Bug 7844 - Broadcom wireless driver fails to connect to selected (and only) SSID
Summary: Broadcom wireless driver fails to connect to selected (and only) SSID
Status: RESOLVED OLD
Alias: None
Product: Mageia
Classification: Unclassified
Component: Installer (show other bugs)
Version: Cauldron
Hardware: x86_64 Linux
Priority: Normal normal
Target Milestone: ---
Assignee: Mageia Bug Squad
QA Contact:
URL:
Whiteboard:
Keywords: NEEDINFO
Depends on:
Blocks:
 
Reported: 2012-10-19 18:41 CEST by Maurice Batey
Modified: 2014-05-05 11:31 CEST (History)
8 users (show)

See Also:
Source RPM:
CVE:
Status comment:


Attachments

Description Maurice Batey 2012-10-19 18:41:02 CEST
Description of problem:

Using new installation of 64-bit Mageia-3-Alpha2 on a Samsung NC110 netbook, the  Broadcom wireless driver finds the local SSID, but repeatedly fails to connect to it.
   (WPA key triple checked; another laptop auto-connects to same SSID when booted.  Router is less than 1m away...)


Version-Release number of selected component (if applicable):

broadcom-wl-kernel-netbook-latest  Version: 5.100.82.112  Rel: 45.mga3.nonfree

'uname -a' ->  "...3.6.2-netbook-1.mga3..."

How reproducible:

In Network Centre, Wireless (eth1):

Steps to Reproduce:
1.  Select the (only) SSID
2.  Select 'Connect'
3.  "Connenction failed"

N.B. On the same netbook, with an installation of Mageia-2, the wireless connected every time.
Comment 1 Thomas Backlund 2012-10-20 23:02:42 CEST

Are you using mdv tools to configure wlan, or NetworkManager ?

I see the issue when configured with mdv tools, but not with NM.

CC: (none) => tmb

Comment 2 Maurice Batey 2012-10-20 23:21:40 CEST
The process to get the Broadcom driver set up was 
quite lengthy. (Happened automatically, once I had enabled the non-free
repository and hit 'Configure' in the Network Centre.)

Sadly, although the WiFi finds the router's SSID, it failed
(repeatedly) to Connect.  (WPA key checked multiple times.)

The wireless adapter is a Broadcom Corp'n BCM 43225 802.11b/g/n, which
worked fine under Mageia-2.

In the same physical position*, my Toshiba laptop (running Mandriva
2010.2) autoconnects on boot.    (*The router is less than 3 ft away.)

'uname -a' showed "kernel 3.6.2-desktop-1.mga3".

MCC/Software showed the following 'broadcom' items installed:

    dkms-broadcom-wl
    broadcom-wl-kernel-desktop-latest
    broadcom-wl-kernel-3.6.2-desktop-1.mga3
    broadcom-wl-kernel-3.5.5-desktop-0.rc1.1.mga3

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

THEN, in an effort to find a solution, I then did the following:

   - Removed all the above 'broadcom' items
   - Installed the kernel 3.6.2-netbook-1.mga3  (i.e. 'latest')
   - Installed broadcom-wl-kernel-latest  (to get latest driver)
   - Rebooted

Result: Same as before: The wireless adapter finds the only SSID, but
fails to connect.
Comment 3 Maurice Batey 2012-10-20 23:25:30 CEST
> Are you using mdv tools to configure wlan, ....

 (1)  No sign of "wlan". The Wireless section of Network Centre calls it "eth1" (sometimes "eth0") but never "wlan".

 (2) What do you mean by "mdv tools" ?!
Comment 4 Thomas Backlund 2012-10-20 23:28:36 CEST
Sorry, 
"wlan" was meant as your wifi connection

and "mdv" was meant as the drakx tools wich you used in "Network Centre"
Comment 5 Frank Griffin 2012-10-21 16:19:05 CEST
The broadcom drivers use "ethX" instead of "wlanX".

CC: (none) => ftg

Comment 6 Frank Griffin 2012-10-21 16:37:28 CEST
BTW, the laptpo I'm readying to replace the one mentioned in bug#7849 has a broadcom chip.  When you say it worked if you configured with NM, do you mean just have NM enabled and running, and check the box in drakconnect ?  Or is there something further ?
Comment 7 Frank Griffin 2012-10-21 23:28:10 CEST
I configured the broadcom NIC to use NM with NM running, and I get the same error that has plagued countless people (see Google) since NM was introduced, with no solution ever having been posted that I can find:
          
             ifcfg-rh : Missing SSID

This is whether you select an SSID in drakconnect or select "Unlisted - edit manually" (which is what I've always done in the past).

If I shut down NM and reconfigure the interface to not use NM, I get the same error as with the rtl8192se driver: immediate no link beat detected.

The NM ifcfg-rh error has been around since 2008 at least.
Comment 8 Frank Griffin 2012-10-22 17:53:22 CEST
Maurice, this won't address the breakage with the new kernel, but see my recent post on bug#2160 for getting NM to work with your wireless, and that should get you past this.
Comment 9 Olivier Blin 2012-10-23 23:56:04 CEST
I have just pushed a fix in our initscripts, since upstream kernel removed the "wireless" directory from sysfs...
We used for example /sys/class/net/wlan0/kernel to detect that a device is wireless.

Fixed in this initscripts commit:
    network-functions: fix detecting wireless devices in sysfs
    
    The wireless directory has been removed in kernel commit
    35b2a113cb0298d4f9a1263338b456094a414.
    Check the phy80211 symlink instead.

Please check if still valid with initscripts-9.34-30.mga3

CC: (none) => mageia

Comment 10 Manuel Hiebel 2012-10-26 23:04:27 CEST
(seems to work fine for me)

Keywords: (none) => NEEDINFO

Comment 11 Maurice Batey 2012-10-27 12:17:40 CEST
Olivier, I look forward to trying again with that adjustment, as soon as the fix gets into the Mageia-3-Alpha2 s/w update cycle.
  When might that be?

CC: (none) => maurice

Comment 12 Manuel Hiebel 2012-10-27 22:23:09 CEST
the updated initscripts should be in core/release on your cauldron mirrors
Comment 13 Maurice Batey 2012-10-28 17:35:05 CET
OK, Manuel - have done the 126-package Mageia-3-Alpha2 s/w update (after new rpmrake) and re-booted.

Result: Same as before  (Repeatedly fails to connect to selected (and only) SSID)

Used exactly same approach as in Mageia-2 to define wireless connection, and to connect to that SSID.
   With Mageia-2, the connection occurs after a few seconds (although the Network Centre label *still* does not change to 'Disconnect'...), and occurs automatically at boot.

Let me know if you need me to check anything or try something different.
Comment 14 Maurice Batey 2012-10-29 19:15:22 CET
Have just installed a 26-package s/w update for Mageia-3-Alpha2, which included  3.6.4-1.mga3 versions of the various kernels (including wl-broadcom).

After re-booting and clearing/re-configuring wireless: 
     No difference - Still fails to connect to the (only) SSID.

(Still no problem with Mageia-2; wireless continues to boot solidly.)
Comment 15 Maurice Batey 2012-12-02 17:25:40 CET
(In reply to comment #14)
 
> (Still no problem with Mageia-2; wireless continues to boot solidly.)

  BUT after the latest s/w update, the WiFi then failed to connect.
In fact it again went through the laborious 'Looking for software' routine, and then failed 'Cannot find network'.

However, after browsing around in Google-land I came across a suggestion to install "kernel-firmware-nonfree".
   That I did, and - after re-booting - WiFi is back to normal!  Phew..

BUT, when I tried the same solution on Mageia-3-Alpha2 (fully updated), it STILL fails to connect to the selected SSID. (It has never succeeded...)

On the same netbook I tried Ubuntu 12.01 and Mint 13 KDE. In both cases WiFi worked 'out of the box' - no "Looking for software...".

If they can do it, why can't Mageia-3?
Comment 16 José Jorge 2012-12-02 22:47:43 CET
(In reply to comment #15)
> If they can do it, why can't Mageia-3?

Broadcom driver is a mess, I have the almost the same WiFi hardware and have experienced lots of problems. Maybe Ubuntu & co only provide closed source driver, while we provide ALL avaliable drivers. From what you report, you had success with open source driver which needs non-free firmware. This driver is disabled by wl-broadcom as both conflict. Maybe just removing wl-broadcom will resolv your problem ;-)

CC: (none) => lists.jjorge

Comment 17 Maurice Batey 2012-12-03 18:15:38 CET
(In reply to comment #16)

> Maybe just removing wl-broadcom will resolve your problem ;-)

  I can't find any such program.
(E.g. find / -name wl-broadcom)

MCC/Software says no such package.

  How does one remove "wl-broadcom"?!

(You don't mean e.g. broadcom-wl-kernel-desktop do you?)
Comment 18 Maurice Batey 2012-12-03 18:27:45 CET
(In reply to comment #17)

N.B.
find / -name *broadcom*
/usr/share/doc/dkms-broadcom-wl
/usr/share/doc/kernel-firmware-nonfree/LICENCE.broadcom_bcm43xx
/usr/lib/modules/3.6.5-desktop-1.mga3/dkms/3rdparty/broadcom-wl
/usr/lib/modules/3.6.5-desktop-1.mga3/kernel/drivers/net/ethernet/broadcom
/usr/lib/modules/3.6.5-desktop-1.mga3/kernel/drivers/net/phy/broadcom.ko.xz
/usr/lib/modules/3.6.5-desktop-1.mga3/dkms-binary/3rdparty/broadcom-wl
/usr/lib/modules/3.5.5-desktop-0.rc1.1.mga3/kernel/drivers/net/ethernet/broadcom
/usr/lib/modules/3.5.5-desktop-0.rc1.1.mga3/kernel/drivers/net/phy/broadcom.ko.xz
/usr/src/linux-3.6.5-desktop-1.mga3/drivers/net/ethernet/broadcom
/usr/src/linux-3.6.5-desktop-1.mga3/include/config/broadcom
/usr/src/linux-3.6.5-desktop-1.mga3/include/config/net/vendor/broadcom.h
/usr/src/broadcom-wl-5.100.82.112-5.mga3.nonfree
/etc/modprobe.d/blacklist-broadcom-wl.conf
/var/lib/dkms/broadcom-wl
/var/lib/dkms-binary/broadcom-wl
Comment 19 Thomas Backlund 2012-12-03 18:34:37 CET
Yep, uninstall any mackage with the name broadcom-wl and watch if it works better.
Comment 20 Maurice Batey 2012-12-03 19:22:42 CET
(In reply to comment #19)
> Yep, uninstall any package with the name broadcom-wl and watch if it works
> better.

OK - that removed the wl-broadcom kernel and DKMS partner.

But still the WiFi is dead - i.e. does not even find SSID's, let alone connect.

And if I go through the 'Configure network connection', it starts all over again 'looking for software' (i.e. the packages that have just been removed).

As you say, it's a mess...

If the 'official' Mageia-3 is no better, then I shall stay with Mageia-2 if its KMail is updated to 4.9.3, otherwise I shall have to stay with Mandriva 2010.2, which is still my 'production' install.

But I don't give up easily!  Happy to try any other idea anyone might have..
Comment 21 Frank Griffin 2012-12-03 19:55:50 CET
Mess is a good description of this.  Let's simplify it.

A month or so ago, some change to cauldron, apparently in the kernel, broke the ability for ifplugd (non-NM) to bring up several wireless interfaces, not just broadcom (my RTL chip got hit too).  At that point, using the procedure described in bug#2160, I was able to get NM to work on my system, and found that the change didn't affect wireless controlled by NM - the same interface came up just fine when controlled by NM rather than ifplugd.

Olivier says that the ifplugd breakage was caused by initscripts, and submitted a patch, but the patch hasn't solved your problem.

So, apparently the initscripts fix doesn't correct all of the ifplugd problem.

The only way to find out is to update your cauldron system to latest code, and then manually install the kernel from current MGA2.  If booting cauldron with the MGA2 kernel fixes your problem, then the ifplugd problem with current kernels is still there, and needs to be looked into further.

The other thing you can do is to follow the bug#2160 procedure to get NM running, and reconfigure your wireless interface to allow NM to control it.  If that works, it's further confirmation that you're seeing the same problem I and others hit.  Plus you get a working wireless.
Comment 22 Maurice Batey 2012-12-03 22:20:51 CET
(In reply to comment #21)
>....
> The only way to find out is to update your cauldron system to latest code, and
> then manually install the kernel from current MGA2.  If booting cauldron with
> the MGA2 kernel fixes your problem, then the ifplugd problem with current
> kernels is still there, and needs to be looked into further.

  Thank you, Frank!

 When you say "...manually install the kernel", could you be more explicit, please? Which kernel(s)?  Does that include DKMS?

> The other thing you can do is to follow the bug#2160 procedure to get NM
> running, and reconfigure your wireless interface to allow NM to control it. 

  I did look at that earlier, but could not get a clear picture of what needed doing. For example, what does "reconfigure your wireless interface" boil down to, please?    I am not a comms wizard...
Comment 23 Frank Griffin 2012-12-03 23:47:03 CET
The MGA2 kernel is not going to be in the cauldron repositories, so you'll have to get the MGA2 kernel rpm from an MGA2 repo.  Just download it individually, and then use "urpmi kernel-rpm-name" to install it on your cauldron system.  This won't remove your currently-installed cauldron kernel, although it might make the new one the default.

DKMS should take care of itself.  When you boot the new kernel, DKMS will note that it has not yet been compiled for this kernel version, and compile a version of the broadcom driver for the MGA2 kernel.

To reconfigure your wireless, open MCC and choose Network -> Add new Interface -> wireless.  This should give you settings that match what you already have.  When you get to the dialog that includes "allow this interface to be controlled by NM", check the box and go on to the end.  This will produce an ifcfg file that will tell NM that it can handle the device.  Then just either log into GNOME or install and run the plasma-applet-networkmanager applet in KDE to get NM to suck in the ifcfg file and own the interface.
Comment 24 Maurice Batey 2012-12-04 20:30:17 CET
(In reply to comment #23)
>...you'll have to get the MGA2 kernel rpm from an MGA2 repo.  

   The kernel appears to be 3.3.8-desktop, but I'm not familiar with the details of separately downloading such a thing from some repository, and cannot lay my hands on the precise URL for MGA2.
    What is the mechanism in this case, please, Frank?
Comment 25 Frank Griffin 2012-12-04 23:15:19 CET
Download it with your browser from:
   http://distrib-coffee.ipsl.jussieu.fr/pub/linux/Mageia/distrib/2/{[586|x86_64)/media/core/release

Then just install it with
   urpmi path-to-kernel-rpm
Comment 26 Maurice Batey 2012-12-06 17:19:38 CET
(In reply to comment #25)
> Download it with your browser from:
>   
> http://distrib-coffee.ipsl.jussieu.fr/pub/linux/Mageia/distrib/2/{[586|x86_64)/media/core/release
> 
> Then just install it with
>    urpmi path-to-kernel-rpm

  OK - many thanks!

Did all that, with unexpected results (after reboot):

  (1) Network Centre 'Connect' did not fail (though of course its 'Connect' button still does not change to 'Disconnect' - until exit and re-start of NC).

  (2) the WiFi entry in the NC shows "WLAN" rather than "eth1" as before.

  (3) Although the NC says it is connected (to the selected SSID), the machine  cannot reach the internet - i.e. it's as if it's DISconnected.

  So I guess it didn't work.

Just in case the install of the MGA2 kernel (3.3.6) wasn't quite right, here is the log of the 'urpmi' that installed it:

--------------------------------------
[root@localhost ~]# urpmi /home/mab/Download/kernel-desktop-3.3.6-2.mga2-1-1.mga2.x86_64.rpm

installing kernel-desktop-3.3.6-2.mga2-1-1.mga2.x86_64.rpm from /home/mab/Download
Preparing...                     ######################################
      1/1: kernel-desktop-3.3.6-2.mga2
                                 ######################################
I: Dracut module 'network' will not be installed, because it's in the list to be omitted!
I: Dracut module 'network' will not be installed, because it's in the list to be omitted!
I: *** Including module: dash ***
I: *** Including module: i18n ***
I: *** Including module: plymouth ***
I: *** Including module: kernel-modules ***
I: *** Including module: resume ***
I: *** Including module: rootfs-block ***
I: *** Including module: terminfo ***
I: *** Including module: udev-rules ***
I: Skipping program /sbin/mdadm using in udev rule 59-persistent-storage.rules as it cannot be found
I: Skipping program /sbin/mdadm using in udev rule 59-persistent-storage.rules as it cannot be found
I: *** Including module: usrmount ***
I: *** Including module: base ***
I: *** Including module: fs-lib ***
I: *** Including module: shutdown ***
I: *** Including modules done ***
I: *** Installing kernel module dependencies and firmware ***
I: *** Installing kernel module dependencies and firmware done ***
I: *** Resolving executable dependencies ***
I: *** Resolving executable dependencies done***
I: *** Creating image file ***
I: *** Creating image file done ***
I: Wrote /boot/initrd-3.3.6-desktop-2.mga2.img:
I: -rw------- 1 root root 7132733 Dec  5 19:27 /boot/initrd-3.3.6-desktop-2.mga2.img
defaulting background resolution to 1024x768
You should restart your computer for kernel-desktop-3.3.6-2.mga2
[root@localhost ~]# 
---------------------------------------------

If you can see nothing wrong there, I will try the Network Manager solution you suggested.
Comment 27 Frank Griffin 2012-12-07 05:21:56 CET
This is a different problem.  See if you can ping the wireless router interface IP using the IP address.  If you can, then you're connected and the interface is running fine; if you can't resolve hostnames, that's a DNS issue.

But first, delete you wireless interface using MCC and redefine it exactly as you did under MGA2.  You may have some cruft lingering in your ifcfg files that is causing the problem.  Redfine the interface using the MGA2 kernel and driver, and see hat effect that has.

If it's still not working, post syslog.
Comment 28 Maurice Batey 2012-12-07 18:41:34 CET
(In reply to comment #27)
> This is a different problem.  See if you can ping the wireless router interface
> IP using the IP address.  If you can, then you're connected and the interface
> is running fine; if you can't resolve hostnames, that's a DNS issue.

   At bootup, the green inverted Xmas tree Panel icon says:

           Network is up on interface Wireless WiFi (wlan0)
           IP address: (IP address of netbook)
           Gateway: 192.168.0.1
           Connected to [ssid] (link level 100%)" (3ft away!)

   Network Centre shows wlan0 tab 'Disconnect', but no SSID's shown.
   'Monitor' shows flat green line.

   Ping 192.168.0.1 says "Destination Host Unreachable".

Looking in 'MCC's 'Delete a connection' I see (to my surprise)::

   "Net device: wlan0: Intel Corporation|Atom Processor D2xxx Controller"

   If I click the down arrow it also shows "wifi (eth1)" and also the eth0 info.

So I successfully delete the wlan0 interface, then  go to "Set up a new network interface", and click on 'Wireless (Wifi)".
    The first time it did that it did not find a wireless interface, but when I repeated it it found my router's SSID and connected to it.
     E.g. Firefox now gets out onto the internet!  SUCCESS!!!
(BUT Network Centre still does not show any SSID's.)

Just to be sure I rebooted - and the WiFi is connected and Firefox works!

   So - I've got WiFi on Mageia3-Alpha2 for the fist time.

But what can I do to avoid the next s/w update screwing the WiFi again?
Just refuse any kernel update, for example?

N.B. My bread-and-butter distro on the netbook is Mageia-2 (WiFi still working fine), but there again I dare not do a s/w update in case it again breaks the WiFi...

All very shaky! All I can hope for is that by the time Mageia-3 Official comes out the WiFi will have been fixed.
   But there is no sign (e.g. in here) that anyone is working on it, is there?

(Granted, the problem may only be with Broadcom wireless, but then Ubuntu 12.01 and Mint13 handle the same hardware properly 'out of the box' - no fuss.)
Comment 29 Maurice Batey 2012-12-07 18:55:06 CET
P.S. lspci -vv shows:

01:00.0 Network controller: Broadcom Corporation BCM43225 802.11b/g/n (rev 01)
        Subsystem: Askey Computer Corp. Device 7181
        Control: I/O- Mem+ BusMaster+ SpecCycle- MemWINV- VGASnoop- ParErr- Stepping- SERR- FastB2B- DisINTx-
        Status: Cap+ 66MHz- UDF- FastB2B- ParErr- DEVSEL=fast >TAbort- <TAbort- <MAbort- >SERR- <PERR- INTx-
        Latency: 0, Cache Line Size: 64 bytes
        Interrupt: pin A routed to IRQ 16
        Region 0: Memory at dfe00000 (64-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16K]
        Capabilities: [40] Power Management version 3
                Flags: PMEClk- DSI- D1+ D2+ AuxCurrent=0mA PME(D0+,D1-,D2-,D3hot+,D3cold+)
                Status: D0 NoSoftRst+ PME-Enable- DSel=0 DScale=2 PME-
        Capabilities: [58] Vendor Specific Information: Len=78 <?>
        Capabilities: [48] MSI: Enable- Count=1/1 Maskable- 64bit+
                Address: 0000000000000000  Data: 0000
        Capabilities: [d0] Express (v1) Endpoint, MSI 00
                DevCap: MaxPayload 128 bytes, PhantFunc 0, Latency L0s <4us, L1 unlimited
                        ExtTag+ AttnBtn- AttnInd- PwrInd- RBE+ FLReset-
                DevCtl: Report errors: Correctable- Non-Fatal- Fatal- Unsupported-
                        RlxdOrd- ExtTag- PhantFunc- AuxPwr- NoSnoop-
                        MaxPayload 128 bytes, MaxReadReq 128 bytes
                DevSta: CorrErr+ UncorrErr- FatalErr- UnsuppReq+ AuxPwr+ TransPend-
                LnkCap: Port #0, Speed 2.5GT/s, Width x1, ASPM L0s L1, Latency L0 <4us, L1 <64us
                        ClockPM+ Surprise- LLActRep+ BwNot-
                LnkCtl: ASPM L1 Enabled; RCB 64 bytes Disabled- Retrain- CommClk+
                        ExtSynch- ClockPM+ AutWidDis- BWInt- AutBWInt-
                LnkSta: Speed 2.5GT/s, Width x1, TrErr- Train- SlotClk+ DLActive+ BWMgmt- ABWMgmt-
        Capabilities: [100 v1] Advanced Error Reporting
                UESta:  DLP- SDES- TLP- FCP- CmpltTO- CmpltAbrt- UnxCmplt- RxOF- MalfTLP- ECRC- UnsupReq- ACSViol-
                UEMsk:  DLP- SDES- TLP- FCP- CmpltTO- CmpltAbrt- UnxCmplt- RxOF- MalfTLP- ECRC- UnsupReq- ACSViol-
                UESvrt: DLP+ SDES- TLP- FCP+ CmpltTO- CmpltAbrt- UnxCmplt- RxOF+ MalfTLP+ ECRC- UnsupReq- ACSViol-
                CESta:  RxErr- BadTLP- BadDLLP- Rollover- Timeout- NonFatalErr+
                CEMsk:  RxErr- BadTLP- BadDLLP- Rollover- Timeout- NonFatalErr+
                AERCap: First Error Pointer: 14, GenCap+ CGenEn- ChkCap+ ChkEn-
        Capabilities: [13c v1] Virtual Channel
                Caps:   LPEVC=0 RefClk=100ns PATEntryBits=1
                Arb:    Fixed- WRR32- WRR64- WRR128-
                Ctrl:   ArbSelect=Fixed
                Status: InProgress-
                VC0:    Caps:   PATOffset=00 MaxTimeSlots=1 RejSnoopTrans-
                        Arb:    Fixed- WRR32- WRR64- WRR128- TWRR128- WRR256-
                        Ctrl:   Enable+ ID=0 ArbSelect=Fixed TC/VC=ff
                        Status: NegoPending- InProgress-
        Capabilities: [160 v1] Device Serial Number 00-00-99-ff-ff-0e-24-ec
        Capabilities: [16c v1] Power Budgeting <?>
        Kernel driver in use: bcma-pci-bridge
Comment 30 Frank Griffin 2012-12-07 22:19:04 CET
(In reply to comment #28)
> 
> Looking in 'MCC's 'Delete a connection' I see (to my surprise)::
> 
>    "Net device: wlan0: Intel Corporation|Atom Processor D2xxx Controller"
> 
>    If I click the down arrow it also shows "wifi (eth1)" and also the eth0
> info.

That's what I figured.  The driver probably changed from wlanX to ethX after the MGA2 kernel, and the fact that you had both of them in there was confusing the hell out of something.


> 
> So I successfully delete the wlan0 interface, then  go to "Set up a new network
> interface", and click on 'Wireless (Wifi)".
>     The first time it did that it did not find a wireless interface, but when I
> repeated it it found my router's SSID and connected to it.
>      E.g. Firefox now gets out onto the internet!  SUCCESS!!!
> (BUT Network Centre still does not show any SSID's.)
> 
> Just to be sure I rebooted - and the WiFi is connected and Firefox works!
> 
>    So - I've got WiFi on Mageia3-Alpha2 for the fist time.
> 

OK, great.  This means that the ifplugd problem with current kernels is not completely fixed.

Blino, any other ideas ?


> But what can I do to avoid the next s/w update screwing the WiFi again?
> Just refuse any kernel update, for example?

Well, that's kind of impossible to answer without knowing what's causing the problem.  It's possible, though unlikely, that whatever's causing the problem in the current kernel could get backported to MGA2, but you're protected in any case because the new kernel won't remove the old one, and you can always revert to that.


> 
> N.B. My bread-and-butter distro on the netbook is Mageia-2 (WiFi still working
> fine), but there again I dare not do a s/w update in case it again breaks the
> WiFi...

Ahh, go on, live dangerously :-)

You can always try the NM route, which should work (following the procedure in bug#2160) for both releases.


> 
> All very shaky! All I can hope for is that by the time Mageia-3 Official comes
> out the WiFi will have been fixed.
>    But there is no sign (e.g. in here) that anyone is working on it, is there?
>

Of course there is.  Didn't blino already post one fix above ?

This is an unusual situation.  AFAIK it is still planned that NM will not be the default for wireless in MGA3 except in GNOME where you have no choice.  So I would bet good money that MGA3 isn't going out the door without ifplugd being fixed.
Comment 31 Maurice Batey 2012-12-08 16:02:52 CET
(In reply to comment #30)
> (In reply to comment #28)

> Ahh, go on, live dangerously :-)

  I don't mind doing that with MGA3-A2, but not with my 'production' MGA2!

> You can always try the NM route, which should work (following the procedure in
> bug#2160) for both releases.

   If MGA3A2 screws WiFi again, I shall try that - though I'm not a Gnome user.

> > All very shaky! All I can hope for is that by the time Mageia-3 Official comes
> > out the WiFi will have been fixed.
> >    But there is no sign (e.g. in here) that anyone is working on it, is 
> there?

> Of course there is.  Didn't blino already post one fix above ?

   Of course, yes! 
Olivier, if I can help check anything out for you, just let me know...
Thank you for chasing this problem down.

> This is an unusual situation.  AFAIK it is still planned that NM will not be
> the default for wireless in MGA3 except in GNOME where you have no choice.  So
> I would bet good money that MGA3 isn't going out the door without ifplugd 
> being fixed.

   That's reassuring.
Many thanks, Frank, for your your help  and patience. Much appreciated...
Comment 32 Maurice Batey 2012-12-13 18:27:51 CET
(In reply to comment #23)

> To reconfigure your wireless, open MCC and choose Network -> Add new Interface
> -> wireless.  This should give you settings that match what you already have. 
> When you get to the dialog that includes "allow this interface to be controlled
> by NM", check the box and go on to the end. 

Having just done the latest 440-file s/w update, as I suspected it screwed up the WiFi again, so I started to try your NM approach.

But when I ask MCC/Network to configure 'Broadcom Corp BCM43225 etc.'and after installng DKMS etc. it comes back with "Unable to find network interface for selected device (using wl driver)", so I never get to the option select NM...

(WiFi still working on Mageia-2, so I dare not do a s/w update!)
Comment 33 Frank Griffin 2012-12-13 19:03:21 CET
OK, since I put the procedure in bug#2160, I've tested John Balcaen's recommendation to use NM keyfile rather than ifcfg-rh, so do the following:

In /etc/NetworkManager/NetworkManager.conf change "plugins=ifcfg-rh,keyfile" to "plugins=keyfile"

Install plasma-applet-networkmanager, and add it to your panel.

Click on the applet.  It should bring up a dialog which will list your SSID.  Click on it to connect.

I just did this in a freshly-installed cauldron system without going near drakconnect (MCC/Network), and it worked fine.
Comment 34 Maurice Batey 2012-12-13 19:43:33 CET
(In reply to comment #33)

> In /etc/NetworkManager/NetworkManager.conf change "plugins=ifcfg-rh,keyfile" to
> "plugins=keyfile"

The only file in /etc/NetworkManager/ is 'dispatcher.d' !
  Then I discovered the .conf file isn't there until plasma-applet-networkmanager is installed, so did that and made the above change.

> Install plasma-applet-networkmanager, and add it to your panel.

   Having done that, I can't *find* it to put in Panel!
(Looked under Internet and Tools)

(Tried the command 'networkmanager' and 'plasma-applet-networkmanager' but 'Not Found...)

What's the secret?!
Comment 35 Frank Griffin 2012-12-13 19:50:22 CET
On your KDE panel, probably all the way over to the right, there should be an icon whose tooltip reads "Panel Tool Box".  Click on it, and then click on "Add Widgets" in the resulting dialog.  Then type "network" in the Categories box, and float your mouse cursor over each until you find Network Management.  Double-click on this one and it will show up somewhere on your panel.
Comment 36 Maurice Batey 2012-12-14 13:33:49 CET
(In reply to comment #35)
> On your KDE panel, probably all the way over to the right, there should be an
> icon whose tooltip reads "Panel Tool Box".  Click on it, and then click on "Add
> Widgets" in the resulting dialog.  Then type "network" in the Categories box,
> and float your mouse cursor over each until you find Network Management. 
> Double-click on this one and it will show up somewhere on your panel.

That worked (after Unlocking Widgets)! 
I quite like NM, and I've checked that the WiFi is up on rebooting.

Many thanks, Frank, for your help (and patience).

Thought: If NM always works, why isn't it the standard WiFi mechanism for Mageia, I wonder...
Comment 37 Frank Griffin 2012-12-14 14:04:18 CET
NM was never intended to coexist with non-NM.  By its own admission, it is "just supposed to work", and is therefore aggressive and intrusive.  It's gotten better since its introduction into cauldron.  Originally, it was dumped in with no notice that it wouldn't work in KDE without the manual procedure you went through.  The assumption was that KDE users wouldn't be using it.

Unfortunately, GNOME requires NM and drags it in.  Once there, it originally interfered with ifplugd and nothing worked in KDE unless you forcibly uninstalled it.  Over time, it learned to keep its hands to itself and honor NM_CONTROLLED=NO, at which point you could leave it installed as long as you didn't try to use it for wireless.

It still has problems, documented in other bug reports.  Its support for dhcpcd is broken, and it doesn't support setting hostnames via DHCP.

However, it will probably be the default for MGA4.
Comment 38 roelof Wobben 2013-01-07 15:07:46 CET
Is this still a valid bug or can we close it.

Roelof

CC: (none) => r.wobben

Comment 39 Maurice Batey 2013-01-07 16:07:59 CET
The problem with Broadcom WiFi is still in Mageia-3, although - after a struggle (and help from Frank Griffin) - I was able to get NM to do the job.

This is a bad situation for anyone trying Mageia-3.

On the same hardware, both Ubuntu 12.01 and Mint 13 KDE operate the Broadcom WiFi perfectly 'out of the box' - no fuss, no "Searching for drivers...".

That's how it needs to be with Mageia-3, somehow...

(See also Comment 37 from Frank Griffin.)
Comment 40 roelof Wobben 2013-01-07 16:35:14 CET
@tmb: Can you shine a light on this matter ?

Roelof
Comment 41 Maurice Batey 2013-01-08 18:06:57 CET
(In reply to comment #39)
> The problem with Broadcom WiFi is still in Mageia-3, although - after a
> struggle (and help from Frank Griffin) - I was able to get NM to do the job.

Although NM works perfectly when I was running a single-user system, a problem arose when a 2nd user was added:

  When the 2nd user is logged in, it has no WiFi connection, and if I install NM for that user NM stops working for *both* users...

Frank, how does one get NM to do WiFi for both users, please?

(Just for the moment I cannot try any correction as the latest large s/w update on Mageia-3-Alpha2 has clobbered the system (Kernel Panic at boot for me - and others...), so cannot boot.
Comment 42 Frank Griffin 2013-01-08 19:18:54 CET
(In reply to comment #41)
> 
>   When the 2nd user is logged in, it has no WiFi connection,

That's broken as designed.  NM appears to keep its config files on a per-user basis, and disconnects wifi when the user using it logs off.

> and if I install
> NM for that user NM stops working for *both* users...

That's unexpected.  If you have it set to autoconnect for the 2nd user, it should connect again as he logs in.

Check syslog for clues
Comment 43 Frank Griffin 2013-01-08 19:30:49 CET
See bug#8523
Comment 44 Sander Lepik 2013-01-08 21:34:56 CET
Hmm, you can tell NM that the configured connection is system-wide. So it's connected at start and will work for all users. The only drawback is that if the link drops for some reason then you are prompted for root password to reconnect.

At least on mga2 plasma applet has such option and AFAIK it worked on cauldron too.

CC: (none) => sander.lepik

Comment 45 Maurice Batey 2013-01-09 13:17:18 CET
Many thanks, Sander!  That seems a reasonable solution (except where one is not the 'master' NM user and cannot get latter to re-connect with NM, presumably - no problem in my case). 
  
Will try that if/when I can get back into my installed Mageia-3-cauldron (currently unusable after recent mega-s/w update causes Kernel Panic at boot...)
Comment 46 Marja Van Waes 2014-05-05 11:31:56 CEST
This bug was filed against pre-Mageia3 cauldron and contains no later information, current cauldron is very different.

Closing as OLD.

In case you still hit this bug:

This bug is already 45 comments long, which is an awful lot, so please file a new bug report if this issue still exists in current cauldron, and there isn't a more recent existing bug report about it.

Status: NEW => RESOLVED
CC: (none) => marja11
Resolution: (none) => OLD


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