[vortex] 3c905C: Packet losses, but only with a switch (2nd part)

[Giuseppe Ciaccio]

Hello,

My thanks to Donald and Bogdan for their suggestions.  I tried to install
the 3c59x.c driver, version 099Q, but failed, probably due to incompats
w.r.t. my kernel version (2.2.13).  I downloaded Linux 2.2.16, which
contains the "unreal" v099H driver containing some fixes to autoneg for
3c905C.  I enabled N-WAY autoneg on both NICs (using the DOS utility)
and enabled N-WAY autoneg in the switch.  Compiled new kernel, rebooted.

mii-diag says:

Basic registers of MII PHY #24:  3000 782d 0040 6176 05e1 45e1 0003 0000.
 Basic mode control register 0x3000: Auto-negotiation enabled.
 You have link beat, and everything is working OK.
 Your link partner advertised 45e1: Flow-control 100baseTx-FD 100baseTx
10baseT-FD 10baseT, w/ 802.3X flow control.

It seems regular.

But the packet loss persists :(

And, even worse, it now occurs also with a crossover cable, as well as
with a repeater hub.

At this point I disabled the NIC autoneg again (using the DOS utility);
the scenario turned to the original one:  packet losses, but only with the
switch.  So, it is not the new driver's fault.

If the problem were one of a broken switch, it should also occur with other
NICs (but it is not the case).

My feeling is that the autoneg is somehow broken in the 3c905C cards.
When enabled, it fails when connecting to non-negotiating devices (like the
crossover cable and the repeater hub).  
When disabled, it somehow still tries to work (with odd results) when
connecting to a negotiation-capable device (like my switch), even if the
device is instructed not to negotiate.

Any further suggestion is very welcome (before I resell the NICs to somebody
else...)

Giuseppe

Giuseppe Ciaccio               http://www.disi.unige.it/person/CiaccioG/
DISI - Universita' di Genova   via Dodecaneso 35   16146 Genova,   Italy
phone +39 10 353 6638          fax +39 010 3536699 ciaccio@disi.unige.it
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