    AST RESEARCH, INC.           TECHNICAL BULLETIN # 1313           8-15-95

                          MANHATTAN AND SMC ETHERPOWER PCI NIC

    PROBLEM:    When the SMC EtherPower PCI ethernet NIC is installed in PCI
                slot number two the server may hang without displaying any
                error messages.  This symptom may not be apparent immediately
                after installation as it will only occur when the server is
                under heavy load.

    CAUSE:      PCI slot number two shares an interrupt with the first
                integrated SCSI channel.  At this time there appears to be a
                conflict between these two devices when they share an interrupt
                and get "busy."

    SOLUTION:   Install the SMC EtherPower board in a slot other than number
                two.  AST is currently looking into this situation and will
                issue a revised bulletin once a more permanent solution is
                developed.

    SYSTEMS
    AFFECTED:   All AST Manhattan P and V series fileservers