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Is anyone planning to develop 100mbit ethernet for prop2 with UDP and TCP/IP etc? — Parallax Forums

Is anyone planning to develop 100mbit ethernet for prop2 with UDP and TCP/IP etc?

Teva McMillanTeva McMillan Posts: 11
in Propeller 2
I have a project I would like use to prop2 for in that does not need ethernet now but later 6 months - 1 year from now will need ethernet. I would like to include pins for 100mbit daughterboard for prop2 or just include all the layout stuff needed to support 100mbit and just add the components later once I need it for the next phase of my project. I was going to use prop 1 for my project buy prop2 is a better me for due to ADC and DAC builtin. But there is a 2nd phase where I having 100mbit would be VERY useful, but its too much of project for me to implement the 100mbit ethernet myself. So I thought I would see who is planning on working on this and see if I can just include pins for daughterboard or just layout all the parts on my circuit board for a design someone is planning to develop.

Comments

  • cgraceycgracey Posts: 14,133
    This is my friend Teva who does professional laser and projection shows around the world. He interned at Parallax when he was 15.
  • potatoheadpotatohead Posts: 10,253
    Hey Teva! :D
  • pedwardpedward Posts: 1,642
    edited 2018-10-01 06:25
    Too bad Parallax can't hire me to work on this stuff, I'd jump on it in a heartbeat if the medical was good and the salary was there ;)
  • roglohrogloh Posts: 5,158
    edited 2018-10-01 06:55
    I used to develop a lot with a myriad of Network Processors in my Silicon Valley life 15 years ago and back then I am sure this would have been a fun thing to have tried with the P2 streamer and for doing other things to packets in transit. If you can spare the IO pins you might be able to at least interface to a Fast Ethernet PHY using MII or RMII and do the MAC functionality in the P2. RMII at 50MHz uses 9-10pins between the MAC and PHY. A P2 operating at 200MHz might be the sweet spot for doing RMII. Haven't looked at whether the P2 could do any of the PHY stuff in its smartpins. But it's probably best to use a standard PHY device for proper standards compliance.
  • Heater.Heater. Posts: 21,230
    This might not be a popular opinion around here but I feel that once one gets into the world of ethernet and networking in general its time to adopt a Linux running SoC to do that. Together with a Propeller to do the hard real-time stuff.

    On the other hand I recall that someone got crude communications over ethernet using UDP working on the P1. Presumably it will be easier using the P2.

    On the other, other, hand there are things like the wiznet devices that can be used to add networking capability to micro-controllers https://www.wiznet.io/product-item/w5100/
  • roglohrogloh Posts: 5,158
    edited 2018-10-01 07:29
    @Heater. Yep. Use of Wiznet with its sockets does also free you from needing a real IP stack, which is a whole other can of worms to sort out. But for anyone really interested in Ethernet packets and networking stuff and want to test the limits of what a P2 can do this would likely be a fun/challenging project to try. If I had the time I might even be tempted myself but that's unlikely at this time.
  • Peter JakackiPeter Jakacki Posts: 10,193
    I will probably be improving my Ethernet servers on the P2 with the W5500 which I have had working on P1 and P2 for a few years now. But of course that is in Tachyon so it doesn't count :)

    However I would like to hook up some PHYs that I have and tackle Ethernet at the packet level. Now, that will be some fun!
  • Heater.Heater. Posts: 21,230
    If you can arrange to drive an ethernet PHY from a P2 then one could be crazy enough to run the TCP/IP networking stack on the Propeller itself.

    The Contiki operating system has been doing this on 8 bit 6502's (Commodore 64) for years now: https://www.c64-wiki.com/wiki/Contiki

    I believe it's written in C so a Propeller port sounds possible.
  • roglohrogloh Posts: 5,158
    Heater. wrote: »
    I believe it's written in C so a Propeller port sounds possible.

    Or for the extra bonus points, write and use a Forth based IP stack such as -

    https://www.mpeforth.com/powernet.htm

    Guessing Peter might already be considering something like that?
  • Teva McMillanTeva McMillan Posts: 11
    I dont see why Tachyon would not count. Seems like Peter's solution will likely be the first one to work.
    WIZ850io seems like way to go, I can leave space to mount that later and route the spi pins to prop2.
    -Teva

  • MJBMJB Posts: 1,235
    Teva McMillan wrote: »
    I dont see why Tachyon would not count. Seems like Peter's solution will likely be the first one to work.
    WIZ850io seems like way to go, I can leave space to mount that later and route the spi pins to prop2.
    -Teva

    you did see this?
    https://forums.parallax.com/discussion/157167/iot5500-p8-ethernet-server-lan-ant-ultra-compact-module

    and this?
    https://forum.wiznet.io/t/topic/1448
  • MicksterMickster Posts: 2,610
    I was looking at this thing, the other day because I also want WiFi.

    http://tibbo.com/store/modules/em2000.html
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