0

I have an old stationary pc that is about 12 or 11 years old and is running the latest version of lubuntu .

Its a dell dimension e520 machine that used to run xp without any problems with the wifi.

I have had this issue for quite some time the issue being that the wifi network tab is greyed out along with active connections and known connections.

When I run iwconfig I get the no wireless extensions message and the devices are listed as lo and enpos25.

My wifi adapter might have stopped working which might explain why I had this issue when I used other linux distros like the regular version of ubuntu.

There could be some missing drivers but I can only find windows drivers no linux drivers.

Here is the ubuntu pastebin output http://paste.ubuntu.com/p/bpQcW86pVc/

Swedish ubuntugeek
  • 81
  • Okay, please try unplugging the card and plugging the card back in and then please run the script again and repost the new link because the wireless adapter is not showing up. Thanks! – mchid Jan 02 '19 at 17:30
  • I am not sure how I am supposed to do that I am not sure if I have the right tools – Swedish ubuntugeek Jan 02 '19 at 17:53

1 Answers1

0

Determine if the device is being recognised

First you need to determine whether the OS can even see the wifi adapter. If you can't find it using either the PCI(e) method or the USB method (depending which it is) then I think your problem is more likely hardware related. Devices will show up in lsusb and lspci even if there are no drivers installed for them.

A helpful read, which probably explains this better than me in the Ubuntu Help here: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/WifiDocs/WirelessCardsSupported

PCI(e)

If your wireless adapter is built into the motherboard or it's a PCI(e) card, use lspci in a terminal to list all the PCI devices detected by the system. Does it show up? (look for key words like 'Wireless Controller'

For example, for me, I have this appear in my list.

3b:00.0 Network controller: Qualcomm Atheros QCA6174 802.11ac Wireless Network Adapter (rev 32)

USB

If it's a USB wireless adapter, instead use lsusb -v | grep -E '\<(Bus|iProduct|bDeviceClass|bDeviceProtocol)' 2>/dev/null and search the list again looking for similar clues. I don't have a USB wireless adapter on hand but this is an example of my bluetooth adapter from the list.

Bus 001 Device 002: ID 0cf3:e300 Atheros Communications, Inc. 
  bDeviceClass          224 Wireless
  bDeviceProtocol         1 Bluetooth
  iProduct                0

Install drivers

If the device is recognised, then we really need to know the vendor/manufacturer and model to assist further. However you can also try checking its compatibility with Ubuntu if it is in the table in the above link, or see if it's one of the adapters listed here on the Arch wiki under the Troubleshooting section. That has info on how to get various troublesome adapters working.

Hopefully that gets you pointed in the right direction!

Missing/Broken Hardware

From the output of the wireless script you posted, I can't see a wireless card anywhere in there so it's most likely either the card has died or malfunctioned or it's not plugged in correctly. Try unplugging/replugging it back in again and see if that makes a difference. If not I think you're going to need a new wireless card.

Jamie Scott
  • 308
  • 1
    The wireless script here: https://askubuntu.com/questions/425155/my-wireless-wifi-connection-does-not-work-what-information-is-needed-to-diagnos runs all of those commands and many more so it is suggested the user runs that script to provide the information needed. Also, I am sorry but this appears to be a comment and not an answer. Thanks! – mchid Jan 02 '19 at 17:13
  • I didn't know of that script's existence until after I'd posted my answer and saw the comment on the OP about it. Also apologies, I'm trying to gain enough rep to comment, hence the answer - though I did think my answer was helpful given the question. – Jamie Scott Jan 02 '19 at 17:17
  • 1
    No problem, just keep on answering questions to get the reps you need. – mchid Jan 02 '19 at 17:20
  • This what I found when I typed in the command 00:19.0 Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation 82562V 10/100 Network Connection (rev 02) – Swedish ubuntugeek Jan 02 '19 at 17:51
  • This does not provide an answer to the question. Once you have sufficient reputation you will be able to comment on any post; instead, provide answers that don't require clarification from the asker. - From Review – Fabby Jan 03 '19 at 00:01
  • @Fabby Your 3rd link, contains this quote:

    "Answers don't have to be exhaustive or infallible, they just need to try to answer the question. It's perfectly fine to post an answer saying, for example, "I'm not sure what the cause of your problem is, but if it's X, you can solve it by doing Y. If that doesn't help, try Z and let me know what it says." Also, if further information does become available, you can edit your answer later to make it more precise."

    Which is exactly what I tried to do with my answer.

     – Jamie Scott Jan 03 '19 at 08:54
  • Yeah, I feel sorry for you because you took a lot of effort to write this, but it's only a partial answer. Don't forget you're not only answering OP, but all future users that will run into the same problem E.G. That one is a good answer (just upvoted) but this one? Sorry... :( – Fabby Jan 03 '19 at 09:03
  • 1
    There is a kind of special case here for questions about wireless, which we consider unanswerable without hardware information. Such questions ought to be deleted rather than generically answered, we think, because the solution won't be generic. However, I'm going to vote this answer "Looks OK" in the Low Quality Posts queue where I'm reviewing it because partial answers are allowed and your answer definitely points the user in the right directions. Since the user has edited to include hardware information you will hopefully be able to complete your answer. Thanks a lot for contributing! – Zanna Jan 03 '19 at 17:59