Eth0 Problems

crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

I have found that on the 1.4_rc1-rc2 cd that both the 8139too and the eepro100 drivers are built into the kernel. I have tried both cards. What happens is that everything is fine I can ifconfig and view eth0 after it is setup, however there is no netconnection. With some research I have found that the kernel keeps setting these cards at IRQ's 19 and 17 (which don't exist?) and I get a lot off errors on boot sayins eth0 and then something about fffffff being invalid. Anyway, so far it has done this for every network card that I have tried. the BIOS screen says the the network card is IRQ4. On one test I turned everything possible off in the bios, and still it puts the net cards on IRQ's 19 and 17. (I've tried them 1 at a time and together and everything) They load, but I can't ping anything. (and it's not the netconfig. I have another fully functional gentoo system 1.4_rc1.) The motherboard is a brand new SiS 648.

pjp · Administrator Joined: 16 Apr 2002 Posts: 20067

What does cat /proc/interrupts output?
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crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

Ok, cat /proc/interupts says
0: 43806 IO-APIC-edge timer
1: 2212 IO-APIC-edge keyboard
2: 0 XT-PIC cascade
8: 2 IO-APIC-edge rtc
9: 0 IO-APIC-edge acpi
14: 23907 IO-APIC-edge ide0
15: 5 IO-APIC-edge ide1
19: 0 IO-APIC-level eth0
23: 0 IO-APIC-level ehci-hcd
NMI: 0
LOC: 43754
ERR: 0
MIS: 0

I have gotten gentoo to boot and built my own kernel and stuff. I used the gento 1.2 cd to boot with, and it all worked. I then built the xfs-2.4.19-xfs-r2 kernel, and booted into it, and of cource, now I'm having the same problem as the 1.4 cd. I am getting this message from the log files however:

kernel: NETDEV WATCHDOG: eth0: transmit timed out
kernel: eth0: Setting 100mbps full-duplex based on auto-negotiated partner ability 41e1

/proc/modules says that I'm using 8139too module, this is correct.
/var/log/kern.log says that on boot, everything loaded ok, and the 8139too was loaded on IRQ 19

crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

I just found that the Gentoo 1.2 cd puts my netcard as IRQ 11 and it works just fine. I just can't make it load the modules with that IRQ on a normal boot.

crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

One more little detail, I just had the boot up screen up long enough that I could see that the bios reports Ethernet card is IRQ 11 before linux boots.

andcon · Posted: Fri Dec 27, 2002 8:32 pm Post subject:

hi, i noticed that you are using the XFS filesystem? Don't know if its relevant but I also have the 8139too drivers to use. I couldn't get eth0 up and running when i was trying that filesystem and also when i tried reiserfs filesystem... I could only get my eth0 running when i used the ext3 file system. Don't suppose it could be a problem with conflict on the type of filesystem?

crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

I haven't tried on ext3 yet, However kernel 2.5.53 solved the problem.

sn4ip3r · Posted: Sat Dec 28, 2002 3:04 am Post subject:

I have the exact same problem that crweb has, I have 5 NIC's total (not in one PC), one is integrated into the mobo of the troubling PC and all are rtl8139. The troubling PC has a gigabyte mobo with sis 645DX chipset. I tried putting all the NIC's into this PC and still none of them transmitted/received any data. The IRQ numbers were all just like crweb's, IRQ19,20..etc. Only way that I could install gentoo was to use livecd 1.2, it worked perfectly, I compiled the NIC drivers as kernel modules and they worked fine.

I just would like to ask if there is any downsides to using livecd 1.2 instead 1.4 besides the fact that 1.4 is a little bit easier to use ?

KraziKid · Tux's lil' helper Joined: 26 Dec 2002 Posts: 128

I also set up my 1.4_rc1 install using the 1.2 cd. What I found out is that my NIC drivers (8139too and natsemi) would only work correctly when compiled as modules. What I think is happening is that when we do the 1.4 cd, if recognizes the NIC's due to the fact that the driver is compiled into the cd's kernel, but they cannot be used because they aren't modules. But the 1.2 cd works fine because they are modules. I actually figured this out because I did a 1.4 install using the 1.2 cd, and compiled the NIC's in the kernel. Lo and behold, upon reboot the NIC's stopped working. So I recompiled the kernel with the drivers as modules, and everything has been working since.

crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

After I got installed, I tried both as modules and built in, and it still did the wierd IRQ 19 thing. Aswell as putting my USB 2.0 device on a higher IRQ. I even disabled pnp support in the kernel and it did it. 2.5.53 sets the IRQ's matching the BIOS info page.

keratos68 · Posted: Mon Dec 30, 2002 1:43 am Post subject:

I'm running kernel 2.4.19 on PentiumIII with XFS & Reiser with 8139too on IRQ5, as my BIOS says. All is A-OKAY!! Have you tried disabling PnP in linux config (make menuconfig) and setting PnP O/S to "NO" in your BIOS?

crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

_fjuckfoo · n00b Joined: 30 Dec 2002 Posts: 1

foo...

Jkay · Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2002 5:55 am Post subject:

Hi -

I was having this problem until I turned off Preemptable Kernel in the menuconfig. I tried to #modprobe tulip and the error coming back said preemptable_kernel was an unresolved symbol in the tulip.o ... tulip driver HATES that switch

thanks for all the advice.

eth0 loaded the first time, after removing that switch.

crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

Should I post this 1.4 cd problem with the Abit SR7-8x motherboard (SiS 648 chipset) to the bugs lists for gentoo, and the kernel dev list if it's not reported already?

al · Guru Joined: 26 Dec 2002 Posts: 304 Location: Scotland

Good news people!

Refering to my previous post here https://forums.gentoo.org/viewtopic.php?t=28023
I was directed here by crweb as you guys had the same problem as me.

I have now manged to solve the problem through trial & error(i know very little about Linux)
Here's how i did it:

I got hold of a newer kernel,linux-2.5.47.tar.gz and compiled it (3 times) with the RealTek rtl8139 driver (NOT the RealTek rtl8139 C+ driver-it didn't work).compiled in as a MODULE,not built in.

I tried compiling in support for older & rarer Realtek cards as well but they didn't work either.All i have is the bare rtl8139 driver compiled as a module.

In my computer BIOS i have plug&play as ENABLED (manual didn't work).
Also the IRQs are set as AUTO.

My RealTek 8139 is now as follows:
Bus 0, device 13, function 0:
Ethernet controller: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. RTL-8139/8139C/8139C+ (rev 16).
IRQ 11.
Master Capable. Latency=32. Min Gnt=32.Max Lat=64.
I/O at 0xe400 [0xe4ff].
Non-prefetchable 32 bit memory at 0xeb003000 [0xeb0030ff].

Notice it says it's says 8139C+ remember don't enable the 8139C+ driver in your kernel as it won't work.

I also notice the 2.5 kernel now setups my IDE controller as 133 bus speed but the Gentoo Sources 2.4 one didn't,I had to turn on DMA with HDPARM.

I hope i've been some help-it would be nice to help some of the Linux comunity out for a change instead of everone helping me out

Oh and i have the Preemptable kernel thingy switched ON

keratos68 · Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2002 6:31 pm Post subject:

Strange , I have linux Gentoo kernel 2.4.19-gentoo-r10 and completely the opposite settings to that described above, with no probs.

Anyway, main things is solution(s) have been found, one way or another, albeit a bit "spooky"

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crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

I'm guessing it's because it is a P3 board, The new sis board that al and I have is only a few weeks old.

crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

Al, I've tested from kernel 2.5.10 though 2.5.53, all 2.5 kernels seem to fix this problem on this motherboard ( That is an assumption)., I have yet to have a 2.4 kernel work. I'm currenetly using 2.5.52 because the Nvidia drivers would build with 2.5.53. small problem, different forum

Sparhawk · n00b Joined: 03 Jan 2003 Posts: 7 Location: Gavle, Sweden

Hi there!

I have been surfing around the forum for what seems like a month without any luck with my rtl8139 but finally I might have found something.

I found that my rtl8139 was assigned to IRQ 19, which is way off. I have a Sis648 motherboard and my BIOS doesn't have the PnP setting AT ALL.

So I configured the kernel with BIOS PCI assigning instead of the default which is "Any" and means that the kernel tries to find the PCI card without the help of BIOS first, I think this is what got me that IRQ 19 and a non working eth0.

Someone might find this usefull. I hope.... =)

crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

I'll test this out, and see what's up with that

Thanks for the idea!

crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

I tried your recomendation for and turn the setting to PCI mode BIOS, and this still did not work. Wish I could figure out what was up is Sis 648 and kernel 2.4

Sparhawk · n00b Joined: 03 Jan 2003 Posts: 7 Location: Gavle, Sweden

Sorry to hear that.... I'm just glad it worked for me. =)

I have just installed gentoo on my little older machine and it worked like a charm. Really strange stuff this.

Does your Sis648 have a BIOS setting for PnP On/Off?!?

crweb · n00b Joined: 20 Oct 2002 Posts: 66 Location: Illinois

actually, My board does, it's a Abit SR7-8x (SiS648). Has every feature that you can dream of in the bios. I think I can even assign IRQ's to each slot. However, doesn't do any good when Linux changes them for me

judge · n00b Joined: 05 Jan 2003 Posts: 5

I was also having IRQ problems on a fresh 1.4_rc2 install on a SiS648 based board (Asus p4s8x). I was unable to get eth0 running with either the Realtek controller or a 3Com card.

dmesg produced the following: