Limit to number of NICs

[proggybilly]

I am trying to setup a DMZ server. I have tried a couple different distro's including Ubuntu 8.10 and Suse 11.0 and I am having an issue. I have two onboard nics on an ASUS M2N-LR and also a 4-Port ethernet card. Both Distributions see all 6 nics, but will randomly choose only 5 to use upon reboot. My question is, is there a limit to the number of NIC's you can use in a Linux system? Is it kernel related? Is it network script related? We are kinda baffled with this and just looking for some clarity.

 

[thedaver]

Can you describe how you conclude that both distributions "see" the NICs but randomly choose 5? What are you using to establish that detail?


Generally, linux kernel and boot process will detect and enable all NICs in the same order - generally that order is based upon PCI bus number and possibly IRQ as a tie-breaker (someone with more knowledge could comment further)

If you had your networking scripts' configuration setup incorrectly that might explain your trouble, but I don't think you will be in that situation... we might need to see your networking setup files once you answer the question in my first paragraph above.
Thx.

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