Bookmem Posted July 17, 2023 Share Posted July 17, 2023 (edited) I thought Linux had solved the problems with wifi adapter but I'm having problems with Mint 21. I've tried several newer USB adapters and none of them are recognized and using an old one works but is very slow. Anyone know if the old NDIS wrapper still works? edit: Did a clean install to upgrade from 21.1 to 21.2. No help. Edited July 18, 2023 by Bookmem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunrat Posted July 18, 2023 Share Posted July 18, 2023 Depends what wifi adapter you are talking about. Some work OOTB, some won't work at all, and some need compiling of kernel or drivers and/or downloading their latest firmware from the Github repo. What is the adapter/s in question? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hedon James Posted July 18, 2023 Share Posted July 18, 2023 I have had the best luck with Bolse brand usb wifi dongles. Just plug'n'play.....EVERY time, FWIW. YMMV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bookmem Posted July 18, 2023 Author Share Posted July 18, 2023 8 hours ago, sunrat said: Depends what wifi adapter you are talking about. Some work OOTB, some won't work at all, and some need compiling of kernel or drivers and/or downloading their latest firmware from the Github repo. What is the adapter/s in question? That's a real bummer. That puts Linux back in the "geeks only" category. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
V.T. Eric Layton Posted July 18, 2023 Share Posted July 18, 2023 Broadcom wifi is notoriously troublesome to get working in Linux; definitely my experience in Slackware. Do a forum search here for "Broadcom", "b43", etc. You should check to see what your wifi hardware actually is first, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
securitybreach Posted July 18, 2023 Share Posted July 18, 2023 Post the output of lsusb after plugging in one of the dongles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raymac46 Posted July 18, 2023 Share Posted July 18, 2023 Did you try running the Driver Manager to see if the laptop has a suggested proprietary diver you can install? Obviously you'll need the old wifi USB dongle or a wired connection. Driver Manager worked for me when I had an ugly Broadcom wifi chip in an HP laptop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunrat Posted July 19, 2023 Share Posted July 19, 2023 11 hours ago, Bookmem said: That's a real bummer. That puts Linux back in the "geeks only" category. Not if you have one of the "works OOTB" devices. And many devices only need firmware installed which is often included in many current distros. Even the latest Debian now asks at installation if you want to include firmware. But as Eric said, some Broadcom devices are bad choices, and Realtek has so many chip variants it can be frustrating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raymac46 Posted July 19, 2023 Share Posted July 19, 2023 This one works well if you are OK with N technology (Wifi 4.) https://www.tp-link.com/us/home-networking/usb-adapter/tl-wn725n/#overview I used one to get online with my latest junker laptop- HP Pavilion from 2015. Then I used LM's Driver Manager to identify and install a Broadcom module. Now the laptop works without the USB solution. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bookmem Posted July 19, 2023 Author Share Posted July 19, 2023 (edited) 15 hours ago, raymac46 said: Did you try running the Driver Manager to see if the laptop has a suggested proprietary diver you can install? Obviously you'll need the old wifi USB dongle or a wired connection. Driver Manager worked for me when I had an ugly Broadcom wifi chip in an HP laptop. Yes, I tried DM. No help. And finding one that will work, even with DM, is still "geeky", IMHO. edit: I found a github on how to add ppa for my Realtek 8723du and it is working. However my download speed is only 1/4 the speed I get in Window 11. Edited July 19, 2023 by Bookmem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
V.T. Eric Layton Posted July 19, 2023 Share Posted July 19, 2023 2 hours ago, Bookmem said: However my download speed is only 1/4 the speed I get in Window 11. That's interesting. I wouldn't think that speeds would vary between OSes on the same machine using the same hardware. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bookmem Posted July 19, 2023 Author Share Posted July 19, 2023 1 hour ago, V.T. Eric Layton said: That's interesting. I wouldn't think that speeds would vary between OSes on the same machine using the same hardware. I think it might have something to do with my internet provider. I live in a 11 story apt bldg for the elderly, built about 70 yrs ago. Till very recently, the only provider was AT&T over land lines. But recently a new service put in a system where the service is by wifi. Each apt has its own SSID and password. I have noticed some other weird problems. This might be one. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raymac46 Posted July 19, 2023 Share Posted July 19, 2023 (edited) Check this site. There's some info about increasing a weak signal in Linux. https://appuals.com/increase-signal-strength-weak-wifi-signal-linux/#:~:text=Once you've found the,pushing enter a second time. Edited July 19, 2023 by raymac46 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bookmem Posted July 20, 2023 Author Share Posted July 20, 2023 1 hour ago, raymac46 said: Check this site. There's some info about increasing a weak signal in Linux. https://appuals.com/increase-signal-strength-weak-wifi-signal-linux/#:~:text=Once you've found the,pushing enter a second time. I'm trying to use method #4 in that link but have a problem. It says to run this command first sudo modprobe -rv NAME Where name is the name of my device as listed with lsusb with an example of rt18723du but when I try that I get a "Fatal error driver not found". When I run lsusb I get this for my device Bus 001 Device 004: ID 0bda:d723 Realtek Semiconductor Corp. 802.11n WLAN Adapter So what do I use for the NAME Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raymac46 Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 (edited) Try a lsmod and see if you can see the wireless driver. Edited July 20, 2023 by raymac46 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bookmem Posted July 20, 2023 Author Share Posted July 20, 2023 18 minutes ago, raymac46 said: Try a lsmod and see if you can see the wireless driver. That helped. Seems it is just 8723du, I ran the modprobes and it help some but I'm still only getting 20mbs vs 48 in Win 11. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raymac46 Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 (edited) This adapter is a bit pricey but given your situation might be worth a try. https://tinyurl.com/2bbwm4ed Edited July 20, 2023 by raymac46 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raymac46 Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 Some other suggestions that are not Realtek. https://techsphinx.com/linux/usb-wifi-adapters-for-linux/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bookmem Posted July 20, 2023 Author Share Posted July 20, 2023 (edited) 2 hours ago, raymac46 said: This adapter is a bit pricey but given your situation might be worth a try. https://tinyurl.com/2bbwm4ed LOL! That cost more than the computer!! And I got it for less than that on Prime Day! And I'm not worried about me so much as I am about the situation. For several years wifi worked on Linux OOTB. Now its reverted to "geeks only". I can see having problems with older Broadcom adapters, but, to me, current Realtex adapters should at least work with Driver Manager. Edited July 20, 2023 by Bookmem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hedon James Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 1 hour ago, Bookmem said: LOL! That cost more than the computer!! And I got it for less than that on Prime Day! And I'm not worried about me so much as I am about the situation. For several years wifi worked on Linux OOTB. Now its reverted to "geeks only". I can see having problems with older Broadcom adapters, but, to me, current Realtex adapters should at least work with Driver Manager. What kernel are you using? Can you update to a newer kernel? Sometimes it takes a few kernels for newer drivers to get baked into the kernel. But your point is taken with Driver Manager....i would think that would be up-to-date....but maybe it just provides a working driver, not the most recent? just thinking out loud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bookmem Posted July 20, 2023 Author Share Posted July 20, 2023 (edited) 6 hours ago, Hedon James said: What kernel are you using? Can you update to a newer kernel? Sometimes it takes a few kernels for newer drivers to get baked into the kernel. But your point is taken with Driver Manager....i would think that would be up-to-date....but maybe it just provides a working driver, not the most recent? just thinking out loud. I've installed the latest Mint 21.2 which doesn't have the latest kernel. It is 5.15. I could try installing the latest, but again, that would still fall in the "geeky" category. And since I've already installed the driver for the 8723du, there is no real need to update the kernel.aq And I had to get it through github as it wasn't there in Driver Manager. Edited July 20, 2023 by Bookmem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raymac46 Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 (edited) Might I suggest you try the latest Debian 12 Live ISO to see if that would work for you. It contains a lot of non-free firmware. https://cdimage.debian.org/debian-cd/current-live/amd64/iso-hybrid/debian-live-12.0.0-amd64-cinnamon.iso As far as Linux wifi goes, it never has been geek-free as far as I am concerned. I have not found any Wifi 5 or 6 chipsets I am comfortable with, and a lot more solutions require firmware blobs than ever before. You have to do a lot of research to be sure your wifi USB or PCI solution will work. Intel or Qualcomm-Atheros have always been my go-to chipsets. Ralink and Realtek and Broadcom have been a crapshoot. Mediatek seems to be OK for now but you never know. Even old tried and true USB dongles can get a new version with a ginchy chipset. The reason I suggested the pricey wifi was because of your current situation where you don't have your own router and/or wired Internet. Another possibility if you have a spare PCIe slot on your motherboard is an internal wifi card. I have always found that better than USB. https://tinyurl.com/3eyxtdxe Other than that I am out of ideas. Good luck. Edited July 20, 2023 by raymac46 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bookmem Posted July 20, 2023 Author Share Posted July 20, 2023 5 hours ago, raymac46 said: Might I suggest you try the latest Debian 12 Live ISO to see if that would work for you. It contains a lot of non-free firmware. https://cdimage.debian.org/debian-cd/current-live/amd64/iso-hybrid/debian-live-12.0.0-amd64-cinnamon.iso As far as Linux wifi goes, it never has been geek-free as far as I am concerned. I have not found any Wifi 5 or 6 chipsets I am comfortable with, and a lot more solutions require firmware blobs than ever before. You have to do a lot of research to be sure your wifi USB or PCI solution will work. Intel or Qualcomm-Atheros have always been my go-to chipsets. Ralink and Realtek and Broadcom have been a crapshoot. Mediatek seems to be OK for now but you never know. Even old tried and true USB dongles can get a new version with a ginchy chipset. The reason I suggested the pricey wifi was because of your current situation where you don't have your own router and/or wired Internet. Another possibility if you have a spare PCIe slot on your motherboard is an internal wifi card. I have always found that better than USB. https://tinyurl.com/3eyxtdxe Other than that I am out of ideas. Good luck. I thought I had made it clear that it isn't "my situation" that concerns me. I'm an 84 yr old retired (and widowed) computer consultant who spends most of his days either reading or playing with his computer toys. I have two 43" and one 65" monitor surrounding my recliner, each attached to its own desktop. I didn't bother trying to list my Android device history in that thread because I couldn't possibly remember them all. I currently have 4 tablets and a phone. I also have several laptops. I also still have my AT&T landline internet (that never got more than 16Mbs) as well as the new WiFi provider. So, while the rate I'm getting is much less than I get in Windows, it isn't anything I can't put up with. I am just disappointed that when I installed Mint 21 on my latest desktop that I had to jump through hoops to get the WiFi to work. And though there have always been some wifi adapters that were problematic, for the last few years most of them have worked OOTB for me. I can't count the number of times I have installed Mint over the years and this is the first time I've had a problem in a long time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raymac46 Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 OK then it looks like you have everything under control so I'll bow out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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