I haven't been able to track down exactly when the 6800 series was launched. As with the 67xx range I would have thought it would appear in the '10ZiG in the news' section of their website which does go back about 10 years, but no. Looking at the meta data of the one pdf datasheet I found I find a date of February 2015. Checking the wayback machine the 6817v and 6818v first appear in the July 2013 snapshot of the 10ZiG website.
As usual there are several models in the range that use the common hardware base but then the amounts of flash and RAM vary depending on the installed operating system.
As I write this (September 2019) the 68xx is a rare beast. I don't recall seeing any appearing on eBay in the last few years. This is a pity as it has a feature that a lot of people look for when repurposing thin clients - a PCI slot. However, as a result, it is larger than many modern thin clients.
My particular example had been advertised on eBay as a 6717 but on arrival turned out to be a 68xx. What the 6717 label was doing on it I have no idea.
Processor Type
SpeedAMD G-Series T56E/T56N
1.65GHzMemory Flash
RAM1G/16GB
2GB (max 4GB)Video Chip
Max resolutionAMD Radeon HD
1920 x 1200 32-bit colour(?)Ports Network
USB
Serial
Parallel
PS/2
Video10/100/1000
4 x USB2.0
2 x USB3.0
1 (optional)
1 (optional)
1
2 x DVIPower Plug
Input
Off
Idle
RunningCoax 5.5mm/2.1mm
12V/4A (label)
0W
13W
20WDimensions H x W x D (mm) 230 x 57 x 210
Models: It looks like we have
Model OS RAM Storage 6872v Linux 2GB 1GB 6817v WES7 2GB 16GB 6818v WE8 2GB 16GB 6899 Linux 1GB 2GB
My particular example came without any flash so I don't know which particular variant it started life as.
Graphics Note: The 6800 series datasheet does not say anything about the graphics capability other than "Supports High End Graphics". I think the AMD Embedded G-Series datasheet indicates that you've got at least 1920 x 1200 @ 60Hz in a dual display configuration.
CPU & Graphics: The 6800 series datasheet gives the CPU as either the T56E or the T56N. The AMD Embedded G-Series datasheet shows that the only difference between the two is the graphics engine. With the T56N it is the AMD Radeon HD 6320 and with the T56E it is the AMD Radeon HD 6250.
The unit requires a 12V supply and uses a conventional 5.5mm/2.1mm coax connector. Whilst the label implies the standard Power Supply is a 12V/4A unit the actual power drain is much less but of course is dependent on what extras you plug in. With keyboard, mouse and pen drive plugged in my measurements showed it idling along at 13W and rising to 20W when busy.
The T56E and T56N are dual core CPUs.
Having booted Tinycore, /proc/cpuinfo shows:
vendor_id : AuthenticAMD cpu family : 20 model : 2 model name : AMD G-T56N Processor stepping : 0 flags : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush mmx fxsr sse sse2 ht syscall nx mmxext fxsr_opt pdpe1gb rdtscp lm constant_tsc rep_good nonstop_tsc cpuid extd_apicid aperfmperf pni monitor ssse3 cx16 popcnt lahf_lm cmp_legacy svm extapic cr8_legacy abm sse4a misalignsse 3dnowprefetch ibs skinit wdt hw_pstate vmmcall arat npt lbrv svm_lock nrip_save pausefilter
00:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 14h Processor Root Complex 00:01.0 VGA compatible controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] Wrestler [Radeon HD 6320] 00:05.0 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 14h Processor Root Port 00:07.0 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 14h Processor Root Port 00:11.0 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 40) 00:12.0 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB OHCI0 Controller 00:12.2 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB EHCI Controller 00:13.0 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB OHCI0 Controller 00:13.2 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB EHCI Controller 00:14.0 SMBus: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SBx00 SMBus Controller (rev 42) 00:14.2 Audio device: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SBx00 Azalia (Intel HDA) (rev 40) 00:14.3 ISA bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 LPC host controller (rev 40) 00:14.4 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SBx00 PCI to PCI Bridge (rev 40) 00:14.5 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB OHCI2 Controller 00:16.0 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB OHCI0 Controller 00:16.2 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] SB7x0/SB8x0/SB9x0 USB EHCI Controller 00:18.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 12h/14h Processor Function 0 (rev 43) 00:18.1 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 12h/14h Processor Function 1 00:18.2 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 12h/14h Processor Function 2 00:18.3 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 12h/14h Processor Function 3 00:18.4 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 12h/14h Processor Function 4 00:18.5 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 12h/14h Processor Function 6 00:18.6 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 12h/14h Processor Function 5 00:18.7 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 12h/14h Processor Function 7 01:00.0 Ethernet controller: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller (rev 07) 02:00.0 USB controller: ASMedia Technology Inc. ASM1042 SuperSpeed USB Host Controller
As usual, clicking on the photo (right) will take you to a larger scale photo of the circuit board.
The 68xx case is quite large so there is some space available to fit something internally.
Flash: The Flash memory is replaceable. It's a DOM plugged into a 22-pin SATA connector connector - but no DOM is fitted in the photo.
RAM: The RAM is a conventional DDR3 SODIMM plugged into a socket fitted on the top of the board. The fitted 204-pin SODIMM was a 2GB Aplus Technology part A+NDD31333BL-2G. This is a DDR3 1333MHz PC3-10600 part. I also tried out a 2GB PC3L part and a 4GB (4GB 1Rx8 PC3L-12800S-11-12-B4) from Elpida. Both worked.
USB: There are two USB2.0 sockets on the front panel, and two on the rear. Also on the rear are two USB 3.0 ports.
Mini PCIe: There is an internal mini PCIe socket where you could fit a wireless card. I had an Atheros mPCIe wireless card to hand and briefly fitted that. It appeared in the lspci listing.
PCIe: There is a PCIe x1 connector on the motherboard and also a convential expansion card backplate on the back panel. I don't know if there is a specific riser card that would let you fit an expansion card to the 68xx, but I would think not as I can't see any obvious mounting points to provide supports for the added hardware. I originally wrote: However there is nothing to stop you fitting a card and using one of ribbon-cable style extensions to connect it to the x1 PCIe slot on the motherboard. ....but then I tried it out using a ethernet card I had to hand.
This worked and the card was found and I ended up with a thin client with two ethernet ports. However....
First thing you notice is that the expansion card bracket has some additional features. The top edge
(as you look at in place) has a fold and additional metal along the edge which makes it an integral part
of the housing. It also has two extra small 'tongues', one at the 'top' of the other long edge and one
at the 'bottom' to help lock it in place.
Not a major issue, but it does mean that with your replacement you might need to add a bit of tape or something else to help hold it in place.
However, with the particular x1 extender I have, I found that I couldn't actually install the card with
it fitted. The ribbon cable extension terminates each end on a small PCB. One end plugs into the
motherboard socket whilst the other end carries the socket that pushes on to the expansion card. At that
end of the ribbon cable it looks like you need at least 25mm of clearance from the bottom edge of the
card with it in place. In the 68xx I measure 15mm clearance between the card and the heatsink.
There are two possible solutions: find an alternative extender to the cheap bit of ribbon cable or trim down the heatsink.
This is with the card mounted to the back panel. The socket extender is lying next to where it needs
to go to illustrate the clash with the heatsink.
IO ports
My 68xx came with an additional serial and an additional parallel port. From the outside it looks these are on an expansion card, but that isn't the case. Whilst the sockets are mounted on a standard expansion card backplate, when you open the unit up you find that there is no card. The sockets are actually wired direct to connectors on the motherboard.
There are a series of jumpers on the board by the serial connectors - JP3 and JP4. Elsewhere there is a
legend silk screened onto the board giving their settings. (Photo right). I assume the +5V/+12V are for
the line driving voltages(?). What 'default' does I don't know. If you're intending to use the serial ports
you might like to get a volt meter out to see exactly what is going on.
Other
There are a couple of 4-pin sockets on the motherboard, J9 and J10. I haven't investigated these.
J8, a 10-pin DIL header, is close to the front panel slot and so maybe for an optional smartcard reader.
There is also an 8-pin DIL header marked SP11.