Back to Contents Page

Troubleshooting: Broadcom NetLink®/NetXtreme® 57XX User Guide

Hardware Diagnostics

Checking for Network Link and Activity

Checking if Current Drivers are Loaded

Running a Cable Length Test

Testing Network Connectivity

Software Problems and Solutions

Note: For additional information, go to Broadcom Ethernet NIC Frequently Asked Questions at http://www.broadcom.com/drivers/faq_drivers.php.

Hardware Diagnostics

Loopback diagnostic tests are available for testing the adapter hardware. These tests provide access to the adapter internal/external diagnostics, where packet information is transmitted across the physical link (for instructions and information on running tests in an MS-DOS environment, see User Diagnostics; for Windows environments, see Running Diagnostic Tests in Broadcom Advanced Control Suite 3).

Checking for Network Link and Activity

See Testing the Network or Viewing Vital Signs to check the state of the network link and activity as indicated by the port LEDs.

Checking if Current Drivers are Loaded

Linux

To verify that the tg3 driver is loaded properly, run: 

lsmod

If the driver is loaded, a line similar to the one below is displayed, where size is the size of the driver in bytes, and n is the number of adapters configured.

Table 1: Linux
Module
Size
Used by
TG3
size
n

Running a Cable Length Test

In Windows environments, a cable test is run. See Analyzing Cables for information about running a cable length test.

Testing Network Connectivity

Note: When using forced link speeds, verify that both the adapter and the switch are forced to the same speed, or that at least one link partner is configured for auto-negotiation.

Linux

To verify that the Ethernet interface is up and running, run ifconfig to check the status of the Ethernet interface. It is possible to use netstat -i to check the statistics on the Ethernet interface. Go to Linux Driver Software for information on ifconfig and netstat.

Ping an IP host on the network to verify connection has been established:

From the command line, type ping IP address, and then press ENTER.

The ping statistics that are displayed indicate whether the network connection is working or not.

Software Problems and Solutions

Problem: The following message is received when attempting to deploy a RIPREP image through Remote Installation Services (RIS): "The operating system image you selected does not contain the necessary drivers for your network adapter. Try selecting a different operating system image. If the problem persists, contact your administrator. Setup cannot continue. Press any key to exit."

Solution: This problem is not isolated to the Broadcom adapter. However, based on several inquiries, we are publishing the following instructions based on other customers successfully working around this issue:

  1. Place the Broadcom driver files in the original image folder (the image folder created when risetup.exe was executed for the first time).

    2. Example: 

    i:\RemoteInstall\Setup\English\Images\(Original Image)
  2. Place the Broadcom driver files in the i386 subfolder under the original image folder.

    3. Example: 

    i:\RemoteInstall\Setup\English\Images\(Original Image)\i386
  3. Place the Broadcom driver files for the network adapter in the RIPREP Image folder.

    4. Example: 

    i:\RemoteInstall\Setup\English\Images\(RIPREP Image)
  4. Place the Broadcom adapter drivers in the i386 subfolder where the RIPREP Image is located.

    5. Example: 

    i:\RemoteInstall\Setup\English\Images\(RIPREP Image)\i386

The Microsoft Knowledge base articles listed below were used as a reference for the following instructions:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;254078

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;246184

  1. Create the following path and place all Broadcom driver files in ..\(RIPREP Image)\$oem$\$1\Drivers\network
  2. Edit the riprep.sif file located in ..\(RIPREP Image)\i386\Template to include the following information under the [Unattend] section:
    3. OemPreinstall = yes

    OemPnPDriversPath = "Drivers\network"

    DriverSigningPolicy = Ignore
  3. Create the following path and place all Broadcom driver files in ..\(Original Image)\$oem$\$1\Drivers\nic
  4. Edit the ristndrd.sif file located in ..\(Original Image)\i386\templates to include the following information under the [Unattend] section:
    5. OemPreinstall = yes

    OemPnPDriversPath = "Drivers\nic"

    DriverSigningPolicy = Ignore
  5. Restart the Remote Installation service. This can be performed from a command line with the following commands: 
    6. net stop binlsvc

    net start binlsvc
How to Add a Third-Party OEM Network Adapter to a RIS Installation

Problem: An error is encountered when attempting to load the Broadcom device driver for a 32-bit version of Windows XP, or later operating system, using a Windows 2000 Remote Installation Server: File b57w2k.sys caused an unexpected error (21) at line 3752 in d:\xpsp1\base\boot\setup\setup.c.

Solution: A modification to the b57win32.inf file can be made to allow for the installation to complete successfully. This will be in conjunction with instructions from the Microsoft Knowledge Base Article 315279 that describe "How to Add Third-Party OEM Network Adapters to RIS Installations."

Requirement: The Windows 2000 Server must be running Service Pack 3 or later.

  1. Obtain the latest driver for your Broadcom adapter. The driver files included for the Broadcom 57xx adapter are b57win32.inf, b57win32.cat, and b57xp32.sys.
  2. Create a copy of the b57win32.inf and b57xp32.sys files and save them in a separate folder called RIS. This allows you to distinguish them from the original.
  3. For the b57win32.inf file located in the RIS folder, make the following change using a text editor like Notepad:
    1. Locate [Manufacturer] within the file.
    2. Review the line below which reads: %BRCM% = Broadcom, NTx86.5.1, NTamd64.
    3. Modify that line to read: %BRCM% = Broadcom.NTx86.5.1, NTamd64. (The change replaces the comma and the space after "Broadcom" with a period.
    4. Save the file.
  4. On the RIS server, copy the b57win32.inf and b57xp32.sys files from the RIS folder to the RemoteInstall\Setup\Language\Images\Dir_name\i386 folder. This allows Setup to use the driver during the text-mode portion of the installation.
    1. At the same level as the i386 folder on the RIS image, create a $oem$ folder. Use the recommended structure: \$oem$\$1\Drivers\Nic
    2. Copy the original b57win32.inf, b57xp32.sys, and b57win32.cat driver files to this folder.
    3. Make the following changes to the .sif file that is used for this image installation: 
      4. [Unattended]

      OemPreinstall = yes

      OemPnpDriversPath = \Drivers\Nic

      Stop and then restart the Remote Installation service on the RIS server. To do this, type the following from a command prompt: 

      net stop binlsvc

      net start binlsvc
Using the System Preparation Tool

Problem: I want to be sure that my Broadcom NetXtreme adapter works properly if I use the System Preparation utility (Sysprep.exe) to install an existing configuration on my system.

Solution: On the Sysprep.inf file, modify the [Unattend] header as shown below: 

[Unattend]
OemPnPDriversPath=Drivers\Net
OemPreinstall = Yes

The driver files for the Broadcom NetXtreme adapter must reside in this folder, which is located on the system drive (where the operating system resides). If other drivers are to be loaded, then Drivers\Net can be appended to the paths listed and separated by a semicolon:

Example: 

OemPnpDriversPath=Drivers\Video;Drivers\Net

For Windows XP, the driver files to be included are B57win32.inf, B57win32.cat, and B57xp32.sys.

For Windows 2000, the driver files to be included are B57win32.inf, B57win32.cat, and B57w2k.sys.

The Sysprep utility must run with the –pnp switch, which enables the system to rescan for new devices that can be added during the mini-setup.

A Sample Sysprep.inf file for Windows XP is shown below. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------

;SetupMgrTag
[Unattended]
OemSkipEula=Yes
OemPreinstall=Yes
TargetPath=\Windows
UnattendedInstall=Yes
OemPnpDriversPath=Drivers\Net

[GuiUnattended]
AdminPassword="password"
EncryptedAdminPassword=NO
AutoLogon=Yes
AutoLogonCount=99
OEMSkipRegional=1
OEMDuplicatorstring="XP System"
TimeZone=4
OemSkipWelcome=1

[UserData]
FullName="User"
OrgName="Organization"
ComputerName=*

[SetupMgr]
DistFolder=C:\sysprep\i386
DistShare=whistlerdist

[Identification]
JoinDomain=workgroup

[Networking]
InstallDefaultComponents=Yes

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Broadcom Boot Agent

Problem:
Unable to obtain network settings through DHCP using PXE.
Answer:
For proper operation make sure that the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) is disabled or that portfast mode (for Cisco) is enabled on the port to which the PXE client is connected. For instance, set spantree portfast 4/12 enable.

Miscellaneous

Table 2: Miscellaneous  
Problem
Solution
Although installed, the Broadcom Advanced Control Suite 3 (BACS) application does not start and an error message appears.
.NET Framework 2.0 is required for BACS 3 to operate. Install .NET Framework 2.0.
Large Send Offload (LSO) stopped working since updating the 32-bit Windows XP operating system to Service Pack 2.
 
Microsoft's implementation of the Windows Firewall feature included in Service Pack 2 appears to cause LSO to stop working correctly. Microsoft provide the solution to this problem in Knowledge Base article 842264. If the problem persists, you may need to run the latest Windows update in order for this feature to begin working again. Specifically, the security update available at the following link should re-activate the LSO capability of our adapter: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=81049a86-6f39-4a27-a643-391262785cf3&DisplayLang=en.

Back to Contents Page