[gentoo-embedded] Marvell switch 6131 and the DSA driver

[gentoo-embedded] Marvell switch 6131 and the DSA driver

[Kfir Lavi]

Hi,
I'm not able to register to netdev, so I'm asking here.
Something is wrong with the mailing list server there.

There is driver for Marvell switches in the kernel:
Networking support  --->
 Networking options  --->
  Distributed Switch Architecture support  --->
    --- Distributed Switch Architecture support
    [*]   Marvell 88E6060 ethernet switch chip support
    [*]   Marvell 88E6131 ethernet switch chip support
    [*]   Marvell 88E6123/6161/6165 ethernet switch chip support

I have an evaluation board from Marvell that connects for now via USB.
lsusb shows the switch, but the kernel don't activate the DSA driver
for this switch.
Reading the drivers code, I see just mentioning of mii_bus.
It seems that the kernel doesn't make the connection between the
device found on the USB bus, and the DSA driver in the kernel.
There are usb wireless dongles, so I assume the kernel know how
to handle network hardware on top USB.
Can someone help me understand this?

Thanks,
Kfir

Re: [gentoo-embedded] Marvell switch 6131 and the DSA driver

[Manuel Lauss]

On Tue, Jan 18, 2011 at 8:49 PM, Kfir Lavi <lavi.kfir@gmail.com> wrote:
>    --- Distributed Switch Architecture support
>    [*]   Marvell 88E6060 ethernet switch chip support
>    [*]   Marvell 88E6131 ethernet switch chip support
>    [*]   Marvell 88E6123/6161/6165 ethernet switch chip support
>
> I have an evaluation board from Marvell that connects for now via USB.
> lsusb shows the switch, but the kernel don't activate the DSA driver
> for this switch.
> Reading the drivers code, I see just mentioning of mii_bus.
> It seems that the kernel doesn't make the connection between the
> device found on the USB bus, and the DSA driver in the kernel.
> There are usb wireless dongles, so I assume the kernel know how
> to handle network hardware on top USB.
> Can someone help me understand this?

mii is a bus between a network controller ("mac") and one or more phy chips,
to manage link properties.

do you have a manual for the board? what does it say about what you can
do with the usb link?


Manuel

Re: [gentoo-embedded] Marvell switch 6131 and the DSA driver

[Kfir Lavi]

On Tue, Jan 18, 2011 at 10:17 PM, Manuel Lauss
<manuel.lauss@googlemail.com> wrote:
> On Tue, Jan 18, 2011 at 8:49 PM, Kfir Lavi <lavi.kfir@gmail.com> wrote:
>>    --- Distributed Switch Architecture support
>>    [*]   Marvell 88E6060 ethernet switch chip support
>>    [*]   Marvell 88E6131 ethernet switch chip support
>>    [*]   Marvell 88E6123/6161/6165 ethernet switch chip support
>>
>> I have an evaluation board from Marvell that connects for now via USB.
>> lsusb shows the switch, but the kernel don't activate the DSA driver
>> for this switch.
>> Reading the drivers code, I see just mentioning of mii_bus.
>> It seems that the kernel doesn't make the connection between the
>> device found on the USB bus, and the DSA driver in the kernel.
>> There are usb wireless dongles, so I assume the kernel know how
>> to handle network hardware on top USB.
>> Can someone help me understand this?
>
> mii is a bus between a network controller ("mac") and one or more phy chips,
> to manage link properties.
>
> do you have a manual for the board? what does it say about what you can
> do with the usb link?
>
>
> Manuel
>
>
We have configured this board via USB using windows, so I guess I
should be able to use the board over USB.

Kfir

Re: [gentoo-embedded] Marvell switch 6131 and the DSA driver

[Peter Stuge]

Kfir Lavi wrote:
> > do you have a manual for the board? what does it say about what
> > you can do with the usb link?
> 
> We have configured this board via USB using windows, so I guess I
> should be able to use the board over USB.

You should be able to also configure the board over USB using Linux
of course. But if Windows with vendor software did not expose a
networking interface for the switch then Linux probably also can not.

I find it very likely that the USB interface is only for
configuration and not actual network packets.

It is definately possible to have USB network interfaces, but that
is not something that would be built-in to a switch. Can you look at
the board and identify some chips? If not, maybe you can post a
high-resolution photo where chip markings are visible? Then people
with good experience from the chips could help you identify what
chips are being used, and make some informed guesses about
capabilities of the different interfaces.

(Assuming that there is no information about what you can and can not
do in documentation or otherwise available from the vendor, in which
case that would of course be a much more efficient source of
information. :)


//Peter

Re: [gentoo-embedded] Marvell switch 6131 and the DSA driver

[Kfir Lavi]

On Wed, Jan 19, 2011 at 12:30 AM, Peter Stuge <peter@stuge.se> wrote:
> Kfir Lavi wrote:
>> > do you have a manual for the board? what does it say about what
>> > you can do with the usb link?
>>
>> We have configured this board via USB using windows, so I guess I
>> should be able to use the board over USB.
>
> You should be able to also configure the board over USB using Linux
> of course. But if Windows with vendor software did not expose a
> networking interface for the switch then Linux probably also can not.
>
> I find it very likely that the USB interface is only for
> configuration and not actual network packets.

Yes you right. Windows also see it as a Marvel evaluation board
but not a network interface. When using Marvell's software on
Windows, then we see that the port is using SMI
(which is the configuration interface).

>
> It is definately possible to have USB network interfaces, but that
> is not something that would be built-in to a switch. Can you look at
> the board and identify some chips? If not, maybe you can post a
> high-resolution photo where chip markings are visible? Then people
> with good experience from the chips could help you identify what
> chips are being used, and make some informed guesses about
> capabilities of the different interfaces.
>
> (Assuming that there is no information about what you can and can not
> do in documentation or otherwise available from the vendor, in which
> case that would of course be a much more efficient source of
> information. :)
>
I'm not able to do that, as we are signed on NDA with them, and I just
don't know what is right and what is wrong.

I just wanted this to work over usb as a quick hack, but I think I'll wait
for it to be soldered to my cpu.

>
> //Peter
>
>

Regards,
Kfir