[eepro100] Problems connecting Ether Express Cards to switch

[Donald Becker]

On Tue, 27 Aug 2002, D. Sen wrote:

> I have three computers in my local home network. Two of them have Intel 
> Ethernet PCI cards (a desktop and a laptop) that refuses to talk to an 
> external switch.
> 
> I have tried two switches now (an 8 port Linksys and an 8 port Netgear). 
> The third computer which has a 3Com NIC works fine with the switches. 
> Also, all three NICs work fine with a hub. So....its something specific 
> to the interface between the EE Pro cards and the switch.

What does 'mii-diag' report?

> Is this a FAQ? I tried looking through the recent archives but failed to 
> find the answer.

No, this is a very uncommon problem.
The closest problem is DHCP failing due to autonegotiation delays, which
will have the effect of the network being unreachable.

Another problem -- very unlikely with a home network -- is that the
connection to a Cisco switch won't work for about a minute after
plugging in because of a discovery protocol.  Plugging in through an
always-on repeater avoids triggering the link-up-triggered discovery.

-- 
Donald Becker				becker@scyld.com
Scyld Computing Corporation		http://www.scyld.com
410 Severn Ave. Suite 210		Second Generation Beowulf Clusters
Annapolis MD 21403			410-990-9993