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Add document for Broadcom drivers (#980)
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puneetse
committed by
michael vincerra
michael vincerra
parent
10d167b543
commit
ce3a6c3321
@@ -23,22 +23,33 @@ provided as binary blobs which are licensed for free or non-free use.
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In |CL| firmware is loaded during device initialization which typically
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happens at boot time.
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.. _firmware-included-begin:
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Included firmware
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*****************
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The Linux kernel project contains a repository for firmware binaries that are
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licensed to allow free redistribution. |CL| packages these firmware binaries
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in the `linux-firmware bundles
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<https://clearlinux.org/software?search_api_fulltext=linux-firmware>`_ and
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automatically includes them with the kernel.
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The Linux kernel's firmware repository can be found here:
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licensed to allow free redistribution. The Linux kernel's firmware repository
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can be found here:
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https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/firmware/linux-firmware.git
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If the firmware for your device is included upstream, no action is required
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for it to be automatically detected and loaded.
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|CL| packages these firmware binaries
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in the `linux-firmware bundles
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<https://clearlinux.org/software?search_api_fulltext=linux-firmware>`_ and
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automatically includes them with the kernel.
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You can double-check the linux-firmware bundle is installed with the commands below:
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.. code-block:: bash
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sudo swupd bundle-add linux-firmware
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find /lib/firmware/
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Additional firmware loading
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***************************
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@@ -0,0 +1,238 @@
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.. _broadcom:
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Broadcom\* Drivers
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##################
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Broadcom manufactures wireless network interfaces, including devices that
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support WiFi and Bluetooth.
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Broadcom wireless devices on Linux\* have a lot of different combinations of
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possible required software depending on the exact model of your device. These
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combinations of software can overlap and conflict, creating an additional
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challenge to get working.
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As with most hardware devices, two components are needed for complete
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functionality: a device driver and device firmware. These instructions show
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how to identify Broadcom wireless hardware and configure a |CL| system with
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the correct drivers and firmware for functionality.
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.. important::
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The Linux community has documented solutions and caveats for using specific
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Broadcom devices on Linux over time. It is worth doing research on your
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particular device model to see what others have already encountered.
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.. contents:: :local:
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:depth: 1
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Identify your device model
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**************************
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Broadcom device models start with BCM in the name and are identified by the
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PCI vendor ID 14e4. To identify the exact model of Broadcom device you have
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installed:
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#. Run the commands below:
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.. code-block:: bash
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lspci -vnn -d 14e4:
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Once the device model has been identified, you can cross-reference which
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drivers support it.
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Drivers
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*******
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brcmfmac and brcmsmac
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=====================
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*brcmfmac* and *brcmsmac*, historically known as *brcm80211*, are open-source
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drivers for some newer Broadcom devices. These drivers are available in the
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upstream Linux kernel, are enabled in the |CL| kernels, and will be
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automatically loaded if a compatible device is detected.
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#. See if your device is listed on the support matrix of this driver:
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https://wireless.wiki.kernel.org/en/users/Drivers/brcm80211#supported_chips
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It is important to note that not all functionality is developed for these
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drivers yet. If you are looking for specific functionality, be sure to
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review the "To be done" list.
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#. The firmware for cards supported by the *brcmfmac* and *brcmsmac* drivers
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are usually made available. Continue reading the `Firmware`_ section of
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this document.
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b43 and b43legacy
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=================
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*b43* and *b43legacy* are community reverse-engineered open-source drivers for
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some newer and older Broadcom devices. These drivers are available in the
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upstream Linux kernel, are enabled in the |CL| kernels, and will be
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automatically loaded if a compatible device is detected.
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#. See if your device is listed on the support matrix of this driver:
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https://wireless.wiki.kernel.org/en/users/Drivers/b43#list_of_hardware
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#. The firmware for cards supported by the *b43* and *b43legacy* drivers
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usually needs to be sourced and installed manually. Continue reading the
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`Firmware`_ section of this document.
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broadcom-wl
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===========
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*broadcom-wl*, also known as *broadcom-sta* or *wl*, is the proprietary closed
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source driver from Broadcom and tends to work only for older devices. It is
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also unmaintained and needs to be patched to work with newer kernels (>=4.7).
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As such, it is not part of the Linux kernel, cannot be distributed by |CL|,
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and has to be built as an out-of-tree kernel module.
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.. note::
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It is recommended to use the :ref:`LTS kernel <compatible-kernels>` if you
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have to use this driver.
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#. See if your device is supported and download the **Linux® STA 64-bit
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driver** from
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`Broadcom's download website
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<https://www.broadcom.com/support/download-search?pg=&pf=Wireless+LAN+Infrastructure>`_
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or another trusted source.
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#. Extract the downloaded archive into a separate folder. For example:
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.. code-block:: bash
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mkdir ./broadcom-wl/
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tar xvf ./hybrid-v35_64-nodebug-pcoem-6_30_223_271.tar.gz -C broadcom-wl/
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cd ./broadcom-wl/
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#. Create a patches folder in the source tree and copy any necessary patches
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to it. You will have to research which specific set of patches are required
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for the running kernel version. The `gentoo repository for broadcom-sta
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<https://github.com/gentoo/gentoo/tree/master/net-wireless/broadcom-sta/files>`_
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is a good place to start looking for up-to-date patches.
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.. code-block:: bash
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mkdir ./patches/
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#. :ref:`Install the DKMS bundle <kernel-modules-dkms-install-begin>` for your
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kernel. DKMS provides the framework to automatically rebuild the wl driver
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against new kernels versions from |CL| updates.
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#. In the extracted driver directory, create a :file:`dkms.conf` file based
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the contents below to provide DKMS information about how to build and
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install the kernel module. This example uses version *6.30.223.271*.
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.. code-block:: bash
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cat <<'EOF' >> dkms.conf
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PACKAGE_NAME=broadcom-wl
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PACKAGE_VERSION=6.30.223.271
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MAKE="make KBASE=/lib/modules/${kernelver}"
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CLEAN="make KBASE=/lib/modules/${kernelver} clean"
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BUILT_MODULE_NAME=wl
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DEST_MODULE_LOCATION=/kernel/drivers/net/wireless
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AUTOINSTALL=yes
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EOF
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#. Add the filename of any patches previously added to the :file:`patches`
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folder to the :file:`dkms.conf` file so that DKMS applies them to the
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driver source before building. Below are example patch names to show the
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format used in :file:`dkms.conf`.
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.. code-block:: bash
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echo "PATCH[0]="first.patch" >> dkms.conf
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echo "PATCH[1]="second.patch" >> dkms.conf
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echo "PATCH[2]="third.patch" >> dkms.conf
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#. Copy the directory to the dkms tree. This example uses version
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*6.30.223.271*.
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.. code-block:: bash
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sudo cp -Rv . /usr/src/broadcom-wl-6.30.223.271
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#. Run the :command:`dkms` commands to add the broadcom-wl module to the dkms
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tree, build it, and install it. This example uses version *6.30.223.271*.
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.. code-block:: bash
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sudo dkms add -m broadcom-wl -v 6.30.223.271
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sudo dkms install -m broadcom-wl -v 6.30.223.271
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#. Blacklist all other variations of Broadcom drivers from loading to prevent
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conflicts and problems.
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.. code-block:: bash
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sudo mkdir -p /etc/modprobe.d/
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sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/broadcom.conf > /dev/null <<'EOF'
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blacklist b43
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blacklist b43legacy
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blacklist ssb
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blacklist bcm43xx
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blacklist brcm80211
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blacklist brcmfmac
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blacklist brcmsmac
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blacklist bcma
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EOF
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#. Reboot the system and check that the module is loaded and working. If not,
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try manually updating dependencies and loading the module.
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.. code-block:: bash
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depmod -a
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modprobe wl
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Firmware
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********
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In addition to device drivers, devices require firmware that gets loaded onto
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the device directly.
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Firmware for Broadcom devices are not fully open-source and not always
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licensed for redistribution. |CL| kernel bundles :ref:`include the
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linux-firmware bundle <firmware-included-begin>` which contains the firmware
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binaries that are able to be redistributed. If your device's firmware is part
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of the linux-firmware repository, nothing else is needed. This is usually
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the case for devices supported by the *brcmfmac* and *brcmsmac* drivers.
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In other cases, firmware may need to be obtained or extracted manually from a
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trusted source because it is not licensed for distribution. This is usually
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the case for devices supported by the *b43* and *b43legacy* drivers. Obtaining
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these firmware is out of scope for this document, however there is information
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about solutions to this problem available on the `Linux wireless wiki
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<http://linuxwireless.sipsolutions.net/en/users/Drivers/b43/#firmware>`_.
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On |CL| systems, firmware should be placed in :file:`/etc/firmware`. See the
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:ref:`firmware` documentation for more information on loading custom
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firmware.
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Troubleshooting
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***************
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- See which drivers are currently loaded with the :command:`lsmod` and
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:command:`modinfo` commands.
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- If your device is not showing up or having intermittent issues, ensure the
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card is not blocked by the kernel with the :command:`rfkill` command.
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- Try blacklisting all the other variations of drivers not intended to be
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used. In some cases, the wrong device driver will be loaded causing
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problems.
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- If an external firmware image is required, it may be trying to load from a
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different path than expected. Check the output of :command:`sudo dmesg |
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grep -i firmware` for firmware loading issues.
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