Wireless woes.

[spacefreak]

I couldn't figure out why my Gentoo install wasn't working... even though I've done it a couple times before. Regardless, I figured Kubuntu, tried and true, wouldn't let me down.

Until it won't accept the passcode for my wireless network. I've tried every single combination for WEP and all that. Still won't accept it. I know it's the right one cause it works with the Gentoo livecd, as well as the computer I'm using right now. I'm frustrated with linux... very frustrated.

[tomcloyd]

Re: Wireless woes.

I have the same problem. I've given up for now. Wireless connection is clearly not a priority for Kubuntu.

[Snowhog]

Re: Wireless woes.

When typing in the passcode, check/select to show it in plain text as you type it in.

[spacefreak]

Re: Wireless woes.

Yep, been there, done that. No change. I'd be willing to bet it's the network manager it's using... however, you need the internet to get a different one...

[GreyGeek]

Re: Wireless woes.

Switch to wicd. See how that works for you. While I currently have no problems with knetworkmanager, I prefer wicd because it fires up and makes the connection BEFORE the KDE4 desktop comes up, so the weather plasmoids don't have to wait for the web connection in order to refresh their data.

BTW, most Kubuntu Karmic users are having NO problems connecting to the wireless routers using networkmanager, so saying that "Wireless connection is clearly not a priority for Kubuntu" is not accurate.

[jglen490]

Re: Wireless woes.

I would connect with a cable to the wireless router and verify the passcode and other settings. I don't know how many times I've misspelled my passcode (especially upper/lower case) at various times. I don't use WEP, but the concept is the same regardless of mode and should not be a problem in Linux regardless of network manager used.

[Guest]

Re: Wireless woes.

I have the same problem. I've given up for now. Wireless connection is clearly not a priority for Kubuntu.

I appreciate the frustration too, as I have the same problem with Kubuntu 9.10 as well as older versions of both Debian-based and Red Hat-based Linux OSes with the KDE desktop. I think that simple automatic wireless card recognition and first-time config ease is just not a priority for the developers of knetworkmanager/KDE.

I say that because I have no problems connecting to wireless with WPA/WPA2 right out of the box using the same hardware with Ubuntu 9.10, or Fedora 12, or multiple versions of that OS from Redmond.

I wish I had the answer...

[tomcloyd]

Re: Wireless woes.

Yeah, my WinXP just connects, wirelessly. But, in all fairness, that's the OS my netbook came with. It was I who got clever and loaded Kubuntu.

I will be the first to say that I'm inexpressively grateful every day for Kubuntu. That doesn't keep me from wanting to throw something large and pointed at the wall when I try one more time to connect via wireless and appear to do it all right and get absolutely nowhere. In fact, I think I'll throw something right now!

Then there's my journey of many days toward getting access via Unison (a hard drive syncing program) to my desktop from my netbook. Many days...a very long thread...and still no connection. SSH just won't work for me, so far.

Ah, but what's tomorrow for, if not for solving today's problems?

[spacefreak]

Re: Wireless woes.

I had decided to try Wicd before I came back and read the posts on the forums. I liked it from my experiences with Zenwalk and the Gentoo LiveDVD. Works perfectly, first try, nothing but glory. Also, I'm not even using a notebook... I'm on a desktop. O.o

[OysterH]

Re: Wireless woes.

Hello and sorry I am jumping in like this but I am having similar problems.

I inherited this laptop from a friend:
Acer Travelmate 4021
1'500mb ram
Intel GMA900 Shared Memory

The network manager was configured with a mobile broadband modem in mind, but I don't have one.
So I am trying fruitlessly to find other wireless networks to hook up to but can't see any.

I think there is a gnome based network manager installed.

Can anyone give me some pointers in the right direction?

[Snowhog]

Re: Wireless woes.

Assuming that your friend configured network manager correctly, you should just have to click (or left-click) on the icon in the system tray to open it and see what it sees. Likely, your friend checked the broadband mobile as the 'default' connection. That can be unchecked. Then select the access point you want to use from the list of available ones. If it's an 'open' access point, you're in. If it's using encryption - a passkey - you have to click on Options or Advanced (IIRC) to get to the screen where you select the encryption type and type in the passkey. There is an option to show the passkey as 'plain text' as you type it in.

This is all from memory. I don't use NetworkManger - I use Wicd.

[OysterH]

Re: Wireless woes.

Thank you snowhog

Assuming that your friend configured network manager correctly, you should just have to click (or left-click) on the icon in the system tray to open it and see what it sees.

I am not sure what you mean. I went to system settings->networksettings and it seamed normal, although in " services search nothing was marked, so I am not sure.
I made a new service name "Wlan" assuming this would show up in the networkmanager applet at left click but nothing happens.

I don't have a list of access points to choose from on left-click I just get:
-connection with other networks
-connect to network connection.

Clicking on both gives me a screen that gives me a choice:
-new adhoc connection
-connect to other network

clicking and choosing either gives me a screen to configure and name a connection. But since I don't have any access points to choose from :P

lspci gives me:
Ethernet controller: Broadcom BCM4401 100Base-T (rev 02)

I think I will get a mobile broadband modem as that seems to work but would still like to see a list of access points just in case as using the mobile modem is expensive to use just to check your mails.

As far as I could tell wicd does not support mobile broadband.

Edit:
I found this:
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3105187.0

Do I have to get that b43-cutter or how can I edit /etc/modules?

Wdit2:
I booted from a live cd (Kubuntu and Ubuntu) and got the same behavior from the network applets. It seems that my card is not being detected for some reason.

[tjohnson_nb]

Re: Wireless woes.

It seems like it is detecting the card but you don't have a driver for it. I found this link http://www.broadcom.com/support/ethe...ver=4401-Linux for a driver if you want to try building and installing it.

[dibl]

Re: Wireless woes.

You need to know for sure that the wireless chip is detected, and that the driver module for it is installed. If you know which module it needs, you can check with

lsmod

in the Konsole to be sure it is loaded.

Knetwork-manager has never been trouble-free, unfortunately. I've always had better luck with wpa_supplicant and wicd. Here's a recent discussion:

http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...6617#msg216617

Hope this helps.

[OysterH]

Re: Wireless woes.

Thanky guys.
I looked at my lspci again and found this:

06:03.0 Network controller: Intel Corporation PRO/Wireless 2200BG [Calexico2] Network Connection (rev 05)

I then found this:
http://wiki.ubuntuusers.de/acer-wmi

I folowed the instructions and did this:

~$ sudo modprobe acer-wmi

and put this into my /etc/modules:

acer-wmi wireless=1

After reboot I get this in my lsmod Partial quote):

lp 8964 0
parport 35340 2 ppdev,lp
fbcon 36640 72
tileblit 2460 1 fbcon
font 8124 1 fbcon
bitblit 5372 1 fbcon
softcursor 1756 1 bitblit
i915 221320 2
drm 159584 2 i915
i2c_algo_bit 5760 1 i915
b44 28684 0
ssb 35364 1 b44
mii 5212 1 b44
intel_agp 27484 2 i915
agpgart 34988 2 drm,intel_agp
video 19380 1 i915
output 2780 1 video
~$

According to rhe read me text from the link:
http://www.broadcom.com/support/ethe...ver=4401-Linux

the driver is b44 so that seems to be okay.

I seem to be doing something wrong though as I still can't see a list of access points in my network manager.

Bthw doing "make" in the unpacked file downloaded from the link above and as suggested by the readme:

The following are general guidelines for installing the driver.

1. Create a directory and extract the files:

tar xvzf b44-<version>.tar.gz

2. Build the driver b44.o (or b44.ko) as a loadable module for the
running kernel:

cd src
make

3. Test the driver by loading it:

insmod b44.o
or
insmod b44.ko (on 2.6.x kernels)
or
insmod b44

4. Install the driver:

make install

See RPM instructions above for the location of the installed driver.

5. To configure network protocol and address, refer to various Linux
documentations.

did not work. I got this:

~/Downloads/linux/b44-1.00g$ make
make -C /lib/modules/2.6.31-17-generic/build SUBDIRS=/home/fintan/Downloads/linux/b44-1.00g modules
make[1]: Betrete Verzeichnis '/usr/src/linux-headers-2.6.31-17-generic'
scripts/Makefile.build:49: *** CFLAGS was changed in "/home/fintan/Downloads/linux/b44-1.00g/Makefile". Fix it to use EXTRA_CFLAGS. Schluss.
make[1]: *** [_module_/home/fintan/Downloads/linux/b44-1.00g] Fehler 2
make[1]: Verlasse Verzeichnis '/usr/src/linux-headers-2.6.31-17-generic'
make: *** [default] Fehler 2

I can feel that I am getting there but am at a loss fthm.

Edit:

For completeness sake I did this:
~$ iwconfig
lo no wireless extensions.

eth0 no wireless extensions.

eth1 radio off ESSIDff/any
Mode:Managed Channel:0 Access Point: Not-Associated
Bit Rate:0 kb/s Tx-Power=off Sensitivity=8/0
Retry limit:7 RTS thrff Fragment thrff
Power Managementff
Link Quality:0 Signal level:0 Noise level:0
Rx invalid nwid:0 Rx invalid crypt:0 Rx invalid frag:0
Tx excessive retries:0 Invalid misc:0 Missed beacon:0
:~$

So I guess it is turned off.