@@ -7433,6 +7433,15 @@ static int rtl_init_one(struct pci_dev *pdev, const struct pci_device_id *ent)
int chipset, region, i;
int jumbo_max, rc;
+ /* Some tools for creating an initramfs don't consider softdeps, then
+ * r8169.ko may be in initramfs, but realtek.ko not. Then the generic
+ * PHY driver is used that doesn't work with most chip versions.
+ */
+ if (!driver_find("RTL8201CP Ethernet", &mdio_bus_type)) {
+ dev_err(&pdev->dev, "realtek.ko not loaded, maybe it needs to be added to initramfs?\n");
+ return -ENOENT;
+ }
+
dev = devm_alloc_etherdev(&pdev->dev, sizeof (*tp));
if (!dev)
return -ENOMEM;