file transfers and the PIII

[Jef Elliott <jefe@jdbyrider.com>]

	Just joined the list - looks to be a good resource. Hope  
someone can offer some insight or advice.


	Are there any known concerns with the PIII chip and Linux?

	
	We run Debian on several Dell PowerEdge servers (2 6300s, 1  
4300,and  3 2300s). Some run Debian 2.0, and others run 2.1. However,  
all run the 2.0.36 kernel.
	One of these servers, a PowerEdge 6300 with dual PIII 500's,  
has had a severe problem with large file transfers over ftp. (We  
have a large number of large files that are moved to all new machines  
- proprietary applications, several databases and files. Because of  
the nature of these files, they need to be on each server rather than  
mounted over the network.)
	This particular machine died on several 20MB transfers when  
it was first configured. A new 2.0.36 kernel seemed to cure that, but  
recently an 800MB transfer caused it to die again. It becomes  
totally unresponsive.
	
	Today, we are going to ramp up the debugging, as there are  
no messages leading up to the crash - but I thought I'd throw this  
out in case someone had some information.

	We could break the transfer down into smaller parts, but the  
fact that it dies at all on a transfer of any size (and has done  
several times) makes me hesitant to put this box into production.

	We have not had any problem with the other boxes (who all  
had these files moved over to them at one time or another), which all  
run dual PIIs. Configuration is basically the same, except for a few  
SCSI drives of differeing sizes and processor speed.
 	
	All boxes have the same Intel EtherExpress NIC card in them.  
Could it possibly be a driver issue related to the PIII? Or possibly  
be bad hardware?

	Any help will be greatly appreciated. Feel free to email me  
if need be.

	Thanks

	jef