[clug] Linux on Asus P5GD1 motherboard

[Alex Satrapa]

Dear Kees,

Thankyou very much for documenting your experience with this  
motherboard. I was having all the problems that you've documented  
with getting IDE drives to be recognised by the PITA ITE 8212  
interface, Linux 2.6.12 not recognising the gigabit-Ethernet card, etc.

Although it already comes up first link on Google when I searched for  
"Asus P5GD1 Linux", I figure another link won't hurt.

If only I'd found your page before the hardware was delivered, I  
would have cancelled the order!

To everyone on the CLUG mailing list and other readers:

To anyone who reads this message (especially if you came here from  
Google): I would recommend that you avoid this motherboard like the  
plague. The Asus P5GD1 is - in my opinion based on my experience - a  
heap of stinking poo.

This motherboard has two ATA systems on-board - a single channel IDE  
interface, and the ITE 8212 Serial/Parallel-ATA "RAID" interface  
("WinRAID" is probably a better description) along with a Marvell  
Technologies gigabit Ethernet controller.

Output from lspci includes:
0000:00:1f.1 IDE interface: Intel Corp. 82801FB/FBM/FR/FW/FRW (ICH6  
Family) IDE Controller (rev 03)
0000:01:03.0 Unknown mass storage controller: Integrated Technology  
Express, Inc. IT/ITE8212 Dual channel ATA RAID controller (PCI  
version seems to be IT8212, embedded seems (rev 13)
0000:02:00.0 Ethernet controller: Marvell Technology Group Ltd.:  
Unknown device 4362 (rev 15)

I have not yet managed to get the system to provide Linux with access  
to a single P-ATA hard drive plugged into the ITE RAID controller -  
this is probably understandable. I cannot get more than one device  
working on the separate P-ATA interface. Yes, you read that right - I  
cannot figure out how to connect devices to the single standalone P- 
ATA interface in such a way that I can have a hard drive and a CD-ROM  
together in this machine at the same time (that is, I can't get the  
BIOS to believe that there are two devices there). Perhaps I should  
just ignore the BIOS and see if Linux can detect both devices after  
it has booted from whichever device it can see?

Since the machine has a 3Ware Escalade installed, my next mission  
will be to get the machine to simply boot off the 3Ware and totally  
ignore (as best it can) all the rubbish on the motherboard. At the  
same time, I'll be talking to the vendor (Canberra Wholesale  
Computers, used to call themselves Cougar) about whether there is  
another (non-Asus) motherboard available that will support the  
processor, memory and 3Ware card that I already have in these systems.

This motherboard caused me that much grief that I will most likely  
avoid Asus products in the future unless the person selling me the  
complete system can show it running my operating system of choice.  
What was Asus thinking when they released this heap of garbage? I  
can't boot off a CD to install an operating system on to a single  
hard drive! Surely that would be a basic check in the design phase  
before they even committed to mass produce the product? It's enough  
to make me want to switch to using a Mac...

Alex Satrapa             M: +61 4 0770 5332
grail at goldweb.com.au     W: http://homepage.mac.com/alexsatrapa



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