LPI Linux Certification in a Nutshell, 2nd Edition

Objective 4: Configuring PCMCIA Devices

PCMCIA devices have historically been handled fairly well by Linux. For the most part, they will just work as long as your system has the right drivers. If you have a problem, follow the troubleshooting steps given in this section.

PCMCIA hardware is detected when the OS boots. PCMCIA devices are manufactured to relatively strict standards and generally run into few problems. On Red Hat systems, PCMCIA is supported by a module called kernel-pcmcia-cs. Debian-based systems use the pcmcia-cs module. Your PCMCIA devices often require a package called hotplug. This package is responsible for providing a daemon that can:

• Recognize card insertions and removals as events to be acted upon

• Load and unload drivers whenever an event is recorded

• Allow hot swapping of cards

• Provide the necessary modules for proper recognition of PCMCIA cards

The cardmgr process is watching your PCMCIA/PC-CARD slots. If it sees a 32-bit PC-CARD, the process ignores it. Instead, the kernel hotplug system picks up the insertion event and handles the card. Both cardmgr and hotplug will load the kernel driver module appropriate for the inserted card and then configure it according to the administrative settings. When the card is removed, the driver is taken down and unloaded. Unlike with Windows, you can safely remove cards without telling the operating oystem about it first. But sometimes you may want to. For example, if the device is a network card, you may want to release ...