Re: [PATCH net v2] tg3: use random MAC address when tg3_get_device_address fails

On Tue, Sep 15, 2026 at 4:35 AM Ivan Delalande [off-list ref] wrote:

Some of the tg3 NICs we use (BCM57762) reset the SRAM MAC address to the
placeholder address on link flaps, tg3_chip_reset, etc. We've typically
fixed it from userspace, but since e4c00ba7274b ("tg3: replace
placeholder MAC address with device property") was merged, tg3 just
fails probe as we don't have a way to get it through the generic
device_get_mac_address infrastructure as fallback on our systems.

Make the driver assign a random address in this condition instead of
being fatal for probe.

v2: assign random address when tg3_get_device_address fails instead of
    changing its logic.

Fixes: e4c00ba7274b ("tg3: replace placeholder MAC address with device property")
Suggested-by: Jakub Kicinski <kuba@kernel.org>
Link: https://lore.kernel.org/netdev/20260903233255.GA4109366@visor/t/#u (local)
Signed-off-by: Ivan Delalande <redacted>
---
 drivers/net/ethernet/broadcom/tg3.c | 11 ++++++-----
 1 file changed, 6 insertions(+), 5 deletions(-)

Reviewed-by: Pavan Chebbi <pavan.chebbi@broadcom.com>
Thank you.