SOLVED - Broadcom STA driver not working in LM11

[minuxlint-alpha]

If anyone has issues installing the Broadcom STA driver in the LM11-RC, a known bug in Natty prevents some older machines from working with that version of the STA driver. The work around is to open synaptic and ensure that ALL packages that refer to broadcom, B43, and bcmwl-kernel-source are completely UNINSTALLED. At this point you can find the STA driver that worked in LM10 at <package.ubuntu.com/maverick/bcmwl-kernel-source> from there select the correct architecture (32 bit or 64 bit), download and install the .deb file.

** You should go into synaptic one more time and highlight the bcmwl-kernel-source package and in the upper left hand top menu, click on the drop down menu "package" and select lock this pacakge. This will prevent the LM update from removing the version that works.

Now use the additional driver application in the menu and install the STA driver. Once installed, reboot and your wireless should work again.

[Doughbury]

Thanks for this post! I have an old Pavilion dv2500 with a Broadcom chip and I just replaced LM10 with LM11. This solution got my laptop back on line.

[cebalrai]

If anyone has issues installing the Broadcom STA driver in the LM11-RC, a known bug in Natty prevents some older machines from working with that version of the STA driver. The work around is to open synaptic and ensure that ALL packages that refer to broadcom, B43, and bcmwl-kernel-source are completely UNINSTALLED. At this point you can find the STA driver that worked in LM10 at <package.ubuntu.com/maverick/bcmwl-kernel-source> from there select the correct architecture (32 bit or 64 bit), download and install the .deb file.

** You should go into synaptic one more time and highlight the bcmwl-kernel-source package and in the upper left hand top menu, click on the drop down menu "package" and select lock this pacakge. This will prevent the LM update from removing the version that works.

Now use the additional driver application in the menu and install the STA driver. Once installed, reboot and your wireless should work again.

Thanks I'm having the same issue in LM 11 with my Dell e1505 laptop.

I'm a bit noobish in Linux though and don't know how to find the STA driver in <>, nor install a .deb file. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[Doughbury]

I'm a bit noobish in Linux though and don't know how to find the STA driver in <>, nor install a .deb file. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Paste the following in your browser:

http://packages.ubuntu.com/maverick/bcmwl-kernel-source

In the section called "Download bcmwl-kernel-source," click on either amd64 or i386 (depending on whether you have a 64-bit processor or not). At the following page, pick any mirror site. It's such a small file that I don't know that it really matters where you get it from, just click on a link and download the file. Once it is finished downloading, right-click on the file and select the option that says something like, "Open with GDebi installer." When you get a warning about there being a more up-to-date package, ignore it.

Hope this helps. I'm not far from noobdom my self.

[arta]

Thanks for the information, I noticed the drivers support the 4311-4312 series of broadcom chips. Any suggestion about drivers for the 4306 chipset.

[cebalrai]

I'm a bit noobish in Linux though and don't know how to find the STA driver in <>, nor install a .deb file. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Paste the following in your browser:

http://packages.ubuntu.com/maverick/bcmwl-kernel-source

In the section called "Download bcmwl-kernel-source," click on either amd64 or i386 (depending on whether you have a 64-bit processor or not). At the following page, pick any mirror site. It's such a small file that I don't know that it really matters where you get it from, just click on a link and download the file. Once it is finished downloading, right-click on the file and select the option that says something like, "Open with GDebi installer." When you get a warning about there being a more up-to-date package, ignore it.

Hope this helps. I'm not far from noobdom my self.

Hmm this didn't work for me. I removed everything as you said and installed the driver... It still didn't give me an option to enable wireless next to enable networking... Not only that but it disabled my wired connection as well. Then I went to the control panel and just tried to use the additional driver panel to install that way - and it worked!

Then when I rebooted it stopped working again.

Advice?

[Doughbury]

Hmm this didn't work for me.

I went here (http://dell.driversdown.com/dell-driver ... 59_1.shtml) and looked at the wireless chipsets for the Dell XPS laptops, and it seems that none of the XPS laptops run Broadcom 43xx chips. The solution on this thread only applies to the BCM4311-, BCM4312-, BCM4321-, and BCM4322-based hardware. What version of Broadcom are you running?

It is interesting that it worked after running the restricted hardware application. That seems to imply that the wireless card would work with the current kernel. Did you try running the restricted hardware application before trying the solution in this thread? What happens if you allow MintUpdate to update the wireless driver to the latest version (and then you reboot)?

[cebalrai]

Hmm this didn't work for me.

I went here (http://dell.driversdown.com/dell-driver ... 59_1.shtml) and looked at the wireless chipsets for the Dell XPS laptops, and it seems that none of the XPS laptops run Broadcom 43xx chips. The solution on this thread only applies to the BCM4311-, BCM4312-, BCM4321-, and BCM4322-based hardware. What version of Broadcom are you running?

It is interesting that it worked after running the restricted hardware application. That seems to imply that the wireless card would work with the current kernel. Did you try running the restricted hardware application before trying the solution in this thread? What happens if you allow MintUpdate to update the wireless driver to the latest version (and then you reboot)?

The restricted hardware application does not work (works fine in Mint 10 though). Well, it appears to work and the driver installs, but then it can't detect any wireless networks. And the 'enable wireless' line vanishes.

I have an Inspiron e1505 by the way not an XPS. This is a different computer than the one in my sig.

[Doughbury]

I have an Inspiron e1505 by the way not an XPS. This is a different computer than the one in my sig.

Well, that's what I get for making assumptions. So what version of Broadcom does your laptop have?

Well, it appears to work and the driver installs, but then it can't detect any wireless networks. And the 'enable wireless' line vanishes.

That's what happened to my Pavilion upon the fresh install. So it does sound like the hardware and the kernel aren't getting along.

[bonzini]

I have a similar problem in Ubuntu 11.04 on a Dell 1501 and I have a workaround. You can try it on Mint 11 and see if it works.

From the menu, pick Administration>Additional Drivers and remove the STA driver.
Then, from a terminal, run "sudo apt-get install firmware-b43-installer"
Then, reboot the machine and log back in.

At that point, on my machine, I have to do a function-F2 to activate the wireless (every time I log in).

Note this is a workaround - it doesn't fix the STA driver, it uses the old driver instead.