From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 From: Alan Cox Subject: Re: [PATCH 1/5] remove TxStartThresh and RxEarlyThresh Date: Sun, 15 Oct 2006 23:59:20 +0100 Message-ID: <1160953160.5732.88.camel@localhost.localdomain> References: <1160855725.2266.1.camel@localhost.localdomain> <1160947597.22522.3.camel@localhost.localdomain> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Cc: Jesse Huang , linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org, netdev@vger.kernel.org, akpm@osdl.org, jgarzik@pobox.com Return-path: Received: from outpipe-village-512-1.bc.nu ([81.2.110.250]:25579 "EHLO lxorguk.ukuu.org.uk") by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id S1161192AbWJOWdF (ORCPT ); Sun, 15 Oct 2006 18:33:05 -0400 To: Benjamin Herrenschmidt In-Reply-To: <1160947597.22522.3.camel@localhost.localdomain> Sender: netdev-owner@vger.kernel.org List-Id: netdev.vger.kernel.org Ar Llu, 2006-10-16 am 07:26 +1000, ysgrifennodd Benjamin Herrenschmidt: > On Sat, 2006-10-14 at 15:55 -0400, Jesse Huang wrote: > > From: Jesse Huang > > > > Change Logs: > > For patent issue need to remove TxStartThresh and RxEarlyThresh. This patent > > is cut-through patent. If use this function, Tx will start to transmit after > > few data be move in to Tx FIFO. We are not allow to use those function in > > DFE530/DFE550/DFE580/DL10050/IP100/IP100A. It will decrease a little > > performance. > > Somebody patented FIFO thresholds ? Gack ? 3COM hold several patents on certain kinds of early interrupt/early start for network FIFOs. At least historically they also had a GPL Linux driver that didn't use that feature on their own cards which I'm told was fear of patent "leakage" Alan