# Linux* Base Driver for the Intel® PRO/1000 Family of Adapters

Overview

Supported Adapters

Building and Installation

Command Line Parameters

Speed and Duplex Configuration

Additional Configurations

Known Issues

## Overview

This file describes the Linux* Base Driver for the Intel® PRO/1000 Family of Adapters, version 5.0.x. This driver is intended for 2.4.x kernels; it is known to build properly on 2.4.x kernels through 2.4.18. Intel focused testing on Intel architectures running the 2.4.18 kernel. This driver includes support for Itanium®-based systems.

This driver is only supported as a loadable module at this time. Intel is not supplying patches against the kernel source to allow for static linking of the driver. For questions related to hardware requirements, refer to the documentation supplied with your Intel PRO/1000 adapter. All hardware requirements listed apply to use with Linux.

Native VLANs are now available with supported kernels.

## Supported Adapters

The following Intel network adapters are compatible with the drivers in this release:

Controller | Adapter Name | Board IDs
82542 | PRO/1000 Gigabit Server Adapter | 700262-xxx, 717037-xxx
82543 | PRO/1000 F Server Adapter | 738640-xxx, A38888-xxx
82543 | PRO/1000 T Server Adapter | A19845-xxx, A33948-xxx
82544 | PRO/1000 XT Server Adapter | A51580-xxx
82544 | PRO/1000 XF Server Adapter | A50484-xxx
82544 | PRO/1000 T Desktop Adapter | A62947-xxx
82540 82541 | PRO/1000 MT Desktop Adapter | A78408-xxx C91016-xxx
82545 | PRO/1000 MT Server Adapter | A92165-xxx
82546 | PRO/1000 MT Dual Port Server Adapter | A92111-xxx
82545 | PRO/1000 MF Server Adapter | A91622-xxx
82545 | PRO/1000 MF Server Adapter (LX) | A91624-xxx
82546 | PRO/1000 MF Dual Port Server Adapter | A91620-xxx

To verify your adapter is supported, find the board ID number on the adapter. Look for a label that has a barcode and a number in the format A12345-001. Match this to the list of numbers above.

For more information on how to identify your adapter, go to the Adapter & Driver ID Guide at:

> http://support.intel.com/support/network/adapter/pro100/21397.htm

For the latest Intel network drivers for Linux, refer to the following website. In the search field, enter your adapter name or type, or use the networking link on the left to search for your adapter:

> http://downloadfinder.intel.com/scripts-df/support_intel.asp

## Building and Installation

To build a binary RPM* package of this driver, run 'rpmbuild -tb <filename.tar.gz>'. Replace <filename.tar.gz> with the specific file name of the driver.

| NOTE: For the build to work properly, the currently running kernel MUST match the version and configuration of the installed kernel sources. If you have just recompiled the kernel reboot the system now.

1. Move the base driver tar file to the directory of your choice. For example, use '/home/username/e1000' or '/usr/local/src/e1000'.

2. Untar/unzip the archive, where <x.x.x> is the version number for the driver tar file:

   > tar zxf e1000-<x.x.x>.tar.gz

3. Change to the driver src directory, where <x.x.x> is the version number for the driver tar:

   > cd e1000-<x.x.x>/src/

4. Compile the driver module:

   > make install

   The binary will be installed as:

   > /lib/modules/<kernel_version>/kernel/drivers/net/e1000.o

   The install locations listed above are the default locations. They might not be correct for certain Linux distributions. For more information, go to ldistrib.htm.

5. Install the module:

   > insmod e1000 <parameter>=<value>

6. Assign an IP address to the interface by entering the following, where <x> is the interface number:

   > ifconfig eth<x> <IP_address>

7. Verify that the interface works. Enter the following, where <IP_address> is the IP address for another machine on the same subnet as the interface that is being tested:

   > ping <IP_address>

## Command Line Parameters

If the driver is built as a module, the following optional parameters are used by entering them on the command line with the modprobe or insmod command using this syntax:

> modprobe e1000 [<option>=<VAL1>,<VAL2>,...]

> insmod e1000 [<option>=<VAL1>,<VAL2>,...]

For example, with two PRO/1000 PCI adapters, entering:

> insmod e1000 TxDescriptors=80,128

loads the e1000 driver with 80 TX resources for the first adapter and 128 TX resources for the second adapter.

The default value for each parameter is generally the recommended setting, unless otherwise noted.

For more information about the AutoNeg, Duplex, and Speed parameters, see the Speed and Duplex Configuration section in this document.

Parameter Name | Valid Range/Settings | Default | Description
--- | --- | --- | ---
AutoNeg | 0x01-0x0F, 0x20-0x2F | 0x2F | This parameter is a bit mask that specifies which speed and duplex settings the board advertises. When this parameter is used, the Speed and Duplex parameters must not be specified. (adapters using copper connections only)
Duplex | 0-2 (0=auto-negotiate, 1=half, 2=full) | 0 | Defines the direction in which data is allowed to flow. Can be either one or two-directional. If both Duplex and the link partner are set to auto-negotiate, the board auto-detects the correct duplex. If the link partner is forced (either full or half), Duplex defaults to half-duplex. (adapters using copper connections only)
FlowControl | 0-3 (0=none, 1=Rx only, 2=Tx only, 3=Rx&Tx) | Read flow control settings from the EEPROM | This parameter controls the automatic generation(Tx) and response(Rx) to Ethernet PAUSE frames.
InterruptThrottleRate | 100-100000 (0=off, 1=dynamic) | 1 | This value represents the maximum number of interrupts per second the controller generates. InterruptThrottleRate is another setting used in interrupt moderation. Dynamic mode uses a heuristic algorithm to adjust InterruptThrottleRate based on the current traffic load. NOTE: InterruptThrottleRate takes precedence over the TxAbsIntDelay and RxAbsIntDelay parameters. In other words, minimizing the receive and/or transmit absolute delays does not force the controller to generate more interrupts than what the Interrupt Throttle Rate allows.
RxDescriptors | 80-256 for 82542 and 82543-based adapters 80-4096 for 82540, 82544, 82545, and 82546-based adapters | 256 | This value is the number of receive descriptors allocated by the driver. Increasing this value allows the driver to buffer more incoming packets. Each descriptor is 16 bytes. A receive buffer is also allocated for each descriptor and can be either 2048, 4096, 8192, or 16384 bytes, depending on the MTU setting. The maximum MTU size is 16110. NOTE: MTU designates the frame size. It only needs to be set for Jumbo Frames.
RxIntDelay | 0-65535 (0=off) | 0 | This value delays the generation of receive interrupts in units of 1.024 microseconds. Receive interrupt reduction can improve CPU efficiency if properly tuned for specific network traffic. Increasing this value adds extra latency to frame reception and can end up decreasing the throughput of TCP traffic. If the system is reporting dropped receives, this value may be set too high, causing the driver to run out of available receive descriptors. CAUTION: When setting RxIntDelay to a value other than 0, adapters may hang (stop transmitting) under certain network conditions. If this occurs a NETDEV WATCHDOG message is logged in the system event log. In addition, the controller is automatically reset, restoring the network connection. To eliminate the potential for the hang ensure that RxIntDelay is set to zero.
RxAbsIntDelay | 0-65535 (0=off) | 128 | This value, in units of 1.024 microseconds, limits the delay in which a transmit interrupt is generated. Useful only if RxIntDelay is non-zero, this value ensures that an interrupt is generated after the initial packet is received within the set amount of time. Proper tuning, along with RxIntDelay, may improve traffic throughput in specific network conditions. (82540, 82545, and 82546-based adapters only)
Speed | 0, 10, 100, 1000 | 0 | Speed forces the line speed to the specified value in megabits per second (Mbps). If this parameter is not specified or is set to 0 and the link partner is set to auto-negotiate, the board will auto-detect the correct speed. Duplex must also be set when Speed is set to either 10 or 100. (adapters using copper connections only)
TxDescriptors | 80-256 for 82542 and 82543-based adapters 80-4096 for 82540, 82544, 82545, and 82546-based adapters | 256 | This value is the number of transmit descriptors allocated by the driver. Increasing this value allows the driver to queue more transmits. Each descriptor is 16 bytes.
TxIntDelay | 0-65535 (0=off) | 64 | This value delays the generation of transmit interrupts in units of 1.024 microseconds. Transmit interrupt reduction can improve CPU efficiency if properly tuned for specific network traffic. If the system is reporting dropped transmits, this value may be set too high causing the driver to run out of available transmit descriptors.
TxAbsIntDelay | 0-65535 (0=off) | 64 | This value, in units of 1.024 microseconds, limits the delay in which a transmit interrupt is generated. Useful only if TxIntDelay is non-zero, this value ensures that an interrupt is generated after the initial packet is sent on the wire within the set amount of time. Proper tuning, along with TxIntDelay, may improve traffic throughput in specific network conditions. (82540, 82545, and 82546-based adapters only)
XsumRX | 0-1 | 1 | A value of '1' indicates that the driver should enable IP checksum offload for received packets (both UDP and TCP) to the adapter hardware. (not available on the 82542-based adapter)

## Speed and Duplex Configuration

Three keywords are used to control the speed and duplex configuration. These keywords are Speed, Duplex, and AutoNeg.

If the board uses a fiber interface, these keywords are ignored, and the fiber interface board only links at 1000 Mbps full-duplex.

For copper-based boards, the keywords interact as follows:

> The default operation is auto-negotiate. The board advertises all supported speed and duplex combinations, and it links at the highest common speed and duplex mode IF the link partner is set to auto-negotiate.

> If Speed = 1000, limited auto-negotiation is enabled and only 1000 Mbps is advertised (The 1000BaseT spec requires auto-negotiation.)

> If Speed = 10 or 100, then both Speed and Duplex should be set. Auto-negotiation is disabled, and the AutoNeg parameter is ignored. Partner SHOULD also be forced.

The AutoNeg parameter is used when more control is required over the auto-negotiation process. When this parameter is used, Speed and Duplex must not be specified. This parameter is a bitmap that specifies which speed and duplex settings are advertised to the link partner.

Bit: | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0
Speed (Mbps): | N/A | N/A | 1000 | N/A | 100 | 100 | 10 | 10
Duplex: |  |  | Full |  | Full | Half | Full | Half

Note that setting AutoNeg does not guarantee that the board will link at the highest specified speed or duplex mode, but the board will link at the highest possible speed/duplex of the link partner IF the link partner is also set to auto-negotiate. If the link partner is forced speed/duplex, the adapter MUST be forced to the same speed/duplex.

## Additional Configurations

### Configuring the Driver on Different Distributions

Configuring a network driver to load properly when the system is started is distribution dependent. Typically, the configuration process involves adding an alias line to /etc/modules.conf as well as editing other system startup scripts and/or configuration files. Many popular Linux distributions ship with tools to make these changes for you. To learn the proper way to configure a network device for your system, refer to your distribution documentation. If during this process you are asked for the driver or module name, the name for the Linux Base Driver for the Intel PRO/1000 Family of Adapters is e1000.

As an example, if you install the e1000 driver for two PRO/1000 adapters (eth0 and eth1) and set the speed and duplex to 10full and 100half, add the following to modules.conf:

> alias eth0 e1000
> alias eth1 e1000
> options e1000 Speed=10,100 Duplex=2,1

### Viewing Link Messages

Link messages will not be displayed to the console if the distribution is restricting system messages. In order to see network driver link messages on your console, set dmesg to at least eight by entering the following:

> dmesg -n 8

| NOTE: This setting is not saved across reboots.

### Jumbo Frames

The driver supports Jumbo Frames for all adapters except 82542-based adapters. Jumbo Frames support is enabled by changing the MTU to a value larger than the default of 1500. Use the ifconfig command to increase the MTU size. For example:

> ifconfig eth<x> mtu 9000 up

The maximum MTU setting for Jumbo Frames is 16110. This value coincides with the maximum Jumbo Frames size of 16128.

| NOTE: Jumbo Frames are supported at 1000 Mbps only. Using Jumbo Frames at 10 or 100 Mbps may result in poor performance or loss of link.

## Known Issues

| NOTE: For distribution-specific information, see ldistrib.htm.

### Compiling the Driver

When trying to compile the driver by running make install, the following error may occur: "Linux kernel source not configured - missing version.h"

To solve this issue, create the version.h file by going to the Linux source tree and entering:

> make include/linux/version.h

### Jumbo Frames System Requirement

Memory allocation failures have been observed on Linux systems with 64 MB of RAM or less that are running Jumbo Frames. If you are using Jumbo Frames, your system may require more than the advertised minimum requirement of 64 MB of system memory.

### Multiple Interfaces on Same Ethernet Broadcast Network

Due to the ARP behavior on Linux, it is not possible to have one system on two IP networks in the same Ethernet broadcast domain (non-partitioned switch) behave as expected. All Ethernet interfaces will respond to IP traffic for any IP address assigned to the system. This results in unbalanced receive traffic.

When this occurs, transmits and receives for a single conversation can be split across different network interfaces. Additionally, the server might have up to twice as much transmit capacity as receive capacity, which can result in the receive side being overrun and dropping receives.

If you have multiple interfaces in a server, install them in different switches or partition the switch into VLANs to prevent broadcast traffic from going to the wrong interface. This does not apply when using a teaming solution, like ANS.

`Last modified on 1/20/03 1:26p Revision 53`