Driver for Broadcom 4312 won't activate

[redbook4574]

All I can say now is that it still does not work. I even --purge remove'd the packages I installed from your other tutorial, namely linux-backports-karmic and b43-bwcutter (if I spelled them out right)

Try b43-fwcutter

[chenxiaolong]

Here: I'll give you the complete steps to make the Broadcom STA driver work.

1. sudo rmmod b43 ssb wl

2. sudo apt-get --purge remove linux-backports-modules-karmic b43-fwcutter bcmwl-kernel-source

3. Open all the files in /etc/modprobe.d/ and make sure that all of these lines AREN'T there:
blacklist ssb
blacklist b43
blacklist wl

4. Open /etc/modules and make sure that these aren't there:
b43
ssb
wl

5. Open /etc/modprobe.d/aliases.conf (if it exists) and make sure "alias wlan0 b43" isn't there.

6. Now remove or rename the b43 folder and the b43-legacy folder (if they exist) in /lib/firmware.

7. Reboot your computer.

8. Install the Broadcom STA driver using Jockey or install the package "bcmwl-kernel-source"

9. Reboot your computer.

[lordraz]

Here: I'll give you the complete steps to make the Broadcom STA driver work.

1. sudo rmmod b43 ssb wl

2. sudo apt-get --purge remove linux-backports-modules-karmic b43-fwcutter bcmwl-kernel-source

3. Open all the files in /etc/modprobe.d/ and make sure that all of these lines AREN'T there:
blacklist ssb
blacklist b43
blacklist wl

4. Open /etc/modules and make sure that these aren't there:
b43
ssb
wl

5. Open /etc/modprobe.d/aliases.conf (if it exists) and make sure "alias wlan0 b43" isn't there.

6. Now remove or rename the b43 folder and the b43-legacy folder (if they exist) in /lib/firmware.

7. Reboot your computer.

8. Install the Broadcom STA driver using Jockey or install the package "bcmwl-kernel-source"

9. Reboot your computer.

You sir... are a genius. This worked perfectly! I've spent about an hour (which in linux time is probably not all that long searching for how to get things to work ) trying to figure out how to get my stupid broadcom 4312 to work and have looked at numerous tutorials which require rather intense and convoluted processes. I happen to stumble across this little post and viola! Thank you soooo very much.

[chenxiaolong]

You're welcome . I'm glad it worked for you!

[leorolla]

Hi Chen Xiao Long,

I have wireless working after many attempts and a little black magic, and I doubt I could reproduce the sambe behavior on a fresh install.

From what I remember:

I had STA working fine for months, then it was recently broken with a log message just like http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1369975. It was broken without any action from me. Jockey would simply produce that error.

I tried blacklisting this and that, I purged and reinstalled bcmwl-kernel-source, didn't work.
I tried a chip of the instructions from your famous thread to install the b43 driver and linux-backports, didn't work.
I tried madwifi following AspireOne/Ubuntu8.04 - Community Ubuntu Documentation, didn't work.

Then I had the idea of just using ndiswrapper, which (if worked) would last stable until Lucid release, much more probably than any other solution subject to Ubuntu updates regressions.

It worked (very) well, then I blacklisted everything else and rebooted. It wasn't working.
I thought that, even though it doen't make sense to me, the problem could be with the blacklisting, as it was the only thing I did between working and not-working.
Bingo!
I removed the blacklistings, rebooted and it worked. Again and again.
I blacklisted again, rebooted, not working.
Removed the blacklisting, rebooted, and it was working. Rebooted again and again, and it was working.

Curious conclusion: it was working only when the other drivers were not blacklisted, even though they didn't seem to be loaded from lsmod.

From your above instructions and the capitalized "AREN'T" I see you somehow arrived at a similar conclusion, but maybe you know or suspect what could be the reason.

Edit:
I downloaded the Windows driver from Acer at
http://global-download.acer.com/GDFi...C=Acer&SC=PA_7 (not http://global-download.acer.com/GDFi...C=Acer&SC=PA_6 as I said before) and opened file bcmwl5.inf with ndiswrapper

Sometimes it fails, then I remove the driver from ndiswrapper, reboot, add the driver again, check for new blacklists, remove them, reboot again and it works.

[chenxiaolong]

I've seen another person who had that problem after blacklisting. I have one question though (nonrelated): How did you find a working driver for Ndiswrapper? Before I found out about the STA driver and b43, I tried over 20 different drivers for Vista, XP, 2000, including ones packaged by different manufacturers and none of them worked .

[leorolla]

I have an Acer Aspire One D150.

I went to the manufacturer's page and looked for the driver.

The W7 driver didn't work but the XP one did.

[stigb]

Thanks for all the help so far. I have now followed your tutorial in #12, and guess what.

"This driver is installed but not currently in use".

I wanted to install Mint Helena, but people in an IRC chat told me "Mint does a lot of evil".

[chenxiaolong]

sudo modprobe wl

[stigb]

We're finally getting somewhere!

$ sudo modprobe wl
FATAL: Error inserting wl (/lib/modules/2.6.31-16-generic/updates/dkms/wl.ko): Unknown symbol in module, or unknown parameter (see dmesg)
$

And output from dmesg:

[ 3842.399553] wl: disagrees about version of symbol lib80211_get_crypto_ops
[ 3842.399564] wl: Unknown symbol lib80211_get_crypto_ops

May this be because I installed bcmwl-kernel-source from the installation CD and not from the interwebs?