Q: I get the following error when I try to load NKLOAD.BIN:
LdrEraseFlash : Error (0x8000a2)
return FALSE from LdrMoveRamToFlash() I get the same error when I try to low-level format the flash.
We came across an issue with a couple of Graphics Master systems where the engineer had followed our instructions for loading Linux, but had a failure occur during the Linux load. When he tried to reload CE, he got the error listed above.
The error indicated a problem formatting the flash at the 8MiB mark of the 32MiB flash onboard. Further investigation revealed that we were not able to low-level format (erase) flash using the bootloader code. We were ultimately able to resolve the issue by relocating the CE flash disk on top of the region of flash usually reserved for the CE image and running CE from a flash card.
Here's an overview of the steps we went through for this procedure. These instructions are posted as-is for reference, but I don't anticipate that they will be needed. This is the only time I know that this condition has occurred.
Configuration:
- Graphics Master rev B, 32MiB RAM, 32MiB flash, previously loaded with CE but attempted to convert to Linux
- In this procedure, reloaded with 15MiB CE.NET image 4.15 for Graphics Master and CE configuration files 700110-9736A (which are posted with image)
1. Use flash disk driver to fix the trouble block of flash
1.1 Load a doctored adsload.reg file that moves flash disk to the 8-16MB region
- edit adsload.reg flash disk settings as follows:
"Start"=dword:08800000 ; 8MB location in flash ("7MB CE image")
"Length"=dword:800000 ; 8MB flash disk
- rename hwt and bin files to ads.hwt and nk.bin
- DIP switch 3 ON, others OFF
- reload adsload.reg file
1.2 Boot CE from flash disk
- 2 ON, others OFF
- boot CE from PCMCIA; should see flash disk formatting
- after touch panel calibration, check that flash disk is present (successful format)
2. Erase flash disk region of flash
(optional, but ensures no conflict with previous versions of flash disk driver)
- switch 3 ON, others OFF
- at boot menu select erase flash by block
- erase flash disk region of flash: on a GMaster with 32 MiB flash and a 15 MiB CE image, we used the address range 100 0000 to 200 0000 (no spaces)
3. Load system files normally
- on card, rename nk.bin and ads.hwt
- switch 3 ON, others OFF
- reload all system files
- switches 1 and 3 ON, others off
- boot CE; flash disk should format normally
- calibrate touch panel; should see CE desktop
- to make sure flash disk didn't overwrite CE image, reset system; it should boot normally
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Microsoft Windows CE
Working around a CE flash formatting error
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Posted - 25 Mar 2003 : 19:33:45
