kernel network drivers vs module network drivers

[Ludwig Schwardt]

Hi,

On Sun, 3 Aug 2003, Mike Grommet wrote:

> well, as I plod further into this adventure, I've discovered that the machines I'm using
> for clustering have built in SiS network cards, which have a kernel module for their
> use..

I had exactly this problem with the NVidia nForce2 computers we are using. It
only has a proprietary closed-source kernel module for the NVidia onboard NIC.
In other words, it cannot be built into the kernel. I solved it by patching
make-fai-bootfloppy to support initrd, allowing you to preload any network
kernel module beforehand. It grew a bit out of hand, since I also added the
option to override DHCP settings by manually configuring the network interface
during bootup (useful when the sysadmin hasn't updated the DHCP server yet, or
for once-offs like home computers).

If you haven't bought new network cards yet and this could still help, I'll be
glad to send the scripts along (or for anyone else that could use it). I must
just make sure what it depends on at the moment (I hacked busybox a bit too...)

> d) if so, can anyone suggest decent cheapies?  Cost is definately a factor

I'm happy with the RTL8139 chipset - that's our cheapie network card of choice.
And yes, cost matters to me too. Why buy a grand network card with PXE etc. if
you can get a great value-for-money board like the nForce2 ones? Well, if you
can live with the drivers...

Ludwig Schwardt
DSP Lab
University of Stellenbosch
South Africa