Thunderbolt Networking Support For Linux Still Being Worked On

[chithanh]

Thunderbolt in its currentl revision is limited to DisplayPort 1.2, while there is no such limit for DisplayPort alternate mode.

[patstew]

So, if device's (laptop) documentation states, that it contains Thunderbolt compatible/certified USB-C, then that port certainly supports DisplayPort Alternate Mode?

Is DP Alternate mode for Thunderbolt the same thing as DP Alternate mode for USB-C? Or, does it somehow differ, ie. initiation/negotiation of used protocol?

Thunderbolt 3 and DP are both alternate modes for USB-C. There isn't a DP alternate mode for Thunderbolt 3 as such, however thunderbolt 3 ports (almost?) always support DP too.

[torsionbar28]

I wasn't as lucky. I got a work laptop (Fifth gen Lenovo thinkpad x1 carbon) and a compatible Lenovo thunderbolt 3 dock, and pretty much expected everything to work under Linux. Well, the only thing that actually works on the dock are the displayports and HDMI. No USB, no Ethernet. Tried with newest kernel versions as well. No luck.

Much of the consumer Thunderbolt 3 hardware was plagued by firmware issues early on. I would see if there's any available firmware updates for the laptop and/or the dock.

[M1kkko]

Thunderbolt *is* PCIe (+ displayport).
Besides, the way the news is written makes you think that thunderbolt networking currently does not work under linux but I've got a thunderbolt port since 3 years on my macbook pro which always worked just fine with a thunderbolt <-> ethernet adapter (which is basically an external PCIe network card).

I wasn't as lucky. I got a work laptop (Fifth gen Lenovo thinkpad x1 carbon) and a compatible Lenovo thunderbolt 3 dock, and pretty much expected everything to work under Linux. Well, the only thing that actually works on the dock are the displayports and HDMI. No USB, no Ethernet. Tried with newest kernel versions as well. No luck.

Thunderbolt *is* PCIe (+ displayport)....

So, if device's (laptop) documentation states, that it contains Thunderbolt compatible/certified USB-C, then that port certainly supports DisplayPort Alternate Mode?

Is DP Alternate mode for Thunderbolt the same thing as DP Alternate mode for USB-C? Or, does it somehow differ, ie. initiation/negotiation of used protocol?

[FLHerne]

Deleted: I was completely wrong.

[doom_Oo7]

Is PCIe over thunderbolt supported in Linux?

Thunderbolt *is* PCIe (+ displayport).
Besides, the way the news is written makes you think that thunderbolt networking currently does not work under linux but I've got a thunderbolt port since 3 years on my macbook pro which always worked just fine with a thunderbolt <-> ethernet adapter (which is basically an external PCIe network card).

[torsionbar28]

Is PCIe over thunderbolt supported in Linux?

External PCIe is the raison d'être of Thunderbolt. It has been supported on Linux for a few years now. Several laptop vendors have Thunderbolt attached docking stations. The devices in the dock appear in 'lspci' output.

Is PCIe over thunderbolt supported in Linux?

[phoronix]

Phoronix: Thunderbolt Networking Support For Linux Still Being Worked On

New kernel patches have been posted for enabling Thunderbolt networking support...

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Thunderbolt-Network-Linux