G5 Ethernet Question

[rkriheli]

Guys, I need your help with a question that I can't seem to find an answer for.

I sold my old G5 and upgraded to a higher-spec'd used G5 recently. Though I just realized that my ethernet port doesn't seem to work. This machine is out of warranty so I'd rather not go through the run-around at the Apple Genius Bar and pay any ridiculous prices. I have an Airport card in there right now that gives me internet just fine, but I'd rather have wired access for higher network transfer speeds all the way through.

The question is:
Are there any third-party PCI Ethernet cards that are compatible with G5 Powermacs? If not, how much do you guys think (in USD) would it cost me to get this small issue fixed?

Thanks so much for your help in advance!

 

[FireArse]

Ethernet woes

I sold my old G5 and upgraded to a higher-spec'd used G5 recently.

Is this a PowerMac dual-core? Have you tried looking through all the settings? Its quite rare that just the ethernet port goes dead. Have you completed a full hardware test? (Not too sure, but...) Didn't those have 2 ethernet ports?

Have you tried re-installing OS X as a last resort? Have you tried different user profiles? Have you tried a different switch/router/hub? Are you sure the cable is ok?

 

[rkriheli]

First off, thanks for your reply.

the PM is not a Dual Core... its the revision right before the Dual Cores came out. Dual 2.5ghz. It has one ethernet port to my knowledge and its just not working.

I used the same wire on my macbook pro and an old thinkpad and it worked like a charm, so its not the fault of the router or the wire. I suspect something is wrong with the the ethernet port itself.

I could try the other suggestions, alternate user profile or hardware tests when I get home after work. I will see what comes of it.

I do want to know however if there is a pci ethernet card i can use on the G5 as a last resort?

 

[cpjakes]

I'm not sure about the PCI card replacement, but check to make sure that the Ethernet port is actually active. Here's a screenshot of my Network Port Configurations. Ethernet is on the list and active (checked). Also, make sure that nothing is ahead of it, like your AirPort card or modem. If it's not in the list, you can click New and select the interface.

cpjakes

 

[rkriheli]

duh... i didn't even think to do that. thanks cpjakes! i hope its really unselected.

 

[cpjakes]

Was that the problem? Just curious...

cpjakes

 

[pip11]

Also, OS X does have drivers for a few PCI Ethernet chipsets. Among them is the ubiqutous Realtek 8139, 3com 3C90x, and others. xlr8yourmac.com probably has some useful notes about this.

 

[Mechcozmo]

I dropped a generic 10/100 PCI card into my Quicksilver, and OS X played nice. You may have similar luck. (But that's if you can't find any other options)

 

[Dreadnought]

You have PCI-X ports in that machine. Apple sells an ethernet card for it, which is about 85-100 USD. Pretty expensive, but it is a 10/100/1000 mbit card.