phil@amdcad.UUCP (Phil Ngai) (09/30/86)
I am trying to use MIT's pcip package with a Compaq Portable Model 2 (286, smaller box) with a 3com etherlink card (3c501? the new short dumb card). It won't talk to a VAX780 running vanilla 4.2 with an Interlan NI1010A. It will talk to any Valid workstation (they have 3com interfaces) or a couple of microvax IIs with DEQNAs or a 730/BSD4.2 with an NI1010A. Network Research's telnet does work, but I was interested in the mon program that MIT has. My theories are: 1) It's not a design problem with the NI1010A since the 730 works 2) It's not vanilla 4.2 since the 730 works. 3) It's not the Compaq or the 3c501 since NRC works. 4) It's not pcip since it talks to the 730. 5) It's not the 780 or its particular NI1010A since NRC works to it. One or more of my theories must be wrong since it does not work. Any suggestions?
ROMKEY@XX.LCS.MIT.EDU (John Romkey) (10/01/86)
If the 3C501 is connected to the ether via a DELNI the VAX has an Interlan transceiver, you will probably have problems. I've heard reports from a number of places that 3COM cards connected to DELNIs can't reliably talk to a number of vendors transceivers. (these are only *rumors*, mind you...) The problem is supposed to be that the ethernet chip used on the 3C501 doesn't grok heartbeat, and you can't get DELNIs not to do heartbeat. - john -------
leong@ANDREW.CMU.EDU (John Leong) (10/03/86)
I have no experience with the newer 3COM short dumb card. However, with the full length card, we have experience similar odd and flaky behaviour quite a while back (It work with some machine but not others). The problem turns out to be incompactibility between our transciever and the card. Most of our transciver are the Ethernet Rev 1 varitey. The 3COM card uses the SEEQ DQ8023 transceiver chip and is, by default, 802.3 variety. According to the SEEQ engineering sheet, one can select the SEEQ chip to work as Rev 1 mode by grounding PIN 10 (notch to your left : bottom set of pins : wire the first and last pins togther). We did that to all our 3COM board and the problem went away. We suggested to 3COM that they should provide a jumper but I don't think they have done anything. But, there again, that may not be your problem ..... John Leong leong@andrew.cmu.edu