Linux Ubuntu HowTo - Wireless

[Gina]

Use Windows driver to access wireless adapter in Ubuntu 6.06

If Ubuntu doesn't automatically detect your wireless adapter, this HowTo describes how to enable wireless networking with Linux using the driver file from Windows and the ndiswrapper feature of Linux.

Firstly find and copy the .inf file for the wireless driver into a removeable media - eg. USB memory stick, CD or floppy. This may be from your Windows installation (preferred), the install CD or a downloaded driver. Try looking in Program Files and the folder for the make of wireless adapter. If there's more than one .inf file make copies of all of them to try later.

Boot into Linux
Go to System>Administration>Synaptic Packet Manager
In there choose Settings>Repositories
and choose "Ubuntu 6.06 (LTS) binary - Community maintained Universe" by ticking the box
Close window
Click on Reload - this will download a new list of packages available

Click Search and enter "ndisgtk"
Select for download by ticking the box on the left
Do the same for "ndiswrapper-utils"
Click on Apply and the packages will be installed

Go to System>Administration>Windows Wireless Drivers (a new option we've just added)
Click Install Driver
Browse to the .inf file you saved earlier and click Install
The new driver should appear in the list on the left
Choose Configure Network and enter your network settings ESSID (also called SSID) and WEP Passphrase. Choose "Use DHCP" and click OK
The wireless connection should now activate.

[Gina]

Using ndiswrapper etc. when you have no internet connection in Ubuntu

Although easier to install the necessary packages using a wired connection to the 'net, this isn't always practical. This is how to use another computer or the sams computer running Windows to download the required files.

Two packages are wanted to use the graphical interface in Ubuntu to get wireless working using the Windows driver info. These are ndiswrapper-utils and ndisgtk The versions I used successfully with Ubuntu v6.06 (Dapper Drake) were ndiswrapper-utils_1.8-0ubuntu2_i386.deb and ndisgtk_0.6-0ubuntu1_all.deb. These are Debian packages and can be installed into Ubuntu by simply double-clicking on the file icon - making installation easy.

Method
In some cases you may be able to read Windows hard drives from Ubuntu but if not (and safer anyway) you will need some form of removeable storage to transfer files between Windows and Ubuntu. I recommend a USB memory stick - fast and easy - thought anything else, such as CD-RW or even floppy will do.

Find the installation CD that came with your wireless adapter or find the location of the driver files in Windows - usually in the Program Files folder under either make or device name. Look for .INF files and copy to your storage device. It may or may not be obvious which you want or there may only be one. If not obvious and more than one, copying both/all gives you the opportunity to try more than one if the first doesn't work.

Now go online and download ndiswrapper-utils_1.8-0ubuntu2_i386.deb and ndisgtk_0.6-0ubuntu1_all.deb. These may be obtained form many sources of Ubuntu main or mirror websites eg.
http://mirror.linux.org.mt/mirror/ubuntu/pool/universe/n/ndiswrapper/ and http://mirror.linux.org.mt/mirror/ubuntu/pool/universe/n/ndisgtk/ and choose the files from the list.

Copy these two files to your storage device.

You are now ready to run the Ubuntu live CD (or HD version, if you've already installed Ubuntu). Connect or insert your storage device if required (eg. different PC) and boot up into Ubuntu.

Your storage device should appear on the Ubuntu desktop - or find it from the Places Menu. Go into this and find the files you just copied. Double-click on each file icon (looks kike an open cardboard box) to install ndiswrapper-utils and ndisgtk, and follow the instructions for each in turn.

Go to System > Administration > Windows Wireless Drivers (a new option we've just added)
Click Install Driver
Browse to the .inf file you saved earlier and click Install
The new driver should appear in the list on the left - if not try another (if available).
Choose Configure Network and enter your network settings ESSID (also called SSID) and WEP Passphrase. Choose "Use DHCP" and click OK
The wireless connection should now activate.

[Gina]

I'm about to check out this HowTo in earnest to get my very old desktop online after installing Feisty Fawn in dual-boot with Dapper (Having deleted the entire Windows partition).

The PC is working perfectly in Dapper, both wired and wireless, proving that the hardware is still working. However, neither are working in Feisty (after a totally clean install).

I've not had a chance to investigate as yet - hopefully tomorrow.

I've been working on various HowTo's for publishing on my Linux website. This is one of them :lol (Hence posting again in this thread)

[Gina]

Update... Net connection with old desktop.

I got Feisty running with a wired connection OK but not persued wireless - having concentrated on the website and other matters. This evening I tried to get wireless working again in Feisty - so far no joy and I've given up for today. Still working fine in Dapper. I'll report progress - I expect to get this sorted out in due course. I'll be searching the web for answers and then asking on the Ubuntu Forums. Probably something silly and simple :lol

Techy info... Wireless card is Belkin F5D7000 PCI with RaLink rt2500 chipset. This is supposed to be supported "out of the box". But it doesn't work. Nor will it work with ndiswrapper and Win driver.

[Gina]

OK - Got it working :):)

Found the answer on the Ubuntu Forums - just a matter of down-ing the interface before setting the essid etc. then up-ing it.

sudo ifdown ra0
sudo iwconfig ra0 channel 11 essid <myessid> mode Managed
sudo ifup ra0

So it was something silly and simple :lol

[hdensley]

-I have installed ndiswrapper
-not sure what chipset I have, but I have a different INF file than many who have installed this 'BLKWGDv7.inf'
- this INF file will not show up in Systems->Administration->Wireless Windows Drivers, although it seems to think it's installed, ie) it won't let me install it again
- wireless is not working, but shows, as per below


harold@harold-desktop:~$ sudo lshw -C network
*-network:0 UNCLAIMED
description: Ethernet controller
product: Belkin
vendor: Belkin
physical id: 9
bus info: pci@00:09.0
version: 20
width: 32 bits
clock: 33MHz
capabilities: bus_master cap_list
configuration: latency=32 maxlatency=64 mingnt=32
resources: ioport:e000-e0ff iomemory:ef008000-ef0081ff irq:11
*-network:1
description: Ethernet interface
product: RTL-8139/8139C/8139C+
vendor: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.
physical id: a
bus info: pci@00:0a.0
logical name: eth0
version: 10
serial: 00:20:ed:70:90:83
size: 100MB/s
capacity: 100MB/s
width: 32 bits
clock: 33MHz
capabilities: bus_master cap_list ethernet physical tp mii 10bt 10bt-fd 100bt 100bt-fd autonegotiation
configuration: autonegotiation=on broadcast=yes driver=8139too driverversion=0.9.28 duplex=full ip=192.168.0.102 latency=32 link=yes maxlatency=64 mingnt=32 multicast=yes port=MII speed=100MB/s
resources: ioport:e400-e4ff iomemory:ef009000-ef0090ff irq:20