Re: [PATCH] add virtual PHY for PHY-less devices

[Sergej Bauer]

Hi Andrew

  To tell the truth, I thought that fixed_phy is only for devices with a Device
Trees and I never met DTS on x86 machines... 

So it looks like there realy no any significant advantage _except_ of
ability to use ethtool and ioctl to set speed and rx-all/fcs flags without
removing module. That was most wanted request from HW designers as they are
wanted to change registers of virtual PHY on-the-fly with ethtool either custom
tool (using SIOCSMIIREG ioctl) for controling PHY registers.

p.s. And that's my bad, the original driver was developed year ago (for 
linux-5.2.15),
but I had no time before this moment.


p.p.s. sorry for long time to answer but it's far behind the midnight in my 
region.

-- 
                                        Sergej


On Friday, September 18, 2020 1:15:47 AM MSK Andrew Lunn wrote:
> On Fri, Sep 18, 2020 at 12:40:10AM +0300, Sergej Bauer wrote:
> > From: sbauer@xxxxxxxxxxx
> > 
> >     Here is a kernel related part of my work which was helps to develop
> >     brand
> > 
> > new PHY device.
> > 
> >     It is migth be helpful for developers work with PHY-less lan743x
> > 
> > (7431:0011 in my case). It's just a fake virtual PHY which can change
> > speed of network card processing as a loopback device. Baud rate can be
> > tuned with ethtool from command line or by means of SIOCSMIIREG ioctl.
> > Duplex mode not configurable and it's allways DUPLEX_FULL.
> 
> Hi Sergej
> 
> What is the advantage of this over using driver/net/phy/fixed_phy.c
> which also emulates a standard PHY?
> 
>       Andrew