I225-LM MAC address strangeness / Standard Manageability?

[JohnConnett]

I have a Simply NUC Topaz 2 i7 with a Core™ i7-1260P Processor and I225-LM Ethernet Controller. There are two Ethernet connectors on the back of the box, let's call them Left (L) and Right (R).

With a cable connected to L:

Aptio Setup - AMI (UEFI Version : NUC-1260P P1.40A)

Intel(R) Ethernet Controller (3) I255-LM - ??:??:??:??:E6:37 

Link Status [Connected]
MAC Address ??:??:??:??:E6:36

MAC:????????E637-IPv4 Network Configuration

MAC:????????E637-IPv6 Network Configuration

Interface Name: eth0
MAC address: ??-??-??-??-E6-37
Host addresses: FE80::????:????:????:E637/64
Interface ID: ??:??:??:??:??:??:E6:37

Intel(R) Ethernet Controller (3) I225-LM - ??:??:??:??:E6:36

Link Status [Disconnected]
MAC Address ??:??:??:??:E6:37

MAC:????????E636-IPv4 Network Configuration

MAC:????????E636-IPv6 Network Configuration

Interface Name: eth1
MAC address: ??-??-??-??-E6-36
Host addresses: FE80::????:????:????:E636/64
Interface ID: ??:??:??:??:??:??:E6:36

Note the strange mix of 36 and 37!

Windows 11 Pro, Version 22H2

Ethernet 2 : Connected

Physical address (MAC): ??:??:??:??:E6:36

Ethernet : Not Connected

Physical address (MAC): ??:??:??:??:E6:37

Ubuntu 22.10 (Kinetic Kudu)

enp45s0:

state UP
link/ether ??:??:??:??:e6:37

enp47s0:

state DOWN
link/ether ??:??:??:??:e6:36

Note that 37 is connected NOT 36!

FreeBSD 13.1-RELEASE-p7

igc0 :

ether ??:??:??:??:e6:36
status: active

igc1: 

ether ??:??:??:??:e6:37
status: no carrier

It seems odd to me that with exactly the same physical connection Ubuntu has the 37 MAC address on the connected (L) connector where the other environments have 36!

I have been trying to provision and use Standard Manageability (ISM) using MeshCommander and MeshCentral. Not a lot of success, so far. What is the diffrences between Intel AMT and Intel Standard Manageability? suggests that it might be possible for Serial-over-LAN (but not KVM?). Here is the output of meshcmd on Windows 11 Pro:

> .\meshcmd AtInfo
Intel SM v16.0.15, pre-provisioning state.
Wired Enabled, DHCP, ??:??:??:??:E6:37
DNS suffix: home.verminmedia.com
Connection Status: Unknown, CIRA: Disconnected.
> 

This suggests that ISM is using the 37 MAC address.

Can anyone explain this strange MAC address behaviour? What MAC addresses should be used for Left (L), Right (R) and ISM?

[AlHill]

Sorry, but I cannot find that nuc model number.   Take a photo of the bottom and post it.

Doc (not an Intel employee or contractor)
[Maybe Windows 12 will be better]

[n_scott_pearson]

yea, as far as I know, that isn't based upon an Intel NUC product. You will need to talk to Simply NUC about what is going on.

Sorry,

...S

[AlHill]

And, a check of SimplyNUC's website show no supportive documentation, drivers, or bios that I can find.

Doc (not an Intel employee or contractor)
[Maybe Windows 12 will be better]

[JohnConnett]

As stated in my original message it is a Simply NUC Topaz 2 i7 (not an Intel NUC). A MAC Address Lookup of the I225-LM addresses, with OUI:A8:A1:59, gives a Vendor Name of ASRock Incorporated.  This suggests there may be a strong family connection with the ASRock Industrial NUC-1260P . It has an AMI Aptio BIOS/UEFI (I think the Intel NUC has a different, visual BIOS/UEFI?).

The Core™ i7-1260P Processor and I225-LM Ethernet Controller are both genuine Intel.

My past experience with Supermicro motherboards supporting IPMI is that they have separate MAC addresses for the Ethernet ports and Baseboard Management Controller (BMC). In one motherboard with which I am familiar the BMC is a separate device (Aspeed AST2500) with its own memory and graphics. The BMC and one Ethernet port share a connector and it acts like a mini-switch directing traffic to the two distinct MAC addresses. Out-of-band access is always available when the system has power.

It would be very useful to know how the I225-LM handles MAC addresses under Intel® Standard Manageability (ISM). The Simply NUC Topaz 2 i7 has two Ethernet ports. Does one port become unavailable when under ISM control? A single MAC address which is either a system port or an ISM port?

It would be handy to be able to use Serial-over-LAN to inspect and adjust the BIOS/UEFI settings. Should this be possible? I now appreciate that  Intel® Active Management Technology (AMT), not available with the Core™ i7-1260P Processor, would be required for KVM support.

Thanks for the replies. I am trying to understand how Intel® Standard Manageability is expected to operate.

[Fariz_Intel]

Hi JohnConnett,

Thank you for posting in Intel Ethernet Communities.

When we refer to Intel I225-LM Networking Specifications as per link below it shows that its support single port configuration. If the NIC port comes with dual port it may contain two separate I225 controller chip inside or there are some uncommon case both port might share only one I225 controller chip. There are various reason why it may come with dual port example like redundancy purpose.

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/products/sku/184675/intel-ethernet-controller-i225lm/specifications.html

Perhaps you may need to get consult with OEM Simply if their product Simply NUC Topaz 2 i7 are using two separate I225 controller chip inside since it has two Ethernet ports available. Simply will be better contact point since they have better understanding with their system which they have design using the Intel I225-LM.

In this case the most significant difference between Intel Standard Manageability (ISM) and Intel AMT is that the Intel AMT supports graphical KVM remote control and included with Intel vPro® Enterprise. While the ISM does not have graphical KVM remote control and included with Intel vPro® Essentials.

ISM supports a subset of the Intel AMT functionality. In short, both serve almost the same purpose which example they use for monitoring hardware state and platform components. They may not have control in terms of the mac address that showing on the system.

We have a forum for those specific issues and you can post it to that forum as per link below so it can get answered in more detail.

Embedded Connectivity Forum (Intel network controller):

https://community.intel.com/t5/Embedded-Connectivity/bd-p/embedded-networking-connectivity

Processors Forum (Intel® Standard Manageability/ISM):

https://community.intel.com/t5/Processors/bd-p/processors

However we still recommend you to get consult with Simply for a better understanding with the product itself.

Best regards,

Fariz_Intel

[Fariz_Intel]

Hi JohnConnett,

If you have additional questions or clarifications, feel free to let us know.

Best regards,

Fariz_Intel

[Fariz_Intel]

Hi JohnConnett,

Since we have not seen an update, if you need any additional information, please submit a new question as this thread will no longer be monitored.

Best regards,

Fariz_Intel