Updated Fedora Core 6 Distribution fails to enable E1000 Ethernet device using 2.6.19 kernels

[Terry Barnaby]

Hi Alex,

Sounds exactly the same problem I am having.
Anaconda uses an initrd on the CD for initial boot just like a PXE boot.

In my case I have just changed the kernel package back to a 2.6.18 and
all worked fine. Note that I have also booted the same 2.6.19 kernel
using a PXE boot and used busybox to bring up the system with no problems.

So there is more to it than just the kernel. Seems like a nash/kernel
interaction problem ....

Cheers

Terry

Alex Aminoff wrote:
> 
> The error message you report and the fact that it worked in 2.6.18 but 
> not 2.6.19 sounds similar to a bug that I reported:
> 
> https://bugzilla.redhat.com/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=225479
> 
> I wonder if Anaconda actually mounts the CD as its root file system, or 
> if anaconda runs from some sort of initrd, which would make this 
> behavior similar to what we have with diskless booting.
> 
> If it is the same bug, that is a pretty good indication that the problem 
> has to do with the kernel or a loadable ethernet driver module, rather 
> than mkinitrd.
> 
>  - Alex
> 
> On Fri, 23 Feb 2007, Terry Barnaby wrote:
> 
>> Hi,
>>
>> I am trying to create an updated Fedora Core 6 distribution with all 
>> of the package updates to date and then install this across a network 
>> using a simple boot CD and NFS. I am using the 
>> "/usr/lib/anaconda-runtime/buildinstall" program to do this.
>>
>> Generally this was working fine until I tried to update to the 2.6.19 
>> kernel. Now when I boot from the CD the Anaconda installer attempts to 
>> configure the E1000 Ethernet interface with DHCP but fails.
>>
>> In the Alt-F3 VT there are messages stating "send_packet: Network is 
>> down". The E1000 driver appears to have been loaded however.
>>
>> If I rebuild the distribution with a 2.6.18 kernel everything is fine.
>> So is there some issue between Anaconda, the 2.6.19 kernels and the 
>> E1000 network interface ?
>>
>> Is there a way of enabling the debug login shell on "Alt-F2" at this 
>> stage of boot so I can track down the problem further ?
>>
>> Cheers
>>
>>
>> Terry
>>
>>
>