Chapter 3. Operating the Gigabit Ethernet Board
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## Chapter 3. Operating the Gigabit Ethernet Board

This chapter describes various issues that may occur when using a Gigabit Ethernet network. It includes the following sections:

- “Verifying Functionality”

- “Resetting the Board ”

- “Configuration Parameters”

## Verifying Functionality

This section explains the following:

- “Using LEDs to Determine Board Functionality”

- “Verifying Board Recognition”

- “Verifying Board Configuration and Enabling”

### Using LEDs to Determine Board Functionality

The fiber-optic and copper Gigabit Ethernet boards have light-emitting diodes (LEDs) that indicate whether the board is configured correctly and connected to an active Ethernet, as discussed in the following sections.

#### Fiber-Optic Board LEDs and Connector Specifications

Table 3-1 describes the functions of these LEDs.

Table 3-1. LEDs on the Fiber-optic Gigabit Ethernet Board

Components | Purpose
--- | ---
LEDs | One LED per port Link/Activity: Turns on link, blinks on activity (green) LEDs are located on the Fiber-Optic board visible through holes in the metal bracket holder.
Connectors | small form factor (SFF) LC

During normal operation, the link LED is on; the data LED blinks whenever the board is receiving traffic.

#### Copper Board LEDs

The copper Gigabit Ethernet board has three LEDs per ports. Table 3-2 describes the functions of these LEDs.

Table 3-2. LEDs on the Copper Gigabit Ethernet Board

Components | Purpose
--- | ---
LEDs | Three LEDs per port Link/Activity: Turns on any link speed, blinks on activity (green) 100Mbits/s: Turns on 100 Mbit/s link (green) 1000 Mbits/s: Turns on 1000 Mbit/s link (green) LEDs are located on the Copper board visible through holes in the metal bracket holder.
Connectors | Four shielded RJ-45

### Verifying Board Recognition

To verify that the operating system has located the Gigabit Ethernet board, use the Linux PCI utilities `lspci`(8) command, as follows:

    % lspci

    	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 ...
    0000:0a:00.2 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 41210 [Lanai] Serial to Parallel PCI Bridge (B-Segment Bridge) (rev 09)
    0000:0b:04.0 Ethernet controller: Broadcom Corporation NetXtreme BCM5704 Gigabit Ethernet (rev 10)
    0000:0b:04.1 Ethernet controller: Broadcom Corporation NetXtreme BCM5704 Gigabit Ethernet (rev 10)
    0000:0c:06.0 Ethernet controller: Broadcom Corporation NetXtreme BCM5704 Gigabit Ethernet (rev 10)
    0000:0c:06.1 Ethernet controller: Broadcom Corporation NetXtreme BCM5704 Gigabit Ethernet (rev 10)
    0000:0e:0c.0 VGA compatible controller: ATI Technologies Inc: Unknown device 515e (rev 02)

In 0b:04.0 Ethernet controller identification, `0b` is the bus number, `04` is the slot number, and `0` is the port, respectively.

### Verifying Board Configuration and Enabling

Use the installation tool that comes with your operating system to install and configure the Ethernet board.

You can use the `ifconfig` `-a` command to verify the configuration information, as follows:

    systemA:~ # ifconfig -a
    eth0      Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:E0:ED:04:27:92
              inet addr:192.168.1.1  Bcast:192.168.1.255  Mask:255.255.255.0
              inet6 addr: fe80::2e0:edff:fe04:2792/64 Scope:Link
              UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
              RX packets:746483853 errors:5843 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
              TX packets:200725935 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
              collisions:0 txqueuelen:1000
              RX bytes:801290470661 (764170.1 Mb)  TX bytes:120045246582 (114484.0 Mb)
              Interrupt:18

    eth1      Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:E0:ED:04:27:93
              inet addr:192.168.2.1  Bcast:192.168.2.255  Mask:255.255.255.0
              inet6 addr: fe80::2e0:edff:fe04:2793/64 Scope:Link
              UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
              RX packets:732407118 errors:5992 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
              TX packets:131625584 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
              collisions:0 txqueuelen:1000
              RX bytes:831583957440 (793060.2 Mb)  TX bytes:9525662773 (9084.3 Mb)
              Interrupt:19

    eth2      Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:E0:ED:04:27:94
              inet addr:192.168.3.1  Bcast:192.168.3.255  Mask:255.255.255.0
              inet6 addr: fe80::2e0:edff:fe04:2794/64 Scope:Link
              UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
              RX packets:627481955 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
              TX packets:129746769 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
              collisions:0 txqueuelen:1000
              RX bytes:791824548040 (755142.7 Mb)  TX bytes:9412533373 (8976.4 Mb)
              Interrupt:16

    eth3      Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:E0:ED:04:27:95
              inet addr:192.168.4.1  Bcast:192.168.4.255  Mask:255.255.255.0
              inet6 addr: fe80::2e0:edff:fe04:2795/64 Scope:Link
              UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
              RX packets:626151677 errors:21908421 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:21908421
              TX packets:173864058 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
              collisions:0 txqueuelen:1000
              RX bytes:771670760220 (735922.5 Mb)  TX bytes:62020320786 (59147.1 Mb)
              Interrupt:17

    lo        Link encap:Local Loopback
              inet addr:127.0.0.1  Mask:255.0.0.0
              inet6 addr: ::1/128 Scope:Host
              UP LOOPBACK RUNNING  MTU:16436  Metric:1
              RX packets:117 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
              TX packets:117 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
              collisions:0 txqueuelen:0
              RX bytes:9174 (8.9 Kb)  TX bytes:9174 (8.9 Kb)

    sit0      Link encap:IPv6-in-IPv4
              NOARP  MTU:1480  Metric:1
              RX packets:0 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
              TX packets:0 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
              collisions:0 txqueuelen:0
              RX bytes:0 (0.0 b)  TX bytes:0 (0.0 b)

For more information on `ifconfig`, see the `ifconfig`(8) man page.

## Resetting the Board

In the unlikely event that you need to reset the fiber-optic or copper Gigabit Ethernet board, enter the following:

    ifconfig <interface> down
    ifconfig <interface> up

where `interface` is name of the interface. This is usually a driver name followed by a unit number, for example, `ifconfig eth0 down`, for the first Ethernet interface.

For more information on `ifconfig`, see the `ifconfig`(8) man page.

## Configuration Parameters

Configuration changes for Ethernet devices drivers are made by means of the `ethtool`(8) command. The `ethtool` command works with all Linux Ethernet drivers.

In general, each feature has a `query` and a `modify` variant. If you are wondering whether the current driver and `ethtool` support a specific feature, attempt to run the `query` option first, an example is, as follows:

    # ethtool -a eth0
    Pause parameters for eth0:
    Autonegotiate:  on
    RX:             on
    TX:             on

This shows the current settings of the `pause` (or flow control) parameters. You can then change these parameters with the `ethtool -A` option.

As with any system configuration changes, make sure to have a back out strategy, read the most recent documentation for potential changes and pitfalls, and consult with a relevant Linux archives for examples of common usage.

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Chapter 2. Connecting the Gigabit Ethernet Board to a Network |  | Appendix A. Specifications