What serial card to use?

[Soren Aalto <soren@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> 
> [snip]
> > Hmm, running 8 stock-standard RS232's could be problematic.  The
> > cyclades driver is really stable and mature, and support is good.
> 
> With 14 deep FIFO's and speeds not exceeding 9600, it shouldn't
> be a problem interrupt wise to go with a dumb card. I should be
> getting a card today on loan that is
> (a) dumb
> (b) pci, 8 port rs232, shared irq
> (c) cheap (<R1.5K?)
> (d) claims to support linux and should do so with standard drivers
> I hope.
> (e) has 16554 uarts

I actually remember when IAfrica (the original Claremont PoP) was:

- a mustek P100 running Slackware with 2 x 2 port RS232
cards with a 16552 uart.
- connected to 4 x USR 33.6 modems
- running @ 38.4

In fact, you couldn't get configurable 2 port ISA
serial cards, and I recall that Steve had cut one of
the traces on a card to rejumper the IRQ. 

So presumably you are ok running 38.4 on 4 ports.

I have a similar setup here at U of Z.  The only problem
I have had is that many "configurable" ISA serial port
cards just don't work when setup as COM3/COM4.  I even
had one that worked for awhile and then stopped.  And
try getting your average seller of home PCs with Windows 95
to grok this.

I'm replacing the string-n-sealing wax system above
with a Cyclades 8YoEP card...soon as it comes.  But
I have to take a picture of it before I get rid of
it...it is so ugly that it's actually a work of art
with DB25 backplate connectors dangling out of the
box, etc.  The dialup box here is still running
RH4.2, seems to have been running since  Nov 1997
and has been much more reliable than the local
UUNet PoP during that time.

I'm just hoping that rebuilding the box and installing
a pppd from a more recent era will get rid of nagging
problems I have with *some* Windows clients.  Some
Win95 machines just do not want to talk to the box.
And some working machines have been rendered non-talking
by installing software upgrades.  Dunno what.  Had
a local school that was working fine, somebody
came in an installed Wingate and now they cannot
login anymore.

Don't ask me -- pppd/diald and IPmasq for the
Win98 laptop at home work just fine.


--
Soren Aalto <soren@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Internet guy, University of Zululand 
If Bill Gates had a nickle for every time
Windows crashed...oh wait, he does.