iprb(7D)							      Devices								  iprb(7D)

NAME

       iprb - Intel 82557, 82558, 82559-controlled network interface controllers

SYNOPSIS

       /dev/iprb

DESCRIPTION

       The  iprb Ethernet driver is a multi-threaded, loadable, clonable, STREAMS hardware driver supporting the connectionless Data Link Provider
       Interface, dlpi(7P), over Intel D100 82557, 82558, and 82559 controllers. Multiple  82557, 82558, and 82559  controllers  installed  within
       the system are supported by the driver.	The iprb driver provides basic support for the 82557, 82558, and 82559 hardware. Functions include
       chip initialization, frame transmit and receive, multicast support, and error recovery and reporting.

APPLICATION PROGRAMMING INTERFACE

       The cloning, character-special device /dev/iprb is used to access all 82557, 82558, and 82559 devices installed within the system.

   iprb and DLPI
       The iprb driver is dependent on /kernel/misc/gld, a loadable kernel module that provides the iprb driver with the DLPI  and  STREAMS  func-
       tionality required of a LAN driver.  See gld(7D) for more details on the primitives supported by the driver.

       The values returned by the driver in the DL_INFO_ACK primitive in response to the DL_INFO_REQ from the user are as follows:

	 o  Maximum SDU is 1500 (ETHERMTU).

	 o  Minimum SDU is 0. The driver will pad to the mandatory 60-octet minimum packet size.

	 o  The dlsap address length is 8.

	 o  MAC type is DL_ETHER.

	 o  The  sap length value is -2, meaning the physical address component is followed immediately by a 2-byte sap component within the DLSAP
	    address.

	 o  Broadcast address value is Ethernet/IEEE broadcast address (FF:FF:FF:FF:FF:FF).

KNOWN PROBLEMS AND LIMITATIONS

       x86 based systems with the Intel EtherExpress PRO/100B or the Intel EtherExpress PRO/100+ might hang when the interface is brought down	at
       the  very  instant that a packet is being received. To avoid this, wait until the system is experiencing light or no network traffic before
       bringing the interface down.

       Early versions of the firmware on Intel EtherExpress PRO/100+ and Intel PRO/100+ Management adapters do not support  PXE  network  boot	on
       Solaris systems.  Upgrade the firmware if the version is lower than 078. PXE firmware versions are expressed  as three-digit build numbers.
       The build number is typically	  displayed by the firmware during boot. If the PXE build number   is not displayed  during  boot,  change
       the system BIOS or adapter BIOS configuration to display PXE messages during boot.

FILES

       iprb		       Device special file

       /kernel/drv/iprb.conf   iprb configuration file

       <sys/stropts.h>	       stropts network header file

       <sys/ethernet.h>        Ethernet network header file

       <sys/dlpi.h>	       dlpi network header file

       <sys/gld.h>	       gld network header file

       The iprb.conf configuration file options include:

       -TxURRetry

	   Default:
		3

	   Allowed Values: 0, 1, 2, 3

	   Sets the number of retransmissions. Modified when tuning performance.

       -MWIEnable

	   Default:	 0 (Disable)

	   Allowed Values:     0 (Disable), 1 (Enable)

	   Should  only  be set for 82558 adapters and systems in which the PCI bus supports Memory Write & Invalidate operations. Can improve the
	   performance for some configurations.

       -FlowControl

	   Default:	 0 (Disable)

	   Allowed Values:     0 (Disable), 1 (Enable)

	   Setting this value can improve the performance for some configurations

       -CollisionBackOffModification

	    Default:	  0 (Disable)

	   Allowed Values:     0 (Disable), 1 (Enable)

	   Setting this value can improve the performance for some configurations

       -PhyErrataFrequency

	   Default:  0 (Disable)

	   Allowed Values:     0 (Disable), 10 (Enable)

	   If you have problems establishing links with cables length = 70 Ft, set this field to 10

       -CpuCycleSaver

	   Default:	  0

	   Allowed Values:     1 through FFFFh

	   Reasonable Values:  200h through 800h

	   The CPUSaver algorithm improves the system's P/E ratio by reducing the number of interrupts generated by the card. The  algorithm  bun-
	   dles  multiple  receive frames together, then generates a single interrupt for the bundle.  Because the microcode does not support run-
	   time configuration, configuration must be done prior to the micro code being loaded into the chip. Changing this value from its default
	   means that the driver will have to be unloaded and loaded for the change to take affect. Setting the CpuCycleSaver option to 0 prevents
	   the algorithm from being used. Because it varies for different network environments, the optimal value for this parameter is impossible
	   to predict. Accordingly, developers should run tests to determine the effect that changing this value has on bandwidth and CPU utiliza-
	   tion.

       -ForceSpeedDuplex

	   Default:  5 (Auto-negotiate)

	   Allowed Values:     4 (100 FDX)

	   3 (100 HDX)

	   2 (10 FDX)

	   1 (10 HDX)

	   Specify the speed and duplex mode for each instance.

	   Example: ForceSpeedDuplex=5,4;

	   Sets iprb0 to autonegotiate and iprb1 to 100 FDX.

ATTRIBUTES

       See attributes(5) for descriptions of the following attributes:

       +-----------------------------+-----------------------------+
       |      ATTRIBUTE TYPE	     |	    ATTRIBUTE VALUE	   |
       +-----------------------------+-----------------------------+
       |Architecture		     |x86			   |
       +-----------------------------+-----------------------------+

SEE ALSO

       attributes(5), dlpi(7P), gld(7D)

SunOS 5.10							 17 November 2000							  iprb(7D)