README.TXT
SoftICE 3.0 Release Notes
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Table Of Contents
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* What's New in SoftICE 3.0
* System Requirements
* Installation
* Using SoftICE On A Multi-Processor System
* Quick Start to Debugging
* VToolsD Support
* DOS Extender Support (Windows NT Only)
* Known Anomalies
* Troubleshooting Tips
* Reporting Problems And Suggestions
What's New in SoftICE 3.0
--------------------------------
SoftICE 3.0 is available separately for Windows 95 and Windows NT. Many
enhancements apply to both versions of SoftICE, while others are new
only to the Windows 95 version.
For Windows 95 and Windows NT
We know you'll like these major enhancements:
* Locals and structures support
* One-step Symbol Loader(no more DBG2MAP and MSYM)
* Mouse support
* On-line Command Reference and Using SoftICE manuals
Read "What's New in SoftICE 3.0" (WHATSNEW.DOC) for a quick tour and
refer to your SoftICE manuals for details.
Locals and structures support, and the new Symbol Loader (LOADER32.EXE)
are designed for debugging Windows programs only. The old utilities are
available in UTIL16 for debugging MS-DOS programs.
For Windows 95
We updated the Windows 95 version of SoftICE to include features we
originally introduced for Windows NT. Highlights include:
* Automatic VM Switching, with context or VM displayed on the status bar
* New SoftICE Expression Evaluator
* Conditional breakpoints and breakpoint actions
* Macros
* New QUERY command to display the virtual address map of a process
* New WHAT command to analyze names and expressions
"What's New in SoftICE 3.0" lists the command changes for Windows 95.
System Requirements
-------------------
For All Systems:
* 5 MB disk space required
* 2.5 MB disk space optional (Adobe Acrobat Reader for on-line manuals)
* Microsoft-compatible Serial or PS/2 mouse (optional)
* Single monitor, an additional monochrome monitor, and remote debugging
are supported
For Windows 95:
* Windows 95
* 16 MB RAM minimum (32 MB recommended)
For Windows NT:
* Intel x86 uniprocessor system (or single CPU on an SMP system)
* Windows NT 3.51
* Windows NT 3.51 with NewShell
* Windows NT 4.0 (Build 1381)
* 32 MB RAM minimum (64 MB recommended)
* Installation account with administrator rights
Installation
------------
* To install SoftICE, run SETUP.EXE. For Windows NT, run Setup from an
account with administrator rights.
* Setup will prompt you to select your display adapter's make and model,
and allow you to set up an additional monochrome monitor.
* Setup will prompt you to select the type of mouse you are using (none,
serial-COM1, serial-COM2, or PS/2). The bus mouse is not supported.
* You can change your display adapter or mouse later by running Display
Adapter or Mouse Setup from the SoftICE start menu (Windows 95) or the
SoftICE program group (Windows NT).
* For Windows NT only: Setup will prompt you to select a startup mode
for SoftICE. You can change your startup mode later by running Startup
Mode Setup from the SoftICE program group.
* To uninstall SoftICE, select Remove SoftICE from the SoftICE start
menu (Windows 95) or from the SoftICE program group (Windows NT).
Using SoftICE On A Multi-Processor System
-----------------------------------------
SoftICE 3.0 supports using a single CPU on a multi-processor system, but
does not provide full SMP support. To boot an SMP machine using only one
CPU copy the boot.ini line that boots your version of NT and add the
/onecpu switch onto the end of the line. Boot.ini is normally a hidden,
read-only system file.
Example:
If the following line starts Windows NT 3.51:
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\winnt="Windows NT Workstation
Version 3.51"
Copy it and change the new line as follows to start NT 3.51 using only
one CPU:
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\winnt="Windows NT Workstation
Version 3.51 (one CPU)" /onecpu
Quick Start to Debugging
------------------------
1) Run Symbol Loader (LOADER32.EXE).
2) Choose File-Open Module, and select the module you want to debug.
3) Choose Module-Load (or click the Load button on the toolbar). SoftICE
automatically extracts symbol information from your module, creates a
.NMS file containing the information, loads the symbols and source code,
and, if you are loading an EXE file, loads the EXE and sets a
breakpoint. You're ready to start debugging.
Other features to check in the new symbol loader:
* Module-Settings (symbol translation and debug options for your module)
* Module-Translate (creates a .NMS file for pre-loading at start up)
* Edit-SoftICE Initialization Settings (replaces WINICE.DAT)
* File-Load Exports (loads exported symbols for DLLs you select)
* File-Save SoftICE History (replaces WLOG and DLOG)
VToolsD Support
---------------
SoftICE 3.0 adds support for locals and structures, which makes it
easier than ever to develop VxDs in C/C++. To take full advantage of
SoftICE 3.0, VToolsD users will need to make some minor modifications to
the VtoolsD make files.
Microsoft Visual C++ users:
Edit vtd95\include\ms9.mak as follows:
1) Replace all instances of /Zxx (where xx can be anything) with /Zi.
This ensures that full debug information is included.
2) Remove references to DBG2MAP and MSYM. Those tools were used with
older versions of SoftICE but are now obsolete. Instead, to create your
.NMS symbol file, use:
NMSYM /PROMPT /TRANSLATE:package,always
/SOURCE:$(VTOOLSD)\lib\source;$(VTOOLSD)\lib\classlib;$(VTOOLSD)\lib\include $(TARGNAME)
Unzipping the VtoolsD source code is recommended for full source-level
debugging.
Borland C++ users:
1) Build your VxD with debug information using the /v switch for the
compiler and linker (as usual).
2) Use the PELE utility with the -s switch to create a section mapping
file (.SMF). Translate the .SMF file to a .NMS symbol file with LOADER32
or NMSYM. Note that translating the .DLL produced by the linker will not
work; it is essential to translate from the .SMF file.
NOTE:
NuMega plans to make replacement makefiles incorporating these changes
available from the technical support section of our Web site
(www.numega.com).
DOS Extender Support (Windows NT Only)
--------------------------------------
You can debug DOS Extender applications with SoftICE, but the process is
not as automatic as with Windows applications. Be aware of the following
points:
* To gain control in the beginning of your application, embed an int 3
instruction in your code and turn i3here on in SoftICE.
* Both sticky and virtual breakpoints are not supported in extender
applications.
* You can debug 32-bit extender applications at source level if your
tools are capable of producing debug information compatible with the
DBG2MAP utility. Use the utilities in UTIL16 for DOS extenders.
* Symbols are not automatically repaired. Use the SYMLOC command to set
both the base address and context for your application.
Known Anomalies
---------------
* When debugging 16-bit programs, expanding pointers to structures in
the Locals and Watch window is not supported. The data displayed when
the structures expand is not valid.
* The NT 3.51 checked build crashes when SoftICE is loaded using the
default winice.dat file. To fix the problem, change winice.dat as
follows:
- Add the line: mouse=off
- If you are using a mouse in SoftICE, add "set mouse on" to your INIT
string. Example: init="set mouse on;X;"
* SoftICE 3.0 in Windows 95 is not compatible with BoundsChecker for
Windows 3.x (16-bit). If you need to run SoftICE with 16-bit
BoundsChecker, use SoftICE 2.0, or check our web site to see if a patch
is available.
* The Windows 95 shutdown option Restart computer in MS-DOS mode is not
supported when running SoftICE. Loading SoftICE after choosing this
option causes the system to become unstable and eventually crash. To
return to MS-DOS after you shut down Windows 95, set BOOTGUI=0 in
MSDOS.SYS (really an ini file with hidden, read-only, system
attributes). Then use Shutdown the Computer to restart your system.
* Windows NT becomes unstable when it runs low on non-paged memory. This
can occur if you load many symbols and source files. Use Symbol Loader-
Help-About Symbol loader to monitor SoftICE memory usage. You may need
to be selective about how much information you load into SoftICE.
SoftICE loads all source files by default. To limit the source files,
list the files to be loaded in a .SRC file with the same name as your
module. Put the .SRC file in the same directory with your executable.
Troubleshooting Tips
--------------------
* Erratic keyboard behavior: If the keyboard behaves erratically when
you load SoftICE, run Symbol Loader, select Edit-SoftICE Initialization
Settings, and select the following option on the Troubleshooting page,
and restart SoftICE:
--- Disable Num Lock and Caps Lock programming
If the erratic behavior persists in Windows NT, select this
Troubleshooting option as well:
--- Do not patch keyboard driver
* Erratic mouse pointer movement: If mouse movement occurs when SoftICE
pops up, the operating system and the mouse hardware might become out of
sync because part of a mouse packet is lost. This results in erratic
mouse pointer movement. Use one of the following to resync the mouse:
- Type ctrl-M in SoftICE. You may need to do this a few times.
- Switch to a full screen DOS box in Windows NT.
- Use SET MOUSE OFF, followed by SET MOUSE ON, in Windows 95.
*If you encounter a situation where either program logic or a corrupt
data structure causes SoftICE to enter an endless loop and the
informational commands do not respond in a timely manner, press the
Escape (Esc) key one or more times to abort the current operation.
* Debugging Delphi Programs - Be sure to use the $O- option to turn off
optimizations. When optimizations are on, many unreferenced parameters
and locals are optimized out, although some reference to them still
exists in the debug information.
Reporting Problems And Suggestions
----------------------------------
Be sure to check our web site at http://www.numega.com for product
updates, FAQs, white papers and other technical support information.
Contact Technical Support through e-mail at support@numega.com or by
calling Technical Support at 603-889-2386. You can also FAX us at
603-889-1135 (attention: Technical Support).
Include the following in your problem report:
* System Configuration (O/S, processor, and RAM)
* Detailed problem description (include exact error message text)
* How to reproduce the problem
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Copyright 1996 NuMega Technologies, Inc.
11/22/96
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