NETGEAR GA621 User manual

GA 621
MODEL
Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Card
Reference Guide

ii
© 2001 by NETGEAR,Inc.All rights reserved.
Trademarks
NETGEAR® is a registered trademark of NETGEAR,INC.in the United States and other countries.
Microsoft®,Windows® and Windows NT® are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Other
brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
Information is subject to change without notice.
All rights reserved.
Statement of Conditions
In the interest of improving internal design, operational function, and/or reliability,NETGEAR reserves
the right to make changes to the products described in this document without notice.
NETGEAR does not assume any liability that may occur due to the use or application of the product(s)
or circuit layout(s) described herein.
Certificate of the Manufacturer/Importer
It is hereby certified that the NETGEAR Model GA621 Gigabit Ethernet Cards have been suppressed in
accordance with the conditions set out in the BMPT-AmtsblVfg 243/1991 andVfg 46/1992.The opera-
tion of some equipment (for example, test transmitters) in accordance with the regulations may,however,
be subject to certain restrictions.Please refer to the notes in the operating instructions.
Federal Office forTelecommunications Approvals has been notified of the placing of this equipment on
the market and has been granted the right to test the series for compliance with the regulations.
VCCI Statement
This equipment is in the Class B category (information equipment to be used in a residential area
or an adjacent area thereto) and conforms to the standards set by theVoluntary Control Council for
Interference by Data Processing Equipment and Electronic Office Machines aimed at preventing radio
interference in such residential areas.
When used near a radio orTV receiver,it may become the cause of radio interference.
Read instructions for correct handling.
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Compliance Notice:Radio Frequency Notice
Note: Modifications to this device change it from the original state it was in when tested and
may alter the device so that it no longer complies with FCC testing limitations for Class B digital
devices.According to FCC regulations, the user could be prohibited from operating this equipment
if it is modified.

iii
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules.Operation is subject to the following two conditions:
1. This device may not cause harmful interference.
2. This device must accept any interference received,including interference that may cause undesired
operation.
Note:This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital
device,pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules.These limits are designed to provide reasonable pro-
tection against harmful interference in a residential installation.This equipment generates,uses,and
can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instruc-
tions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications.However,there is no guarantee that
interference will not occur in a particular installation.If this equipment does cause harmful interfer-
ence to radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on,
the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:
• Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
• Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
• Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is
connected.
• Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.
EN 55 022 Statement
This is to certify that the NETGEAR Model GA621 Gigabit Ethernet Card are shielded against the
generation of radio interference in accordance with the application of Council Directive 89/336/EEC,
Article 4a.Conformity is declared by the application of EN 55 022 Class B (CISPR 22).
Compliance is dependent upon the use of shielded data cables.
Canadian Department of Communications Radio Interference Regulations
These digital apparatus (NETGEAR Model GA621 Gigabit Ethernet Card) do not exceed the Class B
limits for radio-noise emissions from digital apparatus as set out in the Radio Interference Regulations of
the Canadian Department of Communications.
Règlement sur le brouillage radioélectrique du ministère des Communications
Ces appareils numériques (NETGEAR Model GA621 Gigabit Ethernet Card) respectent les limites de
bruits radioélectriques visant les appareils numériques de classe B prescrites dans le Règlement sur le
brouillage radioélectrique du ministère des Communications du Canada.

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Customer Support
For assistance with installing and configuring your NETGEAR system or with questions or problems
following installation:
• Check the NETGEAR Web page at http://www.NETGEAR.com.
• CallTechnical Support at the phone number listed on the Support Information Card that shipped
with your switch.
• EmailTechnical Support at [e-mail].
Defective or damaged merchandise can be returned to your point-of-purchase representative.
Internet/World Wide Web
NETGEAR maintains a World Wide Web home page that you can access at the universal resource locator
(URL) http://www.NETGEAR.com. A connection to the Internet and aWeb browser such as Internet
Explorer or Netscape are required.

contents v
CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1
Introduction
Benefits 1-1
Features 1-1
CHAPTER 2
HARDWARE INSTALLATION
Package Contents 2-1
Requirements 2-2
Hardware Description 2-5
Preparing to InstallYour GA621 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Card 2-6
InstallingYour GA621 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Card 2-7
Connecting the Network Cables 2-8
CHAPTER 3
Windows 95 OSR2/98/Me DRIVER SOFTWARE
Installing the Driver Software 3-1
Moving the Network Card to a Different Slot 3-6
CHAPTER 4
WINDOWS NT DRIVER SOFTWARE
Installing the Driver Software 4-1
Updating the Driver Software 4-7
Moving the Network Card to a Different Slot 4-8
CHAPTER 5
WINDOWS 2000 DRIVER SOFTWARE
Installing the Driver Software 5-1
Moving the Network Card to a Different Slot 5-6
Removing the Driver Software 5-7

contents vi
CHAPTER 6
NETWARE DRIVER SOFTWARE
Pre-Installation Requirements 6-2
Installing the Driver Software 6-2
Modifying Driver Properties 6-5
InstallationTroubleshooting 6-6
CHAPTER 7
LINUX DRIVER SOFTWARE
File Listing 7-1
Installing the Driver Software 7-2
Testing the Driver Software 7-3
Configurable Parameters 7-4
CHAPTER 8
TROUBLESHOOTING
Checking the Port LEDs 8-1
Using aTroubleshooting Checklist 8-2
APPENDIX A
SPECIFICATIONS
Cable Specifications GA621 (1000BASE-SX) A-1
Technical Specifications A-1
INDEX

contents vii
FIGURE
Figure 2-1. Front Panel of Model GA621 Gigabit Ethernet Card 2-5
TABLES
Table 2-1. Software and Hardware Requirements 2-2
Table 2-2. GA621 LEDs 2-6
Table 2-3. GA621 (1000BASE-SX) Cable Characteristics 2-8
Table 3-1. Parameter Descriptions 3-6
Table 4-1. Parameter Descriptions 4-6
Table 6-1. NetWare Device Installation Methods 6-1
Table 6-2. NetWare Support Files 6-2
Table 6-3. Parameter Descriptions 6-5
Table 7-1. Linux files 7-1
Table 8-1. GA621 (1000BASE-SX) Port LED Activity 8-1
Table 8-2. PCI BIOS Parameters 8-2

introduction 1-1
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
Congratulations on your purchase of the NETGEAR®GA621 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet
Card.Designed especially for high-performance systems,such as servers and high-end
workstations,it offers 2 gigabits per second (Gbps) of aggregate bandwidth and opti-
mized performance while minimizing network overhead on the host system.This guide
describes the installation and use of the GA621 for operation within a Microsoft®
Windows®95OSR2,Windows®98,Windows®NT,Windows®2000,Windows®Me,
Novell®NetWare,or Red Hat®Linux environment.
This chapter provides information about the features of the GA621.It connects
your PCI-compliant server or workstation to a Gigabit Ethernet network, incorporat-
ing a new technology that transfers data at a rate of 1 Gbps or 1000 megabits per
second (Mbps) over 62.5/125 or 50/125 Micron multimode fiber with SC
connectors.
Benefits
Performance is optimized and network overhead on the host system is minimized
with the use of the GA621 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Card.
The GA621 has demonstrated interoperability with all major Gigabit Ethernet equip-
ment on the market that is compliant with IEEE 802.3z standards. In addition,
because the GA621 uses standard Ethernet frame and Media Access Control (MAC)
formats,
it provides full compatibility with Fast Ethernet network equipment through network
switches from a variety of vendors,including NETGEAR.
Features
The key features of the GA621 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Card are:
• Full-duplex operation (2,000 Mbps:1,000 Mbps each way) with DMA (Direct
Memory Access) Gigabit Ethernet interface (IEEE 802.3z)

introduction 1-2
• Duplex SC fiber connector for 62.5-micron or 50-micron multimode fiber cable
• Interoperability with existing Fast Ethernet equipment compliance with the
following standards and protocols:
– IEEE 802.3z 1000BASE-SX Gigabit Ethernet
– IEEE 802.3u Fast Ethernet
• Standard Ethernet frame size (up to 1,518 bytes)
• Jumbo frames support
• 33/66 MHz,32/64-bit PCI bus master (Local Bus Revision 2.2 compliant)
with adaptive DMA channels
• Two independent DMA channels for simultaneous read and write operations;
as a bus master,the network card requests access to the PCI bus instead of
waiting to be polled
• Software driver support for Windows 95 OSR2,Windows 98,Windows NT,
Windows 2000,Windows Me,NetWare 4.2, 5.0,5.1, and Red Hat Linux 6.0, 6.1,
6.2,7.0 and 7.1.
• Universal dual-voltage signaling (3.3 V and 5 V)

CHAPTER 2: HARDWARE INSTALLATION
This chapter provides information about the package contents,system requirements,
and installation of the NETGEAR GA621 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Card.
Package Contents
The product package contains:
• GA621 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Card
•
GA621 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Card Driver and Documentation CD
• GA621 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Card Installation Guide
• Warranty & Registration Card
• Support Information Card
Call your reseller or customer support in your area if there are any wrong, missing,
or damaged parts.Refer to the Support Information Card for the telephone number
of customer support in your area.
Keep the Support Information Card, along with the original packing materials.
Use the packing materials to repack the GA621 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Card
if you need to return it for repair.
To qualify for product updates and product warranty registrations,fill out the
registration information within 30 days of purchase.For priority service, register
online on the NETGEAR Web page at:
http://www.NETGEAR.com
You can also fill out and return the Warranty & Registration Card that is included in
your product package.
hardware installation 2-1