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Linus Torvalds1da177e2005-04-16 15:20:36 -07001(C)Copyright 1999-2004 Marvell(R).
2All rights reserved
3===========================================================================
4
5sk98lin.txt created 13-Feb-2004
6
7Readme File for sk98lin v6.23
8Marvell Yukon/SysKonnect SK-98xx Gigabit Ethernet Adapter family driver for LINUX
9
10This file contains
11 1 Overview
12 2 Required Files
13 3 Installation
14 3.1 Driver Installation
15 3.2 Inclusion of adapter at system start
16 4 Driver Parameters
17 4.1 Per-Port Parameters
18 4.2 Adapter Parameters
19 5 Large Frame Support
20 6 VLAN and Link Aggregation Support (IEEE 802.1, 802.1q, 802.3ad)
21 7 Troubleshooting
22
23===========================================================================
24
25
261 Overview
27===========
28
29The sk98lin driver supports the Marvell Yukon and SysKonnect
30SK-98xx/SK-95xx compliant Gigabit Ethernet Adapter on Linux. It has
31been tested with Linux on Intel/x86 machines.
32***
33
34
352 Required Files
36=================
37
38The linux kernel source.
39No additional files required.
40***
41
42
433 Installation
44===============
45
46It is recommended to download the latest version of the driver from the
47SysKonnect web site www.syskonnect.com. If you have downloaded the latest
48driver, the Linux kernel has to be patched before the driver can be
49installed. For details on how to patch a Linux kernel, refer to the
50patch.txt file.
51
523.1 Driver Installation
53------------------------
54
55The following steps describe the actions that are required to install
56the driver and to start it manually. These steps should be carried
57out for the initial driver setup. Once confirmed to be ok, they can
58be included in the system start.
59
60NOTE 1: To perform the following tasks you need 'root' access.
61
62NOTE 2: In case of problems, please read the section "Troubleshooting"
63 below.
64
65The driver can either be integrated into the kernel or it can be compiled
66as a module. Select the appropriate option during the kernel
67configuration.
68
69Compile/use the driver as a module
70----------------------------------
71To compile the driver, go to the directory /usr/src/linux and
72execute the command "make menuconfig" or "make xconfig" and proceed as
73follows:
74
75To integrate the driver permanently into the kernel, proceed as follows:
76
771. Select the menu "Network device support" and then "Ethernet(1000Mbit)"
782. Mark "Marvell Yukon Chipset / SysKonnect SK-98xx family support"
79 with (*)
803. Build a new kernel when the configuration of the above options is
81 finished.
824. Install the new kernel.
835. Reboot your system.
84
85To use the driver as a module, proceed as follows:
86
871. Enable 'loadable module support' in the kernel.
882. For automatic driver start, enable the 'Kernel module loader'.
893. Select the menu "Network device support" and then "Ethernet(1000Mbit)"
904. Mark "Marvell Yukon Chipset / SysKonnect SK-98xx family support"
91 with (M)
925. Execute the command "make modules".
936. Execute the command "make modules_install".
94 The appropiate modules will be installed.
957. Reboot your system.
96
97
98Load the module manually
99------------------------
100To load the module manually, proceed as follows:
101
1021. Enter "modprobe sk98lin".
1032. If a Marvell Yukon or SysKonnect SK-98xx adapter is installed in
104 your computer and you have a /proc file system, execute the command:
105 "ls /proc/net/sk98lin/"
106 This should produce an output containing a line with the following
107 format:
108 eth0 eth1 ...
109 which indicates that your adapter has been found and initialized.
110
111 NOTE 1: If you have more than one Marvell Yukon or SysKonnect SK-98xx
112 adapter installed, the adapters will be listed as 'eth0',
113 'eth1', 'eth2', etc.
114 For each adapter, repeat steps 3 and 4 below.
115
116 NOTE 2: If you have other Ethernet adapters installed, your Marvell
117 Yukon or SysKonnect SK-98xx adapter will be mapped to the
118 next available number, e.g. 'eth1'. The mapping is executed
119 automatically.
120 The module installation message (displayed either in a system
121 log file or on the console) prints a line for each adapter
122 found containing the corresponding 'ethX'.
123
1243. Select an IP address and assign it to the respective adapter by
125 entering:
126 ifconfig eth0 <ip-address>
127 With this command, the adapter is connected to the Ethernet.
128
129 SK-98xx Gigabit Ethernet Server Adapters: The yellow LED on the adapter
130 is now active, the link status LED of the primary port is active and
131 the link status LED of the secondary port (on dual port adapters) is
132 blinking (if the ports are connected to a switch or hub).
133 SK-98xx V2.0 Gigabit Ethernet Adapters: The link status LED is active.
134 In addition, you will receive a status message on the console stating
135 "ethX: network connection up using port Y" and showing the selected
136 connection parameters (x stands for the ethernet device number
137 (0,1,2, etc), y stands for the port name (A or B)).
138
139 NOTE: If you are in doubt about IP addresses, ask your network
140 administrator for assistance.
141
1424. Your adapter should now be fully operational.
143 Use 'ping <otherstation>' to verify the connection to other computers
144 on your network.
1455. To check the adapter configuration view /proc/net/sk98lin/[devicename].
146 For example by executing:
147 "cat /proc/net/sk98lin/eth0"
148
149Unload the module
150-----------------
151To stop and unload the driver modules, proceed as follows:
152
1531. Execute the command "ifconfig eth0 down".
1542. Execute the command "rmmod sk98lin".
155
1563.2 Inclusion of adapter at system start
157-----------------------------------------
158
159Since a large number of different Linux distributions are
160available, we are unable to describe a general installation procedure
161for the driver module.
162Because the driver is now integrated in the kernel, installation should
163be easy, using the standard mechanism of your distribution.
164Refer to the distribution's manual for installation of ethernet adapters.
165
166***
167
1684 Driver Parameters
169====================
170
171Parameters can be set at the command line after the module has been
172loaded with the command 'modprobe'.
173In some distributions, the configuration tools are able to pass parameters
174to the driver module.
175
176If you use the kernel module loader, you can set driver parameters
177in the file /etc/modprobe.conf (or /etc/modules.conf in 2.4 or earlier).
178To set the driver parameters in this file, proceed as follows:
179
1801. Insert a line of the form :
181 options sk98lin ...
182 For "...", the same syntax is required as described for the command
183 line paramaters of modprobe below.
1842. To activate the new parameters, either reboot your computer
185 or
186 unload and reload the driver.
187 The syntax of the driver parameters is:
188
189 modprobe sk98lin parameter=value1[,value2[,value3...]]
190
191 where value1 refers to the first adapter, value2 to the second etc.
192
193NOTE: All parameters are case sensitive. Write them exactly as shown
194 below.
195
196Example:
197Suppose you have two adapters. You want to set auto-negotiation
198on the first adapter to ON and on the second adapter to OFF.
199You also want to set DuplexCapabilities on the first adapter
200to FULL, and on the second adapter to HALF.
201Then, you must enter:
202
203 modprobe sk98lin AutoNeg_A=On,Off DupCap_A=Full,Half
204
205NOTE: The number of adapters that can be configured this way is
206 limited in the driver (file skge.c, constant SK_MAX_CARD_PARAM).
207 The current limit is 16. If you happen to install
208 more adapters, adjust this and recompile.
209
210
2114.1 Per-Port Parameters
212------------------------
213
214These settings are available for each port on the adapter.
215In the following description, '?' stands for the port for
216which you set the parameter (A or B).
217
218Speed
219-----
220Parameter: Speed_?
221Values: 10, 100, 1000, Auto
222Default: Auto
223
224This parameter is used to set the speed capabilities. It is only valid
225for the SK-98xx V2.0 copper adapters.
226Usually, the speed is negotiated between the two ports during link
227establishment. If this fails, a port can be forced to a specific setting
228with this parameter.
229
230Auto-Negotiation
231----------------
232Parameter: AutoNeg_?
233Values: On, Off, Sense
234Default: On
235
236The "Sense"-mode automatically detects whether the link partner supports
237auto-negotiation or not.
238
239Duplex Capabilities
240-------------------
241Parameter: DupCap_?
242Values: Half, Full, Both
243Default: Both
244
245This parameters is only relevant if auto-negotiation for this port is
246not set to "Sense". If auto-negotiation is set to "On", all three values
247are possible. If it is set to "Off", only "Full" and "Half" are allowed.
248This parameter is usefull if your link partner does not support all
249possible combinations.
250
251Flow Control
252------------
253Parameter: FlowCtrl_?
254Values: Sym, SymOrRem, LocSend, None
255Default: SymOrRem
256
257This parameter can be used to set the flow control capabilities the
258port reports during auto-negotiation. It can be set for each port
259individually.
260Possible modes:
261 -- Sym = Symmetric: both link partners are allowed to send
262 PAUSE frames
263 -- SymOrRem = SymmetricOrRemote: both or only remote partner
264 are allowed to send PAUSE frames
265 -- LocSend = LocalSend: only local link partner is allowed
266 to send PAUSE frames
267 -- None = no link partner is allowed to send PAUSE frames
268
269NOTE: This parameter is ignored if auto-negotiation is set to "Off".
270
271Role in Master-Slave-Negotiation (1000Base-T only)
272--------------------------------------------------
273Parameter: Role_?
274Values: Auto, Master, Slave
275Default: Auto
276
277This parameter is only valid for the SK-9821 and SK-9822 adapters.
278For two 1000Base-T ports to communicate, one must take the role of the
279master (providing timing information), while the other must be the
280slave. Usually, this is negotiated between the two ports during link
281establishment. If this fails, a port can be forced to a specific setting
282with this parameter.
283
284
2854.2 Adapter Parameters
286-----------------------
287
288Connection Type (SK-98xx V2.0 copper adapters only)
289---------------
290Parameter: ConType
291Values: Auto, 100FD, 100HD, 10FD, 10HD
292Default: Auto
293
294The parameter 'ConType' is a combination of all five per-port parameters
295within one single parameter. This simplifies the configuration of both ports
296of an adapter card! The different values of this variable reflect the most
297meaningful combinations of port parameters.
298
299The following table shows the values of 'ConType' and the corresponding
300combinations of the per-port parameters:
301
302 ConType | DupCap AutoNeg FlowCtrl Role Speed
303 ----------+------------------------------------------------------
304 Auto | Both On SymOrRem Auto Auto
305 100FD | Full Off None Auto (ignored) 100
306 100HD | Half Off None Auto (ignored) 100
307 10FD | Full Off None Auto (ignored) 10
308 10HD | Half Off None Auto (ignored) 10
309
310Stating any other port parameter together with this 'ConType' variable
311will result in a merged configuration of those settings. This due to
312the fact, that the per-port parameters (e.g. Speed_? ) have a higher
313priority than the combined variable 'ConType'.
314
315NOTE: This parameter is always used on both ports of the adapter card.
316
317Interrupt Moderation
318--------------------
319Parameter: Moderation
320Values: None, Static, Dynamic
321Default: None
322
323Interrupt moderation is employed to limit the maxmimum number of interrupts
324the driver has to serve. That is, one or more interrupts (which indicate any
325transmit or receive packet to be processed) are queued until the driver
326processes them. When queued interrupts are to be served, is determined by the
327'IntsPerSec' parameter, which is explained later below.
328
329Possible modes:
330
331 -- None - No interrupt moderation is applied on the adapter card.
332 Therefore, each transmit or receive interrupt is served immediately
333 as soon as it appears on the interrupt line of the adapter card.
334
335 -- Static - Interrupt moderation is applied on the adapter card.
336 All transmit and receive interrupts are queued until a complete
337 moderation interval ends. If such a moderation interval ends, all
338 queued interrupts are processed in one big bunch without any delay.
339 The term 'static' reflects the fact, that interrupt moderation is
340 always enabled, regardless how much network load is currently
341 passing via a particular interface. In addition, the duration of
342 the moderation interval has a fixed length that never changes while
343 the driver is operational.
344
345 -- Dynamic - Interrupt moderation might be applied on the adapter card,
346 depending on the load of the system. If the driver detects that the
347 system load is too high, the driver tries to shield the system against
348 too much network load by enabling interrupt moderation. If - at a later
349 time - the CPU utilizaton decreases again (or if the network load is
350 negligible) the interrupt moderation will automatically be disabled.
351
352Interrupt moderation should be used when the driver has to handle one or more
353interfaces with a high network load, which - as a consequence - leads also to a
354high CPU utilization. When moderation is applied in such high network load
355situations, CPU load might be reduced by 20-30%.
356
357NOTE: The drawback of using interrupt moderation is an increase of the round-
358trip-time (RTT), due to the queueing and serving of interrupts at dedicated
359moderation times.
360
361Interrupts per second
362---------------------
363Parameter: IntsPerSec
364Values: 30...40000 (interrupts per second)
365Default: 2000
366
367This parameter is only used, if either static or dynamic interrupt moderation
368is used on a network adapter card. Using this paramter if no moderation is
369applied, will lead to no action performed.
370
371This parameter determines the length of any interrupt moderation interval.
372Assuming that static interrupt moderation is to be used, an 'IntsPerSec'
373parameter value of 2000 will lead to an interrupt moderation interval of
374500 microseconds.
375
376NOTE: The duration of the moderation interval is to be chosen with care.
377At first glance, selecting a very long duration (e.g. only 100 interrupts per
378second) seems to be meaningful, but the increase of packet-processing delay
379is tremendous. On the other hand, selecting a very short moderation time might
380compensate the use of any moderation being applied.
381
382
383Preferred Port
384--------------
385Parameter: PrefPort
386Values: A, B
387Default: A
388
389This is used to force the preferred port to A or B (on dual-port network
390adapters). The preferred port is the one that is used if both are detected
391as fully functional.
392
393RLMT Mode (Redundant Link Management Technology)
394------------------------------------------------
395Parameter: RlmtMode
396Values: CheckLinkState,CheckLocalPort, CheckSeg, DualNet
397Default: CheckLinkState
398
399RLMT monitors the status of the port. If the link of the active port
400fails, RLMT switches immediately to the standby link. The virtual link is
401maintained as long as at least one 'physical' link is up.
402
403Possible modes:
404
405 -- CheckLinkState - Check link state only: RLMT uses the link state
406 reported by the adapter hardware for each individual port to
407 determine whether a port can be used for all network traffic or
408 not.
409
410 -- CheckLocalPort - In this mode, RLMT monitors the network path
411 between the two ports of an adapter by regularly exchanging packets
412 between them. This mode requires a network configuration in which
413 the two ports are able to "see" each other (i.e. there must not be
414 any router between the ports).
415
416 -- CheckSeg - Check local port and segmentation: This mode supports the
417 same functions as the CheckLocalPort mode and additionally checks
418 network segmentation between the ports. Therefore, this mode is only
419 to be used if Gigabit Ethernet switches are installed on the network
420 that have been configured to use the Spanning Tree protocol.
421
422 -- DualNet - In this mode, ports A and B are used as separate devices.
423 If you have a dual port adapter, port A will be configured as eth0
424 and port B as eth1. Both ports can be used independently with
425 distinct IP addresses. The preferred port setting is not used.
426 RLMT is turned off.
427
428NOTE: RLMT modes CLP and CLPSS are designed to operate in configurations
429 where a network path between the ports on one adapter exists.
430 Moreover, they are not designed to work where adapters are connected
431 back-to-back.
432***
433
434
4355 Large Frame Support
436======================
437
438The driver supports large frames (also called jumbo frames). Using large
439frames can result in an improved throughput if transferring large amounts
440of data.
441To enable large frames, set the MTU (maximum transfer unit) of the
442interface to the desired value (up to 9000), execute the following
443command:
444 ifconfig eth0 mtu 9000
445This will only work if you have two adapters connected back-to-back
446or if you use a switch that supports large frames. When using a switch,
447it should be configured to allow large frames and auto-negotiation should
448be set to OFF. The setting must be configured on all adapters that can be
449reached by the large frames. If one adapter is not set to receive large
450frames, it will simply drop them.
451
452You can switch back to the standard ethernet frame size by executing the
453following command:
454 ifconfig eth0 mtu 1500
455
456To permanently configure this setting, add a script with the 'ifconfig'
457line to the system startup sequence (named something like "S99sk98lin"
458in /etc/rc.d/rc2.d).
459***
460
461
4626 VLAN and Link Aggregation Support (IEEE 802.1, 802.1q, 802.3ad)
463==================================================================
464
465The Marvell Yukon/SysKonnect Linux drivers are able to support VLAN and
466Link Aggregation according to IEEE standards 802.1, 802.1q, and 802.3ad.
467These features are only available after installation of open source
468modules available on the Internet:
469For VLAN go to: http://www.candelatech.com/~greear/vlan.html
470For Link Aggregation go to: http://www.st.rim.or.jp/~yumo
471
472NOTE: SysKonnect GmbH does not offer any support for these open source
473 modules and does not take the responsibility for any kind of
474 failures or problems arising in connection with these modules.
475
476NOTE: Configuring Link Aggregation on a SysKonnect dual link adapter may
477 cause problems when unloading the driver.
478
479
4807 Troubleshooting
481==================
482
483If any problems occur during the installation process, check the
484following list:
485
486
487Problem: The SK-98xx adapter can not be found by the driver.
488Solution: In /proc/pci search for the following entry:
489 'Ethernet controller: SysKonnect SK-98xx ...'
490 If this entry exists, the SK-98xx or SK-98xx V2.0 adapter has
491 been found by the system and should be operational.
492 If this entry does not exist or if the file '/proc/pci' is not
493 found, there may be a hardware problem or the PCI support may
494 not be enabled in your kernel.
495 The adapter can be checked using the diagnostics program which
496 is available on the SysKonnect web site:
497 www.syskonnect.com
498
499 Some COMPAQ machines have problems dealing with PCI under Linux.
500 Linux. This problem is described in the 'PCI howto' document
501 (included in some distributions or available from the
502 web, e.g. at 'www.linux.org').
503
504
505Problem: Programs such as 'ifconfig' or 'route' can not be found or the
506 error message 'Operation not permitted' is displayed.
507Reason: You are not logged in as user 'root'.
508Solution: Logout and login as 'root' or change to 'root' via 'su'.
509
510
511Problem: Upon use of the command 'ping <address>' the message
512 "ping: sendto: Network is unreachable" is displayed.
513Reason: Your route is not set correctly.
514Solution: If you are using RedHat, you probably forgot to set up the
515 route in the 'network configuration'.
516 Check the existing routes with the 'route' command and check
517 if an entry for 'eth0' exists, and if so, if it is set correctly.
518
519
520Problem: The driver can be started, the adapter is connected to the
521 network, but you cannot receive or transmit any packets;
522 e.g. 'ping' does not work.
523Reason: There is an incorrect route in your routing table.
524Solution: Check the routing table with the command 'route' and read the
525 manual help pages dealing with routes (enter 'man route').
526
527NOTE: Although the 2.2.x kernel versions generate the routing entry
528 automatically, problems of this kind may occur here as well. We've
529 come across a situation in which the driver started correctly at
530 system start, but after the driver has been removed and reloaded,
531 the route of the adapter's network pointed to the 'dummy0'device
532 and had to be corrected manually.
533
534
535Problem: Your computer should act as a router between multiple
536 IP subnetworks (using multiple adapters), but computers in
537 other subnetworks cannot be reached.
538Reason: Either the router's kernel is not configured for IP forwarding
539 or the routing table and gateway configuration of at least one
540 computer is not working.
541
542Problem: Upon driver start, the following error message is displayed:
543 "eth0: -- ERROR --
544 Class: internal Software error
545 Nr: 0xcc
546 Msg: SkGeInitPort() cannot init running ports"
547Reason: You are using a driver compiled for single processor machines
548 on a multiprocessor machine with SMP (Symmetric MultiProcessor)
549 kernel.
550Solution: Configure your kernel appropriately and recompile the kernel or
551 the modules.
552
553
554
555If your problem is not listed here, please contact SysKonnect's technical
556support for help (linux@syskonnect.de).
557When contacting our technical support, please ensure that the following
558information is available:
559- System Manufacturer and HW Informations (CPU, Memory... )
560- PCI-Boards in your system
561- Distribution
562- Kernel version
563- Driver version
564***
565
566
567
568***End of Readme File***