[U-Boot] Query: Ethernet switch support

[Sharma Bhupesh-B45370]

Hi Albert,

Thanks for your reply.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Albert ARIBAUD [mailto:albert.u.boot at aribaud.net]
> Sent: Monday, July 29, 2013 10:27 PM
> To: Sharma Bhupesh-B45370
> Cc: 'u-boot at lists.denx.de'
> Subject: Re: [U-Boot] Query: Ethernet switch support
> 
> Hi Sharma,
> 
> On Mon, 29 Jul 2013 15:33:39 +0000, Sharma Bhupesh-B45370
> <B45370 at freescale.com> wrote:
> 
> > Hi List,
> >
> > I am trying to add support of a Vitesse L2 switch in u-boot (in
> unmanaged configuration).
> > I was analyzing whether advanced features like flow control,
> > link-aggregation etc are required to be supported for a L2 switch
> working in a u-boot bootloader level.
> >
> > My point-of-view is that the L2 switch, should support only
> > bare-minimum tftp of images, ping to other ethernet entities, bootp ..
> > type of commands on u-boot and as such the L2 switch u-boot driver
> > doesn't need to address flow-control and other such advanced features
> > (probably of interest for a Linux device driver).
> >
> > But, I am not sure about the design approaches used to support
> > previous switch modules in u-boot.
> >
> > Also I had a query whether there is a common switch framework
> > in-place/under-consideration in u-boot, similar to what is already
> present in OpenWrt code:
> > https://dev.openwrt.org/browser/trunk/package/boot/uboot-lantiq/patche
> > s/0019-net-switchlib-add-framework-for-ethernet-switch-driv.patch?rev=
> > 35292
> >
> > Would porting this to u-boot make sense to have a common framework for
> > ethernet switch in-place?
> >
> > Can you please let me know your views on the same and point me to any
> > reference switch drivers that support these features.
> 
> There is some support for switches in U-Boot (e.g. mv88e61xx) but no
> framework that I know of; and I suspect what is expected from the switch
> in U-Boot is that it does not hamper Ethernet operations, nothing more.
> for mv88e61xx, this is done through a fixed configuration.
> 

In my use-case also the L2 switch is supposed to be configured via a
fixed configuration (setting up the switch in an unmanaged configuration).

I will try to have a look the mv88e61xx example and then formulate something
on similar lines.

Regards,
Bhupesh