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## About this book

This guide describes the two versions of the quad-port Gigabit Ethernet board, shows you how to connect the boards to an Ethernet network, and explains how to operate the boards.

You can use the quad-port Gigabit Ethernet board to replace the built-in Ethernet network adapter in your system, or use it in addition to your current adapter.

This guide is written for users of the quad-port Gigabit Ethernet board. It is assumed that you have general knowledge of Ethernet networks and the system in which the board is installed.

## Important Information

| Warning: Never look into the end of a fiber optic cable to confirm that light is being emitted (or for any other reason). Most fiber optic laser wavelengths (1300 nm and 1550 nm) are invisible to the eye and cause permanent eye damage. Shorter wavelength lasers (for example, 780 nm) are visible and can cause significant eye damage. Use only an optical power meter to verify light output.

| Warning: Never look into the end of a fiber optic cable on a powered device with any type of magnifying device, such as a microscope, eye loupe, or magnifying glass. Such activity causes cause a permanent burn on the retina of the eye. Optical signal cannot be determined by looking into the fiber end.

## Chapter Descriptions

This guide contains the following chapters:

- Chapter 1, “Gigabit Ethernet Board Features and Capabilities”, summarizes board features, lists the protocols and interfaces with which the board is compatible, and gives board configuration limits for various systems.

- Chapter 2, “Connecting the Gigabit Ethernet Board to a Network”, shows you how to connect the Gigabit Ethernet board to your network.

- Chapter 3, “Operating the Gigabit Ethernet Board ”, explains how to verify installation of the board and software, how to reset the board, how to set parameters to improve performance, and how to set configuration parameters.

- Appendix A, “Specifications”, summarizes the physical and performance characteristics, environmental information, and operating ranges of the board.

A glossary and an index complete this guide.

## Related Publications

This guide is part of a document set that fully supports the installation, operation, and service of the quad-port Gigabit Ethernet board. For more information about installing and servicing the quad-port Gigabit Ethernet board, see the user's guide for the system in which the board is installed.

### SGI Altix Hardware Documentation

The following is a list of hardware documentation available from SGI that describes SGI Altix systems.

- SGI Altix 450 System User's Guide

  Provides an overview of the Altix 450 system components, and it describes how to set up and operate this system

- SGI Altix 4700 User's Guide

  This guide provides an overview of the architecture and descriptions of the major components that compose the SGI Altix 4700 family of servers. It also provides the standard procedures for powering on and powering off the system, basic troubleshooting information, and important safety and regulatory specifications.

- SGI Altix XE210 System User's Guide

  Describes the features of the Altix XE210 server system as well as troubleshooting, upgrading, and repairing.

- SGI Altix XE240 System User's Guide

  Describes the features of the Altix XE240 server system as well as troubleshooting, upgrading, and repairing.

You can obtain SGI documentation, release notes, or man pages in the following ways:

- See the SGI Technical Publications Library at http://docs.sgi.com . Various formats are available. This library contains the most recent and most comprehensive set of online books, release notes, man pages, and other information.

- For the latest information about software and documentation for your SGI ProPack software release, see the release notes that are in a file named `README.TXT` that is available in `/docs` directory on the SGI ProPack 5 for Linux CD.

- You can also view man pages by typing `man` <title> on a command line.

For example, to display the man page for the `apropos` command, type the following on a command line:

    man apropos

Important system configuration files and commands are documented on man pages. References in the documentation to these pages include the name of the command and the section number in which the command is found. For example, “apropos(1)” refers to the `apropos` command and indicates that it is found in section 1 of Linux man pages.

For additional information about displaying reference pages using the `man` command, see `man`(1).

## Conventions

The following conventions are used throughout this document:

Convention | Meaning
`Command` | This fixed-space font denotes literal items such as commands, files, routines, path names, signals, messages, and programming language structures.
variable | The italic typeface denotes variable entries and words or concepts being defined. Italic typeface also is used for book titles.
`user input` | This bold, fixed-space font denotes literal items that the user enters in interactive sessions. Output is shown in nonbold, fixed-space font.
[ ] | Brackets enclose optional portions of a command or directive line.
... | Ellipses indicate that a preceding element can be repeated.
`man page`(x) | Man page section identifiers appear in parentheses after man page names.
GUI element | This font denotes the names of graphical user interface (GUI) elements such as windows, screens, dialog boxes, menus, toolbars, icons, buttons, boxes, fields, and lists.

## Product Support

SGI provides a comprehensive product support and maintenance program for its products:

- If you are in North America, contact the Technical Assistance Center at
  +1 800 800 4SGI or contact your authorized service provider.

- If you are outside North America, contact the SGI subsidiary or authorized distributor in your country.

## Reader Comments

If you have comments about the technical accuracy, content, or organization of this document, contact SGI. Be sure to include the title and document number of the manual with your comments. (Online, the document number is located in the front matter of the manual. In printed manuals, the document number is located at the bottom of each page.)

You can contact SGI in any of the following ways:

- Send e-mail to the following address:

  techpubs@sgi.com

- Use the Feedback option on the Technical Publications Library Web page:

  http://docs.sgi.com

- Contact your customer service representative and ask that an incident be filed in the SGI incident tracking system.

- Send mail to the following address:

  Technical Publications
  SGI
  1200 Crittenden Lane, M/S 535
  Mountain View, California 94043-1351

SGI values your comments and will respond to them promptly.

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SGI® Altix® Systems Quad-Port Gigabit Ethernet Board User's Guide |  | Chapter 1. Gigabit Ethernet Board Features and Capabilities