SBC CAN BE HOT SWAPPED FROM ACTIVE SYSTEMS Released 5 September 2000 BVM Limited has implemented fully conformant Hot-Swap on its cPC200 CompactPCI Single Board Computer, so that, when running Windows 2000, the SBC itself can be swapped out of an active system without having to power-down and reboot, giving true "Hot Swap", even for the main processor board. Of particular significance for high availability application such as telecoms, where multiple CompactPCI racks are often powered from a single main supply, Hot Swap capability minimises downtime and revenue losses. When the injector/extractor handle is operated on the cPC200, an ACPI (Active Configuration and Power Interface) event is initiated. ACPI, originally developed by a consortium of Intel, Microsoft and Toshiba, is part of all current BIOS. Windows 2000 reacts to the ACPI event by putting the SBC into hibernate mode, writing the contents of the SBC's RAM to external hard disc elsewhere in the system. The blue LED lights to indicate that the board is in hibernate mode; it can then be withdrawn safely from the system. The replacement board is inserted, the first-make, last-break pins ensure correct power-on sequencing, and when the handles are pressed fully home, the new board goes through its boot-up sequence, recovering the dumped memory from its temporary storage on external disc. The single slot 6U cPC200 is available with up to 256Mb of DRAM factory fitted on-board, expandable to 512Mb via a standard 144-pin DIMM socket. Conforming to the Rev 3.0 CompactPCI specification, the cPC200 uses a Super Socket 7 enabling it to be supplied with processors from a number of different manufacturers. Intel Pentium, AMD K6-III and K6-2 mobile and Cyrix are all supported; the board is suitable for processor clock speeds up to 550MHz and bus speeds of 66, 75, 83 or 100MHz can be selected. The unit also has several other advanced features: the on-board PanelLink connector will drive an LCD screen up to 10 metres distant, and when used with a USB keyboard and mouse this provides a convenient user interface for many industrial applications. The on-board graphics adapter is the latest high performance device from S3: the AGP-2 based Savage 4 with either 8 or 32Mb graphics memory. 10baseT and 100baseTX networking is implemented on-board using the Intel 82559 single chip controller, with the RJ-45 outlet on the front panel. Also on the front panel are standard PS-2 mouse and keyboard ports, and two USB ports, both supporting 12 and 1.5Mbits/s. *** Ends: 398 words *** Notes to Editors. A text file of this release and a 2100 x 1500 300dpi CMYK JPG can be downloaded from www.parkfield.co.uk For further information contact: BVM contact: Rod Clarke Managing Director BVM Limited tel: + 44 (0)1489 780144 fax: + 44 (0)1489 783589 e-mail: sales@bvmltd.co.uk Web: www.bvm.co.uk Agency contact: Nigel May Parkfield Parkfield House, Damerham, Hants, SP6 3HQ tel: + 44 (0)1725 518321 fax: + 44 (0)1725 518378 e-mail: Nigel_May@parkfield.co.uk Web: www.parkfield.co.uk BVM specialise in the design, development and manufacture of Single Board Computers based on Motorola 680x0 and Intel Pentium architectures for stand-alone applications and for use in VMEbus and CompactPCI systems. Individual boards and modules for integration into users' own systems are supplied, and complete systems are designed, supplied and commissioned. IndustryPack and PMC format modules for configurable I/O are supported on many SBCs, and a wide range of single function modules is also produced. In addition to its standard range of modules the company offers a custom design service ranging from minor modifications to standard designs to complete custom modules.