ron minnich wrote:
On one 1024 node update, a linuxbios update uncovered a problem in the hardware, such that 5 of the 1024 nodes had trouble booting. Times like those you really need a fallback. It's easy to see, given the general bugginess of so much PC hardware, why the BIOSes run it so slow.
I'm actually amazed you can get 1024 PC mobos all going at once. Many if not most mobo mfrs turn their designs 4 times a year, that is not much time to do exhaustive design checks. And the power conversion circuits are frequently running components beyond spec, so that this area has a life expectancy of 1-2 years, on many boards. I guess PC mfrs figure you'll buy a new one by then so what the heck. But it varies with the mfr and the specific board. I've had some with <5% failure in 10 years, others 25% failure in 5 years. And dont get me started on the power supply and the fans...
-Steve