From owner-freebsd-hardware Wed Oct 23 08:10:33 1996 Return-Path: owner-hardware Received: (from root@localhost) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.7.5/8.7.3) id IAA21202 for hardware-outgoing; Wed, 23 Oct 1996 08:10:33 -0700 (PDT) Received: from GndRsh.aac.dev.com (GndRsh.aac.dev.com [198.145.92.241]) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.7.5/8.7.3) with ESMTP id IAA21197 for ; Wed, 23 Oct 1996 08:10:28 -0700 (PDT) Received: (from rgrimes@localhost) by GndRsh.aac.dev.com (8.7.5/8.7.3) id IAA04483; Wed, 23 Oct 1996 08:09:36 -0700 (PDT) From: "Rodney W. Grimes" Message-Id: <199610231509.IAA04483@GndRsh.aac.dev.com> Subject: Re: CNET ethernet cards? In-Reply-To: <199610230257.MAA22856@genesis.atrad.adelaide.edu.au> from Michael Smith at "Oct 23, 96 12:27:02 pm" To: msmith@atrad.adelaide.edu.au (Michael Smith) Date: Wed, 23 Oct 1996 08:09:35 -0700 (PDT) Cc: hardware@FreeBSD.ORG X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.4ME+ PL25 (25)] MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Sender: owner-hardware@FreeBSD.ORG X-Loop: FreeBSD.org Precedence: bulk > > Hiho people, it's time to play hunt-the-working-hardware again 8( > > I'm looking for a new source of Digital DC2104x-based ethernet cards. > The SMC's I'm using are great, but local availability sucks. I can get > the current Compex cards, but I was burnt once with them changing their > cards and I'd prefer not to repeat the experience. > > I've been offered the CNET CN970EBT at a reasonable price, and with > good availability. I _seem_ to recall Rod endorsing these guys, but > I can't actually find his mail anywhere. I have not endorsed this card, never haveing seen one. I am currently using the Kingston KNE40BT cards for production, they have been qualified by me for use in the FreeBSD systems I sell. Do not however attempt to use the Kingston KNE100TX, I am having problems with it. On the 21140 side I have gone to the D-Link DFE-500TX. > > Anyone? Anyone got one of the current Compex cards working happily with > Matt's latest if_de? He hasn't sent me mail telling me that he has released the really ugly hacks to make it work with the Compex card I sent him for his test lab. He has found the problem (long long ago) and _could_ hack around it, but the hack to make it work could very easily have side effects for other boards. Compex has done some strange things on the card that requires you to do some special I/O to make it work, this special I/O only appears in thier drivers so they basicially broke everyone who had written a DC21xxx driver, something I frown on and avoid if at all possible. For this stunt I have placed them on my ``don't buy list, never know when they are going to screw you over with a revision of a product, and can't get you reasonable engineering responses to an opened problem ticket''. -- Rod Grimes rgrimes@gndrsh.aac.dev.com Accurate Automation, Inc. Reliable computers for FreeBSD