1000BASE-T/100BASE-TX/10BASE-T Physical Layer Compliance Tests Manual
Intel Confidential
123
Troubleshooting Guide
Appendix G: Troubleshooting Guide
Many problems can occur during PHY conformance testing relating to problems with the
equipment and software as well as with the Unit Under Test. This section provides troubleshooting
tips to help debug these problems.
G.1
Test Problems
The most common problems which occur during testing involve displaying waveforms. Familiarity
with the scope being used will greatly reduce the problems in this area. Refer to the scope’s user’s
manual for more information. Most other problems are caused by the test setup and software
configuration.
Some of the steps below may not be applicable to all of the procedures. Use only the ones that
make sense for the test being performed.
G.1.1
Oscilloscope Setups
•
Make sure all test equipment meets or exceeds the specifications listed in the introduction to
this manual.
•
Confirm that the expected voltage range of the signal does not exceed the capabilities of the
differential probe being used. The probe listed in
requires the attenuation to be
turned on in order to perform the measurements correctly.
•
Confirm that the correct channel has been selected on the scope. Also confirm that the correct
channel has been selected to be triggered on.
•
Verify that the test fixture(s) and scope are connected as shown in. Make sure the scope probe
is connected to the test fixture with the correct polarity.
•
Check that the host computer for the UUT has been booted under DOS, and that phyconf.exe
is running.
•
Confirm that the UUT has been forced into 100Mbps mode. Once this has occurred (and
before any other settings have been changed) scrambled MLT-3 waveforms should appear on
the scope display. If the scope has a feature to automatically adjust scope settings, use it to
make sure a signal is present. If no signal appears, power down the computer, unplug it, plug it
back in, and restart it. Start phyconf.exe and force the UUT into 100Mbps mode.
•
Check all phyconf.exe settings listed in the test procedure. Many problems are caused by
simply forgetting to “Write” a change to memory. In order to make a change to a register value
in phyconf.exe, it is necessary to first “Read” the relevant register values, “Write” the changes,
and finally “Read” to confirm that the changes have been made. Make sure that the correct
“Write” is used, as there may be more than one per screen.
•
Do not use the automatic measurement features on the scope (if available). These features
often do not correctly measure the desired waveform characteristics and as such are unreliable.