> short question, the subject says it all really. how do you find out which io > port your ISA networkcard is using? > > > Brendon
Short question, but a long answer <g>. The answer lies in understanding how the kernel handles the ISA bus during bootup AND how your particular NIC works. If you are using loadable modules for devices on the ISA bus, then you have to specifiy the port and sometimes the irq. Some devices, such as sound cards, may well need other info like DMA, etc. On the other hand, if the NIC code is compiled into the kernel (not using loadable modules), then usually the kernel will scan a range of ports & irqs specified by the code to "find" the card and initialize it. If you have a card with unknown io/irq values, re-compiling the kernel with a specific piece of code "hardwired" into the kernel will frequently suffice. In your case, it would probably be the "ne.o" code. Most ISA NICs come from the factory with a pre-set io/irq values in it's EEPROM. Some support "PnP" operation, but Linux doesn't during bootup without the use of the "isapnp" program. Also, most ISA NICs will come with "setup" program you can run under M$DOS to set the io port and irq to free values for your system and/or choose "PnP" operation. This is great for Winders, but not too useful for Linux users. You can obtain a set of Linux diagnostics and setup programs for many cards from Don Becker's site at: http://www.scyld.com/page/support/network/ . This should allow you to "setup" your NIC to whatever values match your system. The important thing here is that you should choose these values correctly. Linux WILL NOT change these values via PnP, and if you specify something that conflicts with something else, you WILL have a resource conflict. Another way of finding out the io/irq values to use in modconf(or with loadable modules) is just to insert the card into a Winders (Win 95, 98, ME, etc) machine and see what it detects, then use the same values for your modconf options. In any case, I would review the copious amount of info available on your particular NIC at the site mentioned above. The various ISA NIC's setup will vary somewhat according to the chipset used. Cheers, -Don Spoon-
