Hi,

> > I have a Linux desktop for which lspci reports as having a realtek
> > 8110/8169. I could not install it via NFS so I popped in a 3COM card
> > and installed it with SL4.5. After installation, I tried to switch back
> > to the onboard LAN. I removed the 3com card and modified the network
> > config by editing/etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0 and
> > /etc/modprobe.conf. Basically replacing the ifcfg-eth0 with the correct
> > MAC address and modprobe.conf with the right driver. There is an r8169.ko in 
> > the /lib/modules which I believe is the correct driver because I used a 
> > sysrescuecd image on the box and it correctly detected the chipset, loaded 
> > r8169, and activated the card without any difficulty.
> >
> > When I try to do an ifup eth0, I get an error message saying that the
> > device has a different mac address than what was expected and it ignored
> > my attempt.  I'm stumped by this.    My understanding may be dated but
> > as far as I know the information to start the network correctly is in 
> > ifcfg-eth0 and modprobe.conf.  I notice that a modprobe r8169 does not 
> > generate any messages in dmesg.  So, it could be that r8169 is not the 
> > correct driver.  Except for the fact that sysrescuecd used this driver and it 
> > also has a 2.6 kernel.
> >
> > Can anyone shed any light on this?  Thanks
> 
> Just remove HWADDR line from ifcfg-eth0, it's not required.

Yes he's correct, but just so you know, the HWADDR line is required when:

* you need to have an IP go onto a specific NIC and 

* when the server may auto-assign PCI addresses to NIC's on boot

I personally always use HWADDR to guarantee that a NIC is on a specific IP, if
you don't use it you do stand the chance that an IP assigned in ifcfg-eth? can
go to a different physical NIC.

Regards,

Michael.