Share your knowledge on these two classic MPCs
By Jay Quentin Thu Jan 07, 2010 11:14 am
I have an MPC 3000 running OS 3.11.


PROBLEM:
I've connected an external dedicated SCSI (2 females ports on the rear) ZIP 250 drive to my 3000.

However, when I attempt to format a ZIP disc on the MPC 3000, I get [Error Code FF 48].


1. The MPC 3000 did read another ZIP previously formatted on another MPC 3000, but doesn't allow me to format any other unformatted Zips discs.

2. The ZIP_250 drive and discs work perfectly with my MPC 4000.



It seems like the it may be the SCSI_port on the MPC 3000.

Any informative suggestions are greatly appreciated and I thank you in advance.


Regards,

JQ
By mpc3000le Thu Jan 07, 2010 12:33 pm
viewtopic.php?f=4&t=117143

An edit for your situation based on the information provided ...

1: SCSI ZIP250 ( What you are using ? )
2: HYBRID SCSI/PARALELL ZIP PLUS ?

Where point 1 is concerned.

If you are trying to use a 100 meg ZIP cart in a 250 meg ZIP drive then a failure to hard format will happen.

The ZIP250 blocks the SCSI format unit command when a 100 meg cart is inserted.

The work around ?

In OS 3.11/3.12 hit SOFT KEY 2 where you see FORMAT NOW.
In OS 3.16 use the FAST format option.
In Vailixi 3.50 use the SOFTWARE LOW LEVEL format or PARTITION ONLY option.

Where point 2 is concerned.

Don't use HYBRID ZIP PLUS drives with the MPC3000.
Despite reports of these working for some people; they grossly violate the SCSI spec and should be avoided.

None of the above points relevant to you ?

Good luck.

Rohan