6 hardware interfaces, `ifconfig -a` lists only 3?

**jago25_98** · 22-03-2005, 13:29

answer:

It's an unmanaged switch so you only got control of 3 interfaces:

eth0 = local
eth1 = WAN
eth2 = wireless

----
I just can't figure this out.
I have 5 ethernet holes on the back of my WL500G (one of which is WLAN) and a wireless port too. But when I run ifconfig -a I only get 3 interfaces; eth0, eth1 and eth2. (sit0 is IPv6 and br0 is a bridge).

What are the other interfaces? Even if the interfaces are not turned on I expected them to show up with the -a option.

Code:

[admin@(none) root]$ ifconfig  -a
br0       Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:0E:A6:CE:E2:37  
          inet addr:192.168.100.2  Bcast:192.168.100.255  Mask:255.255.255.0
          inet6 addr: fe80::20e:a6ff:fece:e237/10 Scope:Link
          UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
          RX packets:4865 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
          TX packets:5166 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:0 
          RX bytes:290631 (283.8 KiB)  TX bytes:731694 (714.5 KiB)

eth0      Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:0E:A6:CE:E2:37  
          inet6 addr: fe80::20e:a6ff:fece:e237/10 Scope:Link
          UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
          RX packets:4865 errors:14 dropped:0 overruns:4 frame:4
          TX packets:5479 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:100 
          RX bytes:378201 (369.3 KiB)  TX bytes:750512 (732.9 KiB)
          Interrupt:3 Base address:0x2000 

eth1      Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:0E:A6:CE:E2:37  
          inet6 addr: fe80::20e:a6ff:fece:e237/10 Scope:Link
          UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
          RX packets:0 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
          TX packets:28 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:100 
          RX bytes:0 (0.0 B)  TX bytes:16008 (15.6 KiB)
          Interrupt:4 Base address:0x8000 

eth2      Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:0E:A6:CE:E2:37  
          inet6 addr: fe80::20e:a6ff:fece:e237/10 Scope:Link
          UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
          RX packets:0 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:1
          TX packets:679 errors:1691 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:100 
          RX bytes:0 (0.0 B)  TX bytes:163918 (160.0 KiB)
          Interrupt:6 Base address:0x2000 

lo        Link encap:Local Loopback  
          inet addr:127.0.0.1  Mask:255.0.0.0
          inet6 addr: ::1/128 Scope:Host
          UP LOOPBACK RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:16436  Metric:1
          RX packets:664 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
          TX packets:664 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:0 
          RX bytes:75818 (74.0 KiB)  TX bytes:75818 (74.0 KiB)

sit0      Link encap:UNSPEC  HWaddr 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-00-00-00-00-00-00-00-00-00  
          NOARP  MTU:1480  Metric:1
          RX packets:0 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
          TX packets:0 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:0 
          RX bytes:0 (0.0 B)  TX bytes:0 (0.0 B)

[admin@(none) root]$

**Styno** · 22-03-2005, 13:57

Well, you've allmost found it yourself: The bridge is a bridge (duh) between a single ethernet interface on the processor and the unmanaged 4 port switch.

**jago25_98** · 22-03-2005, 14:24

ok, let's see if I can figure this puzzle out

brctl showbr br0 shows that eth0 and eth2 are bridged.

eth0 is probably all the ports on the back mixed into one as a hub (therefore probably not a switch). So we don't have OS access to each ethernet port (damn).

While eth2 must be the single ethernet interface on the processor.

This only leaves eth1.

Is eth1 the wireless interface or WLAN....

My guess is that WLAN is in with the hub, mixed in and represented as eth0

Basically what you're saying is that WLAN and the 4 LAN ports act almost as a seporate piece of hardware. But if this is so how is bandwidth management possible; if eth0 is just a hub then isn't that's seporate to the O/S

Also, it seems that if we differentiate the difference between the 4 LAN ports and the WLAN port then something outside the bounds of ifconfig is at work. Is this hardware or software? It is important since it is WLAN that I am personallu unable to use.

**Styno** · 22-03-2005, 14:47

Nope you're wrong about that conclusion:
eth0 = Local ethernet interface
eth1 = WAN ethernet interface
eth2 = Wireless interface

In router mode eth0 and eth2 are both connected to the bridge (br0) which is connected to eth1 (via iptables).

Bandwidth management is only useful on the WAN ethernet interface because thats the slowest connection on the router. Thats why Wondershaper and other scripts all use eth1 as interface.

Is eth1 the wireless interface or WLAN....

Wireless interface is the same as WLAN...

Also, the "unmanaged 4 port switch" is just what I said it is: An unmanaged switch with one uplink towards the processor, it is not a hub. Because it's an unmanaged switch you can't manipulate or access a single port on the switch.

**jago25_98** · 22-03-2005, 14:54

Struck gold!

http://openwrt.org/OpenWrtDocs/Hardw...%2FHardware%29

The WL-500G is based on the Broadcom 4710 board. It has a 125MHz CPU, 4Mb flash and 16Mb RAM. It has an USB v1.1 Port and a parallel port. No serial port, but a JTAG interface. The wireless NIC is a mini-PCI card. boot_wait is on by default. You can not configure the network switch to use different IP configurations for every LAN port. There are two network cards integrated, one for the 4 LAN ports and one for the WAN port.

**jago25_98** · 22-03-2005, 15:00

thanks Styno,

how did you know this?

**Jean-Fabrice** · 22-03-2005, 15:04

Didn't find such information here :
http://wl500g.info/forumdisplay.php?f=13

Broadcom datasheet link are given in this forum.

**Styno** · 22-03-2005, 15:11

Originally Posted by jago25_98

thanks Styno,
how did you know this?

I'm good friends with the search button

The info posted by me in this topic has allready been posted in this forum before.

**jago25_98** · 22-03-2005, 16:17

search can only be used if you know the words to search for;

telling someone to `google` for an answer is no good if you don't give them any words to search with. that is a pet hate of mine

**Styno** · 22-03-2005, 17:26

Try finding a book, of which you do not know the name yet, in a library when the only thing you know is the main character' name....Answer: Type the character' name into the search field of the library computer. Its the same as on the internet I guess.

**jago25_98** · 22-03-2005, 18:06

lord help me

**Styno** · 22-03-2005, 18:18

Originally Posted by jago25_98

lord help me

oh, yes!

LMAO

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