Every time I boot up my Windows 95 workstation, I get a series of error messages.
Articles and Tips: qna
01 Sep 1997
Q.
Dear Ab-end: very time I boot up my Windows 95 workstation, I get a series of error messages like the following:
Command Line Parameter Prompt for 3C589 Do you want to load another frame type for a previously loaded board? n [O]k [C]ancel
If I type in "Y" for Yes, the workstation hangs. If I press Enter or "N" for No, I get the same message two more times. I'm using Novell's NetWare Client 32 with ODI drivers for my 3Com network adapter. I am also loading Microsoft's TCP/IP driver. Any clues as to why I am receiving these error messages?
-- Knocking Three Times in Orlando
A.
Dear Knocking: Both of these problems are related to how Novell's ODI drivers work with NDIS protocol stacks such as Microsoft's TCP/IP and Microsoft's IPX/SPX-compatible protocol. When you install Client 32 and choose to load ODI drivers, Novell loads an additional driver, called ODINSUP, to support NDIS protocols. If you Alt+click on Network Neighborhood, you will see two drivers loaded: the network adapter driver and the Novell ODINSUP driver.
Here's the catch. To function properly, the ODINSUP driver needs all frame types to be enabled. In an Ethernet environment, that means all four Ethernet frame types must be enabled on the workstation for ODINSUP to function. If you or your network administrator has limited the number of frame types the workstation is able to use, ODINSUP will not load properly. You can check this by Alt+clicking on the My Computer icon, then selecting the Device Manager tab and clicking on the Network Adapters icon. If there is an exclamation point through the Novell ODINSUP driver, the driver did not load properly.
Knocking, the reason you are seeing the command line messages asking if you want to load another frame type is because the adapter driver loads once for each frame type. The first time the driver loads, it finds the first adapter and loads using the first frame type specified. The second time the driver loads, it needs to know if you want it to load the second frame type on the same adapter or on a different adapter. This happens when the adapter is not uniquely identified using a slot number for example. Specifying a slot number for the adapter tells the driver that you want to load all of the frame types on the same adapter and will eliminate the command line parameter prompt messages.
By the way, if you type Y for Yes, the driver should load re-entrantly for the same adapter. If it hangs when you type Y, the adapter driver may need to be updated or it may continue to hang after you specify a slot number. To specify a slot number for the adapter, Alt+click on the Network Neighborhood and double-click on the network adapter driver to bring up the Properties page. Then select the Advanced tab, select Adapter Slot Number, and specify a value in the Value entry box. Often, entering a slot number of 1 will work. However, if it is not appropriate for your driver, the next time the workstation boots, the driver will return a message that indicates a valid slot number to use. If you see this message, note the valid slot number and enter it in the Value entry box.
While viewing the Properties of the network adapter driver, verify that all of the frame types are enabled. On the Advanced tab, select each of the Frame Types under the Property column. You should see the frame type displayed under the Value column. For Ethernet, Frame Type 1 should be Ethernet_802.2, Frame Type 2 should be Ethernet_SNAP, Frame Type 3 should be Ethernet_II, and Frame Type 4 should be Ethernet_802.3.
With these fixes in place, reboot your system and the error messages should go away. If the Netscape problem does not go away, you probably do not have a legitimate IP address, subnet mask address, gateway address, or DNS address (if your network is using such a thing). Consult your TCP/IP manager for such corrections.
* Originally published in Novell AppNotes
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