NE2000 Driver Manual Install

These instructions were included with the NE2000 compatible driver on Hobbes (\os2\32bit\network\ndis\ns2000.zip).

Note that the instructions below are completely irrelevant to our purposes since they are for IBM's LAPS setup routine. We are doing it the hard way, installing the driver manually :-).

Original text follows.

The two files included with this README document provide an OS/2 NDIS driver for the National Semiconductor NS2000 ethernet adapter, an NE2000-compatible adapter. The files included are NS2000.NIF and NS2000.OS2. You may want to store these files, along with this documentation, on a floppy disk for later use in case you need to restore the system.

I received these files from a person who claims that they are available on National Semiconductor's support BBS, wherever that is. All I know is that these files have ended my five-week quest to get IBM's TCP/IP for OS/2 working with my NE2000-compatible ethernet adapter.

INSTALLING THE DRIVER

I've only tested this driver with LAPS, as part of an IBM TCP/IP for OS/2 installation. All I had to do to install the driver is edit the NIF file, copy both files to my \IBMCOM\MACS directory, and configure LAPS to use the NS2000 driver. However, I should make clear right now that I don't know much about networking at the transport layer, so follow these installation instructions at your own risk.

1) Edit the NIF file.  You must be certain that three pieces of information in the NIF file   are correct: the file path, the interrupt, and the I/O base address.   (a) PATH: Under the [FILE] section of the NIF file, use the "Path" line to   specify the path where your other NDIS drivers are.  The default is:

Path = C:\IBMCOM\MACS

I'm not sure if the spaces around the "=" sign are important; it is   probably best to leave them there, just in case. If you installed to a disk other than drive C, or to a directory other than C:\IBMCOM\MACS, you should edit the Path line to specify the correct directory. If you aren't sure, look for a directory containing mainly *.NIF and *.OS2 files, probably in a directory called MACS.

(b) INTERRUPT: Under the [interrupt] section of the NIF file, use the "default" line to specify the interrupt, or IRQ, of your NE2000-compatible ethernet adapter. For example, my card runs on IRQ 10, so I've specified:

default = 10

If your ethernet adapter runs on an IRQ other than 10, edit the line to  specify the correct IRQ. IMPORTANT: be sure you are working under the [interrupt] section of the NIF file.

(c) I/O BASE ADDRESS: Under the [iobase] section of the NIF file, use the "default" line to specify the memory address that your NE2000-compatible ethernet adapter uses for I/O. You specify this number in hexadecimal notation. For example, my card uses address 320 hexadecimal, so I've   specified:

default = 320

If your ethernet adapter uses an address other than 320 hex, edit the line to specify the correct IRQ. IMPORTANT: be sure you are working under the [iobase] section of the NIF file.

2) Copy the edited NS2000.NIF and NS2000.OS2 to the directory you specified   in step 1(a), above.  Again, the default is the directory \IBMCOM\MACS on    your boot drive.

3) Change directory to the directory where LAPS is installed (normally the \IBMCOM directory on your boot drive) and start the LAPS configuration  program, LAPS.EXE.  When it starts, press the "Configure" button.  An   adapter configuration window appears.

(a) If you have previously tried to use another driver that didn't work, you should remove it from the list at the bottom of the configuration window before you install the new drivers. (b) Scroll through the list of NDIS drivers in the top-left pane of the configuration window until you find "NS2000 (NE2000-compatible)". Click on the NS2000 entry in the list to select it, then press the "Add" button under the drier list. You should see an entry for the NS2000 driver appear in the bottom pane of the configuration window.

(c) Scroll through the list of protocols in the top-right pane of the configuration window until you find a protocol (TCP/IP, for example) that you want to run on your ethernet adapter. Click on the protocol entry to   select it, the press the "Add" button under protocol list. You should see an entry for the protocol appear under the NS2000 entry in the bottom pane of the configuration window.

(d) Close the configuration window and exit LAPS.

(e) Shut down and reboot. Watch the screen for messages about the NS2000. If there are no error messages, your card should be up and running.