Token Ring and Linux (See message for details.)

Hello!
Setup as follows:
Laptop wearing a PCMCIA IBM Token RIng adapter:
Everything works on it.

Desktop wearing an ISA IBM Token Ring adapter:

Computer finally saw it after three go-rounds with building a kernel.

However everytime I issue a #ifconfig tr0 up command I eventually get
a "Resource unavailable message."

Both adapters are plugged into a MAU, one on port 1 and the other on
port 2. When I give the same command to the laptop it finally comes
back and confirms that everything works by not issuing any form a
message. And I can set an IP address on this one. The desktop just
refuses to "see" the MAU, and even setting an IP address causes that
same error message.

At first I thought it was the cable so I tried three of them, same
error message, three cables, and three strikes. I am thinking the card
is US that is its no longer working.

Suggestions please people.
----
Gregg (E-Mail Removed)
"GRONK! GRONK!!! GRONK!!!" A board mainframe.

On Thu, 21 Feb 2008, in the Usenet newsgroup comp.os.linux.networking, in
article <f7f4ee09-372b-4d09-bc50-(E-Mail Removed)>,
(E-Mail Removed) wrote:

NOTE: Posting from groups.google.com (or some web-forums) dramatically
reduces the chance of your post being seen. Find a real news server.

>Setup as follows:
>Laptop wearing a PCMCIA IBM Token RIng adapter:
>Everything works on it.
>
>Desktop wearing an ISA IBM Token Ring adapter:
>
>Computer finally saw it after three go-rounds with building a kernel.

OK, custom kernel - presumably, you chose the correct module, and this
is being loaded properly at boot.

>However everytime I issue a #ifconfig tr0 up command I eventually get
>a "Resource unavailable message."

USUALLY, I've found this message when the hardware resources don't
match up with what the driver expects - wrong I/O or IRQ (depends on
the driver - the old ibmtr driver didn't use parameters), or a
conflict where the NIC and some other resource are trying to use the
same I/O or IRQs This might show up in /var/log/messages at boot time.

>The desktop just refuses to "see" the MAU, and even setting an IP
>address causes that same error message.

Does /proc/interrupts and /proc/ioports show reasonable information?
Does /sbin/ifconfig -a show the card, specifically including the
"correct" I/O and IRQ? Are there any card specific values shown, such
as the LAA (equivalent to the MAC address on an Ethernet card)?

>At first I thought it was the cable so I tried three of them, same
>error message, three cables, and three strikes. I am thinking the card
>is US that is its no longer working.

That's hard to say. The 'Token-Ring mini-HOWTO' hasn't been updated in
a while

-rw-rw-r-- 1 gferg ldp 79442 Jan 29 2002 Token-Ring

but that might offer more clues.

>Suggestions please people.

I'm assuming you have specific reasons to be using Token Ring, but it's
a moderately out-dated technology. We got rid of the last of our Token
Ring setups in ~1996.

Old guy

(E-Mail Removed) (Moe Trin) writes:

>>Desktop wearing an ISA IBM Token Ring adapter:

>>However everytime I issue a #ifconfig tr0 up command I eventually get
>>a "Resource unavailable message."

>USUALLY, I've found this message when the hardware resources don't
>match up with what the driver expects - wrong I/O or IRQ (depends on
>the driver - the old ibmtr driver didn't use parameters), or a
>conflict where the NIC and some other resource are trying to use the
>same I/O or IRQs This might show up in /var/log/messages at boot time.

Did you change the (to be) used IO and IRQ in the BIOS-Setup from
"PCI/PnP" to "Used by ISA" or whatever the wording is?



>Does /proc/interrupts and /proc/ioports show reasonable information?

Good Qestion...

Yours, Holger

On Feb 22, 3:51 pm, Holger Petersen <h...@kbbs.org> wrote:
> ibupro...@painkiller.example.tld (Moe Trin) writes:
> >>Desktop wearing an ISA IBM Token Ring adapter:
> >>However everytime I issue a #ifconfig tr0 up command I eventually get
> >>a "Resource unavailable message."
> >USUALLY, I've found this message when the hardware resources don't
> >match up with what the driver expects - wrong I/O or IRQ (depends on
> >the driver - the old ibmtr driver didn't use parameters), or a
> >conflict where the NIC and some other resource are trying to use the
> >same I/O or IRQs This might show up in /var/log/messages at boot time.
>
> Did you change the (to be) used IO and IRQ in the BIOS-Setup from
> "PCI/PnP" to "Used by ISA" or whatever the wording is?
>
> >Does /proc/interrupts and /proc/ioports show reasonable information?
>
> Good Qestion...
>
> Yours, Holger

Hello!
That is a good question. Even though I've turned up a fresh PCI bus
based one that will need to be configured before use, that will be
next.

The IBM T/R card is an ISA only one with switches on it preset. The
kernel reported those defaults and it seems to be working. But not
really. Before trying a newer release of the same distribution, I will
be checking everything else.

The PCI bus based one is a 3COM one.
---
Gregg (E-Mail Removed)
"YOU! What planet is this?" Dr. McCoy.

On Feb 22, 4:40 pm, "gregg.drw...@gmail.com" <gregg.drw...@gmail.com>
wrote:
> On Feb 22, 3:51 pm, Holger Petersen <h...@kbbs.org> wrote:
>
>
>
> > ibupro...@painkiller.example.tld (Moe Trin) writes:
> > >>Desktop wearing an ISA IBM Token Ring adapter:
> > >>However everytime I issue a #ifconfig tr0 up command I eventually get
> > >>a "Resource unavailable message."
> > >USUALLY, I've found this message when the hardware resources don't
> > >match up with what the driver expects - wrong I/O or IRQ (depends on
> > >the driver - the old ibmtr driver didn't use parameters), or a
> > >conflict where the NIC and some other resource are trying to use the
> > >same I/O or IRQs This might show up in /var/log/messages at boot time.
>
> > Did you change the (to be) used IO and IRQ in the BIOS-Setup from
> > "PCI/PnP" to "Used by ISA" or whatever the wording is?
>
> > >Does /proc/interrupts and /proc/ioports show reasonable information?
>
> > Good Qestion...
>
> > Yours, Holger
>
> Hello!
> That is a good question. Even though I've turned up a fresh PCI bus
> based one that will need to be configured before use, that will be
> next.
>
> The IBM T/R card is an ISA only one with switches on it preset. The
> kernel reported those defaults and it seems to be working. But not
> really. Before trying a newer release of the same distribution, I will
> be checking everything else.
>
> The PCI bus based one is a 3COM one.
> ---
> Gregg gregg.drw...@gmail.com
> "YOU! What planet is this?" Dr. McCoy.

Hello!
Problem was solved by reading the messages that the kernel, a 2.4.26
generic, printed out. It confirmed that the board wasn't properly
configured. And since I had upgraded the box from its older 2.2.18
install to this slightly newer release of my distribution, it's the
10.0 one versus the unreleased 7.2 one, (This is Slackware by the
way.) I discovered that the 3COM one was indeed properly supported and
off I went.

It then followed that my next problem would be to get the native TCP/
IP stack to understand T/R hardware. Now I've got my laptop with its
IBM one pinging the desktop with the 3COM one via the MAU, an IBM one.
---
Gregg (E-Mail Removed)

On Fri, 22 Feb 2008, in the Usenet newsgroup comp.os.linux.networking, in
article <fpncjr$udk$(E-Mail Removed)>, Holger Petersen wrote:

>(E-Mail Removed) (Moe Trin) writes:

>>>Desktop wearing an ISA IBM Token Ring adapter:
>
>>>However everytime I issue a #ifconfig tr0 up command I eventually get
>>>a "Resource unavailable message."
>
>>USUALLY, I've found this message when the hardware resources don't
>>match up with what the driver expects - wrong I/O or IRQ (depends on
>>the driver - the old ibmtr driver didn't use parameters), or a
>>conflict where the NIC and some other resource are trying to use the
>>same I/O or IRQs This might show up in /var/log/messages at boot time.
>
>Did you change the (to be) used IO and IRQ in the BIOS-Setup from
>"PCI/PnP" to "Used by ISA" or whatever the wording is?

The only motherboard manual I have for a PCI system with ISA slots
does show a section for setting the BIOS for IRQs for PCI/PnP verses
Legacy/ISA, but doesn't mention this for I/O addresses. ISA always
was fun setting up I/O and IRQ, and the Plug and Pray mechanism was
meant to get around that hassle. I've still got a notebook that
shows the jumper settings for ancient ISA cards that I've used in
the past.

Old guy