Auto-Negotiation

This is good stuff folks.

By Matthew Hersh

UNIVERSITY of NEW HAMPSHIRE INTEROPERABILITY

Presentation Goals:
To portray the concept of Auto-Negotiation
(ANEG)
To exhibit how devices choose the
appropriate link speed and duplex.
To compare copper and fiber AutoNegotiation methods.

UNIVERSITY of NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Auto-Negotiation
What is ANEG?
Some devices support more than one
speed, i.e. 10BASE-T and 100BASE-TX. A
device that supports multiple speeds
and/or duplexs needs a mechanism to
decide what speed and duplex to link at.
ANEG is that mechanism.

UNIVERSITY of NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

The two islands

Lets look at an example.
Two men are stranded on two different islands.
Each one is very lonely and wants to talk to
someone.
So one day the first man James carves a note
into a piece of bark and throws it into the ocean.
To his great surprise and excitement many days
later a piece of bark floats onto his beach, but
when he picks it up, the note he finds is in a
different language.
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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

The two islands

James isnt about to give up, so he sits down and
tries to figure out a way to communicate, first he
decides they need to speak the same language, but
he doesnt know what language(s) his friend speaks.
While he is thinking a second piece of bark floats
onto the beach. He looks at it and finds that is
identical to the first one, so he still cant read it, but
he realizes that the man he is talking to is very
smart.
By throwing more than one piece of bark with the
same note, it increased that chance that he would
receive it
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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

The two islands

So now James starts to carve a new note. He
writes down each of the languages he can speak,
and if he speaks it fluently or not. Then he copies
it many times and throws them into the ocean.
Days later, he starts to get pieces of bark back.
His friend had gotten the idea, and all of these
pieces of bark listed the languages his friend
could speak.
So he circled a language they could both speak
fluently and threw them back into the ocean.
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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

The two islands

The next piece of bark he received was a hello
note from his new friend Chris in a language
that he could read, and from then on they were
great pen pals.

UNIVERSITY of NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Transmissions
A device will always be sending stuff, even
when not connected to another device.
If the device only supports one speed/duplex
combo, then the device will be transmitting link
signaling according with that speed (Does not
support ANEG Legacy device).
If the device supports more than one speed (or
duplex), then the device will be transmitting
FLPs (Does Support ANEG).

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Copper ANEG (NLPs)

This is a 10BASE-T LTP
(link test pulse)
It exactly matches an
NLP (normal link pulse)
sent by an AutoNegotiating device

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Copper ANEG (FLPs)

What is an FLP?
An FLP is a Fast Link Pulse. It is a 16-bit code
word that is transmitted through a burst of
electronic pulses.
An FLP has 17 clock pulses(NLPs).
If there is a pulse between two clock pulses,
then that pulse is considered a data pulse.
Since there are 17 clock pulses, there are 16
possible data pulses, which is how the FLP is a
16 bit code word.
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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Copper ANEG (FLPs)

Since FLPs are 16-bit code words, that
means that there are 16 bits that can be
either one or zero.
Each bit represents a capability that the
DUT can or cannot support.

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Copper ANEG Base Page

All Auto-Negotiating devices transmit a Base Page to determine link
partner capabilities. The Base Page is a series of transmitted FLPs
that are identical.
The Base Page is broken down as follows:
Bits 0-4, Selector Field Combination defines what technology is being
used.
Bits 5-11, Technology Ability Field defines what capabilities are supported
by the DUT. 10BASE-T full and half duplex, 100BASE-TX full and half
duplex, 100BASE-T4, PAUSE, and ASM_DIR PAUSE are all possibilities that a
device can advertise in the Technology Ability Field of its Base Page.
Bit 12 Recently defined as Extended Next Pages bit, intended for use
with 10GBase-T.
Bit 13 Remote Fault Bit
Bit 14 Acknowledge Bit
Bit 15 Next Page Bit

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Copper ANEG Base Page

A device will set any of the bits in the Base
Page that the device actually supports. If a
device wants to indicate 1000BASE-T
capabilities, the next page bit must be set
because 1000BASE-T links can only be
established through a Next Page Exchange.
There are two types of Next Pages:
Message Page and Unformatted Page.

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Copper ANEG - Next Pages

A device will support a Next Page Exchange
usually if it has additional information that
it wants to transmit (i.e. 1000BASE-T
capabilities).
If the device wants to indicate 1000BASE-T
capabilities, the first Next Page it will send
is a Message Page.

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Next Pages Message Page

A device can indicate a Next Page to be a Message
Page by setting the Message Page bit (bit 13).
The Message Page will contain a code number. This
code number corresponds to the reason for going
through a Next Page Exchange.
A message code 8, for example, indicates that the
device wants to attempt a 1000BASE-T link and that
two Unformatted Next Pages are following.
A message code 1 indicates that it is Null Message
Page, and no more information needs to be
transmitted.
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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
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Next Pages Unformatted Page

Contains 11 bits of information
Contents of these pages can be defined by
previous message pages.
When a message code 8 had already been sent,
the first Unformatted Page following the message
page would contain the 1000BASE-T capabilities.
This also includes Master/Slave bits.
The second Unformatted Page in a 1000BASE-T
Next Page Exchange contains a seed value which
is the last resort to resolve a Master and Slave.

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Bitwise look at pages

This is a bit by bit look at the three types of
pages
As you can see each is the same 16 bits long,
but have slightly different configurations
Blue indicates the Base Page, and Yellow
indicates Next Pages
Page Type
Base

Bit 0 Bit 1 Bit 2 Bit 3 Bit 4 Bit 5

Bit 6
Bit 7
Bit 8
Bit 9
Bit 10 Bit 11
Bit 12 Bit 13
Bit 14
Bit 15
10BASE-T 10BASE-T
Asynchronous Not Remote
100BASE-TX 100BASE-TX
Next
Half
Full
100BASE-T4 PAUSE
Acknowledge
Half Duplex Full Duplex
Defined
Fault
Page
PAUSE
Duplex
Duplex

Selector Field bits

(0 - 4)

Message

Message Code bits (0 - 10)

Toggle

Ack2

Message
Next
Acknowledge
Page
Page

Unformatted

Data bits (0 - 10)

Toggle

Ack2

Message
Next
Acknowledge
Page
Page

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
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Fiber Auto - Negotiation

1000BASE-SX and 1000BASE-LX
devices also determine a link using
ANEG.
These technologies use fiber, so
ANEG is different than it is for
copper, however the concepts are
the same.
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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
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/C/ Ordered Sets

Fiber ANEG still uses 16-bit code words.
It also has a Base Page, but instead of using FLPs, it
uses /C/ ordered sets.
ANEG coordinates with the PCS to decide what to
send.
If ANEG is restarted, ANEG temporarily takes control
of the PCS.
While the device is ANEGing, ANEG tells the PCS what
to transmit within the /C/ ordered set.
When a link is established, the PCS takes control and
transmits /I/ ordered sets and/or packets.
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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
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/C/ Ordered Sets

/C/ ordered sets contain the following
abilities:
1000BASE-X full and half duplex
PAUSE settings
Remote Fault
Next Page

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
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Fiber ANEG Next Page

Devices can call for a Next Page
Exchange, however, it is not required
and rarely implemented.

UNIVERSITY of NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Bitwise look at the Page

This is a bit by bit look at the Base Page for
Fiber ANEG.

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Copper ANEG vs. Fiber ANEG

The major issue between copper and fiber ANEG is
where each is located in OSI stack.
For copper, ANEG is located below the PMA. This means that
the ANEG process can occur before signaling is transmitted
For fiber, ANEG is located in the PCS. This means that two
devices must transmit signaling before ANEG can be done

What this means is that copper ANEG can be used

for multiple speeds that use difference signaling
techniques, while fiber ANEG can only be used for
1000BASE-X devices.

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

OSI location
OSI
REFERENCE
MODEL
LAYERS

LAN
CSMA/CD
LAYERS

LAN
CSMA/CD
LAYERS

LAN
CSMA/CD
LAYERS

HIGHER LAYERS

HIGHER LAYERS

HIGHER LAYERS

LLC - LOGICAL LINK CONTROL

LLC - LOGICAL LINK CONTROL

LLC - LOGICAL LINK CONTROL

MAC CONTROL (OPTIONAL)

CLAUSE 31

MAC CONTROL (OPTIONAL)

CLAUSE 31

MAC CONTROL (OPTIONAL)

CLAUSE 31

MAC -- MEDIA ACCESS CONTROL

CLAUSE 4

MAC -- MEDIA ACCESS CONTROL

CLAUSE 4

MAC -- MEDIA ACCESS CONTROL

CLAUSE 4

RECONCILIATION

RECONCILIATION

RECONCILIATION

APPLICATION

PRESENTATION

SESSION

TRANSPORT

NETWORK

CLAUSE 22

MII
PCS

DATA LINK

PMA
PHY

PHYSICAL

AUTONEG

CLAUSE 28

MDI

PCS
CLAUSE 24

PHY
CLAUSE 25

CLAUSE 22

MII

PCS

CLAUSE 24

PMD

CLAUSE 22

MII

PMA
PMD
MDI

PHY

PMA

CLAUSE 26

AUTONEG

T4=CLAUSE 23
T2=CLAUSE 32

CLAUSE 28

MDI

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

100BASE-TX

100BASE-FX

100BASE-T4
100BASE-T2

100Mb/s

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
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OSI Location
OSI
REFERENCE
MODEL
LAYERS

LAN
CSMA/CD
LAYERS

LAN
CSMA/CD
LAYERS

HIGHER LAYERS

HIGHER LAYERS

LLC - LOGICAL LINK CONTROL

LLC - LOGICAL LINK CONTROL

MAC CONTROL (OPTIONAL)

CLAUSE 31

MAC CONTROL (OPTIONAL)

CLAUSE 31

MAC -- MEDIA ACCESS CONTROL

CLAUSE 4

MAC -- MEDIA ACCESS CONTROL

CLAUSE 4

RECONCILIATION

RECONCILIATION

APPLICATION

PRESENTATION

SESSION

TRANSPORT

NETWORK

CLAUSE 35

GMII

PCS

DATA LINK

AUTONEG

PHY

PMA

PHYSICAL

PMD

PCS,PMA =CLAUSE 36
ANEG=CLAUSE 37

CLAUSE 35

GMII

PCS
CLAUSE 40
PHY

PMA

SX,LX=CLAUSE 38
CX=CLAUSE 39

MDI

AUTONEG

CLAUSE 28

MDI
MEDIUM

MEDIUM

1000BASE-SX
1000BASE-LX
1000BASE-CX

1000BASE-T

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

1000Mb/s

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Priority Resolution
When two devices are connected, before they
actually establish a link, they send information
back and forth to determine what each device
supports.
There is an order of speed/duplex combinations in
which every device should follow. This is called
Priority Resolution.
Once all information is transmitted, a link should
be established according to the Priority Resolution.

UNIVERSITY of NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Copper Priority Resolution

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

1000BASE-T full duplex

1000BASE-T
100BASE-T2 full duplex
100BASE-TX full duplex
100BASE-T2
100BASE-T4
100BASE-TX
10BASE-T full duplex
10BASE-T

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
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Fiber Priority Resolution

1. 1000BASE-X full duplex
2. 1000BASE-X half duplex

1000BASE-X refers to either 1000BASE-SX or 1000BASELX.

UNIVERSITY of NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Priority Resolution
Auto-Negotiating devices that are
connected should establish the Highest
Common Denominator(HCD) link in
accordance with the Priority Resolution.

UNIVERSITY of NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Parallel Detection
Legacy devices only support one speed, and
only half duplex at that speed. If an AutoNegotiating device is connected to a Legacy
device, the ANEG device needs a method to
detect the type of signaling being received.
The link established will be a half duplex
link.
This method is called parallel detection.

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
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Parallel Detection
Some devices can be configured to transmit only
one speed. If the other device connected is
ANEGing, that device will have to parallel detect to
the appropriate speed in order to establish a link.
However, in this case, the ANEGing device should
always establish a half duplex link, but the
manually configured device could be set to full
duplex, in which case the link established will be
full duplex on one end and half duplex on the
other.
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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
(Its the way to go)

Software
Much software created by former and
current students.
Software all written in Labview, a picture
oriented programming language.
Two main parts to the code: receive, and
transmit.

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INTEROPERABILITY LABORATORY

Auto-Negotiation
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Receive Software

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Transmit Software

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