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Thread: Linksys ACX111 chipset (wpc54g v2) via ndiswrapper

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  1. #1
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    Linksys ACX111 chipset (wpc54g v2) via ndiswrapper

    I am officially retiring this thread.

    You can make this card work by changing dapper's native acx module firmware using Kobalt's method instead of this howto. It integrates with network manager and there's not nearly as much CLI editing involved (just three lines). You can find well written directions for it here: http://www.ubuntuforums.org/showthre...ghlight=wpc54g

    To make this card work in any distribution after Edgy, try this link: http://www.ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=324148

    I can no longer make the following method work to enable my wpc54g v2 card in Dapper.

    Disclaimers:
    ======================================
    This how to is specific to THIS card; however, it may be adapted to work on other cards. The chipset in question here is the Texas instruments ACX111 chipset. I have no experience with any other wireless cards other than the ones in my possession, so if you have a Linksys card but it does not have an ACX111 chipset, I will not likely be able to assist you. Furthermore, most cards containing this chipset seem to work "out of the box".

    I have not tested, nor will I be able to test WEP as I am using a wireless HUB without encryption capabilities. Brickferd has tested and successfuly enabled encryption using this method. Directions appear at the end of this thread as well as in post number 23.

    Also note, most of this has been pulled from an existing thread here: http://www.ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=5645 so if what follows doesn't help you, you may find your answer there.

    I have foccused on CLI interface instructions to allow this method to work in any of the winodow managers supported in the Ubuntu line (mine happened to be icewm).
    ======================================

    First of all, you're going to need ndiswrapper installed:

    This howto does not require the cvs version of ndiswrapper, so the one in the universe repos will be fine (note: If you already have the cvs version installed, I cannot garantee this method). Just make sure you get both the ndiswrapper, and the ndisgtk packages.

    Just open synaptic, search for ndiswrapper and both packages should appear.

    Next, you’re going to need the windows driver:

    Create a directory in your home folder called linksys:
    Code:
    cd
    mkdir linksys
    cd linksys
    Download the windows driver from Linksys:
    Code:
    wget ftp://ftp.linksys.com/pub/network/wpc54g_v2_driver_utility_v2.0.zip
    Extract the archive:
    Code:
    unzip wpc54g_v2_driver_utility_v2.0.zip
    (special thanks to yellow5 for the next step)
    linux is case sensitive for file names, but windows is not, so there's a little file name snafu that we have to fix before we can move on.
    - tnet1130.sys should be TNET1130.sys
    - LSTINDS4.sys should be Lstinds4.sys
    Code:
    mv tnet1130.sys TNET1130.sys
    mv LSTINDS4.sys Lstinds4.sys
    Load the driver into ndiswrapper for the module:
    Code:
    sudo ndiswrapper -i lsbcmnds.inf
    sudo ndiswrapper -i LSTINDS.INF
    sudo modprobe ndiswrapper
    With your WPC54g ver. 2 card in the PCMCIA slot, check to make sure ndiswrapper correctly loaded the card:
    Code:
    ndiswrapper -l
    note: this is a lower case L, not an upper case i or the number one.

    You should get output that looks something like this:
    Code:
    Installed drivers:
    lsbcmnds                driver installed
    lstinds         driver installed, hardware present
    If not, you may need to go back and review some of the steps or take a look at the wiki here: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Wi...ndiswrapper%29

    Now we associate the module with the card:
    At this point, my card still did not have a power light because Ubuntu is trying to load the acx_pci module to drive this card. But the acx_pci module won't drive the card (thanks to blazerte for this tip). There were other modules trying to load for this card too. You can remove them with sudo modprope -r modulename and then blacklisting them, but I wanted the ndiswrapper module to load automatically for this card. This can be done by making an entry in /etc/pcmcia/config.opts as follows:

    First, you need to figure out what Ubuntu calls your card. Just look at the entry for your card in lspci:
    Code:
    lspci
    and it should give an output similar to this:
    Code:
    0000:06:00.0 Network controller: Texas Instruments ACX 111 54Mbps Wireless Interface
    The following step listed in grey is not needed (left here for my own reference)

    #Next, you need to know the manfid:
    Code:
    cardctl ident
    #and the output should look similar to this:
    Code:
    Socket 0:
      no product info available
    Socket 1:
      no product info available
      manfid: 0xf7ff, 0xfe5b

    Resume howto from here:

    Now, using the above information we can edit pcmcia config with a new entry. Using your favorite editor (mine's nano) edit /etc/pcmcia/config.opts and add the following lines (adjusting yours so that it matches the output of lspci and cardctl ident from above)
    Code:
    card "Texas Instruments ACX 111 54Mbps Wireless Interface"
      bind "ndiswrapper"
    Add ndiswrapper to your modules file so that it will be included on boot up:
    Code:
    sudo echo ndiswrapper >> /etc/modules
    Restart your network:
    Code:
    sudo /etc/init.d/networking restart
    Your power light should come on (if not, try rebooting). Also check iwconfig and you should have wlan0 listed.

    Finally, connecting to the internet:.

    This card needs a scan before it can accept wireless settings. But you can't add wireless settings while the card is up, thus making it difficult to connect after entering the wireless settings becase the whole process is time sensitive. To get around this, I just splice the whole command together with && like so:
    Code:
    sudo iwlist wlan0 scan&& sudo iwconfig wlan0 channel 1 essid youressid mode Managed&& sudo ifup wlan0
    If you don't already know what your network settings are, you can just scan (sudo iwlist wlan0 scan) first and then edit the above string to your settings.

    At this point, your card should be connected, however, the link light will not come on. You can check ifconfig to verify that you have a dhcp lease.

    Just a few additional notes:

    Thanks to brickferd, for the following information on wep in post 23:
    You should also be able to enable encryption by adding “key open XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX”, where X is your key in hex format, to the end of this section: “sudo iwconfig wlan0 channel 1 essid youressid mode Managed”

    Though you will not have to load the ndiswrapper module at every boot, you will have to issue the “sudo iwlist wlan0 ...” command at every boot. I included it in a startup script so it comes up “automatically”. Sloppy, but it works.

    If you get an error that reads "Ignoring unknown interface wlan0=wlan0" you can fix it by doing the following:
    (Breezy only) Edit /etc/network/run/ifstate to include the line wlan0=wlan0.

    (Dapper and Breezy) Include iface wlan0 inet dhcp (or the appropriate static references) in /etc/network/interfaces.

    Any problems, post 'em and I'll do what I can to help.
    Last edited by dmizer; May 29th, 2009 at 12:46 AM. Reason: updated for correct card identification through pcmcia/config.opts

  2. #2
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    Re: Linksys AXC111 chipset (wpc54g v2) via ndiswrapper

    I'm using a ACX111-based Netgear WG311v2 card in Dapper. I found that ndiswrapper is unnecessary UNLESS you are using WPA encryption.

    Out of the box, Dapper detects the ACX card and loads the native Linux driver. However, you may need to edit a couple of files to get it to work.

    This post tells you how to edit your /etc/network/interfaces file. However, if you still can't see your access point after doing a scan, you may need to change the firmware version that Ubuntu loads (it may not be compatible with your particular card).

    This post tells you how to change the firmware version that Ubuntu loads.

    If you need WPA encryption, you are living in "interesting times." This post details the steps I had to take to get WPA working (Following the instructions under the "Downloading required tools" section, then skipping down to the "Network Manager and Dependencies" section) Yes, I tried the Network Manager, wpa_supplicant, and ndiswrapper packages in the repositories, but they didn't get WPA working on my card.

  3. #3
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    Re: Linksys AXC111 chipset (wpc54g v2) via ndiswrapper

    Quote Originally Posted by Agent86
    I'm using a ACX111-based Netgear WG311v2 card in Dapper. I found that ndiswrapper is unnecessary UNLESS you are using WPA encryption.
    Yes, this seems to be true of most of the acx111 based cards EXCEPT the Linksys version. I really have no idea why this is the case.

  4. #4
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    Re: Linksys AXC111 chipset (wpc54g v2) via ndiswrapper

    Quote Originally Posted by dmizer
    Yes, this seems to be true of most of the acx111 based cards EXCEPT the Linksys version. I really have no idea why this is the case.
    Maybe someone with the your card and Dapper can report on whether the new acx drivers support the Linky now, with or without a firmware version change.

  5. #5
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    Re: Linksys AXC111 chipset (wpc54g v2) via ndiswrapper

    Quote Originally Posted by Agent86
    Maybe someone with the your card and Dapper can report on whether the new acx drivers support the Linky now, with or without a firmware version change.
    I'm going to test dapper myself this weekend. There have not been any firmware updates released for this card since it was new.

    This version uses a the Texas Instruments chipset, while the rest of the versions in this line of card use some variation of the Broadcom chipset.
    Last edited by dmizer; June 23rd, 2006 at 12:35 AM.

  6. #6
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    Re: Linksys AXC111 chipset (wpc54g v2) via ndiswrapper

    Quote Originally Posted by Agent86 View Post
    Maybe someone with the your card and Dapper can report on whether the new acx drivers support the Linky now, with or without a firmware version change.
    acx drivers crash my dapper within a few minutes, but at least the card is detected and powered now. have to figure out how to change acx's firmware and see if that helps.

  7. #7
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    Re: Linksys AXC111 chipset (wpc54g v2) via ndiswrapper

    Quote Originally Posted by dmizer View Post
    acx drivers crash my dapper within a few minutes, but at least the card is detected and powered now. have to figure out how to change acx's firmware and see if that helps.
    Same. My acx Netgear wg311v2 is recognized out of the box but it cannot see, scan or manually connect to any networks. Something is messed up with the driver / firmware on the default install. It worked out of the box in Hoary (whatever the second ubuntu release was). Even though it worked I still installed ndiswrapper and used the netgear drivers it it greatly boosted my signal strength. I don't feel the gpl acx drivers are that good. Still better than broadcom.

    Ndis really isn't a hastle. The only problem I ran into was blacklisting my acx driver. After I cleared that up wireless has been a breeze.

  8. #8
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    Re: Linksys AXC111 chipset (wpc54g v2) via ndiswrapper

    Quote Originally Posted by Agent86 View Post
    I'm using a ACX111-based Netgear WG311v2 card in Dapper. I found that ndiswrapper is unnecessary UNLESS you are using WPA encryption.

    Out of the box, Dapper detects the ACX card and loads the native Linux driver. However, you may need to edit a couple of files to get it to work.

    This post tells you how to edit your /etc/network/interfaces file. However, if you still can't see your access point after doing a scan, you may need to change the firmware version that Ubuntu loads (it may not be compatible with your particular card).

    This post tells you how to change the firmware version that Ubuntu loads.
    Just a quick note of caution on this. I tried to use the above links to get my Linksys ACX111 card working (the lights are on, but nobodys home it seems) and it caused me not to be able to load my desktop after reboot. It just hangs after you hit login.

    Anyway, its easy enough to fix if you're familiar with a cl-based text editor such as vim. Just login to the failsafe session and remove the entries that are marked in the above solutions.

    I'm sure that there are many people who found the above solution useful, but in my case it was touch and go for a few moments and I hope this little note saves someone some frustration.
    Rafe Magnuson (aka HeavyAl)
    http://www.magnusontech.net

  9. #9
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    Re: Linksys AXC111 chipset (wpc54g v2) via ndiswrapper

    So, this card isn't going to be working in Ubuntu anytime soon eh?
    SPECIAL ORDER 937: "NOSTROMO REROUTED TO NEW COORDINATES. INVESTIGATE LIFE FORM. GATHER SPECIMEN. PRIORITY ONE. INSURE RETURN OF ORGANISM FOR ANALYSIS. ALL OTHER CONSIDERATIONS SECONDARY. CREW EXPENDABLE."

  10. #10
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    Re: Linksys AXC111 chipset (wpc54g v2) via ndiswrapper

    it will work. just give me some time. this howto was written up for breezy, and although i initially succeeded in getting it to work in dapper, i've since run into problems with it.

    it would seem that ubuntu thinks this card is a usb adapter rather than a pcmcia adapter. so i am researching how linux detects usb to correct the problem.

    also, your card is hanging the system because the usb driver being assigned to it will lock the pc. give me a bit more time and i'll either post here or create a new thread.

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