broadcom 4313 - almost solved!

[a z]

after years of trying to talk my wife into a dual boot on her Dell laptop (Inpsiron N4010) i found out it has the dreaded 4313 chip. i'm gonna look like a schmuck if i can't make this work.

been trollin' this forum for days, to NO avail - tried everything. and now, in my bleary-eyed desperation, i got it to work IF (after a reboot) i open a terminal, and go:
sudo modprobe wl [w/ password]

then

lsmod | grep wl

then the spinny icon spins, and all is well.
so, how can i have it work, without entering this?
a startup script?
add a /etc/modules entry?

so close...

[ahallubuntu]

You can try adding the line

wl

to the end of /etc/modules, that might do it.

Another thought: spend $10 on eBay and replace that crappy Broadcom card with an Intel 6200 card (which will also add a 5GHZ radio). The Intel card should be supported out of the box.

[a z]

i believe i already tried adding wl to /etc/modules - no good.

i like the replace-the-darn-thing idea. is that something a slightly-savvy guy could attempt? (working on laptops scares me, especially my wife's)

[ahallubuntu]

I've upgraded lots of wireless cards in laptops. Sometimes it's super easy. You have to access the wireless card itself (often under a panel on the bottom of the laptop; sometimes under the keyboard), remove the two or three antenna wires (clipped on), remove the card with a screw or two (or sometimes just a clip), swap in the new one, and you're done. To see exactly how to do it for your Dell, look for a service manual on their website. Should tell you exactly how to remove/replace the wireless card.

Don't try upgrading the wireless card on a Lenovo or HP laptop - they whitelist their cards so you must use an exact approved replacement card. Otherwise, the laptop won't even POST - you'll get an error message instead until you remove the card. On a Dell, no problem.

The key is getting a compatible wireless card. Dell has sold your laptop with the Intel 6200, which is why I recommended it. Know that Intel makes two different versions of this card: one for HP and Lenovo and one for everyone else. Just make sure you don't get the HP/Lenovo version of the card and you should be good. You don't even have to get the "Dell" card.

(In Windows, though, you should download the Intel wireless card driver from Intel before replacing the card, so you can install it afterward easily the next time you boot Windows.)

You can find this card on eBay for about $10 shipped if you live in the US. Avoid new cards from Asia - I've personally had bad luck with them not being exactly what they were advertised to be. I prefer a used card that came out of another laptop.

If in doubt, look on Youtube for examples of replacing a laptop wireless card. You'll probably find getting the antenna wires off is the hardest thing to do.

[a z]

so - in the meantime, does anyone know how i'd write/implement a startup script (lubuntu 12.04) that would work the same as running these 2 commands in a terminal, after a reboot?

sudo modprobe wl

lsmod | grep wl


until i have the $ for a new wifi-card, i'd love to make this work. i can enter these commands, but i don't want to make my already-linux-suspicious wife have to...

thx

[chili555]

Depending on your exact card, wl may be incorrect. Let's dig a bit. Please run and post:

lspci -nn | grep 0280
lsmod | grep -e wl -e b43 -e ndis

The pipe symbol | is on the right side of my US keyboard on the same key with \. Thanks.

[scoon]

so - in the meantime, does anyone know how i'd write/implement a startup script (lubuntu 12.04) that would work the same as running these 2 commands in a terminal, after a reboot?

sudo modprobe wl

lsmod | grep wl


until i have the $ for a new wifi-card, i'd love to make this work. i can enter these commands, but i don't want to make my already-linux-suspicious wife have to...

thx

Hey there,

/etc/rc.local is meant for this.

Thanks,

Skip

[Datalocust]

Hey there,

/etc/rc.local is meant for this.

Thanks,

Skip

I had this same problem a for a while and I fixed it. Here is what I did.

1. Download the library files for the b43 card and put them in a folder in /lib/firmware.

2. Create a new entry in your /etc/modules file with just the line b43.

3. Reboot your computer it should go find and then activate your card on boot.

This eliminates the need for you to have to use the sudo modprobe "FolderName" where the drivers and lib files are located after each boot.

*Side Note* I have the drivers and lib files required and full instructions if you need them just let me know I can send them to you or post them here, doesn't matter..
~ Datalocust

[chili555]

I strongly suggest we confirm exactly what card a z has and what the best driver is before we go too crazy here. Just for instance, bcmwl-kernel-source, from whence wl comes, blacklists b43. It will hardly help to simultaneously add b43 to /etc/modules AND blacklist it! Let's wait and see.

[a z]

thanks fellas,
at work now, will try these suggestions at home this afternoon.

and for the record, after a reboot, running those two commands DO make it work (until i reboot again, of course)

almost there,
a z