linux-drivers/
drivers/net/dsa/microchip

Microchip KSZ8, KSZ9, and LAN937x managed Ethernet switches

A family of small managed Ethernet switch chips from Microchip (formerly Micrel) widely used in industrial networking, automotive, and embedded gateways. The line spans the older KSZ8xxx/KSZ9xxx parts up through the current LAN9374 and LAN9646, typically connected to a host SoC over SPI, I2C, or MDIO and exposed through Linux's distributed switch (DSA) framework.

keep conf=0.93 deploy=medium replacement=none subsystem=net category=networking-ethernet
93%

recommendation

It should stay because the hardware is still actively sold by Microchip in 2025 — chips like the KSZ9477, LAN9374, and LAN9646 are listed as "In Production" with a current evaluation board — and the upstream code is under heavy ongoing development, including recent feature work to add PTP timestamping support for the KSZ8463. There is no in-tree replacement, and new embedded designs continue to rely on it.

repository signals

23 files
18,335 source lines
366 commits, 5y
+17,733 / −6,117 lines added / removed, 5y
61 authors, 5y
monthly commits · 2021-04-21 → 2026-04-21 · 366 total · active in 57/61 months
2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2021-04: 10 commits · +986 −405 2021-05: 1 commit · +1 −0 2021-06: 5 commits · +158 −123 2021-07: 1 commit · +3 −1 2021-08: 7 commits · +75 −22 2021-09: 2 commits · +41 −5 2021-10: 2 commits · +6 −6 2021-11: 1 commit · +43 −133 2021-12: 5 commits · +10 −9 2022-01: 2 commits · +15 −9 2022-02: 7 commits · +161 −47 2022-03: 4 commits · +113 −5 2022-04: 3 commits · +184 −173 2022-05: 9 commits · +686 −479 2022-06: 34 commits · +1,469 −1,397 2022-07: 22 commits · +1,350 −417 2022-08: 21 commits · +714 −134 2022-09: 18 commits · +1,300 −653 2022-10: 0 commits · +0 −0 2022-11: 7 commits · +59 −24 2022-12: 8 commits · +198 −38 2023-01: 19 commits · +1,749 −51 2023-02: 1 commit · +66 −0 2023-03: 10 commits · +257 −35 2023-04: 8 commits · +129 −76 2023-05: 6 commits · +139 −70 2023-06: 4 commits · +30 −87 2023-07: 4 commits · +37 −28 2023-08: 1 commit · +0 −4 2023-09: 7 commits · +2,400 −47 2023-10: 12 commits · +440 −47 2023-11: 3 commits · +132 −7 2023-12: 5 commits · +53 −38 2024-01: 5 commits · +393 −203 2024-02: 1 commit · +51 −5 2024-03: 3 commits · +8 −7 2024-04: 14 commits · +200 −158 2024-05: 14 commits · +1,087 −177 2024-06: 6 commits · +90 −9 2024-07: 6 commits · +44 −15 2024-08: 11 commits · +693 −354 2024-09: 3 commits · +56 −45 2024-10: 4 commits · +15 −16 2024-11: 5 commits · +597 −41 2024-12: 7 commits · +207 −71 2025-01: 2 commits · +0 −15 2025-02: 0 commits · +0 −0 2025-03: 2 commits · +14 −237 2025-04: 1 commit · +113 −3 2025-05: 3 commits · +375 −54 2025-06: 1 commit · +3 −4 2025-07: 6 commits · +526 −33 2025-08: 2 commits · +18 −9 2025-09: 1 commit · +45 −0 2025-10: 1 commit · +1 −1 2025-11: 7 commits · +117 −46 2025-12: 0 commits · +0 −0 2026-01: 9 commits · +64 −37 2026-02: 2 commits · +4 −4 2026-03: 1 commit · +8 −3 2026-04: 0 commits · +0 −0

sources

  1. lore.kernel.org

    The driver is seeing active upstream net-next development in 2026, not just stale maintenance.

  2. lore.kernel.org

    Recent multi-version feature work added KSZ8463 PTP support, indicating ongoing investment in older and newer Microchip switch variants.

  3. microchip.com

    Microchip lists KSZ9477 as 'Status: In Production'.

  4. microchip.com

    Microchip lists LAN9374 as 'Status: In Production', showing the LAN937x family is still current.

  5. microchip.com

    Microchip lists LAN9646 as 'Status: In Production'; this compatible is present in the driver's device table.

  6. microchip.com

    Microchip still offers a KSZ9477 evaluation kit, supporting evidence of active product availability and new design use.

codex reasoning notes (technical)

Real driver directory. `exec_command` on local Kconfig/device tables shows this driver covers Microchip KSZ8XXX/KSZ9XXX/LAN937X plus compatible `microchip,lan9646`; no natural in-tree replacement beyond this driver family. `lore_file_timeline` on `drivers/net/dsa/microchip/ksz_common.c` showed heavy activity through 2024-2026, with newest touch on 2026-03-19 and feature series for KSZ8463/PTP, so this is clearly maintained and there is no removal signal from the lore evidence gathered. `web.search_query` on Microchip product pages found KSZ9477, LAN9374, and LAN9646 all marked 'In Production', plus an active KSZ9477 eval board page, which supports continued new deployments in embedded/industrial networking. Recommendation is `keep`, not `keep-annotate`, because the hardware family is still sold and upstream work is active.