[SOLVED] missing firmware for wireless adapter BCM43142

[hughparker1]

DELL Inspiron 15 3543 (3000 Series)
5th Generation Intel Core i5-5200U Processor (3M Cache, up to 2.70 GHz)

I have installed Debian 8 and received following message relating ...

missing firmware files rtl_nic/rtl8106e-1.fw (EDIT: I understand this is not wireless adapter, but wired adapter which appears to be working ok as I can connect to internet ok.)

The wireless adapter wasn't recognised so I used LAN cable and completed the install.

this is details of wireless adapter....

Code: Select all

it@it:~$ lspci -vvnn | grep -A 9 Network
06:00.0 Network controller [0280]: Broadcom Corporation BCM43142 802.11b/g/n [14e4:4365] (rev 01)
	Subsystem: Dell Wireless 1704 802.11n + BT 4.0 [1028:0016]
	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 18
	Region 0: Memory at f7100000 (64-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=32K]
	Capabilities: <access denied>
	Kernel driver in use: bcma-pci-bridge

it@it:~$ 

would the following commands install driver?

Code: Select all

$ nano /etc/apt/sources.list
				
# add following line

deb http://http.debian.net/debian/ jessie main contrib non-free

# do I need to add this line also?

deb http://http.debian.net/debian/ jessie-backports main contrib non-free

$ apt-get update

any help would be appreciated

regards,

Hugh

[stevepusser]

DELL Inspiron 15 3543 (3000 Series)
5th Generation Intel Core i5-5200U Processor (3M Cache, up to 2.70 GHz)

I have installed Debian 8 and received following message relating to wireless adapter...

missing firmware files rtl_nic/rtl8106e-1.fw

so I used LAN cable and completed the install.

this is details of wireless adapter....

Code: Select all

it@it:~$ lspci -vvnn | grep -A 9 Network
06:00.0 Network controller [0280]: Broadcom Corporation BCM43142 802.11b/g/n [14e4:4365] (rev 01)
	Subsystem: Dell Wireless 1704 802.11n + BT 4.0 [1028:0016]
	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 18
	Region 0: Memory at f7100000 (64-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=32K]
	Capabilities: <access denied>
	Kernel driver in use: bcma-pci-bridge

it@it:~$ 

would the following commands install driver?

Code: Select all

$ nano /etc/apt/sources.list
				
# add following line

deb http://http.debian.net/debian/ jessie main contrib non-free

# do I need to add this line also?

deb http://http.debian.net/debian/ jessie-backports main contrib non-free

$ apt-get update

any help would be appreciated

regards,

Hugh

The rtl8106e is a wired Ethernet adapter, it seems to be working.

You don't have to add the backports repo currently. You also just need to add "contrib non-free" to the end of your existing debian repo URI in that file, run

Code: Select all

apt-get update

then

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apt-get install firmware-realtek

[stevepusser]

DELL Inspiron 15 3543 (3000 Series)
5th Generation Intel Core i5-5200U Processor (3M Cache, up to 2.70 GHz)

I have installed Debian 8 and received following message relating to wireless adapter...

missing firmware files rtl_nic/rtl8106e-1.fw

so I used LAN cable and completed the install.

this is details of wireless adapter....

Code: Select all

it@it:~$ lspci -vvnn | grep -A 9 Network
06:00.0 Network controller [0280]: Broadcom Corporation BCM43142 802.11b/g/n [14e4:4365] (rev 01)
	Subsystem: Dell Wireless 1704 802.11n + BT 4.0 [1028:0016]
	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 18
	Region 0: Memory at f7100000 (64-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=32K]
	Capabilities: <access denied>
	Kernel driver in use: bcma-pci-bridge

it@it:~$ 

would the following commands install driver?

Code: Select all

$ nano /etc/apt/sources.list
				
# add following line

deb http://http.debian.net/debian/ jessie main contrib non-free

# do I need to add this line also?

deb http://http.debian.net/debian/ jessie-backports main contrib non-free

$ apt-get update

any help would be appreciated

regards,

Hugh

The rtl8106e is a wired Ethernet adapter, it seems to be working.

You don't have to add the backports repo currently. You also just need to add "contrib non-free" to the end of your existing debian repo URI in that file, run

Code: Select all

apt-get update

then

Code: Select all

apt-get install firmware-realtek

As for the wireless adapter, have you found anything on this forum when searching for the 43142?

[fireExit]

/Offtopic
You will also want to add Security support to your repos list.

[hughparker1]

As for the wireless adapter, have you found anything on this forum when searching for the 43142?

thanks for reply, I had a look for 43142 in forum and found this... https://wiki.debian.org/wl

I followed the instructions 1 thru to 5 but still can connect wireless

any idea what is wrong?

regards,

Hugh

[stevepusser]

As for the wireless adapter, have you found anything on this forum when searching for the 43142?

thanks for reply, I had a look for 43142 in forum and found this... https://wiki.debian.org/wl

I followed the instructions 1 thru to 5 but still can connect wireless

any idea what is wrong?

regards,

Hugh

Which steps? I think it's supported by the broadcom-sta-dkms driver. Try removing the driver, repeat the command until you get an error:

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su -c 'rmmod wl'

then reload

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su -c 'modprobe wl'
dmesg

Any error messages or success reported by dmesg? Cut and paste the last 10 lines here if they are hard to understand.

[hughparker1]

Which steps? I think it's supported by the broadcom-sta-dkms driver. Try removing the driver, repeat the command until you get an error:

I did the steps 1 thru to 5 explained here https://wiki.debian.org/wl
also ran apt-get install firmware-realtek

Then I saved the output of the terminal commands for steps 2 to 5 .....

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inspiron@dell-inspiron-debian:~$ sudo su
root@dell-inspiron-debian:/home/inspiron# nano /etc/apt/sources.list
root@dell-inspiron-debian:/home/inspiron# 


root@dell-inspiron-debian:/home/inspiron# apt-get update
Ign cdrom://[Debian GNU/Linux 8.0.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 20150425-12:54] jessie InRelease
Ign cdrom://[Debian GNU/Linux 8.0.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 20150425-12:54] jessie Release.gpg
Ign cdrom://[Debian GNU/Linux 8.0.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 20150425-12:54] jessie Release
Ign cdrom://[Debian GNU/Linux 8.0.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 20150425-12:54] jessie/contrib amd64 Packages/DiffIndex
Ign cdrom://[Debian GNU/Linux 8.0.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 20150425-12:54] jessie/main amd64 Packages/DiffIndex
Ign cdrom://[Debian GNU/Linux 8.0.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 20150425-12:54] jessie/contrib Translation-en_GB
Ign cdrom://[Debian GNU/Linux 8.0.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 20150425-12:54] jessie/main Translation-en_GB
Hit http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie InRelease                           
Hit http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie-updates InRelease                   
Hit http://security.debian.org jessie/updates InRelease                         
Get:1 http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie/main Sources [7,065 kB]
Hit http://security.debian.org jessie/updates/main Sources
Hit http://security.debian.org jessie/updates/contrib Sources       
Hit http://security.debian.org jessie/updates/main amd64 Packages    
Hit http://security.debian.org jessie/updates/contrib amd64 Packages  
Hit http://security.debian.org jessie/updates/contrib Translation-en  
Hit http://security.debian.org jessie/updates/main Translation-en           
Hit http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie/main amd64 Packages
Get:2 http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie/contrib amd64 Packages [50.1 kB]
Get:3 http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie/non-free amd64 Packages [83.6 kB]
Get:4 http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie/contrib Translation-en [38.4 kB]
Hit http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie/main Translation-en                    
Get:5 http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie/non-free Translation-en [72.2 kB]                     
Hit http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie-updates/main Sources                                    
Hit http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie-updates/contrib Sources    
Get:6 http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie-updates/main amd64 Packages/DiffIndex [367 B]
Hit http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie-updates/contrib amd64 Packages     
Hit http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie-updates/contrib Translation-en
Get:7 http://ftp.uk.debian.org jessie-updates/main Translation-en/DiffIndex [229 B]
Fetched 7,310 kB in 4s (1,473 kB/s)        
Reading package lists... Done
root@dell-inspiron-debian:/home/inspiron# 


root@dell-inspiron-debian:/home/inspiron# apt-get install firmware-realtek
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree      
Reading state information... Done
The following NEW packages will be installed:
  firmware-realtek
0 upgraded, 1 newly installed, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
Need to get 208 kB of archives.
After this operation, 719 kB of additional disk space will be used.
Get:1 http://ftp.uk.debian.org/debian/ jessie/non-free firmware-realtek all 0.43 [208 kB]
Fetched 208 kB in 0s (621 kB/s)         
Selecting previously unselected package firmware-realtek.
(Reading database ... 100189 files and directories currently installed.)
Preparing to unpack .../firmware-realtek_0.43_all.deb ...
Unpacking firmware-realtek (0.43) ...
Setting up firmware-realtek (0.43) ...
update-initramfs: deferring update (trigger activated)
Processing triggers for initramfs-tools (0.120) ...
update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-3.16.0-4-amd64
root@dell-inspiron-debian:/home/inspiron# 


root@dell-inspiron-debian:/home/inspiron# apt-get install linux-headers-$(uname -r|sed 's,[^-]*-[^-]*-,,') broadcom-sta-dkms
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree      
Reading state information... Done
The following extra packages will be installed:
  binutils cpp-4.8 dkms fakeroot gcc gcc-4.8 gcc-4.9 libasan0 libasan1 libatomic1 libc-dev-bin libc6-dev libcilkrts5 libfakeroot
  libgcc-4.8-dev libgcc-4.9-dev libitm1 liblsan0 libtsan0 libubsan0 linux-compiler-gcc-4.8-x86 linux-headers-3.16.0-4-amd64
  linux-headers-3.16.0-4-common linux-kbuild-3.16 linux-libc-dev make manpages-dev
Suggested packages:
  binutils-doc gcc-4.8-locales gcc-multilib autoconf automake libtool flex bison gdb gcc-doc gcc-4.8-multilib gcc-4.8-doc
  libgcc1-dbg libgomp1-dbg libitm1-dbg libatomic1-dbg libasan0-dbg libtsan0-dbg libquadmath0-dbg gcc-4.9-multilib gcc-4.9-doc
  gcc-4.9-locales libasan1-dbg liblsan0-dbg libubsan0-dbg libcilkrts5-dbg glibc-doc make-doc
Recommended packages:
  linux-image
The following NEW packages will be installed:
  binutils broadcom-sta-dkms cpp-4.8 dkms fakeroot gcc gcc-4.8 gcc-4.9 libasan0 libasan1 libatomic1 libc-dev-bin libc6-dev
  libcilkrts5 libfakeroot libgcc-4.8-dev libgcc-4.9-dev libitm1 liblsan0 libtsan0 libubsan0 linux-compiler-gcc-4.8-x86
  linux-headers-3.16.0-4-amd64 linux-headers-3.16.0-4-common linux-headers-amd64 linux-kbuild-3.16 linux-libc-dev make
  manpages-dev
0 upgraded, 29 newly installed, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
Need to get 8,384 kB/35.9 MB of archives.
After this operation, 148 MB of additional disk space will be used.
Do you want to continue? [Y/n] y
Media change: please insert the disc labeled
 'Debian GNU/Linux 8.0.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 20150425-12:54'
in the drive '/media/cdrom/' and press enter

Get:1 http://ftp.uk.debian.org/debian/ jessie/non-free broadcom-sta-dkms all 6.30.223.248-3 [2,170 kB]
Get:2 http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates/main linux-libc-dev amd64 3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1 [991 kB]
Get:3 http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates/main linux-compiler-gcc-4.8-x86 amd64 3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1 [291 kB]
Get:4 http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates/main linux-headers-3.16.0-4-common amd64 3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1 [4,481 kB]
Get:5 http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates/main linux-headers-3.16.0-4-amd64 amd64 3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1 [451 kB]
Fetched 8,384 kB in 47s (177 kB/s)                                                                                               
Selecting previously unselected package libasan0:amd64.
(Reading database ... 100236 files and directories currently installed.)
Preparing to unpack .../libasan0_4.8.4-1_amd64.deb ...
Unpacking libasan0:amd64 (4.8.4-1) ...
Selecting previously unselected package libasan1:amd64.
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Unpacking libasan1:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
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Preparing to unpack .../libatomic1_4.9.2-10_amd64.deb ...
Unpacking libatomic1:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
Selecting previously unselected package libcilkrts5:amd64.
Preparing to unpack .../libcilkrts5_4.9.2-10_amd64.deb ...
Unpacking libcilkrts5:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
Selecting previously unselected package libitm1:amd64.
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Unpacking libitm1:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
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Preparing to unpack .../liblsan0_4.9.2-10_amd64.deb ...
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Preparing to unpack .../libtsan0_4.9.2-10_amd64.deb ...
Unpacking libtsan0:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
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Preparing to unpack .../libubsan0_4.9.2-10_amd64.deb ...
Unpacking libubsan0:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
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Preparing to unpack .../binutils_2.25-5_amd64.deb ...
Unpacking binutils (2.25-5) ...
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Preparing to unpack .../make_4.0-8.1_amd64.deb ...
Unpacking make (4.0-8.1) ...
Selecting previously unselected package dkms.
Preparing to unpack .../d/dkms/dkms_2.2.0.3-2_all.deb ...
Unpacking dkms (2.2.0.3-2) ...
Selecting previously unselected package broadcom-sta-dkms.
Preparing to unpack .../broadcom-sta-dkms_6.30.223.248-3_all.deb ...
Unpacking broadcom-sta-dkms (6.30.223.248-3) ...
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Unpacking fakeroot (1.20.2-1) ...
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Unpacking gcc-4.8 (4.8.4-1) ...
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Unpacking libc-dev-bin (2.19-18) ...
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Preparing to unpack .../linux-compiler-gcc-4.8-x86_3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1_amd64.deb ...
Unpacking linux-compiler-gcc-4.8-x86 (3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1) ...
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Preparing to unpack .../linux-headers-3.16.0-4-common_3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1_amd64.deb ...
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Preparing to unpack .../linux-headers-3.16.0-4-amd64_3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1_amd64.deb ...
Unpacking linux-headers-3.16.0-4-amd64 (3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1) ...
Selecting previously unselected package linux-headers-amd64.
Preparing to unpack .../linux-headers-amd64_3.16+63_amd64.deb ...
Unpacking linux-headers-amd64 (3.16+63) ...
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Preparing to unpack .../manpages-dev_3.74-1_all.deb ...
Unpacking manpages-dev (3.74-1) ...
Processing triggers for man-db (2.7.0.2-5) ...
Setting up libasan0:amd64 (4.8.4-1) ...
Setting up libasan1:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
Setting up libatomic1:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
Setting up libcilkrts5:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
Setting up libitm1:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
Setting up liblsan0:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
Setting up libtsan0:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
Setting up libubsan0:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
Setting up binutils (2.25-5) ...
Setting up libgcc-4.9-dev:amd64 (4.9.2-10) ...
Setting up gcc-4.9 (4.9.2-10) ...
Setting up gcc (4:4.9.2-2) ...
Setting up make (4.0-8.1) ...
Setting up dkms (2.2.0.3-2) ...
Setting up broadcom-sta-dkms (6.30.223.248-3) ...
Loading new broadcom-sta-6.30.223.248 DKMS files...
First Installation: checking all kernels...
Building only for 3.16.0-4-amd64
Building initial module for 3.16.0-4-amd64
Done.

wl:
Running module version sanity check.
 - Original module
   - No original module exists within this kernel
 - Installation
   - Installing to /lib/modules/3.16.0-4-amd64/updates/dkms/

depmod......

Backing up initrd.img-3.16.0-4-amd64 to /boot/initrd.img-3.16.0-4-amd64.old-dkms
Making new initrd.img-3.16.0-4-amd64
(If next boot fails, revert to initrd.img-3.16.0-4-amd64.old-dkms image)
update-initramfs....

DKMS: install completed.
Setting up cpp-4.8 (4.8.4-1) ...
Setting up libfakeroot:amd64 (1.20.2-1) ...
Setting up fakeroot (1.20.2-1) ...
update-alternatives: using /usr/bin/fakeroot-sysv to provide /usr/bin/fakeroot (fakeroot) in auto mode
Setting up libgcc-4.8-dev:amd64 (4.8.4-1) ...
Setting up gcc-4.8 (4.8.4-1) ...
Setting up libc-dev-bin (2.19-18) ...
Setting up linux-libc-dev:amd64 (3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1) ...
Setting up libc6-dev:amd64 (2.19-18) ...
Setting up linux-compiler-gcc-4.8-x86 (3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1) ...
Setting up linux-headers-3.16.0-4-common (3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1) ...
Setting up linux-kbuild-3.16 (3.16-3) ...
Setting up linux-headers-3.16.0-4-amd64 (3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1) ...
Examining /etc/kernel/header_postinst.d.
run-parts: executing /etc/kernel/header_postinst.d/dkms 3.16.0-4-amd64
Setting up linux-headers-amd64 (3.16+63) ...
Setting up manpages-dev (3.74-1) ...
Processing triggers for libc-bin (2.19-18) ...
Processing triggers for initramfs-tools (0.120) ...
update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-3.16.0-4-amd64
root@dell-inspiron-debian:/home/inspiron# 


root@dell-inspiron-debian:/home/inspiron# modprobe -r b44 b43 b43legacy ssb brcmsmac
root@dell-inspiron-debian:/home/inspiron# 


root@dell-inspiron-debian:/home/inspiron# modprobe wl
root@dell-inspiron-debian:/home/inspiron# 

I didn't see any wireless adapter to configure
... I don't have enough technical knowledge to determine if this is what is expected, can you see if there are any clues?

Would it still be a good idea to remove the driver and reload and report any error messages ?
To do this, is it just a matter of running these three commands?

Code: Select all

su -c 'rmmod wl'

then reload

Code: Select all

su -c 'modprobe wl'

Code: Select all

dmesg

*********** EDIT *************
I have been searching for a solution today and found this article but not sure if I should download the file ....

Making BCM43142 Wireless Chipset Work on Debian

https://thedubiousdisc.wordpress.com/20 ... on-debian/

This is summary of what it says ...

Get the driver by entering following in terminal ...

Code: Select all

inspiron@dell-inspiron-debian:~$ sudo apt-get install linux-headers-generic build-essential dkms broadcom-sta-modules
[sudo] password for inspiron: 
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree       
Reading state information... Done
Note, selecting 'broadcom-sta-dkms' instead of 'broadcom-sta-modules'
Package linux-headers-generic is not available, but is referred to by another package.
This may mean that the package is missing, has been obsoleted, or
is only available from another source

E: Package 'linux-headers-generic' has no installation candidate
inspiron@dell-inspiron-debian:~$ 

if above terminal command doesn't work (mine didn't as indicated above) then download this deb package....

https://mega.co.nz/#!qIUySZYJ!PgfNRVCcX ... ouaQ97c0yM

Install it...

Code: Select all

$ sudo dpkg -i wireless-bcm43142-dkms_6.20.55.19-1_amd64.deb

Activate it.

Code: Select all

$ sudo modprobe wl

I am hesitant to download the file as it doesn't come from an approved source. Also I think I might have it already installed, (see output of "dpkg --list | grep -i broadcom" below)

If anyone can advise me or has a another solution I would be very grateful.

************ EDIT *****************

Not sure if this information is helpfull, I just ran the command below ....

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inspiron@dell-inspiron-debian:~$ dpkg --list | grep -i broadcom
ii  broadcom-sta-dkms                     6.30.223.248-3                    all          dkms source for the Broadcom STA Wireless driver

also found this ...
https://packages.debian.org/search?keyw ... ection=all
contains details of three packages....

Package broadcom-sta-common
Package broadcom-sta-dkms
Package broadcom-sta-source

one of which is broadcom-sta-dkms already installed on laptop, (see output of "dpkg --list | grep -i broadcom" above)
They all seem to be related to BCM43142, do I need all three?

When I tried to install broadcom-sta-common it failed (see output below) ....

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inspiron@dell-inspiron-debian:~/Downloads$ sudo dpkg -i broadcom-sta-common_6.30.223.248-3_all.deb
[sudo] password for inspiron: 
Selecting previously unselected package broadcom-sta-common.
(Reading database ... 116324 files and directories currently installed.)
Preparing to unpack broadcom-sta-common_6.30.223.248-3_all.deb ...
Unpacking broadcom-sta-common (6.30.223.248-3) ...
dpkg: dependency problems prevent configuration of broadcom-sta-common:
 broadcom-sta-dkms (6.30.223.248-3) breaks broadcom-sta-common and is installed.

dpkg: error processing package broadcom-sta-common (--install):
 dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
Errors were encountered while processing:
 broadcom-sta-common
inspiron@dell-inspiron-debian:~/Downloads$

I tried searching in Synaptic Package Manager for "broadcom-sta" and got the same three results as above, and if I try to install broadcom-sta-source it says I need to uninstall broadcom-sta-dkms first. So I'm a bit confused, I don't have the knowledge to figure it out. any help would be great.

[hughparker1]

/Offtopic
You will also want to add Security support to your repos list.

thanks for your input, I'll get on to that once I have my wireless problem figured out.

regards, Hugh

[stevepusser]

Edit: fixed link

You can't blindly follow random blogs, in this case, the post was two years old, so the packages linked are outdated, the blogger was using Soldyk, not Debian (though maybe Debian-based), and he gave you idiotic directions to install Ubuntu packages, which is why they did not work (and you're lucky they did not work)

https://wiki.debian.org/DontBreakDebian

I can see from the output that the wl driver did build and install correctly.

Yes, I want to see the result of dmesg after loading the "wl" driver, then we can see if it indeed is loading, then we can see if the wireless interface is created. Some machines have a soft or hard "rfkill" problem that must be defeated before the driver will load, but one step at a time.

[hughparker1]

You can't blindly follow random blogs, in this case, the post was two years old, so the packages linked are outdated, the blogger was using Soldyk, not Debian (though maybe Debian-based), and he gave you idiotic directions to install Ubuntu packages, which is why they did not work (and you're lucky they did not work)

Thanks for your support and taking the time to explain where I'm going wrong.

https://copy.com/0hWkMr7bw7eOyQKU

I followed this link and downloaded burrtools-0.6.3.zip and wondered what this file is for?

I can see from the output that the wl driver did build and install correctly.

Yes, I want to see the result of dmesg after loading the "wl" driver, then we can see if it indeed is loading, then we can see if the wireless interface is created. Some machines have a soft or hard "rfkill" problem that must be defeated before the driver will load, but one step at a time.

Thanks for your explanation. To do this, will I just execute the following three commands in terminal? ....

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su -c 'rmmod wl'

then reload

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su -c 'modprobe wl'

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dmesg

... and report output of dmesg?

Thanks again for your patience, it is much appreciated.
Hugh

[hughparker1]

I can see from the output that the wl driver did build and install correctly.

Yes, I want to see the result of dmesg after loading the "wl" driver, then we can see if it indeed is loading, then we can see if the wireless interface is created. Some machines have a soft or hard "rfkill" problem that must be defeated before the driver will load, but one step at a time.

I ran the three commands suggested, I hope they contain enough information ...
$ su -c 'rmmod wl'
$ su -c 'rmmod wl'
$ dmesg
here is the output including the last few lines of dmesg ....

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inspiron@dell-inspiron-debian:~$ su -c 'rmmod wl'
Password: 
inspiron@dell-inspiron-debian:~$ su -c 'modprobe wl'
Password: 
inspiron@dell-inspiron-debian:~$ dmesg
[    0.000000] Initializing cgroup subsys cpuset
[    0.000000] Initializing cgroup subsys cpu
[    0.000000] Initializing cgroup subsys cpuacct
[    0.000000] Linux version 3.16.0-4-amd64 (debian-kernel@lists.debian.org) (gcc version 4.8.4 (Debian 4.8.4-1) ) #1 SMP Debian 3.16.7-ckt9-3~deb8u1 (2015-04-24)
[    0.000000] Command line: BOOT_IMAGE=/boot/vmlinuz-3.16.0-4-amd64 root=UUID=7dbd95f7-62a8-45b1-aae3-484f0aab5355 ro quiet
[    0.000000] e820: BIOS-provided physical RAM map:
[    0.000000] BIOS-e820: [mem 0x0000000000000000-0x0000000000057fff] usable
[    0.000000] BIOS-e820: [mem 0x0000000000058000-0x0000000000058fff] reserved
[    0.000000] BIOS-e820: [mem 0x0000000000059000-0x000000000009efff] usable

etc...
etc...

[   10.513901] input: HDA Digital PCBeep as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1b.0/sound/card1/hdaudioC1D0/input16
[   10.515096] input: HDA Intel PCH Headphone Mic as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1b.0/sound/card1/input17
[   11.305001] wl: module license 'MIXED/Proprietary' taints kernel.
[   11.305004] Disabling lock debugging due to kernel taint
[   11.308683] wl 0000:06:00.0: enabling device (0000 -> 0002)
[   11.336703] wl0: online cpus 1
[   11.337008] wlan0: Broadcom BCM4365 802.11 Hybrid Wireless Controller 6.30.223.248 (r487574)
[   11.459564] Adding 7910396k swap on /dev/sda7.  Priority:-1 extents:1 across:7910396k FS
[   12.938009] cfg80211: World regulatory domain updated:
[   12.938013] cfg80211:  DFS Master region: unset
[   12.938014] cfg80211:   (start_freq - end_freq @ bandwidth), (max_antenna_gain, max_eirp), (dfs_cac_time)
[   12.938016] cfg80211:   (2402000 KHz - 2472000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[   12.938018] cfg80211:   (2457000 KHz - 2482000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[   12.938019] cfg80211:   (2474000 KHz - 2494000 KHz @ 20000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[   12.938021] cfg80211:   (5170000 KHz - 5250000 KHz @ 80000 KHz, 160000 KHz AUTO), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[   12.938022] cfg80211:   (5250000 KHz - 5330000 KHz @ 80000 KHz, 160000 KHz AUTO), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (0 s)
[   12.938024] cfg80211:   (5490000 KHz - 5730000 KHz @ 160000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (0 s)
[   12.938025] cfg80211:   (5735000 KHz - 5835000 KHz @ 80000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[   12.938026] cfg80211:   (57240000 KHz - 63720000 KHz @ 2160000 KHz), (N/A, 0 mBm), (N/A)
[   13.800653] FAT-fs (sda1): utf8 is not a recommended IO charset for FAT filesystems, filesystem will be case sensitive!
[   14.032040] systemd-journald[180]: Received request to flush runtime journal from PID 1
[   14.955813] r8169 0000:07:00.0: firmware: direct-loading firmware rtl_nic/rtl8106e-1.fw
[   15.125996] r8169 0000:07:00.0 eth0: link down
[   15.126010] r8169 0000:07:00.0 eth0: link down
[   15.126023] IPv6: ADDRCONF(NETDEV_UP): eth0: link is not ready
[   15.806388] RPC: Registered named UNIX socket transport module.
[   15.806390] RPC: Registered udp transport module.
[   15.806391] RPC: Registered tcp transport module.
[   15.806392] RPC: Registered tcp NFSv4.1 backchannel transport module.
[   15.838342] FS-Cache: Loaded
[   15.870625] FS-Cache: Netfs 'nfs' registered for caching
[   15.926608] Installing knfsd (copyright (C) 1996 okir@monad.swb.de).
[   16.730400] r8169 0000:07:00.0 eth0: link up
[   16.730416] IPv6: ADDRCONF(NETDEV_CHANGE): eth0: link becomes ready
[   19.993016] Bluetooth: BNEP (Ethernet Emulation) ver 1.3
[   19.993019] Bluetooth: BNEP filters: protocol multicast
[   19.993026] Bluetooth: BNEP socket layer initialized
[   55.916301] UDF-fs: warning (device sr0): udf_fill_super: No partition found (2)
[   55.920551] ISO 9660 Extensions: Microsoft Joliet Level 3
[   55.938052] ISO 9660 Extensions: RRIP_1991A
[  238.276200] wl0: online cpus 1
[  238.276547] wlan0: Broadcom BCM4365 802.11 Hybrid Wireless Controller 6.30.223.248 (r487574)
inspiron@dell-inspiron-debian:~$ 

Does the output help to identify the problem i have with the wireless adapter? I don't have enough technical knowledge to analyse it myself, so any help will be appreciated.
Thanks and Best Regards,
Hugh

[stevepusser]

Whoops, the wrong link, burrtools was a puzzle solver that I packaged from scratch...

I meant this wiki entry that every Debian user should take to heart: https://wiki.debian.org/DontBreakDebian

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[  238.276547] wlan0: Broadcom BCM4365 802.11 Hybrid Wireless Controller 6.30.223.248 (r487574)

This line shows that the driver and firmware are loading and creating a "wlan0" interface for the wifi.

You can see the interfaces you have with

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su -c 'ifconfig -a'

then if it's turned on and able to scan for access points with

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su -c 'iwlist wlan0 scan'

but now we are getting into generic wireless troubleshooting and configuration. It may just work now--are you trying to use the connection manager in GNOME?

[hughparker1]

.... but now we are getting into generic wireless troubleshooting and configuration. It may just work now--are you trying to use the connection manager in GNOME?

Thanks once again for your support. I couldn't find the connection manager you mentioned. I wondered if this was because I had installed LXDE desktop which is a bit sparse of tools to be honest.

So I had a look online to see if I could install Gnome desktop (which has an application called Network Tools) and found instructions here... https://wiki.debian.org/Gnome

Gnome installed successfully and when I logged out of LXDE and into GNOME Classic, I found the wireless network by...

clicking on the icon on top right of desktop

then clicked on "Wi-Fi Not Connected" option

then clicked on "Select Network"

I can see my SSID

select SSID and click "Connect" button and enter password.

Now when I click the wireless network icon on top right of desktop, I see the wireless option has now changed to "Wi-Fi MY_SSID_NAME" so it looks like we are connected to internet but for some strange reason, I can't see the internet.

I have noticed that I'm still getting an error message which appears on the screen briefly during the boot process and is worded as follows...

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Loading, please wait...
fsck from util-linux 2.25.2
DEBIAN: clean, 130848/3842048 files, 1060212/15360000 blocks
[   9.138531] w10: online cpus 1
[  12.019185] bluetooth hci0: firmware: failed to load brcm/BCM43142A0-0a5c-21d7.hcd (-2)
[  15.143883] systemd-fsck [268]: fsck.fat 3.0.27 (2014-11-12)
[  15.144127] systemd-fsck [268]: /dev/sda1: 344 files, 13964/126976 clusters
[  16.433222] Bluetooth: hci0 command 0x1003 tx timeout

Any idea what might be wrong?

************ EDIT ************
I was thinking maybe I should re-install Debian 8, using debian-8.0.0-amd64-DVD-1.iso and chose Gnome desktop instead of LXDE, as then I might have a better chance of getting my wireless adapter working. Maybe chosing LXDE was the cause of my problem.

Also, I remember before I installed Debian, I had tried a live DVD using....
debian-live-8.0.0-amd64-gnome-desktop+nonfree.iso
...and this recognised my wireless adapter ok.

The only reason I didn't use this ISO to install was because I couldn't use it to create a UEFI bootable DVD (other people have told me they also had same problem). But this ISO has all the non-free firmware on it.

So I was thinking if I downloaded the unofficial non-free firmware from ....

http://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/unoff ... e/current/

.. and extracted it to a USB and inserted it during the new installation process then the installer might be able to recognise and install the correct driver for my wireless adapter, since the live non-free DVD did this automatically during my earlier tests.

What do you think?

best regards,

Hugh

[hughparker1]

I decided to reinstall Debian and this time I chose Gnome as the desktop, since I thought lxde might be causing some of my wireless problems as described in my previous post.

I still received message during install regarding missing firmware files rtl_nic/rtl8106e-1.fw which i understand is my wired network, but no message regarding my wireless adapter. My wired network seemed to work ok during install.

I then added contrib non-free to my sources list. then ran following ....

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$ apt-get update

$ apt-get install firmware-realtek

I found this link... https://wiki.debian.org/wl EDIT:... from another post where it was suggested as a solution, so thanks Head_on_a_Stick for the link, it turned out to be spot on.

which seemed to be appropriate for my wireless adapter and followed the instructions...

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$ apt-get install linux-headers-$(uname -r|sed 's,[^-]*-[^-]*-,,') broadcom-sta-dkms

$ modprobe -r b44 b43 b43legacy ssb brcmsmac	                     # Unload conflicting modules

$ modprobe wl					                                     # Load the wl module

reboot and wireless is now working. success at last.

my brightness is also working as expected, it didn't work with lxde desktop.

I would like to thank everyone who helped me over past few days, it is much apperciated. I am a little bit wiser as a result. but still a LOT to learn yet.

I must say, Debian is a great distro. so smooth and stable.

best regards, Hugh

[stevepusser]

Thanks for the update!

[hughparker1]

I did notice that I continue to get an on screen message during boot process....

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Loading, please wait...
fsck from util-linux 2.25.2
DEBIAN: clean, 130848/3842048 files, 1060212/15360000 blocks
[   9.138531] w10: online cpus 1
[  12.019185] bluetooth hci0: firmware: failed to load brcm/BCM43142A0-0a5c-21d7.hcd (-2)
[  15.143883] systemd-fsck [268]: fsck.fat 3.0.27 (2014-11-12)
[  15.144127] systemd-fsck [268]: /dev/sda1: 344 files, 13964/126976 clusters
[  16.433222] Bluetooth: hci0 command 0x1003 tx timeout

The message isn't a problem as my wireless is not working great, but I wonder what causes it and is there any way to stop it being displayed, if that was advisable.

Hugh

[hughparker1]

/Offtopic
You will also want to add Security support to your repos list.

I had a look at the link you provided and it mentions ....

You can use apt to easily get the latest security updates. This requires a line such as

deb http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates main contrib non-free

in your /etc/apt/sources.list file. Then execute apt-get update && apt-get upgrade to download and apply the pending updates. The security archive is signed with the normal Debian archive signing keys.

I wasn't sure about the part where it says... "normal Debian archive signing keys", do I need to download signing keys before I run "apt-get update && apt-get upgrade" ? I'm not sure how to do this so any help would be appreciated.

[fireExit]

do I need to download signing keys before I run "apt-get update && apt-get upgrade" ?

No, it's the same debian-archive-keyring that signs both archives.

[hughparker1]

do I need to download signing keys before I run "apt-get update && apt-get upgrade" ?

No, it's the same debian-archive-keyring that signs both archives.

thanks, I just added the line to the sources.list and ran update and upgrade, not errors reported, thanks for your input.