DTA: ISA Configuration Utiltiy
ISA Configuration Utility
Installing the ISA Configuration Utility
Starting the ISA Configuration Utility
Making Selections in the ISA Configuration Utility
Viewing Resources
Adding a Card
Modifying a Card
Removing a Card
Locking and Unlocking Cards
Locking and Unlocking Configuration Resources
Saving the System Configuration
Exiting from the ISA Configuration Utility
The ISA Configuration Utility is used to tell the system what expansion cards are installed and which slots they occupy. With this information, the system automatically configures Plug and Play expansion cards and PCI expansion cards and can tell the user how to configure ISA cards manually by setting jumpers or switches.
NOTE: Dell will support only PCI video boards that meet the 2.0 PCI bus specification.
Before you add, remove, or reposition an ISA expansion card, use the ISA Configuration Utility to reconfigure your system. The utility reads the card's corresponding configuration file (.cfg file), which describes the card's characteristics and required system resources. After the resources identified in these configuration files are assigned to all ISA cards, the ISA Configuration Utility assigns resources to all Plug and Play cards, creating a conflict-free configuration.
PCI cards do not require configuring through the ISA Configuration Utility. A PCI configuration utility in ROM automatically reads the configuration information in the ISA Configuration Utility and assigns resources to the PCI cards accordingly. If the PCI configuration utility is not aware of an installed ISA card, resource conflicts can arise.
Installing the ISA Configuration Utility
To install the ISA Configuration Utility for Windows� on the hard-disk drive, use the ISA Configuration Utility program diskette from the image on the hard-disk drive.
NOTES: If an expanded memory manager is running on the system, it must be disabled before installing the ISA Configuration Utility. Once the installation procedure is complete, it can be reenabled.
Do not install the MS-DOS� version of the ISA Configuration Utility on the hard-disk drive.
Insert the ISA Configuration Utility Diskette into drive A, type the following line, and press <ENTER>:
a:setup
Then follow the instructions on the screen. After the installation procedure is complete and the MS-DOS prompt is displayed, remove the ISA Configuration Utility diskette from drive A, exit Windows, and reboot the system before starting the ISA Configuration Utility.
Starting the ISA Configuration Utility
NOTES: For MS-DOS, insert the ISA Configuration Utility program diskette or the ISA Configuration Utility Diskette into drive A and turn on your computer or press the reset button.
For Windows, open the Plug and Play program group; then double-click on the Intel ISA Configuration Utility icon.
When running the ISA Configuration Utility from the hard-disk drive, remove any TSR programs from memory before starting the utility. The ISA Configuration Utility requires 465 KB of conventional memory. If the utility is started and there is not enough memory to run it, a message appears on the monitor, and the utility will need to be run from a bootable diskette.
The user can also conserve memory by modifying the Configuration Manager for the ISA Configuration Utility. The Configuration Manager has a /nolock parameter that disables the LOCK RESOURCES box in the Configuration Settings dialog box and saves 30 KB of memory.
NOTE: The /nolock parameter does not affect the Lock button or the LOCK/UNLOCK CARD item under the Advanced menu of the ISA Configuration Utility.
You can specify the /nolock parameter in the config.sys file using the following syntax:
device=c:\ directory\config\dwcfgmg.sys /nolock
NOTE: The default location for the Configuration Manager is in the c:\plugplay directory. You may need to modify this if the default was not used.
Another method of conserving conventional memory is to load the Configuration Manager into high memory using a memory manager, such as emm386.exe. The following example does this:
device=c:\windows\emm386.exe noems
devicehigh /size=a700 c:\plugplay\config\dwcfgmg.sys
The next example loads the Configuration Manager into high memory with the /nolock parameter specified:
device=c:\windows\emm386.exe noems
devicehigh /size32e0 c:\plugplay\config\dwcfgmg.sys /nolock
Making Selections in the ISA Configuration Utility
The ISA Configuration Utility window is the main window of the utility and the starting point for making any changes to the expansion-card configuration. This window displays a list of all ISA, Plug and Play, and PCI cards currently installed in the system. The ISA Configuration Utility window contains menus and a tool bar. When you choose a course of action, the ISA Configuration Utility displays dialog boxes to guide you through the various steps.
The user can maneuver through each menu and dialog box using a mouse or the keystrokes below:
Keys Action
X-Y> Performs the operation indicated by the menu item containing
the underlined letter Y. (X corresponds to the first letter
of the menu name.)
<TAB> Moves from one control button or list to another.
Up- and down-arrow Moves up and down items in a list.
keys
<SPACEBAR> Highlights an item in a list.
<ENTER> Selects the highlighted button or item in a list.
Viewing Resources
The ISA Configuration Utility displays all resources currently used by the system. To view all the system resources, select SYSTEM RESOURCES from the View menu. The System Resource Usage dialog box displays all resources currently used by the system.
To determine which card uses a particular resource shown in the System Resource Usage dialog box, select the resource in question and then click on the Used By Card button. The Card Resource Usage dialog box appears with the information.
To view the resources that a particular card is using, select the card from the list displayed, and then select CARD RESOURCES from the View menu or click on the View button. The Card Resource Usage box displays the resources assigned to that card.
To save the information displayed in the resource usage dialog boxes, click on the Print To File button. The ISA Configuration Utility then prompts the user for a name of the file to create.
Adding a Card
Use the following procedure to add a listed card with the ISA Configuration Utility:
1. Start the ISA Configuration Utility.
2. Click on the Add button, or select ADD CARD from the Configuration menu.
3. Click on the name of the category of card to be added. If you clicked on the Add button in step 2,
click on OK for a dialog box listing the names of all available cards of that type.
4. Select the name of the card you want to add.
NOTE: If you do not see the name of the card, select UNLISTED CARD at the bottom of the listing. Then click on the OK button and enter the name of the card that you want to add in the CARD NAME field. For each resource you want to assign to the card, click on the box beneath the name of the resource to be assigned, and then click on the ADD button. When you have finished selecting resources for the card, click the OK button in the dialog box. If the card must be reconfigured, record the settings recommended by the utility. Click on the CLOSE button to accept the resource settings currently displayed. If the settings have to be changed, turn off the system, remove the card to make the changes, and reinstall the card to match the settings in the ISA Configuration Utility.
5. To select the resources yourself, click on the Advanced button. To change any of the resource settings
for the card, select the resource setting, and then click on the Settings button. Click on the
down-arrow next to the Configuration Choice box. Then click on the setting from the list of available
settings.
To change individual resource values for the current configuration setting, select the resource value
that you want to change and click on the Options button.
6. Click on the OK button in the Configuration Settings dialog box when you have finished selecting
resources for the functions.
7. Turn off the system if you modify the system configuration, and change the jumpers on the ISA expansion
cards to match the settings in the ISA Configuration Utility.
Modifying a Card
Modifying a card allows you to change the system resources used by a card. This feature is helpful when you want to add a card that requires resources already in use by other cards or devices in your system. You can allocate different resources to the cards currently in your system to free the resources necessary for the card you want to install.
You can also use this feature to force Plug and Play or PCI cards to use specific resource values. This procedure is called locking a card. You should lock a card only if it uses static device drivers.
NOTE: You cannot modify the resources of a PCI card. You can only view the resources currently assigned and lock or unlock them.
To modify the resource settings for a listed or unlisted card, complete the following steps:
1. Start the ISA Configuration Utility.
2. Select the card from the list of installed cards in the ISA Configuration Utility window, and choose
MODIFY CARD from the Configure menu or click on the Modify button.
NOTE: When you modify an unlisted card, the ISA Configuration Utility cannot show you the valid resources for the card. Therefore, you must have the documentation from the manufacturer that describes the settings the card can use.
3. To add, modify, or remove a resource value, select the box beneath the resource to be assigned, and then
select the Add, Modify, or Remove button as appropriate.
4. Click on the OK button to complete the card modifications and return to the ISA Configuration Utility
window.
5. To change the resource settings for the card, select the resource setting, and then click on the
Settings button. Click on the down-arrow next to the Configuration Choice box. Then click on the new
resource setting from the list of available settings.
6. To change individual resource values for the current configuration setting, select the resource value
that you want to change, and click on the Options button located below the resource values.
7. When you have finished selecting resources for the unlisted card, click on the OK button in the
Configure Unlisted Card dialog box. If the card needs to be reconfigured, record the resource settings
recommended by the ISA Configuration Utility. Click on the Close button to accept the resource settings
currently displayed.
8. After modifying the system configuration, you must turn the system off to install, remove, or change the
jumper settings on the card to match the
settings selected in the ISA Configuration Utility.
Removing a Card
To remove a Plug and Play or PCI card from your system, you do not need to run the ISA Configuration Utility. However, you do need to run the utility for removing an ISA expansion card. Use the following procedure to remove an ISA expansion card from your computer system:
1. Start the ISA Configuration Utility.
2. Select the card from the current system configuration list in the ISA Configuration Utility window.
3. Select REMOVE CARD from the Configuration menu or click on the Remove button.
4. Click on YES to free the resources allocated to the card and remove its name from the list of active
cards, or click on NO to cancel the operation.
5. Remove the card from the system immediately. Failure to do so can damage your system.
Locking and Unlocking Cards
The ISA Configuration Utility includes a locking mechanism that enables you to allocate the system resources for all or for some functions of a Plug and Play card. Plug and Play cards are dynamic, meaning that they are allocated resources at system boot. Some device drivers support this dynamic card configuration, but some do not. Device drivers that do not support dynamic card configuration are referred to as static device drivers.
To determine whether your expansion card has static device drivers, check the documentation that came with your device driver. If you are using a static device driver, you need to permanently associate resources with a Plug and Play card instead of relying on the default Plug and Play behavior. Otherwise, the device driver might not be able to find the card the next time the system boots. The procedure is known as locking a card.
NOTE: The locking feature of the ISA Configuration Utility is valid only for Plug and Play cards and PCI cards.
To lock the card resources or particular functions of the card, you must first enable the locking feature. You must also select a Plug and Play or PCI card from the list of cards installed.
To lock or unlock all the resources and configurations for a Plug and Play or PCI card, perform the following steps:
1. If it is not already installed, install the Plug and Play or PCI card. Then turn on the system. The
Plug and Play card is configured automatically by the system.
2. Start the ISA Configuration Utility.
3. Select LOCKING ENABLED from the Advanced menu in the ISA Configuration Utility window. A check mark
will appear next to LOCKING ENABLED to show that it is active, and a Lock button appears on the tool bar.
4. Select the Plug and Play card that you want to lock or unlock from the Cards Configured in System list.
5. Click on the Lock button or select LOCK/UNLOCK CARD from the Advanced menu.
Locking and Unlocking Configuration Resources
You can also lock individual resources for a card. To do so, perform the following steps:
1. If it is not already installed, install the Plug and Play card. Then turn on the system.
2. Start the ISA Configuration Utility.
3. Select LOCKING ENABLED from the Advanced menu in the ISA Configuration Utility window. A check mark
appears next to LOCKING ENABLED to show that it is active, and a Lock button appears on the tool bar.
4. Select the Plug and Play card that you want to lock or unlock from the Cards Configured in System list.
5. Click on the Modify button, or select MODIFY CARD from the Configure menu.
6. From the Card Configuration dialog box, select the function you want to lock or unlock.
7. Click on the Settings button. Modify the resource setting and/or resources offered on the Configuration
Settings screen, if necessary.
8. Click in the LOCK RESOURCES box. The LOCK RESOURCES box toggles the lock state of the selected
configuration setting.
9. Repeat for any other configurations settings that you want to lock or unlock. Click on the OK button in
the Card Configuration dialog when you have finished making your selections.
Saving the System Configuration
You can save the system configuration to NVRAM as you configure each card's resources, To do this, select SAVE from the File menu and then continue with your operation.
Exiting from the ISA Configuration Utility
At the ISA Configuration Utility window, select EXIT from the File menu to exit the ISA Configuration Utility. If you have made any changes to the system configuration, you are asked whether you want to save the changes.
If you click on the Yes button, the ISA Configuration Utility saves the updated system configuration data into NVRAM and in the system.img file. If you click on the No button, you exit the ISA Configuration Utility without saving any of your configuration changes. If you click on the Cancel button, nothing is saved, and the utility continues to operate.
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