Dennis HilkLinux diagnosticsDE

Ethernet & networking

Intel 82540EM

A classic Intel gigabit controller handled by e1000. This identity is also frequently presented by virtual machines, so a PCI match does not prove that a physical Intel card is installed.

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 device constant names 100e as 82540EM. Subsystem IDs, the enclosing PCI topology and whether the system is virtual still matter when identifying an actual board.

Curated identifiers
pci 8086:100e

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

The e1000 PCI table includes 100e. e1000e is a different driver family and is not the candidate established by this table; use the bound-driver field before diagnosing missing modules.

  • e1000 — kernel driver/module candidate

Detected, bound, operational: learn the difference

Firmware

No host payload established here

No host-loaded firmware filename was established for this profile in the reviewed driver sources. EEPROM/NVM on the adapter is separate from files installed in the operating system.

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 [8086:100e] and Kernel driver in use. e1000 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: e1000.

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

Guest-reported gigabit capability can reflect an emulated adapter and says nothing about host uplink throughput. A live link also does not establish DHCP, routing or DNS operation.

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.