Re: ppp connection with Demon
I got my PPP connection to Demon to work, eventually. My experience is on line at http://www.rano.demon.co.uk/demon.html. (I'm not sure it helps particularly with the problems described in this thread, however.) I got get-news to work yesterday, but I'm still working on nntpsend, so if anyone has any advice on that I'd be interested ... Edmund
Re: ppp connection with Demon
Tom Bowles <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > Incidentally it's not just receiving and sending data that is > slow. There is also a 20-30 second delay between sending the modem > initialisation (and phone number for that matter) strings and > getting any response. Could it be something to do with the serial > interface itself. I am now about 100 miles from anything I know > anything about, but it's a hell of a lot more interesting than > windows. I think you may be onto something here - since you're getting data, but there are serious timing delays (that you're certain aren't caused by Demon being slow - that is, delays even in the init strings), you may have the wrong IRQ set on your serial device, or there may be some conflict in IRQ settings. Do a: setserial /dev/modem (or /dev/ttyS1, or /dev/WhateverYourModemIs) and note the results. Since you are getting data, the port setting is correct and the UART listed is correct or close enough. The IRQ, however, may well be wrong. If you have some other OS in which the modem works well, you could look at the device information for the modem there. Once you have the correct IRQ for your modem, you'll want to edit /etc/rc.boot/0setserial down around lines 25-30 and fix the information there. You can then as root run /etc/rc.boot/0setserial and try your modem again. Is the modem a plug-and-play internal modem? If so, look at using the isapnptools to set up the modem. (You'll have to run one program to dump out the configuration info. on your modem, edit that file to suit your needs, and then run another program on the edited file to set the configuration in your modem - once you get the config. the way you want it, putting it into /etc/isapnp.conf will have it used at boottime - but there's much more info. in the isapnp docs) Note that if you have an external modem that calls itself plug-and-play, this doesn't actually mean anything. (Well, not anything that you care about with regards to setting up your modem for linux) If the modem is an internal one with switches/jumpers, you'll need to look at it and your modem manual to determine what IRQ it's set to. (If you've lost the modem manual, you might want to check the manufacturer's web site). If it's an external modem, then the IRQ's are probably 4 for /dev/ttyS0 (aka com1) and 3 for /dev/ttyS1 (aka com2). However, some machines (like mine) have BIOSes which can alter this, so that the built-in com ports use IRQ's 4 and 12. Check your BIOS's setup menu. DANIEL MARTIN p.s. What are all these settings: IRQ, io port (sometimes called just "port") and the UART number? Well, UART is just a number that identifies the type of chip controlling the serial device. The kernel needs to know this so that it can know how large a buffer the device has, what speeds it supports, how it reports line conditions (like hardware flow control), etc. UART type can usually be detected automatically. The most common UARTs are the 16550, 16550A, and 16650. This number is something specific only to serial devices. The io port and IRQ require a very brief explanation of how the processor gets data from other devices in the system. Essentially, all devices in the system are connected to one set of wires called the data bus. The processor, when it wishes to send or get data, will set some wires to identify the "address" it wishes to access, a wire to indicate whether this is a read or a write, and will then either set the relevant data wires for a write or assume that whatever device responds to this address has set their state as soon as it requested the read and will then read the data wires. (this is oversimplified, but you get the idea). Anyway, the io port is the address the processor uses to get and send data to the modem. (actually, serial devices generally need 8 consecutive address; you specify only the first one - this is why this will sometimes be called the "base io port address" or "io base"; these ports are used not only to send and receive data but also to set/get status information) You can see what devices use which io ports on your system by doing "cat /proc/ioports". Now, when a device needs to tell the processor something (like "incoming data" or "my output buffer is empty, you could send more"), the device can't force the processor to do a read. Instead, what the device does is raise a signal saying in essence "pay attention to me". It does this through an "Interrupt ReQuest", or IRQ. There are, I believe, only 16 of these lines available and several are allocated to system things (like the separate chip that controls the clock, or the keyboard, or the internal line used to signal floating point math errors). With an IRQ set incorrectly, the processor would not realize that there was incoming data on the modem - this could cause the unbelievably slow response time you seem to have. You can find out which devices use which irq lines by doing "cat /proc/interrupts".
Re: ppp connection with Demon
Perhaps I can help you a bit: 1) PPP HOWTO and /usr/doc/ppp/* help a lot. 2) You might did it already, but one thing to do when trying to test the connection is to log in as root. This way you can eliminate problems that can rise because of unsatisfactory permitions untill after you know you can establish the connection. > > I have never used linux before, so I'm groping around a bit. > > I am trying to connect to Demon Internet using a chatscript. The server = > is able to use either PAP or text-based login, but I got furthest with = > text-based. I set ppp up with pppconfig and I have checked the = > /etc/ppp/peers/Demon it created and the chatscript it refers to. > I have a static IP address but when pon gets to the IP entry in = > peers/Demon it says " command not recognised" or = > something like that. > I have tried making the connection with minicom, which happens really = > slowly (I don't know how fast it should go). I got the connection speed = > back (56K) and the server's address then: > login: > password: > protocol: (I entered "ppp") > host: (my username) IP: (my IP, which is static) > ppp begun at (something) mail maintenance completed. routing problems = > with (something or other) fixed. finger (an address) for info. L" > and it stops there. If ppp was being set up, I would have seen some = > garbage wouldn't I? > Since it tells me my address anyway, I removed the IP address from = > peers/Demon and tried pon again. This time it got through the login = > sequence, including the protocol bit, then (plog) said serial connection = > established. ifconfig only showed loopback. After a while plog said that = > "LCP timeout sending config requests". At no point could I use anything = > that needed a ppp connection. 3) It seems to me that you can't establish a ppp connection because /etc/ppp/options or /etc/ppp/peers/Demon does not contain the correct switches. Perhaps you can try to read pppd man page and /etc/options to learn what flags are needed for your connection. > > I'm confused and I'd be very grateful for any help. > 4) Try to enable debugging info and learn from that what is wrong. Maybe debugging info + trying different pppd switches can help you solve your problem. 5) Sending debugging info to the list can help others to isolate the problem.
Re: ppp connection with Demon
Thanks very much to Roland Hinkley for sending me his chatscript, but still no luck I'm afraid. When I use minicom, the message I get back says 57600, so I suppose I should have a nice fast connection but I don't. It takes about 20 seconds after the login prompt before the password prompt comes up. After the information has been given, I have to wait until I receive 'HELLO', which comes after a welcome message. The modem hangs up before the welcome message is complete, so maybe it is just taking too long. Does this mean I have to enter the alien world of modem initialisation strings? The ones I have tried are ATZ and AT&F, from Roland's chatscript. I have spoken to the Demon helpdesk, and everything seems to be in place as far as their login is concerned. Incidentally it's not just receiving and sending data that is slow. There is also a 20-30 second delay between sending the modem initialisation (and phone number for that matter) strings and getting any response. Could it be something to do with the serial interface itself. I am now about 100 miles from anything I know anything about, but it's a hell of a lot more interesting than windows. Tom Bowles
ppp connection with Demon
I have never used linux before, so I'm groping around a bit. I am trying to connect to Demon Internet using a chatscript. The server is able to use either PAP or text-based login, but I got furthest with text-based. I set ppp up with pppconfig and I have checked the /etc/ppp/peers/Demon it created and the chatscript it refers to. I have a static IP address but when pon gets to the IP entry in peers/Demon it says " command not recognised" or something like that. I have tried making the connection with minicom, which happens really slowly (I don't know how fast it should go). I got the connection speed back (56K) and the server's address then: login: password: protocol: (I entered "ppp") host: (my username) IP: (my IP, which is static) ppp begun at (something) mail maintenance completed. routing problems with (something or other) fixed. finger (an address) for info. L" and it stops there. If ppp was being set up, I would have seen some garbage wouldn't I? Since it tells me my address anyway, I removed the IP address from peers/Demon and tried pon again. This time it got through the login sequence, including the protocol bit, then (plog) said serial connection established. ifconfig only showed loopback. After a while plog said that "LCP timeout sending config requests". At no point could I use anything that needed a ppp connection. I'm confused and I'd be very grateful for any help. Tom Bowles
