From owner-freebsd-net@FreeBSD.ORG Tue Oct 4 20:50:52 2011 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-net@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [IPv6:2001:4f8:fff6::34]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3F87A106567B for ; Tue, 4 Oct 2011 20:50:52 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from erikt@midgard.homeip.net) Received: from ch-smtp05.sth.basefarm.net (ch-smtp05.sth.basefarm.net [80.76.153.6]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B96F28FC13 for ; Tue, 4 Oct 2011 20:50:51 +0000 (UTC) Received: from c83-255-51-20.bredband.comhem.se ([83.255.51.20]:36375 helo=falcon.midgard.homeip.net) by ch-smtp05.sth.basefarm.net with esmtp (Exim 4.76) (envelope-from ) id 1RBBk7-0001lD-II for freebsd-net@freebsd.org; Tue, 04 Oct 2011 22:37:37 +0200 Received: (qmail 72635 invoked from network); 4 Oct 2011 22:37:32 +0200 Received: from owl.midgard.homeip.net (10.1.5.7) by falcon.midgard.homeip.net with ESMTP; 4 Oct 2011 22:37:32 +0200 Received: (qmail 30221 invoked by uid 1001); 4 Oct 2011 22:37:32 +0200 Date: Tue, 4 Oct 2011 22:37:32 +0200 From: Erik Trulsson To: Arnaud Lacombe Message-ID: <20111004203732.GA30189@owl.midgard.homeip.net> References: <1317656199.15510.5.camel@hitfishpass-lx.corp.yahoo.com> <20111004054444.GA10311@tinyCurrent> <20111004083710.GA1054@tiny> <20111004140114.GA38162@in-addr.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline In-Reply-To: User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.21 (2010-09-15) X-Originating-IP: 83.255.51.20 X-Scan-Result: No virus found in message 1RBBk7-0001lD-II. X-Scan-Signature: ch-smtp05.sth.basefarm.net 1RBBk7-0001lD-II b91685bf1060356a038e9acc66469a53 Cc: "freebsd-net@freebsd.org" , Adrian Chadd , Matthias Apitz Subject: Re: Broadcom Docs X-BeenThere: freebsd-net@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: Networking and TCP/IP with FreeBSD List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Tue, 04 Oct 2011 20:50:52 -0000 On Tue, Oct 04, 2011 at 11:16:52AM -0400, Arnaud Lacombe wrote: > Hi, > > On Tue, Oct 4, 2011 at 10:39 AM, Adrian Chadd wrote: > > The non-embedded atheros NICs (ie, not the ath6k series stuff) is all > > run by the host CPU. There's no firmware that runs on the NIC. > > This was why the HAL was binary for so long. Note it is no longer > > binary and hasn't been for a few years. > > > OOTH, AFAIK, Linux folks never used the binary HAL, and had it > working, but it was GPL licensed from the beginning. For Atheros wireless controllers Linux people used to use the madwifi driver which did use the binary HAL and otherwise was dual-licensed (BSD/GPL). Nowadays Linux people use the ath5k/ath9k drivers which do not use the binary HAL and which had just about reached the level of actually being usable when source code for the HAL was released. (The madwifi driver was never included in the standard Linux kernel, mostly due to the binary HAL. The ath5k/ath9k drivers are nowadays included in the Linux kernel.) -- Erik Trulsson ertr1013@student.uu.se