Wireless not working - Broadcom 43224

[gwynw]

Hi,

I have a new Thinkpad E420 laptop. My problem: I can't get the wireless to work; no wireless networks show up in Network Manager.

I have the following Broadcom wireless card, which I believe uses this Broadcom chip: BCM43224
09:00.0 Network controller: Broadcom Corporation Device 0576 (rev 01)

I installed the Broadcom 802.11 Linux STA driver (broadcom-wl + kmod-wl) following the instructions in this post (the instructions are great!):
http://forums.fedoraforum.org/showthread.php?t=239922

But no wireless networks show in Network Manager...

I installed rfkill, but still no luck.

Can anyone help?
Gwyn

SOLUTION: See post 18 for a description of how I finally managed to resolve the problem. Seems there is a special problem with Broadcom Corporation Device 0576/Broadcom chip BCM43224

[stoat]

Try this idea.

http://forums.fedoraforum.org/showthread.php?t=267756

No promises, but it shouldn't make anything worse to try.

[gwynw]

Thanks, stoat. I checked for a "bcma" module using lsmod. But no bcma there.

I then installed akmod-wl, which I hadn't done before. Still no luck. .... I'll post what I did below, in case it helps.

Just wondering what other troubleshooting steps I can take??



[gwyn@gwyn-E420 ~]$ uname -r
2.6.38.8-35.fc15.x86_64

[gwyn@gwyn-E420 ~]$ rpm -qa | grep -e kernel -e broadcom-wl -e kmod-wl | sort
abrt-addon-kerneloops-2.0.3-1.fc15.x86_64
akmod-wl-5.60.48.36-2.fc15.1.x86_64
broadcom-wl-5.60.48.36-1.fc13.noarch
kernel-2.6.38.6-26.rc1.fc15.x86_64
kernel-2.6.38.8-35.fc15.x86_64
kernel-devel-2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64
kernel-headers-2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64
kmod-wl-2.6.38.8-35.fc15.x86_64-5.60.48.36-2.fc15.5.x86_64

[gwyn@gwyn-E420 ~]$ lsmod | sort
8021q 18739 0
acer_wmi 18078 0
acpi_cpufreq 7001 0
bluetooth 91191 5 sco,bnep,l2cap
bnep 14899 2
cpufreq_ondemand 9466 4
drm 187984 6 radeon,ttm,i915,drm_kms_helper
drm_kms_helper 27515 2 radeon,i915
freq_table 3963 2 cpufreq_ondemand,acpi_cpufreq
garp 6087 1 8021q
i2c_algo_bit 5014 2 radeon,i915
i2c_core 25468 7 videodev,i2c_i801,radeon,i915,drm_kms_helper,drm,i 2c_algo_bit
i2c_i801 9213 0
i915 347062 3
ip6table_filter 1695 1
ip6_tables 16850 1 ip6table_filter
ip6t_REJECT 4048 2
ipv6 282108 35 ip6t_REJECT,nf_conntrack_ipv6,nf_defrag_ipv6
iTCO_vendor_support 2634 1 iTCO_wdt
iTCO_wdt 11480 0
joydev 9651 0
l2cap 52225 3 bnep
llc 4716 2 garp,stp
microcode 18117 0
mii 4318 1 r8169
mmc_core 71679 1 sdhci
Module Size Used by
mperf 1505 1 acpi_cpufreq
nf_conntrack_ipv6 7978 1
nf_defrag_ipv6 9531 1 nf_conntrack_ipv6
r8169 35525 0
radeon 691775 0
rfkill 16552 5 bluetooth,acer_wmi,thinkpad_acpi
sco 16268 2
sdhci 18764 1 sdhci_pci
sdhci_pci 8857 0
snd 62670 14 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_codec_conexant,snd_hda_ intel,snd_hda_codec,snd_hwdep,snd_seq,snd_seq_devi ce,snd_pcm,thinkpad_acpi,snd_timer
snd_hda_codec 80838 3 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_codec_conexant,snd_hda_ intel
snd_hda_codec_conexant 50734 1
snd_hda_codec_hdmi 22998 1
snd_hda_intel 23660 2
snd_hwdep 6368 1 snd_hda_codec
snd_page_alloc 7431 2 snd_hda_intel,snd_pcm
snd_pcm 78484 3 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec
snd_seq 52438 0
snd_seq_device 6001 1 snd_seq
snd_timer 19593 2 snd_seq,snd_pcm
soundcore 6299 1 snd
sparse_keymap 3302 1 acer_wmi
stp 1951 1 garp
thinkpad_acpi 66113 0
ttm 55120 1 radeon
uvcvideo 54609 0
v4l2_compat_ioctl32 6697 1 videodev
video 12432 1 i915
videodev 63342 1 uvcvideo
wmi 9105 1 acer_wmi

[gwyn@gwyn-E420 ~]$ su
Password:

[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# modprobe wl

[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# service NetworkManager restart
Restarting NetworkManager (via systemctl): [ OK ]

[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# lsmod | sort
8021q 18739 0
acer_wmi 18078 0
acpi_cpufreq 7001 0
bluetooth 91191 5 sco,bnep,l2cap
bnep 14899 2
cpufreq_ondemand 9466 4
drm 187984 6 radeon,ttm,i915,drm_kms_helper
drm_kms_helper 27515 2 radeon,i915
freq_table 3963 2 cpufreq_ondemand,acpi_cpufreq
garp 6087 1 8021q
i2c_algo_bit 5014 2 radeon,i915
i2c_core 25468 7 videodev,i2c_i801,radeon,i915,drm_kms_helper,drm,i 2c_algo_bit
i2c_i801 9213 0
i915 347062 3
ip6table_filter 1695 1
ip6_tables 16850 1 ip6table_filter
ip6t_REJECT 4048 2
ipv6 282108 35 ip6t_REJECT,nf_conntrack_ipv6,nf_defrag_ipv6
iTCO_vendor_support 2634 1 iTCO_wdt
iTCO_wdt 11480 0
joydev 9651 0
l2cap 52225 3 bnep
lib80211 5071 1 wl
llc 4716 2 garp,stp
microcode 18117 0
mii 4318 1 r8169
mmc_core 71679 1 sdhci
Module Size Used by
mperf 1505 1 acpi_cpufreq
nf_conntrack_ipv6 7978 1
nf_defrag_ipv6 9531 1 nf_conntrack_ipv6
r8169 35525 0
radeon 691775 0
rfkill 16552 5 bluetooth,acer_wmi,thinkpad_acpi
sco 16268 2
sdhci 18764 1 sdhci_pci
sdhci_pci 8857 0
snd 62670 14 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_codec_conexant,snd_hda_ intel,snd_hda_codec,snd_hwdep,snd_seq,snd_seq_devi ce,snd_pcm,thinkpad_acpi,snd_timer
snd_hda_codec 80838 3 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_codec_conexant,snd_hda_ intel
snd_hda_codec_conexant 50734 1
snd_hda_codec_hdmi 22998 1
snd_hda_intel 23660 2
snd_hwdep 6368 1 snd_hda_codec
snd_page_alloc 7431 2 snd_hda_intel,snd_pcm
snd_pcm 78484 3 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec
snd_seq 52438 0
snd_seq_device 6001 1 snd_seq
snd_timer 19593 2 snd_seq,snd_pcm
soundcore 6299 1 snd
sparse_keymap 3302 1 acer_wmi
stp 1951 1 garp
thinkpad_acpi 66113 0
ttm 55120 1 radeon
uvcvideo 54609 0
v4l2_compat_ioctl32 6697 1 videodev
video 12432 1 i915
videodev 63342 1 uvcvideo
wl 1960144 0
wmi 9105 1 acer_wmi

[gwynw]

No ideas, anyone?

[bbfuller]

Hello gwynw

There is definitely one package missing in your output from your:

rpm -qa | grep -e kernel -e broadcom-wl -e kmod-wl | sort

output.

The akmod command wouldn't work without a lot of development packages being installe.

Try:

yum install kmod-wl

and see if it offers to bring in the extra package. Otherwise we'll have to work it out manually. If that's so, post back with the output from the "rpm -qa...." ommand again as well as the "uname....." one.

[gwynw]

Thanks bbfuller. I ran 'yum install kmod-wl' and a whole lot of stuff got installed. But nothing seems to have changed. Still no wireless in network manager.

Here's the new output you asked for from the terminal :

id: cannot find name for group ID 1000
[gwyn@gwyn-E420 ~]$ uname -r
2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64

[gwyn@gwyn-E420 ~]$ rpm -qa | grep -e kernel -e broadcom-wl -e kmod-wl | sort
abrt-addon-kerneloops-2.0.3-1.fc15.x86_64
akmod-wl-5.60.48.36-2.fc15.1.x86_64
broadcom-wl-5.60.48.36-1.fc13.noarch
kernel-2.6.38.6-26.rc1.fc15.x86_64
kernel-2.6.38.8-35.fc15.x86_64
kernel-2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64
kernel-devel-2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64
kernel-headers-2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64
kmod-wl-2.6.38.8-35.fc15.x86_64-5.60.48.36-2.fc15.5.x86_64
kmod-wl-2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64-5.60.48.36-2.fc15.6.x86_64
kmod-wl-5.60.48.36-2.fc15.6.x86_64

[bbfuller]

Hello gwynw

It looks as if you have all the required parts now. However, there is a module in the new kernel that actively interferes with the broadcom-wl unless it is blacklisted.

Post #10 in the thread below should hopefully sort it out:

http://forums.fedoraforum.org/showthread.php?t=267852

[gwynw]

Thank you! Unfortunately, things still don't seem to work though.

Here's what I did:

[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# echo "blacklist bcma" > /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf
[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# rmmod wl
[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# rmmod bcma
[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# modprobe wl

No wireless networks show....



[gwyn@gwyn-E420 ~]$ uname -r
2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64
[gwyn@gwyn-E420 ~]$ rpm -qa | grep -e kernel -e broadcom-wl -e kmod-wl | sort
abrt-addon-kerneloops-2.0.3-1.fc15.x86_64
akmod-wl-5.60.48.36-2.fc15.1.x86_64
broadcom-wl-5.60.48.36-1.fc13.noarch
kernel-2.6.38.6-26.rc1.fc15.x86_64
kernel-2.6.38.8-35.fc15.x86_64
kernel-2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64
kernel-devel-2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64
kernel-headers-2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64
kmod-wl-2.6.38.8-35.fc15.x86_64-5.60.48.36-2.fc15.5.x86_64
kmod-wl-2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64-5.60.48.36-2.fc15.6.x86_64
kmod-wl-5.60.48.36-2.fc15.6.x86_64

[bbfuller]

Hello gwynw

That surprised me until I took a closer look at the output of your "lsmod" command from an earlier post.

It's happened so often recently that I wrote it up to copy and paste. Hence the first few lines that you won't need as we know it's there. There also appears to be a problem with the "acer-wmi" module.

If you run the command:

Code:
lsmod | grep acer
and it returns:

Quote: acer-wmi

Then try editing:

Code:
/etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf
and add the following at the end:

Code:
blacklist acer-wmi

If that doesn't work, when you post back, include the output of:

lsmod | grep bc

and

lsmod | grep wl

so that we can be sure the correct modules are loading.

[gwynw]

Hi bbfuller,

I am guessing you mean acer_ wmi (with underscore). That's what showed up when I ran 'lsmod | grep acer'. I blacklisted acer_ wmi, but no wireless still.

Below is the output from the other commands you asked me to run. From past experience, wl doesn't seem to load automatically, so I first ran:

[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# modprobe wl
[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# service NetworkManager restart

Then:

[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# lsmod | grep bc
[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# lsmod | grep wl
wl 1960208 0
lib80211 4999 1 wl

So bc is not loading?

Gwyn

[bbfuller]

Hello Gwyn

I've been looking online and this site:

http://pci-ids.ucw.cz/read/PC/14e4/0576

makes interesting reading. It seems that your device id is unique to your particular thinkpad card. There are a lot of people reporting the same sort of trouble as you and fixing it by compiling the broadcom driver from the broadcom site.

Usually the broadcom-wl driver just loads as soon as it sees broadcom hardware it recognises, the fact that yours doesn't may lead us in the compiling direction.

However, before you do that could we try:

Reboot the machine.

Run:

dmesg | grep wl

to trap any messages as the driver tries to load.

If it doesn't and you have to use modprobe, then run that command again and copy and paste back the two outputs for comparison.

Bernard

[gwynw]

Hi Bernard,

Hey, I really appreciate your help with this. Thanks very much...

I ran the dmesg command. No output the first time, then I used modprobe and got:

[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# dmesg | grep wl
[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# modprobe wl
[root@gwyn-E420 gwyn]# dmesg | grep wl
[ 305.852546] wl: module license 'MIXED/Proprietary' taints kernel.

So, a tainted kernel!!

Gwyn

[bbfuller]

Hello Gwyn,

The message about the tainted kernel is nothing to worry about. All it means is that the module is not approved when looked at in the light of licensing etc. Not in terms of its engineering quality.

The more concerning thing is that your are having to force that modules to load. That means it is not recognising your wireless device. When you do force it to load it still doesn't see the device. If it did there would be more output in "dmesg".

That rather matches what I found on several other forums. I did a search for:

14e4:0576 Linux

The 14e4 is the broadcom identifier, the 0576, what you provided.

The only people I have found who had success are those who abandoned the wireless driver their distribution provided and got one directly from the broadcom site.

This thread:

http://ubuntuforums.org/archive/inde...t-1749780.html

on the Ubuntu site from May this year is representative.

Take a look at it and see what you think. Come back with questions.

Bernard

[gwynw]

Hi Bernard,

I actually have Ubuntu on my machine as well. Wireless doesn't work either. I remember trying to compile the Broadcom driver following the instructions in the post you have pointed me to. I got stuck somewhere. Anyway, I have tried again in Fedora. I followed the Ubuntu post and the Braodcom README file. I got stuck again!!!

Here's what I did ('kernel-devel' is installed according to Add/Remove Software):

[gwyn@gwyn-E420 ~]$ ls /lib/modules/`uname -r`/build
arch firmware ipc Makefile samples System.map vmlinux.id
block fs Kconfig mm scripts tools
crypto include kernel Module.symvers security usr
drivers init lib net sound virt

[gwyn@gwyn-E420 ~]$ mkdir hybrid_wl

[gwyn@gwyn-E420 ~]$ cd hybrid_wl

[root@gwyn-E420 hybrid_wl]# tar xzf /home/gwyn/hybrid_wl/hybrid-portsrc_x86-64_v5.100.82.38.tar.gz
tar (child): /home/gwyn/hybrid_wl/hybrid-portsrc_x86-64_v5.100.82.38.tar.gz: Cannot open: No such file or directory
tar (child): Error is not recoverable: exiting now
tar: Child returned status 2
tar: Error is not recoverable: exiting now

[root@gwyn-E420 hybrid_wl]# tar xzf home/gwyn/hybrid_wl/hybrid-portsrc_x86-64_v5.100.82.38.tar.gz
tar (child): home/gwyn/hybrid_wl/hybrid-portsrc_x86-64_v5.100.82.38.tar.gz: Cannot open: No such file or directory
tar (child): Error is not recoverable: exiting now
tar: Child returned status 2
tar: Error is not recoverable: exiting now

Don't know what I was getting wrong when trying to un-tar the driver, which I'd downloaded to my home directory. I gave up using the command line. Instead, I right clicked on the tar.gz file > Open with Archive Manager > Extract > and extracted it to the hybrid_wl folder.... Then:

[root@gwyn-E420 hybrid_wl]# make clean
KBUILD_NOPEDANTIC=1 make -C /lib/modules/`uname -r`/build M=`pwd` clean
make[1]: Entering directory `/usr/src/kernels/2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64'
make[1]: Leaving directory `/usr/src/kernels/2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64'

[root@gwyn-E420 hybrid_wl]# make
KBUILD_NOPEDANTIC=1 make -C /lib/modules/`uname -r`/build M=`pwd`
make[1]: Entering directory `/usr/src/kernels/2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64'
LD /home/gwyn/hybrid_wl/built-in.o
CC [M] /home/gwyn/hybrid_wl/src/shared/linux_osl.o
CC [M] /home/gwyn/hybrid_wl/src/wl/sys/wl_linux.o
/home/gwyn/hybrid_wl/src/wl/sys/wl_linux.c: In function ‘wl_attach’:
/home/gwyn/hybrid_wl/src/wl/sys/wl_linux.c:485:3: error: implicit declaration of function ‘init_MUTEX’ [-Werror=implicit-function-declaration]
cc1: some warnings being treated as errors

make[2]: *** [/home/gwyn/hybrid_wl/src/wl/sys/wl_linux.o] Error 1
make[1]: *** [_module_/home/gwyn/hybrid_wl] Error 2
make[1]: Leaving directory `/usr/src/kernels/2.6.40-4.fc15.x86_64'
make: *** [all] Error 2
[root@gwyn-E420 hybrid_wl]#


And I am stuck! the README file says "When the build completes, it will produce a wl.ko file in the top level
directory." There is no wl.ko file, just a locked built-in.o file...

Gwyn

[bbfuller]

Hello Gwyn

I've just been going through this myself with exactly the same results as yourself.

The problem with the unpacking was that the author of the article mixed up his full stops, hyphens and underscores.

I've looked up the later particular error message on the internet:

wl_linux.c:485:3: error: implicit declaration of function ‘init_MUTEX’ [-Werror=implicit-function-declaration]

I won't have a chance to try until later this evening, your morning I assume, but there is a potential fix listed here:

http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...l-2-6-37-3558/

Maybe you'll have moved on some by then.

Bernard

---------- Post added at 07:21 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:54 AM ----------

Hello Gwyn,

Well, I've just got to try that and the "Make" command now runs through and quickly produces the "wl.ko" file.

I haven't tried "make install" yet as I don't have a need for the driver on this laptop.

I'll be looking for how you get on.

Bernard