronous.
Control – As you might expect, Control Mode transfers are used to

send command and setup information between the controller and a
device. These are typically short messages at random intervals, and
the exchange is usually originated by the host controller.
Interrupt – Since USB devices cannot directly generate an interrupt

request to the system, Interrupt Mode provides a way for them to tell
the host controller that an interrupt is needed. Like Control Mode,
these are short messages at random intervals, but originating at the
device.
Bulk – Bulk Mode transfers are the normal method of sending data
in either direction between a full-speed or high-speed device and the
host controller, whether the amount of data is large or small. It is
not used for low-speed transmission.
Data is assembled into packets which are sent in bursts when the
channel is free, and depending on the amount of other traffic, it may
take many bursts to complete a transfer. Bulk transfer mode uses
CRC error correction, with re-transmission of errors.
Isochronous – This mode allocates a specific amount of bandwidth

so that a data transfer can be completed without interruption, but
also without error correction. This makes it particularly suitable for
audio or video feeds, where an interruption or a re-tansmitted packet
would be much more noticeable than an occasional dropped packet.
Isochronous Mode is also used for basic data transfer with low-speed
devices.
160
Chapter 2
Using USB-Scope
To begin using the USB-Scope product in a system with a bootable
CD*, all that is required is to put the disc into the PC’s CD-ROM
drive and either re-boot or cold-boot the system. After a short
period of time you will see a screen display called the Boot Selection
Menu.
Micro-Scope Diagnostic Suite 2005 CD Boot Menu
Micro-Scope Diagnostics
Select ( 1 ) for Graphics Mode
Select ( 2 ) for Text Mode
Select ( 3 ) for Information/Utility Program
Select ( 4 ) for Batch/Testing Program
USB-Scope
Select ( 5 ) for USB-Scope
Utilities
Select ( 6 ) to Create Micro-Scope on Bootable Floppy Disk
Select ( 7 ) to Create USB-Scope on Bootable Floppy Disk
Select ( 8 ) Base Memory Test
Press ( M ) to Load a Mouse Driver
Select Option 5. This will take you directly into the USB-Scope
Identification and Test module.
* Note: If the system bypasses the CD and boots to the resident OS

on the C: drive, see page 165 on configuring CMOS for a bootable
CD-ROM drive.
Note: It is possible to load the CD under Windows to access the

documentation and other features, but the USB-Scope program will
not run.
161
Chapter 2
Making Back-up Copies
To create a copy of the USB-Scope program on a bootable floppy

diskette:
1. First locate a PC with a bootable CD-ROM. Most brand-

name PCs sold in the last 3-5 years should qualify. Put the
CD in the bootable CD-ROM drive and reboot the system.
2. At the Boot Selection Menu, press 7 to load the Bootable
Floppy Disk Utility program.
3. Enter the drive of the disk drive. You only need to enter the
drive itself (i.e. B). The boot CD emulates a floppy drive
and is drive A. So, the first actual floppy drive is drive B.
After specifying the drive, press enter to make a copy.
4. When complete, remove the diskette and label it per the
terms of the Licensing Agreement, found in the product
manual and on the software envelope that contained the
CD.
5. To use the floppy version, insert the diskette in a PC's A
drive and reboot the PC.
Starting USB-Scope
Place the USB-Scope CD in the bootable CD-ROM drive, or put the

USB-Scope diskette you’ve made into the A: drive, and boot up the
system. At the boot selection menu, press the 1 key.
The USB-Scope title screen, shown on the facing page, will display
for a short period while the program boots up and takes inventory of
the system’s USB configuration. It will then automatically advance
from the splash screen to the main screen without user intervention.
162
Using USB-Scope
USB-SCOPE TITLE SCREEN
Once the program has completed its boot-up procedure and

completed an inventory of the installed USB hardware, it will then
advance to the main screen, shown on the next page.
There are three headings across the top of the screen. On the left is
the Identify and Test menu, which will be described in the next
chapter. The middle section is the Report menu, described on page
28. The final choice is Quit, which will reboot the system. Be sure
to remove the diskette before selecting Quit, if you want to reboot to
the resident OS instead of restarting USB-Scope.
Navigating in USB-Scope is done by using the arrow keys to

highlight your selection. Pressing the Enter key will either activate
the selection or bring up a submenu with additional choices. Use the
Esc key to back up in the program. In the unlikely event that
anyone might forget, a prompt line in red across the bottom of the
screen will remind them of the choices.
163
Chapter 2
USB-SCOPE MAIN SCREEN
Reports
The report file is initially created during boot-up and will contain
information on all controllers detected at that time, including the
root devices attached to that controller. It can be displayed on the
screen or saved to the floppy drive.
If the report is printed out or opened in a text editor, it will show

information for all controllers.
When the report is displayed onscreen, it will first show the data for
Controller #1. Press any key to advance to the information for the
next two controllers. When the report information for all controllers
has been displayed, the program will return to the main screen.
164
Using USB-Scope
REPORT SCREEN
CMOS Setup
Almost all systems sold since 1998 have the capability to boot from
the CD:ROM drive, but quite often the CMOS is configured to
check the C: drive before it checks the CD-ROM drive. Since the C:
drive contains the resident operating system, it will boot to that and
never get to the CD-ROM.
The CMOS setup program is entered by pressing the correct key

during boot-up. The right key varies from one system to the next,
but is usually named in an onscreen prompt.
Once in the setup program, locate the menu items that set boot
priorities, and make sure the CD-ROM drive has a higher priority
than the C: drive. If the system has a floppy drive, the CD-ROM
drive should normally be second, and the C: drive third. If there is
no floppy, set the CD-ROM drive as #1.
165
Chapter 3
Identify and Test
Selecting the Identify and Test menu will immediately provide you
with a wealth of information about the USB host controllers installed
on the system.
Controller Information
On the left side of the screen a drop-down menu actually shows you
a list of all of the USB controllers that were detected during boot-up.
This includes all of the companion controllers for an EHCI
controller, so if you thought there was only a single USB controller
installed in the system and 2 or more show up, don’t be surprised.
In theory an unlimited number of controllers can be surveyed, but

only the first 20 will be displayed on the screen. One (and only one)
of the listed controllers will be highlighted, and the selected
controller can be changed by scrolling through the list with the arrow
keys.
CONTROLLER IDENTIFY SCREEN
The box on the right of the screen will contain detailed information
about whichever controller is selected on the left. As you can see,
this tells you not only whether it is a USB 1.1 or 2.0 controller, but
also the Host Type, vendor, vendor’s ID, the system resources
allocated to the controller, and the number of ports in the root hub.
166
Identify and Test
Also listed is the bus that services the controller (nearly always the
PCI bus) and the device number assigned by the bus. In the case of
EHCI controllers, it will show the number of companion controllers.
In our example this corresponds to the OHCI controllers shown on
the left, but in a system with multiple controller cards the situation
would not be so clear-cut.
Test Menu
To see the corresponding detail information for the other

controllers, it is only necessary to scroll down the list using the arrow
keys. When the Enter key is pressed with a particular controller
highlighted, the Test menu presents additional choices.
These choices are: Identify Root Devices

Test Host Controller
Test Host Port
We will look first at identifying root devices. Testing the host

controller is the subject of the next chapter, and testing the host port
can only be done with the hardware device attached, so we will cover
that in Chapter 5.
EHCI CONTROLLER SELECTED
167
Chapter 3
Identify Root Devices
The menu choice to Identify Root Devices will collect and display
information about any devices attached to ports on the root hub.
As you can see from the example on the facing page, EHCI
controllers will report full-speed and low-speed devices as being
handed off to companion controllers. Selecting a companion
controller and running the routine again will provide specific data
about whatever device has been handed off.
ROOT DEVICES SCREEN
168
Chapter 4
Testing the Host Controller
To do the complete suite of tests on any installed host controller,
highlight the listing for that controller and press Enter. Then select
Test Host Controller from the menu and press Enter again. A
complete battery of tests will be performed on the controller, and
Pass/Fail results will be reported in three categories, listed on the left
side of the box in the lower screen.
The categories are: PCI

USB PM
USB Host
Root Hub
The individual tests in each category will be shown on the right as

they are run, along with their pass/fail status, but these often flash by
too quickly to read. The tests are listed here for each category.
PCI
Three tests are run in the PCI category. These are:
PCI Init –Tests the PCI BIOS configuration initialization for the
controller.
PCI IRQ – Checks the BIOS interrupt initialization.
Resources – Checks the BIOS initialization of resources for the

controller.
USB PM
Only the Interface test is run in this category, which checks the
controller register that interfaces with the system’s power
management.
169
Chapter 4
TEST HOST CONTROLLER SCREEN
USB HOST
Three tests are run in this category:
PCI – This tests the ability of the host controller to register with the
PCI interface.
Resources – Checks allocation of resources for the controller.
Interrupt – Checks proper configuring for Interrupt Requests.
ROOT HUB
Interface – Checks the function of getting and setting the Interface
Descriptor of attached devices.
Endpoint – Devices that are at the end-point of the USB

transmission and do not pass the signals on through another port are
called endpoint devices and include that information in their
descriptors. Most devices other than hubs are endpoint devices.
This routine tests the function of getting and setting the endpoint
descriptor.
Memory/IO – Tests the allocation of memory needed to configure

the controller.
170
Testing the Host Controller
Config – Checks the function of getting and setting the

Configuration descriptor.
The box in the lower portion of the Host Controller Test screen will
display the name of each of the testing routines briefly as that routine
is being run, and will show a Pass or Fail for the result. However,
the information will be overwritten when the test moves to the next
category, and may flash on the screen too quickly to read.
When all of the tests have been completed for that controller, the
display will show the Pass or Fail rating for each category as a whole.
171
Chapter 5
The Hardware Device
The USB-Scope software by itself can test and verify more of a
system’s USB functionality than was possible before. Even more can
be tested if the system includes at least one each of high-speed, full-
speed and low-speed devices, but even then it is not possible to
verify 100%.
The Device
What is needed for a complete test is to have a device attached to the

port that will respond as needed and whose properties are known to
the testing program. The USB-Scope hardware fills that need.
Attach the device to any of the root hub ports in the system. It can
be hot-plugged, just like any other USB device. In the diagnostic
program, select the host controller for that port, and then highlight
Test Host Port on the menu. Press Enter and the test will run,
showing the results in the box in the lower half of the screen.
Note: The hardware attachment is a full-speed device, and if

plugged into a USB 2.0 high-speed port it will be ‘handed off’ to a
companion controller. However, the circuitry of the port will be
completely tested, no matter which port it is plugged into.
Host Port Tests

With the hardware device connected, a complete check of the port
connections and controller functions is possible. The Host Port Test
function is divided into four parts, each of which will show a
Pass/Fail indication when the test is complete. These are:
Get Device – This checks the ability of the controller to obtain
proper identification from a newly installed device.
Get Config – Verifies that the controller can poll the device and
obtain the Configuration Descriptor without errors.
172
The Hardware Device
Get Interface – Polls for the Interface Descriptor from the device.
Bulk Transfer – Completes a data communication in bulk transfer

mode and verifies the result.
Interrupt Transfer – Completes a communication in Interrupt

Transfer mode and verifies the result.
HOST PORT TEST SCREEN
Ending the Program
When the testing is completed, remove the USB-Scope diagnostic

disc from the CD-ROM drive, and choose Quit from the main
menu. Then select Reboot. With nothing in the CD-ROM drive,
the boot sequence will progress to the C: drive and the system will
boot up to its resident operating system.
Don’t forget to remove the hardware device and keep it with the
software.
173
Warranty & License
Agreement
Please read the Warranty and Licensing information completely
before using any part of the product and before breaking the seal on
the software package.
Limited Warranty on Hardware
The manufacturer warrants to the original purchaser that the

hardware portion of the USB-Scope product shall be free from
defects from faulty manufacture or faulty components for a period
of one year from the date of purchase. Defects may be corrected by
repair or, at Manufacturer’s election, by replacement. If by
replacement, the replacement product shall be warranted for the
remainder of the original one (1) year period or thirty (30) days,
whichever is longer.
Limited Warranty on Software

The software portion of the USB-Scope product is warranted for 30
days from the date of original purchase, against defects in
manufacture or non-compliance with the specifications as stated in
this manual. Defects in manufacturing will be corrected by
replacement.
General Warranty Information

The warranty conditions set forth above are in lieu of all other
warranties, whether written or oral, express or implied, including any
implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular
purpose. This warranty is non-transferable and shall not apply to
damages caused by accident, misuse, abuse, modification, shipping to
the manufacturer or service by someone other than manufacturer.
Continued….
174
Warranty & License Agreement
The Manufacturer’s sole obligation and liability is limited to repair or

replacement of a defective product. The manufacturer shall not be
liable to the purchaser or any third party for incidental or
consequential damages, including but not limited to damages
resulting from interruption of service or loss of business, or liability
in tort relating to this product or resulting from its use or possession.
175
Software License
Agreement
Do not open the envelope containing the software until you have
read this Software Licensing Agreement. If you break the seal or use
the product Micro 2000 Inc. will assume that you have read and
agree to be bound by the terms of this standard agreement.
Ownership: Micro 2000, Inc. or its licensors own all right, title and
interest including all worldwide copyrights, for the Software and all
copies of the Software.
Grant of License: Micro 2000, Inc. grants to you (the purchaser)

and you accept a license to use the programs and related materials
delivered with this License Agreement, as the sole user thereof. To
make the programs and/or materials available to additional users,
you must license additional copies or request a multi-user license
from Micro 2000, Inc.
Term: This License Agreement is effective from the day you receive
the product, and continues until you obtain a valid RMA (Return
Merchandise Authorization) from Micro 2000’s Customer Service
and return the original CD media and all copies, and related materials
that were included with the media, to Micro 2000, Inc. If you violate
any of the provisions of this agreement, Micro 2000, Inc. shall have
the right to terminate the license at the time of violation or any
subsequent time, at its sole discretion.
Your Agreement: You agree not to transfer the Software in any

form to any party without the prior written consent of Micro 2000,
Inc. You further agree not to copy the Software in whole or in part,
except for back-up copies, unless Micro 2000, Inc. consents in
writing. Each of these back-up copies must have a label placed on
the magnetic media showing the program name, copyright, and
trademark designation in the same form as the original Software.
You will use your best efforts and take all reasonable steps to protect
the Software from unauthorized reproduction, disclosure, reverse
engineering or distribution, and you agree not to disseminate,
176
Software License Agreement
decompose or transmit the software in any form or by any means.

You understand that the unauthorized reproduction of any portion
of the Software and/or transfer of any copy may be a serious crime,
as well as subjecting you to damages and attorney fees.
Updates: Micro 2000, Inc. will from time to time make updated
versions of its products available. Updates may be purchased by
licensees in good standing at nominal prices which are fixed in
relation to increased functionality. Micro 2000, Inc. will contact its
customers from time to time to inform them of the availability of
appropriate product updates.
Misc: This is the sole and entire agreement between you and Micro
2000, Inc., and it cannot and shall not be modified by purchase
orders, advertising or other representations of anyone, except by
written amendment signed by a company officer of Micro 2000, Inc.
This License Agreement shall be governed by California Law.
Contact Information
Micro 2000, Inc. welcomes any suggestions that will help us to better
meet the needs of our customers and the marketplace. Please send
any information regarding product enhancement to:
Quality Control Division

Micro 2000, Inc.
1100 E. Broadway, 3rd Floor
Glendale, CA 91205
Additional Contact Information:
Phone: (800) 864-8008

website: www.Micro 2000.com
177

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Version 2005

COPYRIGHT © 2005 MICRO 2000, INC

MICRO 2000, INC.

PHONE: (818) 547-0125

DOCUMENT #MAN-MS v.2005 06/2005

USB-SCOPE DIAGNOSTIC SOFTWARE

About Micro 2000, Inc.

As the “personal” computer evolved into the powerful machines of

Meanwhile, our basic philosophy has not changed at all. Whether it

An additional benefit of our own bootable operating system on the

This approach of mating an operating system to a complete suite of

The first section describes the documentation contained on the CD,

The information in the README.TXT file is already described in

To access the rest of the documentation on the CD, click Next to

SCREEN – AUTOPLAY MENU

If you are a new user of the Micro-Scope software, the video

Product Manual – A duplicate of the hard-copy manual is included

RemoteScope Demo – The CD contains a free 5-seat copy of the

Website – Provides a one-click link for access to the Home page of

Loading the Micro-Scope Software

Most brand-name systems sold in the last 5 years will have a

Note: If using the Limited Edition version on floppy diskette, or if the

Boot Selection Menu

Micro-Scope Diagnostic Suite 2005 CD Boot Menu

Option 1 – This is the normal choice when loading Micro-Scope

Option 3 - Loading the entire Micro-Scope program requires the use

Options 3 and 4 eliminate the use of overlays by loading only certain

Option 5 – Use this option to run USB-Scope Diagnostic Software.

Option 6 - This provides access to the routine used to make copies

Option 7 - This provides access to the routine used to make copies

Option 8 – Errors in Base Memory will often prevent a diagnostic

This option provides a way to pinpoint fatal errors in base memory

Option M – If using Graphic Mode, selecting this option will load

Full Version vs. Limited Edition

The full version CD can be used an unlimited number of times, and

Backups must be made using the proprietary backup routine

To create a copy of the Micro-Scope program on a bootable floppy

1. First locate a PC with a bootable CD-ROM. Most brand-

Because of space limitations on the 1.44 MB diskette the floppy

Running under DOS or Windows

If necessary, you can boot to Windows and start Micro-Scope with

If Micro-Scope is opened under Windows, it will bypass the Boot

Warning: Before using a diskette copy of Micro-Scope under DOS or

1. Boot to DOS or Windows.

If Option 3 was selected during bootup, the Batch and Diagnostics

The highlighted item is selected by a mouse left-click or by pressing

Items with submenus will have an arrowhead pointing to the right.

SCREEN – MAIN MENU

In cases where the item consists of a series of screens (such as

Data Entry screens may require Y/N or other alphanumeric data to

SCREEN - SYSTEM CONFIGURATION MENU

In this section the program allows editing of information in the

The middle section displays information on those devices listed on

If an asterisk (*) appears after the information displayed on the left

If a device is failing it may not be detected even though it is set in the

SCREEN - COMPARE SETTINGS

Removable Drives – The left side of the screen displays the

The maximum mode supported is also displayed after the type of

Extended Memory – The left side of the screen displays the

SYSTEM INFORMATION SCREEN #1

System Board Information

BIOS Name – The section displays the name of the BIOS

Display Utility described in Section IV of this manual. The data will