Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

theDBANfan · 2009-07-09 04:32:24

Hello. I am a total n00b to Arch Linux but I am a quite experienced when it comes to terminal and command line Linux stuff. I downloaded and installed Arch this morning. The installation was very easy; very impressive!!! :D

Anyway, here is my problem; my WLAN card is not working and I have no way of getting normal wired LAN to the computer. I have tried all morning to get it working and yes, I have read every single detail of the wiki regarding wireless and in particular my card; a Broadcom 4318 revision 2.

I am lead to believe that I have tried almost everything. I tried all of the b43-fwcutter/bcm43xx-fwcutter stuff or whatever it's called.

Thanks in advanced for your SWIFT responses.:) I would love to get this problem solved as soon as I can, and perhaps we can update the wiki to put in new useful information regarding how to get this particular card working.

If it makes any difference, I am using the x86_64 version of Arch because I have 6 gigs of ram.

Last edited by theDBANfan (2009-07-09 07:28:03)

lifeafter2am · 2009-07-09 04:41:50

What does an lspci show you? Also is there any dmesg output about the driver or the card? For that matter is the driver loaded?

1) lscpi
2) dmesg
3) lsmod | grep 'b43'

theDBANfan · 2009-07-09 05:43:47

lifeafter2am wrote:

What does an lspci show you? Also is there any dmesg output about the driver or the card? For that matter is the driver loaded?
1) lscpi
2) dmesg
3) lsmod | grep 'b43'

at the bottom of the lspci, where my wifi card is, it says the following:

05:01.0 Network controller: Broadcom Corporation BCM4318 [AirForce One 54g] 802.11g Wireless LAN controller (rev 02)

I don't think Dmesg shows anything about the Wifi card.

lsmod | grep 'b43' shows quite a few things. I can post them if you need them.

BTW, thanks for your help!!!

lifeafter2am · 2009-07-09 05:47:56

Okay, so your card is what you say it is, and the driver is loaded. So now run

lspci -k

which will show if your card is using the b43 driver or not.

theDBANfan · 2009-07-09 06:48:34

lifeafter2am wrote:

Okay, so your card is what you say it is, and the driver is loaded. So now run
lspci -k
which will show if your card is using the b43 driver or not.

It says for the WLAN controller that:

Kernel driver in use: b43-pci-bridge
Kernel modules: ssb

Does this mean that it isn't using the b43 driver? If it isn't, how can I fix it?

bangkok_manouel · 2009-07-09 07:17:35

theDBANfan wrote:

I'm sorry for my bad language, etc. I am just quite angry right now.

I don't care about you being angry. What are you? 5 years old? Can't you respect the people reading these forums? This is a very bad approach.

tomk · 2009-07-09 07:20:21

Hi, smart moderator here (we don't have any stupid ones, sorry). In future, tone down your posts, or you won't last long around here.

theDBANfan · 2009-07-09 07:30:31

tomk wrote:

Hi, smart moderator here (we don't have any stupid ones, sorry). In future, tone down your posts, or you won't last long around here.

I really had no idea what to say at the start. I have edited my first post. I never really thought of the people reading these posts. I am verry sorry. This is the first time I have been on a forum.

tomk · 2009-07-09 07:40:36

I also have a 4318 and it worked first time using the procedure described in the wiki. Doesn't help you, I know, but my point is that the wiki information is correct.

Post dmesg | grep b43 and lsmod | grep b43, as previously suggested. If your machine has a hardware switch for wifi, make sure it is on.

theDBANfan · 2009-07-09 08:05:10

tomk wrote:

I also have a 4318 and it worked first time using the procedure described in the wiki. Doesn't help you, I know, but my point is that the wiki information is correct.
Post dmesg | grep b43 and lsmod | grep b43, as previously suggested. If your machine has a hardware switch for wifi, make sure it is on.

Interesting that it worked for you and not for me. I will re-install Arch and follow the EXACT procedures on the wiki and see if that works. I will post my results here, and no my machine does not have a hardware switch for wifi. What driver are you using? The BCM43XX or the b43? Thanks. :D:D

BTW I typed in the following:

dmesg | grep b43

and this came up:

b43-pci-bridge 0000:05:01.0: PCI INT A -> GSI 17 (level, low) -> IRQ 17
b43-phy0: Broadcom 4318 WLAN found

Last edited by theDBANfan (2009-07-09 08:12:02)

tomk · 2009-07-09 08:11:04

You don't need to reinstall.

As the wiki says, b43 is the successor to bcm43xx, so that's the one you should use.

theDBANfan · 2009-07-09 08:12:32

tomk wrote:

You don't need to reinstall.
As the wiki says, b43 is the successor to bcm43xx, so that's the one you should use.

ok. I am using b43 at the moment

Last edited by theDBANfan (2009-07-09 08:13:04)

theDBANfan · 2009-07-09 08:39:54

tomk wrote:

I also have a 4318 and it worked first time using the procedure described in the wiki. Doesn't help you, I know, but my point is that the wiki information is correct.
Post dmesg | grep b43 and lsmod | grep b43, as previously suggested. If your machine has a hardware switch for wifi, make sure it is on.

When I type in;

lsmod | grep b43

the following comes up;

b43 143016 0
ssb 47748 1 b43
rfkill 13904 1 b43
pcmcia 39192 2 b43,ssb
mac80211 182960 1 b43
led_class 6280 1 b43
input_polldev 6032 1 b43
pcmcia_core 39204 3 b43,ssb,pcmcia

That text is arranged neatly and is easily readable on my system's screen but I cant seem to arrange it neatly on this post. Sorry.

Trent · 2009-07-09 13:20:42

So, how is it broken? I don't have personal experience with Broadcom cards, but it looks to me like everything is normal at this stage. What does iwconfig show you?

tomk · 2009-07-09 14:00:22

I'm guessing the dmesg output above is from before the module was loaded - it doesn't include any references to the firmware. Unload and reload the module, then grep dmesg again.

theDBANfan · 2009-07-10 01:37:43

I don't think my firmware was loaded, but I do know I have the correct, working firmware. I had the same problem with Ubuntu about telling it where the firmware was. I can't remember how I did it. I believe it's just a matter of telling Arch Linux to look in the /lib/firmware/b43 folder for the correct firmware for my wifi card; if so, how do I do that?

BTW I added 'b43', with out the quotes, into the 'modules' section of my '/etc/rc.conf' file.

Last edited by theDBANfan (2009-07-10 01:55:27)

iphitus · 2009-07-10 03:34:24

What is the exact problem? please post full output/error messages.

It appears that the driver has been loaded correctly and you can begin to connect to networks with the tool of your choice. Please see the wiki for a range of options, and have exact details of the network you wish to connect to ready (passphrase/key, level of security, SSID, etc).

James

theDBANfan · 2009-07-10 05:36:07

My core problem is that Arch Linux can not find the firmware for my Boradcom 4318 Revision 2 WLAN card, despite me putting the firmware in the /lib/firmware/b43 directory. I definitely know that this firmware is the correct firmware because it worked with Ubuntu x64 Edition. I need someone to tell me how to tell Arch Linux to look in the /lib/firmware/b43 directory for the firmware for me Broadcom card.

I would also like for someone to tell me how to connect to a wireless network using utilities that are built into Arch. The documentation is very confusing for me. I am sorry for being a n00b.

Last edited by theDBANfan (2009-07-10 05:40:29)

tomk · 2009-07-10 06:21:01

As I've already mentioned, the procedure described in the wiki works. You don't need to "tell Arch Linux" to look for the firmware - the driver looks for the firmware, and /lib/firmware/b43 is the correct location.

If you are not sure what the errors in dmesg mean, post them here as previously suggested.

As you get used to using Arch, you will find that people here will usually refer you to the wiki first, no matter how many times you say "tell me how to do this". The general idea is that you try it first, and if it does not work, come back to the forum with specific details about the problem.

Don't be sorry for being a noob - we all were once. Just be aware that Arch and Arch users are not going to hold your hand - that is not the Arch Way.

iphitus · 2009-07-10 13:44:18

theDBANfan wrote:

My core problem is that Arch Linux can not find the firmware for my Boradcom 4318 Revision 2 WLAN card, despite me putting the firmware in the /lib/firmware/b43 directory. I definitely know that this firmware is the correct firmware because it worked with Ubuntu x64 Edition. I need someone to tell me how to tell Arch Linux to look in the /lib/firmware/b43 directory for the firmware for me Broadcom card.

How do you know this? I need output, error messages to understand the issue. Please post any suitable output that you believe gives you this information

I would also like for someone to tell me how to connect to a wireless network using utilities that are built into Arch. The documentation is very confusing for me. I am sorry for being a n00b.

There is extensive documentation on the wiki, and I've spent many hours on it. It is all in a step by step, easy to understand layout. Read it and try first. If you have any specific questions about it then, or errors, please ask.

Last edited by iphitus (2009-07-10 13:45:51)

zenlord · 2009-07-10 14:10:08

Iphitus is referring to this page: http://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Netcfg

And I can confirm that he has put a lot of work in not only the pragram itself, but also in the documentation... You don't have to say sorry for being a n00b - everyone has been there and some of us are still there. Just take the time to absorb it all and do some extensive searches on both the forum and wiki. You'll see there is close to nothing (for novices like us) that is not described in one of them.

Arch Linux

#1 2009-07-09 04:32:24

Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#2 2009-07-09 04:41:50

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#3 2009-07-09 05:43:47

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#4 2009-07-09 05:47:56

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#5 2009-07-09 06:48:34

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#6 2009-07-09 07:17:35

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#7 2009-07-09 07:20:21

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#8 2009-07-09 07:30:31

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#9 2009-07-09 07:40:36

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#10 2009-07-09 08:05:10

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#11 2009-07-09 08:11:04

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#12 2009-07-09 08:12:32

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#13 2009-07-09 08:39:54

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#14 2009-07-09 13:20:42

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#15 2009-07-09 14:00:22

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#16 2009-07-10 01:37:43

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#17 2009-07-10 03:34:24

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#18 2009-07-10 05:36:07

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#19 2009-07-10 06:21:01

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#20 2009-07-10 13:44:18

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

#21 2009-07-10 14:10:08

Re: Wireless = No Go for Arch n00b

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