525 full install has problem recognizing network card

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bugminer
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon 25 Jul 2011, 08:31

525 full install has problem recognizing network card

#1 Post by bugminer »

Hello, first time linux user here. Here are my computers details (second hand laptop that was given to me, my main pc is windows):

Toshiba Tecra 8000
333Mhz Pentium II
125MB ram
two pcmcia slots
usb slot
cdrom
Infra red
and the usual sockets out the back!

running puppy linux 5.2.5, full install. (first time installing an OS)

Ok, I was given a Netgear FA411 pcmcia network card and it only works sometimes on boot up. rebooting normally gets it going (although today it has been playing up worse). It seems to select the module axnet_cs when it does work, even though I'm sure it's not right. I have tried all the network setup type stuff I can find. I even tried the program for trying the windows driver for the card and not a sausage!

I have noticed that on boot up in the list of things being "Done" there is one that says something like:

Setting up services(network, printing etc...) [backgrounded]

This bothers me, could this be the problem?

All Help appreciated!

oh, the laptop will randomly reboot when shutting down. It's always tense at the point when the screen goes black at the end of the shutdown sequence.

bugminer
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon 25 Jul 2011, 08:31

#2 Post by bugminer »

Um, the network card isn't wireless. I guess I should have said that.

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rjbrewer
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Location: merriam, kansas

#3 Post by rjbrewer »

bugminer wrote:Um, the network card isn't wireless, whoever put my post here. I guess I should have said that.
The FA411 may need the pcnet_cs driver.
In 5.25 it would be in; menu > setup > internet connection wizard > wired or
wireless > network wizard > load module.

Got that info from Tempestuous post ( a bit old ).

http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewto ... 588#303588

Your post was moved?
Where did you post originally?

Inspiron 700m, Pent.M 1.6Ghz, 1Gb ram.
Msi Wind U100, N270 1.6>2.0Ghz, 1.5Gb ram.
Eeepc 8g 701, 900Mhz, 1Gb ram.
Full installs

bugminer
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon 25 Jul 2011, 08:31

#4 Post by bugminer »

rjbrewer wrote:
bugminer wrote:Um, the network card isn't wireless, whoever put my post here. I guess I should have said that.
The FA411 may need the pcnet_cs driver.
In 5.25 it would be in; menu > setup > internet connection wizard > wired or
wireless > network wizard > load module.

Got that info from Tempestuous post ( a bit old ).

http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewto ... 588#303588

Your post was moved?
Where did you post originally?
I tried what you suggested but the interface was not detected. I tried a reboot and it worked but it's running the axnet_cs module, not the pcnet_cs. It does seem to like that axnet_cs module, it rarely loads it first boot up after a turn on though. I have researched the axnet_cs module and it is for an IC set that must be closely related to the IC set in my netgear FA411.

I'm sure I put my post in Beginners Help (Start Here) because I'm a beginner.

bugminer
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon 25 Jul 2011, 08:31

#5 Post by bugminer »

I tried adding a module in the boot manager. I added pcnet_cs and shut off the computer for a short time then booted up and no net. I removed pcnet_cs and then tried axnet_cs with the same procedure, and it worked.

BUT, will it work the next time I boot up after a shutdown? I won't know until I try, I'm not going to try any more today though. I have my doubts it will work consistently, I suspect I have tried this before but I can't remember.

I'll let everyone know if it does work over several boot ups.

From what I have seen pcnet_cs should work with FA411 though.


Thanks for the help so far rjbrewer! :)

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rjbrewer
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Location: merriam, kansas

#6 Post by rjbrewer »

Could be the pcnet worked with 4.xx series Pups with 2.6.25.16
kernel, and axnet is the correct one for the 5.xx versions.

Old Thinkpad and Tosh laptops have problems with irq routing and
pcmcia devices. Often the connection only worked if the card is
inserted after the o.s. is booted up.

(Google search) tecra 8000 irq pcmcia


There are cheat codes which may help in this situation. I'll do some
searching.

Maintaining a connection with 525 has also been a problem for
some users.

The moderator that moved your post at least owed you the
courtesy of explaining why they were doing it.
Your problem would have received more attention in the beginners
thread, where you originally posted.

Edit:

A few boot codes for irq.

puppy irqpoll
puppy pci=routeirq
puppy pci=biosirq
puppy pnpbios=off
puppy acpi=off

Click e a few times at boot screen to add these to the kernel line.
If you find one that works it can be added to the kernel line in
/boot/grub/menu.lst, to become permanent.
Last edited by rjbrewer on Tue 26 Jul 2011, 21:39, edited 1 time in total.

Inspiron 700m, Pent.M 1.6Ghz, 1Gb ram.
Msi Wind U100, N270 1.6>2.0Ghz, 1.5Gb ram.
Eeepc 8g 701, 900Mhz, 1Gb ram.
Full installs

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bigpup
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Joined: Sun 11 Oct 2009, 18:15
Location: S.C. USA

#7 Post by bigpup »

Looks like you are making some progress
Keep in mind that the spec's of your computer are below the recommended for Lucid Puppy 525.
The full install of Puppy is good. Best choice for low memory.
Hope you made a swap partition to help assist that low memory.
Lucid Puppy is designed to work best with 256MB or more.

There are other versions of Puppy that may work better on this old a hardware.
Puppy 4.3.1
Wary
Classic Puppy 2.14X
Puppies based on the 4 series.

Not trying to say do not try Lucid Puppy 525, but there are other options.
The things they do not tell you, are usually the clue to solving the problem.
When I was a kid I wanted to be older.... This is not what I expected :shock:
YaPI(any iso installer)

bugminer
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon 25 Jul 2011, 08:31

#8 Post by bugminer »

rjbrewer, if axnet_cs doesn't work I'll have to attempt to try using those irq codes.

bigpup, Edit: Gparted tells me I only have one partition :( . Does a swap file count for anything? I don't think I can resize that one partition either, it has a lock icon on it in Gparted.

Thanks for the continued help.

Edit: Ok, I was trying to use Gparted to resize my partition to add a swap partition and I had to unmount my hard drive (which Gparted is convinced I haven't). Now I have given up on trying Gparted (wouldn't work, even on the live cd, I suspect the swap file making use of the hard drive) the green circle that shows the hard drive is mounted won't automaticly come up when I boot! :( :(
Last edited by bugminer on Wed 27 Jul 2011, 02:12, edited 1 time in total.

DPUP5520
Posts: 800
Joined: Wed 16 Feb 2011, 05:38

#9 Post by DPUP5520 »

It has a lock on it because it is mounted, you would have to boot with puppy pfix=ram in order to modify the partition with gparted.
[url=http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic.php?t=69651][b][i]PupRescue 2.5[/i][/b][/url]
[url=http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic.php?t=72178][b][i]Puppy Crypt 528[/i][/b][/url]

bugminer
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon 25 Jul 2011, 08:31

#10 Post by bugminer »

DPUP5520 wrote:It has a lock on it because it is mounted, you would have to boot with puppy pfix=ram in order to modify the partition with gparted.
oh! Do tell more, I'm such a noob. where do I put pfix=ram ?

Edit: I think I figured it out...

bugminer
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon 25 Jul 2011, 08:31

#11 Post by bugminer »

ok, I added a 256MB linux swap partition! :D

the puppy irqpoll seeeeems to be working, I may yet try it permanently.

now I just need to get that green circle appearing over the hard drive on boot up.

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rjbrewer
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Location: merriam, kansas

#12 Post by rjbrewer »

bugminer wrote:
DPUP5520 wrote:It has a lock on it because it is mounted, you would have to boot with puppy pfix=ram in order to modify the partition with gparted.
oh! Do tell more, I'm such a noob. where do I put pfix=ram ?

Edit: I think I figured it out...
Pfix=ram has to be done from the cd; full installs do not load
everything to ram.

You will not see a circle above the drive when booted.
A long time bug in Lupu with a full install.

Inspiron 700m, Pent.M 1.6Ghz, 1Gb ram.
Msi Wind U100, N270 1.6>2.0Ghz, 1.5Gb ram.
Eeepc 8g 701, 900Mhz, 1Gb ram.
Full installs

DPUP5520
Posts: 800
Joined: Wed 16 Feb 2011, 05:38

#13 Post by DPUP5520 »

Sorry rjbrewer bad assumption on my part, I don't run any full installs so didn't realize.
[url=http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic.php?t=69651][b][i]PupRescue 2.5[/i][/b][/url]
[url=http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic.php?t=72178][b][i]Puppy Crypt 528[/i][/b][/url]

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rjbrewer
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Location: merriam, kansas

#14 Post by rjbrewer »

DPUP5520 wrote:Sorry rjbrewer bad assumption on my part, I don't run any full installs so didn't realize.
I assume I'm correct; haven't actually ever tried it. :lol:

edit;

Gave it a try; definitely not in ram.
Still using just 37mb in pup 4.31 at desktop and drive is mounted.

Hmmm;
Think I'll try making a full install with a save file. (just for grins)

edit;

Doesn't work (too horrible to describe)

Inspiron 700m, Pent.M 1.6Ghz, 1Gb ram.
Msi Wind U100, N270 1.6>2.0Ghz, 1.5Gb ram.
Eeepc 8g 701, 900Mhz, 1Gb ram.
Full installs

bugminer
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon 25 Jul 2011, 08:31

#15 Post by bugminer »

"puppy irqpoll" didn't work today when I booted puppy. I'll try "puppy pci=routeirq" next.

what I'd give for a driver that works with a Neatgear FA411 reliably.

I did download the drivers for the FA411 for windows and linux but the linux ones aren't for puppy (I was hoping I could use the windows driver at time), anyone know how to modify the linux files and compile them into a working driver for puppy? (I live in hope!)

tempestuous
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Location: Australia

#16 Post by tempestuous »

First let's clear up the confusion over pcnet_cs versus axnet_cs:
The Netgear FA411 contains the Asix AX88190 chipset and the fully compatible Linux driver is axnet_cs, however,
the FA411 is also backwards-compatible with (the more basic) NE2000 devices, using the pcnet_cs driver.
In theory you could use either driver, but you would only achieve the highest data throughput from the axnet_cs driver.

bugminer, I suggest you attack the problem in 2 stages;
First, delete any old fixes you have attempted, such as your BootManager settings.

Stage 1)
Both drivers claim the same device ID (and sub-device ID's) and it seems that the pcnet_cs driver gets priority ...
but there's code written into the pcnet_cs driver which should auto-detect any Asix-based devices and send a kernel-event to "bail out" and let the axnet_cs driver take over.
I have done some reading on the web about this portion of the driver code, and it seems that it's unreliable. I have found a patch (which is an update of an earlier patch) which might fix the problem ... but why bother!!
The most straightforward solution would be to disable the pcnet_cs driver, and this will let the axnet_cs driver do its job unencumbered.

So use ROX to browse to /lib/modules/2.6.33.2/kernel/drivers/net/pcmcia/
and there you will see the (driver) file "pcnet_cs.ko"
Open a second ROX window, which will default to the /root location, then drag pcnet_cs.ko into /root
Now you need to "register" the changed state of your system's drivers, by running this command -

Code: Select all

depmod-FULL
Now reboot, and the axnet_cs driver should certainly load. Try it for a while, and see if it's stable.

Stage 2)
It's possible that the axnet_cs driver may still be unreliable, and there are reports on the web of Asix-based devices having trouble interacting with a laptop's bios to get the correct resources (IRQ/DMA).
So using IRQ-related boot options, as rjbrewer suggested, is certainly a good idea, especially since you have an older laptop. I'm certainly familiar with this situation, since I originally used Puppy Linux back in 2005 with a VAIO Pentium1 !

First get into your laptop's bios and see if there's a setting for "PnP OS = YES/NO". If so, set it for "NO".
Save bios settings, reboot, and I suspect that will work well.
But if you don't have that bios option, or the device is still unreliable, these are the best three boot options you should try:

pci=biosirq

acpi=noirq

irqpoll routeirq

bugminer
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon 25 Jul 2011, 08:31

#17 Post by bugminer »

Thank you for the great reply, I'll put your advice into practice when I'm next using the laptop. I'll get back with results after a few days of testing.

bugminer
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon 25 Jul 2011, 08:31

#18 Post by bugminer »

Sorry for taking so long!

I'm up to trying "acpi=noirq" to see if that fixes the problem and it's worked twice so far. Hopefully it'll keep on working but I won't be happy until it works properly for a decent amount of time. It's just taken me long to test which works due to various reasons.

Hopefully I'll get through testing things before too long.

bugminer
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon 25 Jul 2011, 08:31

#19 Post by bugminer »

ok, it looks like I'm up tp trying "irqpoll routeirq". I haven't used the laptop is a fair while so it's not like it's worked with "acpi=noirq" for ages before not working.

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