User Manual for Microscope PC Hardware Diagnostics

Version 16

TECHNICAL MANUAL

COPYRIGHT © 2009 MICRO 2000, INC
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
PRINTED IN U.S.A.

MICRO 2000, INC.
2552 N. Vermont Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90027
PHONE: (800) 764 0032
FAX: (323) 998 6267
www.Micro2000.com
DOCUMENT #MAN-MS v.16 11/2009

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................11
About Micro 2000, Inc. ................................................................. 11
About Micro-Scope ....................................................................... 11
CHAPTER 1 ..................................................................................13
STARTING MICRO-SCOPE ................................................................... 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 Main Menu .............................................................. 16
MicroScope Main menu. ................................................................. 17
Option 1 ...................................................................................... 17
Option 2 ...................................................................................... 17
Option 3 ...................................................................................... 18
Option 4 ...................................................................................... 18
Option 5 ...................................................................................... 18
Option 6 ...................................................................................... 19
Option 7 ...................................................................................... 19
Option 8 ...................................................................................... 19
Option M ..................................................................................... 19

Making Backups ............................................................................ 20
Miscellaneous ................................................................................ 21
Upgrading ............................................................................................. 21
Running under DOS or Windows ......................................................... 21
Warm Boot ........................................................................................... 22
Help ...................................................................................................... 22
Navigation ............................................................................................ 22

CHAPTER 2 ..................................................................................25
SYSTEM CONFIGURATION ................................................................... 25
Compare Settings .......................................................................... 25
Device Settings Compared.................................................................... 26

System Information ....................................................................... 28
System Board Information .................................................................... 28
Processor Information ........................................................................... 29
Memory Information ............................................................................ 30
Video Information ................................................................................ 30
Floppy Drive Information ..................................................................... 31
Fixed Disk Information ......................................................................... 31

2

IDE Information.................................................................................... 31
CD ROM .............................................................................................. 32
Port Information.................................................................................... 32
Miscellaneous Information ................................................................... 32

DMI Information ........................................................................... 33
Hard Disk Parameters .................................................................... 34
Identification Menu ....................................................................... 35
IDE Information ............................................................................... 35
SCSI Information ............................................................................. 36
Plug-N-Play ..................................................................................... 36

Active ROM Search ...................................................................... 39
Beginning and Ending Address ............................................................ 40
ROM Identified..................................................................................... 40

Device Assignments ...................................................................... 40
Press C (Check Interrupts) .................................................................... 41
Press U (User Defined) ......................................................................... 41
Screen Layout for Device Assignments ................................................ 42
Memory Vector..................................................................................... 43

Partition Table ............................................................................... 43
Master Partition Boot Sector ................................................................. 43
Partition/Volume Boot Sector ............................................................... 45
Listings for FAT 16 and 32................................................................... 47
Listings for FAT 32 Only ..................................................................... 48
Partition Editing Controls ..................................................................... 49

CMOS Display/Edit ...................................................................... 49
Display CMOS Contents ...................................................................... 50
Edit CMOS Contents ............................................................................ 51

Compare Features .......................................................................... 51
Add System........................................................................................... 51
Verify System ....................................................................................... 52

CHAPTER 3 ..................................................................................53
BATCH MENU ..................................................................................... 53
Run All Tests ................................................................................. 53
Run Continuously ................................................................................. 54
Set Pass Count ...................................................................................... 54

Select Tests .................................................................................... 55
Load Batch Tests .................................................................................. 55
Save Batch Tests ................................................................................... 56
Test Selection ....................................................................................... 56

Run Selected .................................................................................. 58
Report Features.............................................................................. 58
Create Report ........................................................................................ 58
Log Report ............................................................................................ 60

Error Log ....................................................................................... 62
Error Halt Enabled/Disabled ......................................................... 62
3

CHAPTER 4 ..................................................................................63
DIAGNOSTIC TESTS............................................................................. 63
System Board Tests ....................................................................... 63
Microprocessor Test ............................................................................. 64
Numeric Processor Test ........................................................................ 64
RTC RAM Test .................................................................................... 64
CTC Controller Test ............................................................................. 64
DMA Controllers Test .......................................................................... 64
Interrupt Controllers Test...................................................................... 65
Speaker Test ......................................................................................... 65
PS/2 Mouse Controller Test .................................................................. 65
Keyboard Controller Test ..................................................................... 65

Memory Tests ................................................................................ 66
Cache Memory ..................................................................................... 66
Expanded Memory................................................................................ 67
Extended Memory ................................................................................ 67
All Tests ........................................................................................... 68
Pattern Test ...................................................................................... 68
Pseudo-Random Test ....................................................................... 68
Xor'ed Address Test ......................................................................... 68
Bit Test............................................................................................. 68
Grid Test .......................................................................................... 68

Floppy Tests .................................................................................. 68
Drive Select .......................................................................................... 69
Media Select ......................................................................................... 69
User Defined ......................................................................................... 69
Format Diskette .................................................................................... 69
Format Partial ....................................................................................... 70
Butterfly Seek Test ............................................................................... 70
Read Test .............................................................................................. 70
Safe Write Test ..................................................................................... 71

Fixed Disk Tests ............................................................................ 71
Drive Select .......................................................................................... 72
Set Interleave ........................................................................................ 72
Bad Sector Map (MFM/RLL/IDE/SATA) ............................................ 72
Format Fixed Disk ................................................................................ 73
Format Entire ................................................................................... 73
Format Partial .................................................................................. 73
Use Controller BIOS ........................................................................ 74
Fixed Disk Diagnostic Tests ................................................................. 74
Butterfly Test ................................................................................... 74
Read Test ......................................................................................... 75
Write Test ........................................................................................ 75
Safe Write Test ................................................................................ 75
Controller Test ................................................................................. 76

IDE / SCSI Tests ........................................................................... 76
Select Drive .......................................................................................... 77

4

IDE/ATAPI Device.......................................................................... 77
SCSI/ASPI Device ........................................................................... 77
Determine Parameters ........................................................................... 78
Device Tests ......................................................................................... 78
Butterfly Seek Test .......................................................................... 78
Read Test ......................................................................................... 78
Write Test ........................................................................................ 78

Sound Card Tests........................................................................... 79
Serial Port Tests............................................................................. 79
Select Port ............................................................................................. 80
Set Parameters ...................................................................................... 80
Set Port Configuration ..................................................................... 80
Set Baud Rate................................................................................... 80
Set Data Bits .................................................................................... 80
Set Stop Bits .................................................................................... 81
Set Loopback ................................................................................... 81
Run Loopback Test ............................................................................... 81
Keyboard to Port ................................................................................... 81
Keyboard.......................................................................................... 81
Mouse .............................................................................................. 81
Modem ............................................................................................. 81
Serial Port Test Results ......................................................................... 82
Internal/External Line Status............................................................ 82
Modem Status .................................................................................. 82
Error Count ...................................................................................... 82
Data Window ................................................................................... 82
Port, IRQ, I/O, Baud and UART ...................................................... 82

Modem Connect Tests ................................................................... 83
Modem Test .......................................................................................... 83
Line Test ............................................................................................... 83
Send ASCII Test ................................................................................... 84
Send File Test ....................................................................................... 84

Parallel Port Tests .......................................................................... 84
Set Parameters ...................................................................................... 84
Select Port ........................................................................................ 84
Set Port Configuration ..................................................................... 84
Set Loopback ................................................................................... 84
Run Loopback Test ............................................................................... 84
Data Latches Test............................................................................. 85
Control Latches Test ........................................................................ 85
Status Latches Test .......................................................................... 85
Interrupt Level Test.......................................................................... 85
Signal Status Window ...................................................................... 85

Network Card Tests ....................................................................... 85
USB Controller Tests .................................................................... 86
Video Tests .................................................................................... 86
Video Memory ...................................................................................... 87
Page Memory Test ........................................................................... 87

5

Linear Memory Test ........................................................................ 87
Video DAC Test ................................................................................... 87
Display Attributes ............................................................................ 88
Screen Alignment............................................................................. 89
Text Modes Test .............................................................................. 90
SVGA Graphics Modes Test............................................................ 90
Screen Paging Test ........................................................................... 91

Other Device Tests ........................................................................ 92
Keyboard Test....................................................................................... 92
Joystick Test ......................................................................................... 92
Printer Test ........................................................................................... 93

CHAPTER 5 ..................................................................................95
UTILITIES MENU ................................................................................. 95
Memory Display ............................................................................ 95
Memory Display Navigation................................................................. 96
System ROM BIOS and ROM BIOS Extensions ................................. 96
SCSI/ESDI Setup Routine Segment/Offset .......................................... 97
Available Memory ................................................................................ 97

Floppy Editor................................................................................. 98
Drive Select .......................................................................................... 98
Media Select ......................................................................................... 98
Display/Edit .......................................................................................... 99

Fixed Disk Editor .........................................................................101
Drive Select ........................................................................................ 101
Display/Edit ........................................................................................ 101

SCSI / IDE Device Editor.............................................................102
Device Select ...................................................................................... 102

Run Benchmarks ..........................................................................103
Processors ........................................................................................... 104
Fixed Disks ......................................................................................... 104
Memory .............................................................................................. 104
Video .................................................................................................. 104

PC Health Status...........................................................................105
Rebuild MasterBoot .....................................................................105
Floppy Head Cleaner ....................................................................106
Debugging Functions....................................................................107
Execute Interrupts ............................................................................... 107
Read/Write to Real Memory ............................................................... 108
Read/Write to Protected Memory ....................................................... 108

Secure Wipe .................................................................................108
Short Secure Wipe .............................................................................. 109
Long Wipe with Format ...................................................................... 109
Entire/Partial ....................................................................................... 109

Save/Restore CMOS.....................................................................109
Save/Restore MBR .......................................................................110
6

CHAPTER 6 ................................................................................112
QUIT ..................................................................................................112
Exit to OS .....................................................................................112
Reboot System..............................................................................112
CHAPTER 7 ................................................................................114
TROUBLESHOOTING ...........................................................................114
Hardware vs. Software .................................................................114
Operating System Independence ..................................................114
Isolating the Cause .......................................................................115
Verify and Document ...................................................................115
Technical Support.........................................................................116
CHAPTER 8 ................................................................................117
SYS. CONFIG. REFERENCE .................................................................117
Compare Settings .........................................................................117
System Information ......................................................................117
DMI ..............................................................................................118
Active ROM Search .....................................................................118
IRQ Assignments .........................................................................118
Multiple devices.................................................................................. 119
Serial Devices ..................................................................................... 119
Parallel Devices .................................................................................. 119
Mice .................................................................................................... 119
LAN Cards.......................................................................................... 119

Partition Tables.............................................................................119
Partition Status .................................................................................... 119
Starting Head ...................................................................................... 119
Starting Sector .................................................................................... 119
Starting Cylinder ................................................................................. 119
Ending Head ....................................................................................... 120
Ending Sector ..................................................................................... 120
Ending Cylinder .................................................................................. 120
Start Absolute Sector .......................................................................... 120
Number of Sectors .............................................................................. 120
Boot Signature .................................................................................... 120

Volume Boot Record ....................................................................120
Bytes Per Sector.................................................................................. 121
Sectors per Cluster .............................................................................. 121
Reserved Sectors ................................................................................. 121
Number of Copies of FAT .................................................................. 121
Maximum Root Directory Entries....................................................... 121
Total Number of Sectors ..................................................................... 121
Media Descriptor Byte ........................................................................ 121
Sectors per Track ................................................................................ 122

7

Number of Heads ................................................................................ 122
Number of Hidden Sectors.................................................................. 122
Volume Boot Signature ...................................................................... 122

FAT 32 Volume Boot Sector Info ................................................122
Partition Flags ..................................................................................... 122
Version of FAT 32 Drive .................................................................... 122
File System Info Sector....................................................................... 123
Backup Boot Sector ............................................................................ 123
Logical Drive ...................................................................................... 123
Extended Signature ............................................................................. 123
Partition Serial Number ...................................................................... 123
Volume Name ..................................................................................... 123
FAT Name .......................................................................................... 123

CMOS Edit ...................................................................................123
Diskettes ............................................................................................. 123
HD0/HD1 ........................................................................................... 124
Base Memory ...................................................................................... 124
Extended Memory .............................................................................. 124
Video Adapter..................................................................................... 124
Coprocessor ........................................................................................ 124

CMOS Display .............................................................................124
Compare Features Test .................................................................126
CHAPTER 9 ................................................................................128
DIAGNOSTIC ERRORS.........................................................................128
System Board Errors.....................................................................128
CPU Tests ........................................................................................... 128
NPU Tests ........................................................................................... 128
RTC Errors ......................................................................................... 129
CTC Errors ......................................................................................... 129
DMA Errors ........................................................................................ 129
Keyboard Controller Errors ................................................................ 129
Interrupt Controller Errors .................................................................. 130
APM Errors (Advanced Power Management) .................................... 130

Memory Tests ...............................................................................130
Base Memory Tests ............................................................................ 130
Cache Memory ................................................................................... 130
Expanded Memory.............................................................................. 131
Extended Memory Errors.................................................................... 132

Floppy Error Codes ......................................................................133
Fixed Disk Error Codes ................................................................136
CD-ROM Error Codes..................................................................140
Printer Codes ................................................................................141
Serial Tests ...................................................................................141
UART Errors ...................................................................................... 141
Line Status Errors ............................................................................... 142
Misc. Serial Test Errors ...................................................................... 143

8

Modem Status Errors .......................................................................... 143

Modem Connect Tests ..................................................................144
Modem Test ........................................................................................ 144
Line Test ............................................................................................. 145
On-line Tests....................................................................................... 145

Parallel Port Tests .........................................................................146
Signal Status ....................................................................................... 146
Function Tests..................................................................................... 147

Network Card Tests ......................................................................147
USB Controller Tests ...................................................................149
Video Tests ...................................................................................149
APPENDIX A ..............................................................................151
WARRANTY & LICENSING .................................................................151
WARRANTY ...............................................................................151
LICENSE AGREEMENT ............................................................152

USB-SCOPE DIAGNOSTIC SOFTWARE
INTRODUCTION ........................................................................155
About Micro 2000, Inc. ................................................................155
About USB-Scope ........................................................................155
CHAPTER 1 ................................................................................157
OVERVIEW OF USB ...........................................................................157
Host Controller .............................................................................157
Ports and Cables ...........................................................................158
Auto Detection .............................................................................159
Power and Resources....................................................................159
Standards ......................................................................................160
Companion Controllers ................................................................160
Transfer Modes.............................................................................161
CHAPTER 2 ................................................................................162
USING USB-SCOPE ............................................................................162
Making Back-up Copies ...............................................................163
Starting USB-Scope .....................................................................163
Reports .........................................................................................165
CMOS Setup ................................................................................166
CHAPTER 3 ................................................................................167
IDENTIFY AND TEST ...........................................................................167
Controller Information..................................................................167
9

Test Menu .....................................................................................168
Identify Root Devices ...................................................................169
CHAPTER 4 ................................................................................170
TESTING THE HOST CONTROLLER......................................................170
PCI................................................................................................170
USB PM .......................................................................................170
USB HOST ...................................................................................171
ROOT HUB..................................................................................171
CHAPTER 5 ................................................................................173
THE HARDWARE DEVICE ...................................................................173
The Device ...................................................................................173
Host Port Tests .............................................................................173
Ending the Program ......................................................................174
MEMSCOPE MEMORY TESTER

MEMSCOPE ............................................................................ 1796
Main Menu .................................................................................1797
Test Description .........................................................................1797
SOFTWARE LICENSE AGREEMENT .......................................181
Contact Information ...................................................................1822

10

Introduction
Congratulations for choosing Micro-Scope. 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
FIRST CD, and how to access it. The second section gives the
various options for loading and running the Micro-Scope software.

With the system booted up to its resident operating system, insert
the FIRST 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.

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 MicroScope 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 FIRST 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 SECOND 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 7 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 boot up. 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 Main Menu

Micro-Scope is a triple boot CD, the first option will take you to
MicroScope Suit program, second is MemScope which is a Memory
RAM test program, MemScope has been developed with different
routines and algorithms than MicroScope, the last option is Puppy
Linux which has been integrated as a bonus, Puppy Linux is
shareware software.
Micro2000, Inc. does not support Puppy Linux because is has not
been developed by us. To find more information about it visit Puppy
Linux’s website at http://www.puppylinux.org/

16

When Micro-Scope boots, it will first present the screen below.
Micro-Scope Diagnostic Suite 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.
17

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.
18

Chapter 1
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.
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.

19

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 brandname 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.
20

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 MicroScope 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.
21

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 MicroScope’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.
22

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 MicroScope 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.
23


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.

24

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.
25

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.
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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.

27


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
28

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.
29

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.
30

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.

31



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.
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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.
33

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.

34

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.

35


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.

36

Chapter 2

SCREEN – PLUG-N-PLAY INFORMATION

SCREEN – PLUG-N-PLAY DETAIL

37

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.

38

Chapter 2

SCREEN – USB INFORMATION

USB Controller ID
This screen displays information about the USB Host Controllers
installed in the system. If there none detected, it will display an error
message.
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
39

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.

40

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.
41

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).
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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.
43


SCREEN – MASTER BOOT RECORD DISPLAY/EDIT

Partition Status (byte) – Indicates the bootable (80) or nonbootable (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.
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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.

45

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
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Chapter 2
Volume Boot Sector, followed by the Partition Table information
carried over from the Master Boot Record screen.
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.
47


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.
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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.

49


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.

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Chapter 2

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
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
51

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.
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.

52

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)
53

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.

54

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.
55

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
56

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.
Video Memory Test – The Video Memory Test will test the
amount of memory on the video adapter detected by Micro-Scope.
57

Batch Menu
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.

58

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
floppy drive where the file exists. Pressing enter on a drive will bring
up the file name prompt.
59

Batch Menu
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.
61

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.

62

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, CDROMs, 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
63

User Manual for Microscope PC Hardware Diagnostics

User Manual for Microscope PC Hardware Diagnostics

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