Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!rphroy!caen!uwm.edu!linac!att!ucbvax!hplabs!hpfcso!j_rodin
From: j_rodin@hpfcso.FC.HP.COM (Jon Rodin)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.lans
Subject: Re: Re: Pkt Drivers + NDIS.
Message-ID: <7020008@hpfcso.FC.HP.COM>
Date: 28 Mar 91 14:30:25 GMT
References: <1991Mar25.180540.47150@cc.usu.edu>
Organization: Hewlett-Packard, Fort Collins, CO, USA
Lines: 22

>	Another observation on matters: a straight Packet Driver uses
>2-3KB of memory. DIS_PKT is equally small, and will get smaller when
>the code is refined. But the NDIS board driver, typically name.DOS,
>is about 28KB or so for a wide variety of boards.

Most NDIS drivers fall in the 10K range - some sample sizes:

	WD8003 (macwd.dos) 		14112 bytes
	3Com Etherlink (elnk.dos)	8080 bytes
	HP Ethertwist (hplan.dos)	9200 bytes

These numbers represent the amount of ram used when the driver is loaded.
There is an additional 100-200 bytes used by the protocol manager.

There is very little inherent reason why NDIS drivers should be any larger 
than packet drivers or ODI drivers.  They do provide a bit more functionality
than packet drivers (the spec provides for data copy services and different
modes of receiving data, etc.), but that should not require a significant
amount of code.

Jon
j_rodin@cnd.hp.com