Seeking input from the device-driver community as well!
----- Forwarded message from [EMAIL PROTECTED] ----- > To: [email protected] > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Date: Fri, 02 Mar 2007 09:54:45 -0500 > Subject: NIC administration desirables.. > X-PMX-Version: 5.2.0.264296 > X-Authentication-warning: quasimodo.East.Sun.COM: sowmini set sender to > [EMAIL PROTECTED] using -f > User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.13 (2007-01-26) > Original-recipient: rfc822;[EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > > Has anyone noticed how there are periodic questions of the sort > "how to configure property <foo> on nic <bar>?" Usually these > questions are related to NIC customization for features like Jumbo > Frames, and the questions demonstrate how painful it is to administer > our NICs. > > We seem to adopt any (sometimes all :-() of the methods below on Solaris: > > (a) driver.conf(4) with the additional problem that the syntax > for each driver is not standardized or documented > (b) ndd(1M) with the drawback that ndd can only be used to set/get > a subset of scalar parameters, and the settings are not persistent across > reboot, > (c) via obp on sparc, > (d) kstat (1M) can be used to read existing configuration for some > parameters > > All this makes NIC configuration a very confusing process > even for internal developers. > > We are trying to come up with a user-friendly solution for this problem > using some of the newer tools like dladm (which is being used for WiFi > and Trunking configuration), and we are seeking feedback from customers. > > Any input you may have, including answers to the questions below, are > welcome. > > - Please provide a short (1-2 line) overview of your networking environment. > > - do you frequently change or upgrade your network interface cards? Do > you otherwise modify existing NIC configuration and/or tweak the tunables? > If yes, how frequently do you do these tasks? > > - What tools/commands do you use to administer NICs? > Are you currently satisfied with the existing tools? > > - What do you like/dislike about existing methods? Please be as > specific as possible. > > - What are the typical NIC tunables/properties that you examine most of > the time? Please indicate whether you merely 'get' (i.e., read-only > info) existing values for the property, or tune it (i.e., read/write). > > - Do you have custom scripts executed at boot time that set ndd parameters? > > - Do you write custom device drivers? If yes, do you use the GLDv3 framework? > Note that the Brussels project proposes the following: > provide a simpler cleaner interface for GLDv3 drivers via dladm. The > GLDv3 drivers will provide function pointers for setting/getting > properties when they register with the GLDv3 framework. Subsequently, > dladm can be used to send the appropriate system calls to trigger the > registered set/get functions. > More details are available at http://opensolaris.org/os/project/brussels/ > Please provide any input you may have on the proposal above. > > - Do you use Link Aggregation ("Trunking") or WiFi? > > - Do you use dladm as a configuration tool, i.e., have you ever used > the "dladm set-linkprop" feature? If yes, what do you > like/dislike about this interface? > > - Would you be interested in a GUI for dladm? What sort of features would > you like to see in a GUI? > > ----- End forwarded message ----- _______________________________________________ driver-discuss mailing list [email protected] http://mail.opensolaris.org/mailman/listinfo/driver-discuss
