From owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Sat Apr 30 01:51:19 2005 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.FreeBSD.org (mx1.freebsd.org [216.136.204.125]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 85B3716A4CE for ; Sat, 30 Apr 2005 01:51:19 +0000 (GMT) Received: from zeppo.candhsoftware.com (tcsnapanas19poolc65.tcsn.uswest.net [65.100.103.65]) by mx1.FreeBSD.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D68C843D66 for ; Sat, 30 Apr 2005 01:51:18 +0000 (GMT) (envelope-from awc@candhsoftware.com) Received: from [192.168.10.7] (pcp02515680pcs.sabrna01.az.comcast.net [68.32.221.44]) (authenticated bits=0)j3U1Z3eQ015594; Fri, 29 Apr 2005 18:35:04 -0700 (MST) (envelope-from awc@candhsoftware.com) From: "Andy W. Clements" To: Tom Lord In-Reply-To: <200504291833.LAA26255@emf.net> References: <200504291833.LAA26255@emf.net> Content-Type: text/plain Organization: C & H Software L.L.C. Date: Fri, 29 Apr 2005 18:32:34 -0700 Message-Id: <1114824754.679.5.camel@misato.candhsoftware.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 X-Mailer: Evolution 2.0.4 FreeBSD GNOME Team Port Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit cc: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Subject: Re: help w/ Dell PowerEdge sc420 X-BeenThere: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.1 Precedence: list Reply-To: awc@candhsoftware.com List-Id: User questions List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Sat, 30 Apr 2005 01:51:19 -0000 On Fri, 2005-04-29 at 11:33 -0700, Tom Lord wrote: > I'm trying to bring FreeBSD up on a Dell PowerEdge sc420. > > The machine has a built-in (on the motherboard) Ethernet engine > described as "Broadcom NetXtreme Gigabit Ethernet Adaptor". The > BIOS screens accessible during booting don't provide much by > way of additional useful information, afaict. > The best thing to do is to look on the FreeBSD site and see if the hardware is supported: http://www.freebsd.org/releases/5.2R/hardware-i386.html > I am bringing up a slightly old FreeBSD -- 5.2 -- with hopes of > getting ethernet support up, plugging into a DSL line, and upgrading > over the net. > > Alas, 5.2 does not seem to detect the Ethernet engine. There is no > "/dev/bge", for example. Thus, I can't even get to the "upgrade" > step short of busting out an old modem :-) > > Help? I'm unfamiliar with: > > (i) how FreeBSD autodetects this kind of hardware > (ii) how to brute-force install a driver by hand and try to help > it find this hardware > The handbook also offers information in regards to the configuration file for recompiling the kernel with the driver in it, if the driver was not placed in the generic kernel. http://www.freebsd.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/books/handbook/kernelconfig.html The Handbook and the hardware requirements are also the CDs, if you are installing from that. > I am competent to rebuild the kernel if there is some config file > I ought to tweak although it's been a few years since I've done so -- > so hints about that process, if necessary, would be appreciated. > > Alternatively (but less desirably): if I scrape up my pennies and buy > a more recent distro will I have better results? > > Thanks, > -t > Have fun, Andy -- Andy Clements Chief Engineer C & H Software L.L.C. awc@candhsoftware.com