Ubuntu
gnome-nettool package

issue with network adapter

Asked by abigail ward

I have an HP Pavilion laptop. I got so sick of Vista that I loaded Ubuntu, which I really like, however it says it is unable to connect to wireless networks because there is firmware missing. I checked the wireless switch on the front of my laptop, and regardless of whether it is on or off the little blue light won't turn on. It was working before I made the switch, however my network adapter has had issues in the past, so is it finally just gone or is it Ubuntu?
PS. I found a bit of documentation that gave me code to check if my adapter was claimed, unclaimed, enabled or disabled, and it said it was disabled.

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François Tissandier (baloo) said : 		#1

The firmware missing is just like a driver in Windows: without it, the wireless card cannot work.

The first thing to check is if Ubuntu can install it. Can you open the "Additional Drivers" option in System>Administration? See if it gives you the option to install the driver.

If not, do you know the brand & model of this card? If you don't, you can probably find it by opening a terminal (in applications > accessories), then by typing "lspci" or "lsusb". Copy paste the output of those commands here, we will be able to find the name of your wireless card easily.

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Mark Rijckenberg (markrijckenberg) said : 		#2

Hi,

Please first connect your network card to the wireless router using an ethernet cable (also known as a LAN cable).

In order to gather essential troubleshooting information about your wireless card, please follow this procedure:

Step 1: Open Terminal from "Applications->Accessories->Terminal"

Step 2: Please copy-paste the following command from the https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu website in Firefox into the Linux Terminal. Do NOT copy-paste from the Email message into the Terminal, as that will only copy PART of the command. The command STARTS with the word sudo and ENDS with the word lsmod. So please copy-paste the ENTIRE command below from Firefox into a Terminal, press <enter>, then enter password when sudo asks for password, then press enter again.

Tip: If you have a wheel mouse or 3 button mouse you do not need to type commands into the Terminal. Highlight the command written on the page. Move your cursor anywhere in the Terminal and press the wheel or middle button. Automatic Copy and paste! No spelling mistakes! No Typos! No other errors!

sudo apt-get update; sudo apt-get install hwinfo grep; sudo lshw -C network; rfkill list; sudo iwlist scanning; cat /etc/network/interfaces; cat /etc/lsb-release; lspci -nn; lsusb; sudo lshw -short; uname -a; dmesg | egrep 'acx|at76|ath|b43|bcm|CX|eth|ipw|irmware|isl|lbtf|ndiswrapper|NPE|ound|p54|prism|rtl|rt2|rt3|usb|witch|wl'; iwconfig; cat /etc/modprobe.d/* | egrep 'acx|at76|ath|b43|bcm|CX|eth|ipw|irmware|isl|lbtf|ndiswrapper|NPE|p54|prism|rtl|rt2|rt3|witch|wl'; sudo hwinfo --netcard ; cat /var/lib/NetworkManager/NetworkManager.state; sudo lsmod

Step 3: Please post results (copy/paste terminal output) on this thread. The troubleshooters here need to see the full Terminal output from running the above command.

Step 4: Please also specify the exact model and make of your PC.

Regards,

Mark

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abigail ward (xarlam) said : 		#3

Installing the right drivers did the trick. I'm getting the little blue light and everything :)
Thanks so much for your help!

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François Tissandier (baloo) said : 		#4

great :)