Ethernet card works during install, but not after installation

Question

I'm attempting to install Ubuntu Server 10.04.2 i686 on a very old Dell Latitude. The network card I have to use for it is a "Xircom RealPort Ethernet 10/100+Modem 56" PCMIA card.

During install, the card works fine and the installer can fetch packages from the internet. Of note is that I have to remove and reinsert the card for it to be detected properly.

When I install Ubuntu to the HD, the card stops working entirely. The kernel module xe which I think was allowing it to work in the installer is not loaded or even installed to the kernel on the HD. ifconfig shows only the loopback.

How can I get this card to work when Ubuntu is installed? Thanks.

Answer 1

It might be udev that messed up things when you reinserted the card. Run ifconfig -a to show all interfaces. Take a look at /etc/udev/rules.d/70-persistent-net.rules end see if it mentions any of the interfaces.

If something looks strange, edit it. E.g. if it has configuration for eth0, but ifconfig -a lists eth1, you could try duplicating the existing rule, rename the interface to eth1, then reboot.