Gigabit Ethernet Media Access Controller

The new BCM5700 Gigabit Ethernet Media Access Controller (MAC) chip supports Peripheral Computer Interconnect (PCI) and PCI-X local bus interfaces for use in network interface cards (NIC) and LAN-on-Motherboard (LOM) implementations. The Gigabit Ethernet MAC comes with a comprehensive suite of software and is complemented by the company's broad family of Gigabit Ethernet transceiver chips.

The controller provides a high level of integration, combining support for 10/100/1000 Megabit per second (Mbps) operation, dual high-speed on-chip processors, 128KB of integrated on-chip memory, advanced packet classification engines, and PCI /PCI-X 1.0 local bus interconnects in a single-chip solution. Triple speed (10, 100, and 1000 Mbps) support with standard-based auto-negotiation allows server, workstation and desktop computer manufacturers to build solutions that can transparently interface with Ethernet, Fast Ethernet and Gigabit Ethernet technology over the existing Category 5 cabling infrastructure, and provides an easy path for migrating legacy 10 Mbps and 10/100 Mbps networks to Gigabit speed.

The device incorporates the recently approved PCI-X v1.0 local bus interface specification allowing data transfer rates of up to 1.066 Gigabytes per second between the controller and the system. Support for PCI-X enables the company's Gigabit Ethernet MAC to maintain traffic at Gigabit speeds in I/O intensive server applications where multiple communication and storage peripheral devices share the same I/O bus.

The company's server software package includes multi-vendor fail-over, IEEE 802.3AD port aggregation, Layer 3 switch-independent Smart-Load-Balancing, Hot-Plug PCI, IEEE 802.1Q VLAN tagging, and IEEE 802.1P traffic prioritization for Quality of Service (QoS), cable analyzer, and advanced diagnostics and control functions.

A complete NIC and LOM solution is achieved by combining the controller with one of the company's Gigabit Ethernet transceivers, which support the three Ethernet speeds - 10, 100, and 1000 Mbps - in a single-chip solution with intelligent networking functions, such as cable diagnostics and auto network detection.

Broadcom Corporation, 16215 Alton Parkway, P.O. Box 57013, Irvine, CA 92618-3616. Tel: 949-450-8700; Fax: 949-450-8710.