Linux + Linksys Wireless USB adapter

[Dragon45]

Hello chaps, I'm trying to fix my comptuer that can actually, you know, run spring, and I've jsut decided to go with Knoppix LiveCD (version 5.1) for my main OS right now (yes, the actual LiveCD. Every time). I have a good deal of experience with Ubuntu, but never had to do anything very nutty with it.

Well here's my problem. Because of the physical location of my computer, I always used a Linksys Wireless 802.11b adapter (WUSB11) to connect to our home network. I need some help with Linux drivers for this. I downloaded something (http://www.opendrivers.com/driver/21489 ... nload.html) iirc that should work, but i have no idea how to actually compile it or do anything with it. I'm assuming I need to compile the MAKEFILE with gcc, but what's the call for that etc? Basically I need help getting my wireless internetz working.

PS: And yes, I have the Windows drivers for it installed on the hard drive; i noticed some sort of NDISWRAPPER or something that seemed like it should help in that case (?)

[Agon]

You can use ndiswrapper. It works for me with FRITZ! WLAN USB Stick. I only have some problems with the loading the ndiswrapper. But I make a small shell script to avoid this.
You only need to download it and hit "make && make install" to install it maybe ./configure I don´t know. And then you must install it with "ndiswrapper -i <filepath to the .inf data>" and load it with "modprobe ndiswrapper" you must be super user or root. But I think it don´t work with a not installed Linux distribute.
Or you can use http://madwifi.org/.

This is the Open Source project site for MadWifi - a Linux kernel device driver for Wireless LAN chipsets from Atheros. Here we host our code repository, bug tracking system, documentation and support information.

If you have this chip .

[BrainDamage]

i'd liek to start that i don't have a wireless card, but i downloaded & took a look @ the readme shipped; this is what i got out:

requiements: you need to have the source of your kernel installed, i have no idea how to check in knoppix

a: first clean any evenctual linked file (reccomended by the readme)

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make clean

b: create the configure file

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make config

and this point, it will start presenting you a list of questions, wich driver to compile, any special flag, ecc.., besides the choice of the driver to compile, you can just leave the defaults an in auto detects your pc spec.

c: compile it

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make all

d: get superuser access with

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su

e: install it

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make install

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ndiswrapper, as the name says, it's a wrapper API for the windows wireless cards drivers, you need to run it as superuser and pass as argument the windows info (inf) file

get superuser privileges:

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su

install the driver:

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ndiswrapper -i PathToInfoFile

i have no ndiswrapper installed, so you might want to check it's syntax in the case you get an error; to get an help test on any comman just write

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man commandname

EDIT: BAH! you beat me to it!

[Dragon45]

So what i just tried was kind of related to your guys' suggestions; I downloaded windows-only drivers and used the ndiswrapper -i <path> command, and that worked, and then i did the modprobe command and it worked.

but i guess even though everything was instaleld correctly it didnt really associate the newly isntalled driver with the usb device... O_O... in the USB Overview panel, it still gives it listed as "UNKNOWN DEVICE" (in red).

[Scram80]

what does "lsusb" give for the device?

WUSB11 sounds as if "linux-wlan-ng" would be the correct driversuite, the drivermodule should be "prism2_usb"

but... I got a stick with the same driver, it really isn't nice to setup. (look for howtos to wlan-ng)

[Dragon45]

Well, shouldn't ndiswrapper handle it? Do I need to do an additional step, like reboot or something?

Knoppix LiveCD doesn't come with source, so i cant build teh drivers on my own

Are you sure that ndiswrapper wotn handle it? Again, I did do the ndiswrapepr stuff right (99% sure) but its just not associating the USB device with that driver. What additional step am i missing? I tried unplugging/replugging in the device. is there any way to force the OS to use a driver for my magical UNKNOWN DEVICE ?

[Agon]

I don´t know how to do it under Knoppix. You must add a new device with module name ndiswrapper as a wireless device. Search "ndiswrapper tutorial" with google and you will find some. I can give you only on for suse/opensuse and kde.

The source is available here: http://ndiswrapper.sourceforge.net/joomla/