Computers that support CardBus adapters have one or more CardBus slots, referred to here as slots 1 and 2. CardBus controller chip sets such as the TI1250, TI1251, TI1450, and others provide the CardBus interface and control the slots.
In order for communications programs to use a CardBus adapter, the adapter needs to be activated and configured. There is more than one way to activate and configure a CardBus adapter. Each way has its advantages and disadvantages. Point enablers and Card and Socket Services are two of the methods used to activate and configure the IBM 16/4 Token-Ring CardBus Adapter for particular environments.
Point enablers are small programs that activate the CardBus adapter and configure it for use with a device driver. They accomplish their goals with the help of the CardBus controller and are typically designed to support a particular type of controller. You use a point enabler in the DOS and OS/2 environments. Two point enablers are supplied with the IBM 16/4 Token-Ring CardBus Adapter.
| Note: | When using a point enabler, make sure that the system resources used by the CardBus adapter are different from and do not conflict with other system resources. |
The advantage of using point enablers is that they use no memory. Point enablers remove themselves from memory after configuring the CardBus adapter.
The disadvantages of using point enablers include:
The DOS point enabler (CBENABLE.EXE) is supported on CardBus-capable models of the IBM ThinkPad laptop computer. Additionally, you must use the IBMTRP.DOS NDIS 2 MAC driver version 2.06 or later in conjunction with the point enabler. The DOS point enabler can configure only a single 16/4 Token-Ring CardBus Adapter and is provided to support adapter diagnostics and remote unattended installation. If necessary, you can use the instructions in this section to modify the DOS point enabler configurations that are already included on the adapter diagnostics and remote unattended install diskette images. For more information about adapter diagnostics, see Running adapter diagnostics. For more information about remote unattended installation, see Remote unattended installation of Windows NT, Windows 95 OSR2, Windows 98, and Windows 2000 Professional.
The CONFIG.SYS file invokes the DOS point enabler. You must add a DEVICE= statement to the CONFIG.SYS file to configure the adapter. Additionally, the DEVICE= statement invoking the point enabler must precede the DEVICE= statement that loads the IBMTRP.DOS device driver.
The following table displays the parameters you can specify in the DOS
point enabler DEVICE= statement:
| Parameter | Explanation | Default value |
|---|---|---|
| SLOT=n | Specifies the CardBus slot containing the adapter to configure. SLOT=1 refers to the first socket found and SLOT=2 refers to the second socket found. On many IBM ThinkPads, SLOT=1 is the topmost slot. | SLOT=1 |
| MEM=n | Specifies the physical memory address block mapping. This mapping is only used during execution of the enabler. It is unmapped before the enabler finishes executing. | MEM=D0000 |
| IO=n | Specifies the port I/O address block assignment | IO=F200 |
| IRQ=n | Some early CardBus-capable IBM ThinkPads (ThinkPad 760 models) may require the addition of this parameter on the DEVICE= line of the DOS point enabler. The value specifies the requested IRQ level for the CardBus adapter to use. A possible value for n is any available IRQ level in the range 0x3 - 0xF. | N/A |
The following are examples of CONFIG.SYS device= statements to use in various situations:
To configure a single IBM 16/4 Token-Ring CardBus Adapter installed in either of the system's CardBus slots, using the default parameters:
DEVICE=CBENABLE.EXE
Two IBM 16/4 Token-Ring CardBus Adapters, one installed in each of the system's CardBus slots. To configure the adapter installed in the second slot, specifying the parameters to use:
DEVICE=CBENABLE.EXE /SLOT=2 /MEM=D4000 /IO=F100
The OS/2 point enabler (CB_PEOS2.SYS) operation is supported only on the IBM ThinkPad Model 600 series of laptop computers. This point enabler can be used only with the IBMTRP.OS2 NDIS 2 MAC driver Version 2.04 or later.
To use the OS/2 point enabler, you must add a separate DEVICE= statement in the CONFIG.SYS file for each IBM 16/4 Token-Ring CardBus Adapter to configure. The DEVICE= statements for the point enablers must precede the DEVICE= statement that loads the NDIS 2 device driver (IBMTRP.OS2).
The following table displays the parameters you can specify in the OS/2
point enabler DEVICE= statement:
| Parameter | Explanation | Default value |
|---|---|---|
| SLOT=n | Specifies the expansion socket containing the adapter to configure. SLOT=1 refers to the top socket. SLOT=2 refers to the bottom socket. | SLOT=1 |
| MEM=n | Specifies the physical memory address block mapping | MEM=D0000 |
| IO=n | Specifies the port I/O address assignment | IO=5000 |
The following are examples of CONFIG.SYS device= statements to use in various situations:
To configure a single IBM 16/4 Token-Ring CardBus Adapter installed in either expansion slot, using the default parameters:
DEVICE=CB_PEOS2.SYS
To configure two IBM 16/4 Token-Ring CardBus Adapters using the default parameters for the adapter installed in the top expansion socket, and specifying the parameters for the adapter installed in the bottom expansion socket:
DEVICE=CB_PEOS2.SYS DEVICE=CB_PEOS2.SYS /SLOT=2 /MEM=C8000 /IO=F200
To configure two IBM 16/4 Token-Ring CardBus Adapters, specifying the parameters for both:
DEVICE=CB_PEOS2.SYS /SLOT=1 /MEM=D4000 /IO=F200 DEVICE=CB_PEOS2.SYS /SLOT=2 /MEM=C8000 /IO=F100
Socket Services is a BIOS-type interface that provides a way to gain access to the CardBus sockets (slots) of a computer. It identifies how many sockets your computer has and detects the insertion or removal of a CardBus adapter while the computer is switched on. It has an interface to Card Services. Socket Services is part of the PCMCIA Specification.
The manufacturer of the computer usually provides the Socket Services device driver, because the driver must understand the computer's BIOS and PCMCIA controller.
When Socket Services detects that the CardBus adapter is inserted, this software management interface allows automatic allocation of system resources, such as memory, interrupts, slots, and I/O ports.
Card Services requires Socket Services. The Card Services interface is usually provided with the operating system.
The advantages of using Card and Socket Services include:
The disadvantage of using Card and Socket Services is that it is a stay-resident program that uses system memory. The amount of memory it uses varies, according to the type of CardBus adapter support and the drivers used.