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Tektronix TDS754C not communicating over GPIB in unprotected mode

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Tantratron:

--- Quote from: picburner on November 14, 2024, 06:58:56 am ---U133 should be the "kernel rom" containing the firmware with basic diagnostic tests and the code to update the Flash memory.
The code contained in U133 is the one that works in "unprotected" mode.
If all the tests are ok it passes the control to the firmware contained in the main Flash memory (5.3e in your case), firmware contained in the two Intel memories side by side, at the top, in your first photo.
U17 I don't know what it is.

The hardware of your scope seems to me to be one of the latest ever produced of this series, nothing to do with my ancient TDS784C.

--- End quote ---
This is totally correct except the EPROM chip is U1331 but depending on the CPU board (they can be used on C serie or D serie except you need to match the firmware versus the acquisition board C serie or D serie), the Kernel version is different, same for the tek ASIC (chip U1) acting as a 68020 to 68040 translator.

Tantratron:

--- Quote from: amaschas on November 14, 2024, 12:28:22 am ---I couldn't find anything that look very obviously like an EEPROM on the processor board, but took some photos of the board and anything on the board bearing a sticker.

--- End quote ---
I've looked at your 3 photos from your CPU board compared against my own data base compiled after dealing with more than ten TDS500/700/C/D oscilloscopes.

With C/D serie, there are early model CPU board and late model CPU board so the firmware of these chips (U1331 U17 U1) are not the same. One reason being the DRAM used to be 5V but later sourcing problem so tektronix used 3.3V DRAM => the firmwares had to be changed on 3 chips plus they added an LDO

Your board is legit, namely the 3 chips have respectively correct firmware version 163-0692-00 163-0693-00 and 163-0790-00

Tantratron:
P.S. You might consider reading attentively this topic depending on late C/D or early C/D models https://www.eevblog.com/forum/repair/tektronix-tdsxxx-tektool-tekfwtool-legal-modification/ and https://www.eevblog.com/forum/repair/tekfwtool-for-tds540c-firmware-upgrade/msg4619995/#msg4619995

amaschas:

--- Quote from: Tantratron on December 03, 2024, 07:13:30 am ---So as a first step, I recommend using National Instruments USB-GPIB (only legacy model built in Hungary) because chinese clone are detected by NI driver and blocked. The prologix had some issues even if it seems to work, personnally I prefer to use real NI equipment which works fine plsu in my case (use of macOS) works super fine.

If you confirm that GPIB is 29 when un-protect mode then you are fine so we will try finding the possible root cause of your problem. It is normal that when in protected mode (address 29), the GPIB query of *IDN? will not work.

Albert

--- End quote ---

This was the key thing I was missing, thank you so much! I had 3 different GPIB adapters including the NI one, and but the fact that tektool didn't work with the other two I had convinced me that the issue was with the scope, and the fact that the scope didn't respond to *IDN? in unlocked mode seemed to confirm that. I had also tried the options unlock process with the scope in unlocked mode as documented here: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/hackingupgrading-old-scope-(tds754d)/ but wasn't able to get any response from any of those GPIB commands. But I just tried using tektool with the NI adapter and I was able to connect to the scope and backup the NVRAM, firmware and EEPROM data with the base tektool (not tekfwtool).

I do wonder now why I wasn't able to unlock any of the options. Using the NIVISA software, when I try to send any command like PASSWORD "PITBULL", the interface just hangs for several seconds and just times out.

Thanks for the links to the threads on the different scope models, I will take a look and absorb.

TERRA Operative:
Send: PASSWORD PITBULL

Not: PASSWORD "PITBULL"

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