Autobooting limitation on .3 ? : kernel 2.4 detect mac address unset after rebooting

It faults, I guess, because of bootd behavior. Explanation:

(I've set bootcmd with my bootm command, and everything that's fine in my environnement (serverip, ethaddr, ..) and had a saveenv. )

* When I've finished updating my rootfs via tftpboot, I do a boot which does what bootcmd variable stores, that's to say, a bootm on a flash adr.

Kernel is runing all right, see :
.
.
eth0: Link now 100-FullDuplex
eth0: AT91 ethernet at 0xfefbc000 int=24 100-FullDuplex (12:34:56:78:99:AA)
eth0: Davicom 9196 PHY (Copper)
.

Then I can execute this command, all right :

# ifconfig eth0 192.168.0.5 up && echo Ok || echo Ko
Ok
#

* After this, on rebooting my board via a reboot command (or even with a pushbutton reset) to test autoboot functionnality on reboot, kernel starts but it seems it can't retrieve my mac addr. :
.
.
eth0: Link now 100-FullDuplex
eth0: AT91 ethernet at 0xfefbc000 int=24 100-FullDuplex (00:00:00:00:00:00)
eth0: Davicom 9196 PHY (Copper)
.

So naturally I can't execute my ifconfig :

# ifconfig eth0 192.168.0.5 up && echo Ok || echo Ko
SIOCSIFFLAGS: Cannot assign requested address
SIOCSIFFLAGS: Cannot assign requested address
Ko
#

This is always reproductible, but never happens after my rootfs update.

I've found a temp. solution : run a ping command on serverip or simply adding it to bootcmd like this :
bootcmd=ping $(serverip);bootm 0x10020000

It seems "net commands" update environnement or something like that. If no net commands is executed before the boot/bootd command, then it could be a reason why kernel is fed with a left blank, wrong mac addr. value.

Any ideas on more reliable way-to or better way to make it work ?

Thanks in advance

Mathieu Deschamps.

No. The problem is that you irgored to read the FAQs.

...

Yes. Please read the FAQ:
http://www.denx.de/twiki/bin/view/DULG/EthernetDoesNotWorkInLinux

Best regards,

Wolfgang Denk

Software Engineering:  Embedded and Realtime Systems,  Embedded Linux
Phone: (+49)-8142-66989-10 Fax: (+49)-8142-66989-80 Email: wd at denx.de
"The pathology is to want control, not that you ever get it,  because
of course you never do."                            - Gregory Bateson