["WiFi"]


Some vendors do not release specifications of the hardware, and don't provide a linux driver for their wireless network cards. Ndiswrapper project provides a linux kernel module that loads and runs Ndis (Windows network driver API) drivers supplied by the vendors.

Download the source package and compile it.

To download and install ndiswrapper tools and modules with debian ( provided you have the standard debian kernel )

You find more instruction in /usr/share/doc/ndiswrapper*/README*

Assuming you have downloaded the Windows driver in ~/Desktop/Downloads/V11.1.1.0_XP_DRIVERS.ZIP :

Let's make sure it's configured :

Then add ndiswrapper in /etc/modules

You can either reboot you system to get the module loaded... or simply run modprobe ndiswrapper this time ;).

This should be it.

Configure on insert / Hotplug

According to a DebianEtch entry on the ndiswrapper wiki, an 'allow-hotplug wlan0' entry in /etc/network/interfaces is about all it takes to get the card to be automatically configured and brought up when inserted (beyond the required steps to configure the card for manually bringing the interface up.)

http://ndiswrapper.sourceforge.net/mediawiki/index.php/InstallDebianEtch

On Sarge this does not appear to be the case. Adding that line does not make hotplug 'just work'. This is most likely due to the lack of an entry for ndiswrapper in /lib/modules/<kernel version>/modules.pcimap. According to the hotplug overview when new hardware is detected the MODULE_DEVICE_TABLE map is consulted to determine which module is responsible for the device. Without that entry or some other help hotplug will not 'just work' for the device.

The easiest workaround is to require the ndiswrapper module at boot so that it is always loaded and ready to claim the hardware. Just add it to the list in /etc/modules.

The most difficult workaround (for many) may be to edit the ndiswrapper source and recompile so that it will make MODULE_DEVICE_TABLE entries for your hardware.

http://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/showthread.php?t=360483 http://sourceforge.net/mailarchive/message.php?msg_id=6713442

An inbetween workaround may be to modifiy /etc/hotplug/pci.agent to parse an /etc/hotplug/pci.handmap and have it include the hardware details necessary to load ndiswrapper when your card is inserted, like you can do with usb.handmap. This step and the re-coding are probably best left to the developers which leaves us with /etc/modules.

There seems to be a couple different ways documented to enable hotplugging on interfaces (once hotplugging is working for ndiswrapper). Mentioned in the DebianEtch page on the ndiswrapper wiki is the line allow-hotplug wlan0. The man page for the interfaces file confirms that this is the intended way to enable hotplug. In /etc/hotplug/net.agent, you are directed to include mapping hotplug stanzas in /etc/network/interfaces.

On a Debian 3.1 / Dell Inspiron 1200 system the allow-hotplug entry did not seem to be necessary. The map stanza seemed to be enough, once ndiswrapper was already loaded. YMMV.

See :