drivers/net/ethernet/microchip/lan865x · keep

Microchip LAN8650/LAN8651 10BASE-T1S MAC-PHY Ethernet controllers

A family of Microchip single-chip Ethernet controllers that combine the MAC and PHY for 10BASE-T1S, a single-pair, multi-drop variant of Ethernet aimed at industrial and automotive networks. The parts attach to a host over SPI and were introduced in the early 2020s as a replacement for legacy fieldbuses like CAN in sensor and actuator networks.

keep conf=0.89 deploy=low replacement=none subsystem=net category=networking-ethernet

89%

recommendation

It should stay because this is current silicon: Microchip lists the LAN8650 as in production, distributors stock it for new designs in 2025, the driver itself only landed upstream in 2024, and follow-up fixes for autoloading and MAC address validation went in during 2025. Deployment numbers are modest today simply because 10BASE-T1S is a young technology, not because the hardware is fading.

repository signals

3 files

455 source lines

7 commits, 5y

+482 / −2 lines added / removed, 5y

2 authors, 5y

monthly commits · 2021-04-21 → 2026-04-21 · 7 total · active in 3/61 months

sources

lkml.org
The driver was posted upstream in 2024 as support for Microchip's LAN865X MAC-PHY, indicating a new rather than legacy device family.
git.kernel.org
Upstream received a functional LAN865x fix in 2025 ('Fix LAN8651 autoloading'), showing active maintenance rather than abandonment.
git.kernel.org
Upstream received another LAN865x change in 2025 ('Enable MAC address validation'), confirming continuing attention.
microchip.com
Microchip lists LAN8650 as 'Status: In Production' and markets it as a 10BASE-T1S MAC-PHY.
digikey.com
A current distributor page shows the LAN8650B1 variant as Active and in stock, supporting ongoing new-hardware availability.

codex reasoning notes (technical)

Real driver: local source inspection via `rg` showed `module_spi_driver`, compatibles `microchip,lan8650`/`microchip,lan8651`, and Kconfig text naming the LAN8650/1 Rev.B0/B1 MAC-PHY. Direct lore tooling was unavailable here (`lei` missing; MCP lore endpoints not exposed), so upstream activity was grounded with local `git log` on the file plus canonical kernel.org commit URLs for the hashes observed there; no deletion/removal commit was present in local history. LKML patch URL and vendor/distributor URLs were obtained via web search. This is a very new niche industrial/automotive 10BASE-T1S part family, still sold for new designs, so the driver should be kept; deployments are likely low-volume rather than broad legacy saturation.