Configuring HP-UX For Peripherals

Appendix C 275
Major and Minor Numbers
Understanding the Construction of Device Special Files
Adjusting Bits to Read a Floppy Disk
Media used by tape drives and floppy disk drives have different
densities. There might be times when you need to read a floppy disk that
was written on older technology.
For example, a Series 800 Model E computer has a built-in SCSI floppy
disk drive whose typical minor number is 0x005000. However, when
attempting to read a floppy disk originally created on a 2.88MB drive,
you might want to create minor numbers 0x005004 and 0x005005. As
shown in Table C-5, “Bit Assignments for Disk and Magneto-Optical
Devices,” both minor numbers adjust bits in the range 28-31 to
accommodate the 2.88MB drive, and allow you to try to read the diskette
with or without a set geometry determined.