website/content/museum/altos-computer-systems-acs-586-686.md

---
title: Altos Computer Systems ACS-586 / 686
categories:
- Computers
types:
- Professional Computer
origins:
- U.S.A.
years:
- '1983'
cpus:
- Intel 8086
params:
  name: ACS-586 / 686
  image: /media/museum/photos/altos_acs686_system_s1.jpg
  company: /companies/altos-computer-systems
  company_name: Altos Computer Systems
  specs:
  - label: NAME
    value: ACS-586 / 686
  - label: MANUFACTURER
    value: Altos Computer Systems
  - label: TYPE
    value: Professional Computer
  - label: ORIGIN
    value: U.S.A.
  - label: YEAR
    value: January 1983
  - label: BUILT IN LANGUAGE
    value: None
  - label: KEYBOARD
    value: Full-stroke keyboard (108 keys), editing & numeric keypad, 16 function keys
  - label: CPU
    value: Intel 8086
  - label: SPEED
    value: 10 Mhz
  - label: CO-PROCESSOR
    value: Intel 8089 (I/O), Z80 (Serial ports)
  - label: RAM
    value: 512 kb (up to 1Mb)
  - label: ROM
    value: 32 kb
  - label: TEXT MODES
    value: 40 x 25, 80 x 25, 132 x 40
  - label: GRAPHIC MODES
    value: 800 x 325
  - label: COLORS
    value: Monochrome
  - label: I/O PORTS
    value: 6 x RS232, Serial expansion, multibus bus, Ethernet, Altos-Net (RS422)
  - label: BUILT IN MEDIA
    value: |-
      One 5''1/4 disk-drive, 1Mb\
      Winchester hard-disk (10, 30 or 40Mb)
  - label: OS
    value: Xenix, MP/M-86, Pick, MS-DOS
  - label: POWER SUPPLY
    value: Built-in PSU
  - label: PERIPHERALS
    value: 512k RAM expansion, additional RS232 ports (4), network card, second hard-disk, streamer
  - label: PRICE
    value: $7990 (System with 512 KB RAM, 10 MB hard disk and 1 MB floppy disk)
  tabs:
  - photos
  - adverts
  photos:
  - title: COMPLETE SYSTEM
    subtitle: ''
    text: ''
    image: /media/museum/photos/altos_acs-586_1.jpg
  - title: LARGE VIEW
    subtitle: ''
    text: ''
    image: /media/museum/photos/altos_acs686_system_s2.jpg
  - title: REAR SIDE
    subtitle: ''
    text: |-
      **(1)** 6 console connectors\
      **(2)** Worknet connector\
      **(3)** External HDD connectors\
      **(4)** Aux. port connectors
    image: /media/museum/photos/altos_acs686_backside_s1.jpg
  - title: 'INSIDE #1'
    subtitle: ''
    text: The upper part holds the switching power supply unit, the hard disk drive (here a 20 MB), and the floppy disc drive.
    image: /media/museum/photos/altos_acs686_inside_s1.jpg
  - title: 'INSIDE #2'
    subtitle: ''
    text: |-
      The bottom part holds the I/O board and the main CPU board.

      **(1)** Intel 80286 processor\
      **(2)** 1 MB RAM chips\
      **(3)** console I/O chips
    image: /media/museum/photos/altos_acs686_inside_s2.jpg
  adverts:
  - title: FRENCH AD
    subtitle: ''
    text: '"From 1 to 16 users"'
    image: /media/museum/pubs/altos_pub-1-16-utilisateurs_1.jpg
  - title: 'FRENCH AD #2'
    subtitle: ''
    text: |-
      Isn't this a stupid advert ?!\
      Look carefully at each face !
    image: /media/museum/pubs/altos_pub-1-16_stupid.jpg
  comments:
  - author: J.Roco (USA)
    date: Monday 16th March 2015
    text: I wrote multi-user programs for vertical markets on altos computers running MP/M using a slightly modified version of dBase II (modified to lock files and records.) The last was the 686. One of the contributions to Altos''s loss was a motherboard failure caused by lack of adequetly seating chips into their sockets. We had to travel to every site and physically reseat every chip on the motherboard!!!
  - author: joel wylan (usa)
    date: Wednesday 20th October 2010
    text: i worked at altos as tech support on all platforms for all programming languages. my first silicon valley job. was liason between developers and code vendors. what a trip finding this website.
  - author: SP
    date: Friday 3rd July 2009
    text: Searching for Xenix 3.2f for this machine (I got one). I would agree the help provided, please. Thanks. You can locate me in the classiccmp e-mail list
  - author: Stephen Silberman (Earth)
    date: Tuesday 29th April 2003
    text: I had one of these back in the mid 80's or so. It was state of the art then. We ran it with MPM as an operating system. That was an early multi user version of CPM. We had three of them networked together and could share files and programs. We used it for accounting applications in a garment manufacturing business. It was a big step up from our Intertec Superbrain which preceded it.
  oc_id: 515
  source:
    url: https://web.archive.org/web/20230605030330/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=515
    date: '2023-06-05'
---

The ACS-586 was a multipost system which could handle 5 users or more (8) with optional cards. To connect the terminals, there were several RS232 ports at the back of the system, labeled JA, JB, JC, JD, JE, etc... The ports not used by the terminals could be used to connect any serial peripheral, i.e. modem or printer.

The 186 was the first computer from a big company to use Xenix as its native operating system. Xenix was the Microsoft "adaptation" of Unix.

This system was quite well designed with its squashed hexagon shaped box and its thin monitor. These were medium-sized desktop cases, usually beige but often came in custom colors.

A fully-loaded 586 contained four printed-circuit boards.\
The main board held the 80186 and 512 KB of RAM; a Z80 I/O processor supporting six serial I/O ports, floppy disc access, and an RN422 LAN; and sundry memory management components allowing the 586 to support Xenix.\
A second board held a hard disk and tape controller with an Intel 8089 I/O processor\
An optional communication board provided an Ethernet chipset and processors supporting either the X25 or SNA protocols, or four additional serial I/O ports.\
The fourth board was an optional memory expansion board providing an additional 512 KB of RAM.

It had a 5''1/4 disk-drive built-in on the right part of the front panel, and a hard-disk on the left part.\
A real-time clock was included with the system. There were 128 semi-graphic symbols available.

The **Altos 686** appears to be the same machine as the 586, but with an 80286 processor.\
Altos also produced an 8-bit version of this system, called the [ACS-580](/museum/altos-computer-systems-acs-580/).