IRQ Blocked by another device?

[Gandalf2041]

I've tried posting this issue at the Gentoo Forums but, so far, I haven't had any luck. I thought I would try here as well as I have had pretty good luck in the past. I would GREATLY appreciate a hand on this.

http://forums.gentoo.org/viewtopic.php?t=104614

[bwkaz]

Move the PCI cards around.

If that doesn't help, then go into your BIOS and "reset ESCD data" (or whatever your BIOS calls it -- it's something to do with ESCD). This will make the BIOS redetect which IRQ (and I/O port, and everything else) your cards are using.

With PCI cards, it's hard (it may be possible, but it's hard) to reassign them to a different IRQ. About your best option is to put them into a different slot.

[Gandalf2041]

That's what I was afraid of. I moved my RAID controller but Windoze wouldn't boot so I had to move it back. Because of my setup, there's not a lot of room to move cards around. (Stupid RAID folks put the connectors on the bottom of the card and I have round cables so there's no room underneath the card).

I couldn't move the nic since it is built in so I actually disabled it and put in a spare PCI nic that I had (same type strangely enough). Unfortunately, that did absolutely NOTHING (however, my RAID setup does seem to boot quicker for some reason :p )

As for the ESCD option, there's nothing like that; however, there is an option that says "PCI IRQ Assignments" but it won't let me change the IRQs individually (e.g. when I change the nic, the video and raid change to the same IRQ automatically).

I guess I'll break down and reinstall the ribbon cables on the RAID so I can try and move the nic again. I'll let you know what happens. Thanks for the feedback :)

[bigrigdriver]

Do a web search for a utility called 'irqtune". It allows the resetting of IRQ priorities 'on the fly' for devices. You may be able to solve your problem by simply re-assigning priorities. It allows you to list the current devices and priorities so that you can make the necessary decisions.
iblio.org has the FAQ from irqtune posted on their site.

If I may offer a suggestion, without giving offense:
Since you've tried re-arranging hardware without solving the problem, try software solutions. Irqtune is temporary, and will have to be invoked every time you boot up. Look for more permanent software solutions such as drivers, modules, etc.to get the hardware to behave.

[Gandalf2041]

SOLVED!!! :D After bwkaz confirmed my suspicions about needing to move hardware around, I tried it again. After what seemed like forever, I finally got the nic seated in a PCI slot that did not give me a conflict during install (I did this before reading bigrigdrivers post - might've saved myself some trouble but, oh well :rolleyes: ) . At any rate, some things I've learned along the way:

1. Don't move a raid controller after it's been setup in Windoze. Apparently, it's not smart enough to find it again :p
2. Plug and Play is not always a good thing
3. Integrated devices on proprietary systems are a PITA!
4. Don't quit trying!

Thanks to all who responded. As always, I knew someone here at JL would have the answers