ptx/LAN V4.8.0 Release Notes


Introduction

These release notes support Version 4.8.0 of the ptx/LAN software intended for use with NUMA® systems. ptx/LAN consists of hardware and software that can interconnect a variety of data-communication devices to create a local area network (LAN).

Read this document before you install or run this release of ptx/LAN.


Product Compatibility

This version of ptx/LAN can be used with the following products:

To determine which versions of layered-software products, such as ptx/TCP/IP and ptx/NFS®, will run with this release of ptx/LAN, refer to the specific product's release notes.


What Is New in This Release

This release of ptx/LAN includes the following new features:


Support for Extended Frame Size on SysKonnect Gigabit Boards

This release of ptx/LAN supports extended frame size (also called "jumbo frames") on SysKonnect Ethernet Gigabit boards, which allow you to send oversized Ethernet frames over high-speed links. The traditional maximum size of an Ethernet frame is 1518 bytes, but jumbo frames can reach up to sizes of 9018 bytes. This increased maximum frame size results in increased throughput due to the fewer number of frames (and fewer CPU interrupts and less processing overhead). Use of jumbo frames is limited to high-speed, full duplex Ethernet links on a subnetwork on which all other devices support jumbo frames.


ATTENTION

Because of open software defect 254028, contact Customer Service to request a patch if you wish to implement jumbo frames on SysKonnect Ethernet Gigabit boards.


To determine if a board is a SysKonnect, issue the ethstat -i command and look in the second column for the board type associated with each device.

To implement jumbo packets on the SysKonnect boards, update the ptx/ADMIN menu forms "Manage Station" and "Set Boot Time Parameters." See the ptx/LAN Administration Guide or the ethadmin(1M) man page for more information.


ATTENTION

ptx/TCP/IP requires that you select SNAP headers when configuring a SysKonnect device for use with ptx/TCP/IP.



Support for TCP/IP Checksum Performed by the Hardware

TCP/IP checksum, defined in RFC793 "Transmission Control Protocol," is a 16-bit ones complement checksum encapsulated within the TCP/IP or UDP/IP frame. The calculation and encapsulation of this checksum into the frame is now performed by the LAN adapter hardware itself, freeing the system CPUs from having to do this. Consequently, this reduces the system load and improves overall performance. This feature is automatically enabled on various LAN adapters that support it; currently, support is only provided for the SysKonnect Gigabit Ethernet board.


Software Installation

For installation instructions on DYNIX/ptx V4.6.0 or later, refer to the DYNIX/ptx and Layered Products Software Installation Release Notes.


Product Documentation

The following documentation is available on the online documentation CD and at http://webdocs.numaq.ibm.com/:

ptx/LAN Administration Guide
ptx/LAN Programming Manual
ptx/LAN Kernel Error Messages

Problem Report Summary

This section lists the following problem report summaries:

The numbers in parentheses identify the problems in the problem-tracking system.


Fixed Problems in ptx/LAN V4.8.0

The following problems have been fixed in this release of ptx/LAN:


Open Problems in ptx/LAN V4.8.0

The following problems have been reported against this release of ptx/LAN:

254028
Selecting jumbo frames with the Set Boot Time Parameters menu does not work correctly. After rebooting, the SysKonnect Gigabit Ethernet board(s) will have normal frames, even if the /usr/etc/lan/config.eth file specifies jumbo frame size.

Workaround. If you want to use jumbo frames with SysKonnect Gigabit Ethernet boards, contact Customer Service to request a patch.

241032
If you do not specify the speed for either the 32-bit PCI or VME fast Ethernet devices, pe and fe respectively, the devices themselves will determine the software speed at which they should run. This software algorithm is not perfect and the device may select the wrong speed.

Workaround. Select the correct speed using either the ethadmin command or the ptx/ADMIN menu system:

/usr/etc/ethadmin -speed [10|100] /dev/net/device

Network Administration-> LAN Management-> Ethernet Management-> Manage Station

To permanently select the speed, even if the system reboots, use the Set Boot Time Parameters menu instead of the Manage Station menu.


ATTENTION

This workaround is not required for the 64-bit Ethernet device.


253985
SysKonnect gigabit Ethernet board does not fail over with lanstandby(1M).

Workaround. Do not configure a standby device for this board. Instead, reset the device manually via ethadmin(1M) if there is a problem with it.