Hey folks,

I've admittedly got a non-standard setup with my home network, but I've got a little bit of a bizarre connectivity problem.

I'm connected to my cable service through cable modem, and home-made router -- done with FreeSco. The router box has 4 NICs in it, one for the router, and three for our home computers. Of course, all the computers are connected to the router's NICs through crossover cables.

Recently been having connectivity problems and suspected it's my 40 ft crossover, or the onboard NIC in my box. I've redone the connections on the cable over and over again, trying to debug this problem.

The long cable will get me connected usually without problems (I'm posting this through it) but I will get no "link" light when connected from this box to the router.

When I connect the cord to a different machine and the router, the link lights up.

However the cable still works and I'm able to connect...

Any ideas?

mii-tool tells me link is ok, and I'm able to contact DHCP service on the router to get an IP.

The connection will intermittantly drop sometimes..

Any ideas?

-Shade

Check for wiggle in the cable. That's where you watch the light as you wiggle the RJ45s, or whatever they are. Also, make sure your card is seeded adequately, in whichever box it is/switch ports, etc.

Other than that, it's entirely possible that your onboard NIC is going bad. My roommates just went bad on him and he's only had the comp for about 6 months or so...rare - yes, impossible - no.

Well, I tried the wiggle test..
But like I said, I get the link when I put the cable between any two boxes BUT mine and the router.

-Shade