Dennis HilkLinux diagnosticsDE

Ethernet & networking

Broadcom BCM5720

This NetXtreme/Tigon3 controller identity uses tg3. It is different from the NetXtreme II and NetXtreme-E generations, even when an OEM inventories all of them simply as Broadcom Ethernet.

Editorial source review: Share public profileOpen in the identification tool
On this page
  1. Overview & identity
  2. Driver & binding
  3. Firmware
  4. Read-only diagnostics
  5. Limitations & related issues
  6. References

Overview & identity

The checked TG3 constant maps 165f to BCM5720. Subsystem details are still needed for a specific server LOM, add-in card or management-wiring description.

Curated identifiers
pci 14e4:165f

A numeric match establishes a candidate family within the reviewed evidence. Marketing names, board variants, subsystem conditions and successful operation remain separate questions.

Driver & binding

tg3 has the exact entry. Its firmware selection is conditional on ASIC/revision and feature paths; the module-wide list of tigon blobs must not be applied indiscriminately to BCM5720.

  • tg3 — kernel driver/module candidate

Detected, bound, operational: learn the difference

Firmware

Device/revision dependent

tg3 declares external blobs for selected other ASIC/feature paths, but no BCM5720-specific filename was established. Adapter NVM and the actual startup log are more precise than the whole module firmware list.

Inspect firmware packaging on your distribution

Read-only diagnostics

Run one displayed command at a time. Replace uppercase placeholders with the affected device, interface or module from your own output. Commands are never executed here. Read-only output can still contain private identifiers.

Check the PCI function and bound driver

lspci -nnk -s BDF

Replace BDF with the domain:bus:device.function address. Look for [14e4:165f] and Kernel driver in use. tg3 in Kernel modules is only a candidate, not proof of binding.

Identify the network interface driver

ethtool -i INTERFACE

Replace INTERFACE with the real interface name. Driver and bus-info connect this interface to its device. A displayed firmware-version is adapter information; it does not prove a file was loaded. Candidate: tg3.

Compare supported modes with the current link

ethtool INTERFACE

Supported/advertised link modes describe capability or negotiation offers. Speed, Duplex and Link detected describe the current link, not measured throughput. An unsupported query is a limitation of the interface/driver.

Separate PCIe transport from Ethernet speed

sudo lspci -vv -s BDF

Elevated access may be needed. Root can expose the full PCI configuration. If PCIe capabilities exist, compare LnkCap with LnkSta: maximum and negotiated PCIe speed/width are different from Ethernet speed. Legacy PCI or virtual functions may omit these fields.

Limitations & related issues

A firmware filename printed by modinfo describes the module family, not necessarily a request made for this device. Board NVM and firmware-provided management can remain relevant even without a host-loaded file.

These guides are linked for relevant observations, not as known defects of every device in this family.

Choose a hardware diagnostic workflow · Inspect a log excerpt in Fix Lab

References

Source review records a checked implementation or document, not a reproduced hardware test. Version-specific tables do not establish a minimum kernel or guaranteed operation.