Mark Healey wrote:
After not getting any instructions on how to compile a module that didn't come with the source into a kernel I gave up and decided to just do the nic module as installable. Since I had the source for the new kernel I went ahead and compiled it by Kents 10 step list. I left the things I didn't understand at their default value. It booted and seems to run as before. I then made the nic module and make installed it.
You should have been able to add the nic module during the 10-step procedure, and then you wouldn't have to "make" the nic module and "make install" it afterwards. While configuring your kernel (Step 6 in the "Kent's 10-Step Procedure to Compiling a Debian Kernel" portion of /usr/share/doc/kernel-package/README.gz), you need to go into the "Network Device Support" option, then probably "Ethernet (1000Mbit)", then put an "M" in front of "Broadcom Tigon3 Support" (assuming this is the correct driver for your Broadcom nic).
After compilation and reboot, just "modconf" and add in the "tg3" module (or for just this boot only, say for testing purposes, "modprobe tg3"). If the tg3 is not the correct driver for your Broadcom, I'm not sure what to tell you.
If instead of recompiling the kernel again, you want to just use the module you compiled yourself, you should be able to add it to the kernel temporarily with "modprobe <module_name>". You might need to run "depmod" first to check module dependencies. To add it more permanently, add the module_name to /etc/modules. This method may require other things as well, such as tinkering with /etc/modutils/aliases, but that's beyond me.
-- Kent West (westk@acu.edu)