Mike,

Am I correct in assuming that you are using the LEDs to determine that the data is being written and read?
If that is the case then, yes if you disconnect the Vcc , ALE, RD, WR lines , you will still see the LEDs being written. The LEDs in your application are NOT on the data lines from the 8051, they are on Port 1, correct? The easiest way to debug, without emulators, etc. is to use the serial port. Setup the serial port, get ProComm, Hyperterminal, or any other terminal emulation program and then use the software routines that I posted earlier in this thread. Then you will know exactly what is being written and read to the RAM.

Regards,

Jacob