/proc/net/dev no such file or dir

hi: I am trying to boot up my linux kerel from virtual machine ,everything goes fine . but when I typed 'ifconfig' command , it reports no such file : /proc/net/dev . What is the reason ? I have enable netcard for my virtual machine ,is this a problem of software or hardware? Is the file " /proc/net/dev" created at netcard initailize function ? Thanks!