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Anyone know what modems work best in SuSE Linux 8.2 Personal? or should i just go with an external?

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Dani AI

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Short summary tied to the thread: for SuSE 8.2 the safest, least‑frustrating route is a modem that exposes a real serial/UART interface to Linux (external RS‑232 or an internal PCI modem that registers as a serial port), because host‑processed (“soft”/Win) modems require vendor drivers and often lack reliable Linux support. This is why many Linux modem HOWTOs recommend avoiding host‑based devices unless a known Linux driver exists. Softmodem / winmodem overview. (en.wikipedia.org)

Quick, practical checks (identify before buying or installing): run these on the system that will host the modem:

lspci -nn | grep -i modem
lsusb
dmesg | grep -i tty
wvdialconf
minicom -s

If the device shows as a standard serial port (/dev/ttyS*) or YaST/BIOS lists a COM port, it’s usually a conventional modem. If output identifies an AC97/host‑processing device or there’s no serial node, it’s likely a softmodem and may need a special linmodem driver. Use a quick AT test (minicom) to confirm an OK response. The Modem‑HOWTO and wvdial documentation cover these detection and test steps in detail. (tldp.org)

Configuration/tips: external RS‑232 modems plug into /dev/ttyS and are configured easily with YaST, wvdial/pppd or kppp. USB modems often expose CDC‑ACM or usbserial interfaces as /dev/ttyACM or /dev/ttyUSB* and require the appropriate kernel modules (acm, usbserial) and sometimes a userland mode switch; the kernel USB docs explain how those drivers map devices to tty nodes. If a modem’s chipset has no maintained Linux driver, the fastest fix is an inexpensive external serial modem rather than wrestling with binary drivers. (docs.kernel.org)

Notes tied to earlier posts: this expands on ’s caution about host‑based modems and complements ’s chipset point — identifying the chipset and confirming a Linux driver before purchase avoids most problems.

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Member Avatar for Dani

As far as I know, and I could be wrong, any modem should work so long as it's not a WinModem (software-based modem)

Member Avatar for TallCool1

Anyone know what modems work best in SuSE Linux 8.2 Personal? or should i just go with an external?

You can do the research easily enough. Start with http://www.linmodems.org/ and be aware that the Intel-based HaM modems (hardware-assisted modems) work well. You can't go wrong with an external serial-port modem, either (USB is a bit trickier).

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