Xubuntu Help Needed: Wireless Adapter

[xSauronx]

I decided to finally put linux on my laptop, since id always promised myself id ditch windows if i didnt need it for gaming, or couldnt use it for gaming on a particular machine.

I figured, after reading around here and on the ubuntu forums that the only iffy thing would be getting my wireless adapter to work. Its a Gigafast WF747-UI.

However, i poked around enough to get the drivers installed with ndiswrapper, and added some lines to /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist to get it to show up under the network settings panel

but it was always showing up as eth2 for some reason. after fiddling around last night while looking through other peoples wireless troubles, i found a suggestion to change /etc/iftab to label the device by mac address to wlan0.

i did, rebooted, and it didnt work. but this morning, for no appearent reason...it did. wlan0, hurrah...or something. its got power now, which it didnt have before.

i bring it to work and now its eth1.

either way, using wifi-radar it never picked up any signal, and even when i set up a specific profile for a nearby ap i get nothing.

im rather lost, and would prefer to find a way to get this to work properly as opposed to buying a new one that may work easier because:

--id rather not buy a new one if this can work (and according to this post, it can)
--id just like to know how to do it
--id like the experience of learning a few things in the process

any ideas? i dont know what information to get, or list, that may help troubleshoot the problem since im (clearly) inexperienced

thanks!

update: have a new adapter as per drags reccomendation, still having some trouble. i think its minor...

 

[n0cmonkey]

Which chipset does that adapter use?

 

[xSauronx]

Originally posted by: n0cmonkey
Which chipset does that adapter use?

no idea. doesnt seem to be on the product website, which is sporadically up and down. i wouldnt know where else to look. any suggestions?

the XP driver package had an ini and inf file i took a look at. nothing in the ini file except wireless setting info, and the inf mentioned prisma02 and prisma022 once or twice but that doesnt seem to indicate anything about a chipset (from the ndiswrapper working cards list, a number of them with different chipsets reference the same)

 

[xtknight]

Use the `lspci` command to see the device ID of your network adapter. It may list the chipset, or we may be able to determine the chipset from that. It may also be listed under the `sudo lshw` command. Use `less` to scroll through the output like so: `sudo lshw | less` and find the network adapter. Scroll through dmesg (`dmesg | less`) and look for any network-related activity. The driver name may be listed in the debug output, sort of like:

netwrkdriver: detected active LAN on ethX

 

[n0cmonkey]

The WF747-CUI seems to use ZyDAS ZD1211 or ZD1211B (can't remember now), but can't find much on the non "C" version. Other than that, I don't troubleshoot ndiswrapper.

 

[xSauronx]

Originally posted by: n0cmonkey
The WF747-CUI seems to use ZyDAS ZD1211 or ZD1211B (can't remember now), but can't find much on the non "C" version. Other than that, I don't troubleshoot ndiswrapper.

ive noticed, i dug around here as well trying to find something out before asking any questions. there is no WF747-CUI. Theres a WF748-CUI. id check out the gigafast drivers for it, but their website it lousy and i cant get to it right now. ill take a look at the zd1211/b drivers and see if i can figure something out with them perhaps,since im not getting anywhere with anything else.

if nothing else ill get to tinker around with some things for experience sake before buying a new adapter.

Originally posted by: xtknight
Use the `lspci` command to see the device ID of your network adapter. It may list the chipset, or we may be able to determine the chipset from that. It may also be listed under the `sudo lshw` command. Use `less` to scroll through the output like so: `sudo lshw | less` and find the network adapter. Scroll through dmesg (`dmesg | less`) and look for any network-related activity. The driver name may be listed in the debug output, sort of like:

netwrkdriver: detected active LAN on ethX

lspci output doesnt list anything when its attached to the usb ports, just the usb controller of each port.

lshw shows my cruzer under the usb list as "vendor: Sandisk Corp" and "vendor: airvast" under a generic usb device, which must be the adapter.

googling airvast brings up links to conexant, and their prism line of wlan adapters, so i guess prism *is* the chipset. they seem to be on a prism3 now, and under my driver list, like i mentioned, it showed prism a02. this thing is oldish, at least a year, and maybe more. i wont be surprised if i cant get it to work, just somewhat aggravated.

dmesg references the adapter as follows:

[17180084.036000] usb 2-1: configuration #1 chosen from 1 choice
[17180084.584000] ieee80211_crypt: registered algorithm 'NULL'
[17180084.588000] ieee80211: 802.11 data/management/control stack, git-1.1.13
[17180084.588000] ieee80211: Copyright (C) 2004-2005 Intel Corporation <jketreno
@linux.intel.com>
[17180084.652000] islusb: suitable configuration found for net2280 + PCI device
[17180085.088000] usbcore: registered new driver islusb
[17180085.568000] islusb: Register read tx 0e 080f 4000102c failed: -71
[17180085.568000] islusb: Register write 0d 001f 00000024 00000000 failed: -71
[17180085.568000] islusb: Register write 0d 001f 0000002c 01000000 failed: -71
[17180085.568000] islusb: reset error: -71


it repeats the errors a number of times, from "islusb: Register" to "reset error: - 71"then shows this:

[17180087.092000] usb 2-1: configuration #1 chosen from 1 choice
[17180087.092000] islusb: suitable configuration found for net2280 + PCI device
[17180088.968000] scheduling int bh
[17180088.976000] scheduling int bh
[17180089.716000] ADDRCONF(NETDEV_UP): eth1: link is not ready
[17180114.912000] usb 2-1: USB disconnect, address 4
[17180115.208000] usb 2-1: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address
5
[17180115.340000] usb 2-1: configuration #1 chosen from 1 choice
[17180115.340000] islusb: suitable configuration found for net2280 + PCI device
[17180117.440000] scheduling int bh
[17180117.444000] scheduling int bh
[17180118.328000] ADDRCONF(NETDEV_UP): eth1: link is not ready*
[17180166.824000] usb 2-1: USB disconnect, address 5
[17180167.120000] usb 2-1: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address

*emphasis mine

i dont really see myself getting anywhere with this. its still getting power, and still randomly eth1 and wlan0 and seeing it as a 802.11 device....but its not getting signals and everywhere within 4 blocks of this office is at least 3 wireless networks at *any* given time.

any other ideas before i start taking suggestions on a new adapter?

 

[xSauronx]

up for the morning crowd. im lost on this, if you can suggest an adapter that *works* without too much hassle, please do so.

 

[xSauronx]

up again. need a wireless adapter that can work well with linux. ill have dsl and a router next week and will go from being wanting to....wanting very badly.

 

[drag]

This is what I own:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16833320107

it's pretty nice.

Ubuntu will have drivers for it, but if those don't work out well then get the drivers from:
http://rt2x00.serialmonkey.com/wiki/index.php?title=Downloads

If you have trouble with configuring it use this utility:
http://cbbk.free.fr/bonrom/

If you have stability or other issues check out the forums on rt2x00's website.

Current limitations on the drivers is that they may not work to hot with SMP and non-x86 systems. I can't speak for wpa or wep support.

Eventually when the 'dscape' matures they will be top flight drivers. But right now they are experimental. The beta rt2x00 drivers just working for my debian powerpc laptop .

I'll see if I can find out more about the usb adapter you already have..

edit:
with the rt2570 or rt2x00 cvs drivers complain about lack of debugfs when you try to compile them go into the 'config' file in the downloaded tarball and change
<something else here>_DEBUGFS=y
<something else here>_DEBUGFS=n

 

[xSauronx]

Originally posted by: drag
This is what I own:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16833320107

it's pretty nice.

Ubuntu will have drivers for it, but if those don't work out well then get the drivers from:
http://rt2x00.serialmonkey.com/wiki/index.php?title=Downloads

If you have trouble with configuring it use this utility:
http://cbbk.free.fr/bonrom/

If you have stability or other issues check out the forums on rt2x00's website.

Current limitations on the drivers is that they may not work to hot with SMP and non-x86 systems. I can't speak for wpa or wep support.

Eventually when the 'dscape' matures they will be top flight drivers. But right now they are experimental. The beta rt2x00 drivers just working for my debian powerpc laptop .

I'll see if I can find out more about the usb adapter you already have..

thanks and thanks. if i order something itll be first of next week.

/still pissed this thing wont pick up any signals

 

[xtknight]

Use lsusb to list usb devices by the way.

 

[postmortemIA]

delete*

 

[xSauronx]

well the new adapter is in, and installed (with the drivers drag recommended, the ones the stick came with didnt work, thanks drag!)

using the cli i can run some wireless tools and see various APs, but i cant seem to get an actual connection.

i have a buffalo wireless router now, and can change the essid of my adapter to that of the router. logging into the router shows a wireless client connected....but when i disconnect my ethernet adapter, the wireless connection cant even get into the router. i have no idea what to do about that. im going to go over all the wireless tool manpages again to see if ive overlooked something.

i have wifi radar installed, but it doesnt show any wireless connections available in the area (though iwlist certainly does) and i would, of course, like to have something like that working to make wireless connections as easy as possible. though, right now, id settle for being able to make the "connection" actually *work*

can anyone point me in the right direction to get this all finished? i tried the utility drag suggested, that may work *if* i could set it up, but it requires a version of GTK+ that i dont have, and when i try to install another version, i get errors from "configure" (yes, using ./configure) and dont know what to do about *those* either.

/still puzzled as to how the first adapter could be recognized, yet completely useless.

thanks again for the help so far