I spent several hours getting the wifi to work on this PC yesterday. NetworkManager & Ifup were unable to scan or connect to any of the 3 available APs. I’d just about given up after trying everything I could think of and/or find in the forums, so I did the only thing left… I went for Coffee. I’d left it with the connection set to be controlled by NetworkManager and a connection entered manually. The connection was still dead.
When I came back I realized the PC was connected to the AP that I’d earlier manually entered into NetworkManager. (???) It continued to work fine for several hours and was still up this morning.
Then I logged out and back in. Now I’m back to the previous state (no scan or connection). I tried rebooting, still no luck. (Cat5 cable is NOT connected)
The diagnostic data I’ve collected is too extensive to put here, so it’s posted here
>
> I spent several hours getting the wifi to work on this PC yesterday.
> NetworkManager & Ifup were unable to scan or connect to any of the 3
> available APs. I’d just about given up after trying everything I could
> think of and/or find in the forums, so I did the only thing left… I
> went for Coffee. I’d left it with the connection set to be controlled
> by NetworkManager and a connection entered manually. The connection
> was still dead.
>
> When I came back I realized the PC was connected to the AP that I’d
> earlier manually entered into NetworkManager. (???) It continued to work
> fine for several hours and was still up this morning.
>
> Then I logged out and back in. Now I’m back to the previous state (no
> scan or connection). I tried rebooting, still no luck. (Cat5 cable is
> NOT connected)
>
> The diagnostic data I’ve collected is too extensive to put here, so
> it’s posted ‘here’ (http://caprus.com/e420_wifi.txt)
>
> Thank you
>
>
Is the SSID of the access point hidden ?
Could You try creating a new user account and see if the problem is there
as well ?
Only minor differences in behavior. i.e. the SSID is detected briefly then I’m asked for a password for the AP. I enter the password, the kwallet window comes up, but the SSID is no longer displayed by then. I then tried to create a new connection by scanning for an SSID but none are detected.
new data:
I’ve just discovered that Network Manager will immediately connect to the wifi and function perfectly if I run
#rcnetwork restart
provided I’m logged in as the original user. I tried the same trick as the new user and it had no effect.
>
> glistwan;2460009 Wrote:
>>
>> Is the SSID of the access point hidden ?
> No
>> If not what DE are You using ?
> KDE 4.8
>> Could You try creating a new user account and see if the problem is
>> there
>> as well ?
> Only minor differences in behavior. i.e. the SSID is detected briefly
> then I’m asked for a password for the AP. I enter the password, the
> kwallet window comes up, but the SSID is no longer displayed by then. I
> then tried to create a new connection by scanning for an SSID but none
> are detected.
>
> new data:
>
> I’ve just discovered that Network Manager will immediately connect to
> the wifi and function perfectly if I run
> Code:
> --------------------
> #rcnetwork restart
> --------------------
What is the output of this command ? when it starts to work ?
What does /var/log/NetworkManager show then ?
> provided I’m logged in as the original user. I tried the same trick as
> the new user and it had no effect.
>
> Thank you for your efforts,
>
> Dave
>
>
In order to check if You’re using knetworkmanager or plasmoid issue this
command :
zypper info plasmoid-networkmanagement
One last silly question Did it ever work properly ?
I renamed that file and rebooted. There was no change in the symptoms. So…
I checked the available connections in YAST and discovered that there were now two separate entries for devices both labelled wlan0, however one was called “wlan0” and the other “wlan0, error”
That seemed rather strange, particularly as the wlan0 entry was not configured. At that point I decided to delete both entries and to delete the connections in networkmanager. I then rebooted… no connections available (as expected).
YAST showed only one wlan0, and it appeared to be set up right ex that it was set up to Activate Device “On Cable Connection”. I changed that to “On Boot”. (correct??)
# rcnetwork restart
I then went into NetworkManager>Manage Connections expecting to have to add the connection back in, however it was already showing up (??). I clicked on it, and the network came up. After that I’ve tried rebooting, logout/login, etc., etc. and all the behaviors are still the same as described in previous posts. (i.e no wifi after boot or logout/login, wifi ok after “rcnetwork restart”)
I’ve posted the most recent /var/log/NetworkManager file entries here in hopes that they might offer some help. I’ve labelled the sections that represent the initial boot and the result of restarting the network for comparison. I’ve not been able to find meaningful differences, but maybe you’ll have better luck.
PS: THANK YOU!
(could this simply be a bug? perhaps unique to the rtl8188ce?)
On 05/03/2012 10:46 AM, caprus wrote:
>
> glistwan;2460068 Wrote:
>> See if this file
>> exists :
>>>
> Code:
> --------------------
> > >
> > /etc/sysconfig/network/ifcfg-wlan0
> >
> --------------------
>>>
>>
>> If yes rename it to something else for example ifcfg-wlan0.2012-05-03
>> and
>> reboot. This will hopefully fix things for You.
> I renamed that file and rebooted. There was no change in the symptoms.
> So…
>
> I checked the available connections in YAST and discovered that there
> were now two separate entries for devices both labelled wlan0, however
> one was called “wlan0” and the other “wlan0, error”
>
> That seemed rather strange, particularly as the wlan0 entry was not
> configured. At that point I decided to delete both entries and to
> delete the connections in networkmanager. I then rebooted… no
> connections available (as expected).
>
> YAST showed only one wlan0, and it appeared to be set up right ex that
> it was set up to Activate Device “On Cable Connection”. I changed that
> to “On Boot”. (correct??)
>
> Code:
> --------------------
> # rcnetwork restart
> --------------------
>
> I then went into NetworkManager>Manage Connections expecting to have to
> add the connection back in, however it was already showing up (??). I
> clicked on it, and the network came up. After that I’ve tried rebooting,
> logout/login, etc., etc. and all the behaviors are still the same as
> described in previous posts. (i.e no wifi after boot or logout/login,
> wifi ok after “rcnetwork restart”)
>
> I’ve posted the most recent /var/log/NetworkManager file entries ‘here’
> (http://caprus.com/NetworkManagerFile.txt) in hopes that they might
> offer some help. I’ve labelled the sections that represent the initial
> boot and the result of restarting the network for comparison. I’ve not
> been able to find meaningful differences, but maybe you’ll have better
> luck.
>
> PS: THANK YOU!
>
> (could this simply be a bug? perhaps unique to the rtl8188ce?)
It is not a bug in the RTL8188CE (the card), or rtl8192ce (the driver). Your
various attempts at configuration created some setup that neither YaST nor
NetworkManager could overcome. It may be a bug in the network configuration, but
these kinds of things are hard to reproduce. If you can do it from scratch and
can document your steps so that someone else could reproduce the problem, then
file a bug. It not, call it a learning experience.
>
> glistwan;2460068 Wrote:
>> See if this file
>> exists :
>> >
> Code:
> --------------------
> > >
> > /etc/sysconfig/network/ifcfg-wlan0
> >
> --------------------
>> >
>>
>> If yes rename it to something else for example ifcfg-wlan0.2012-05-03
>> and
>> reboot. This will hopefully fix things for You.
> I renamed that file and rebooted. There was no change in the symptoms.
> So…
>
> I checked the available connections in YAST and discovered that there
> were now two separate entries for devices both labelled wlan0, however
> one was called “wlan0” and the other “wlan0, error”
>
> That seemed rather strange, particularly as the wlan0 entry was not
> configured. At that point I decided to delete both entries and to
> delete the connections in networkmanager. I then rebooted… no
> connections available (as expected).
>
> YAST showed only one wlan0, and it appeared to be set up right ex that
> it was set up to Activate Device “On Cable Connection”. I changed that
> to “On Boot”. (correct??)
>
> Code:
> --------------------
> # rcnetwork restart
> --------------------
>
> I then went into NetworkManager>Manage Connections expecting to have to
> add the connection back in, however it was already showing up (??). I
> clicked on it, and the network came up. After that I’ve tried rebooting,
> logout/login, etc., etc. and all the behaviors are still the same as
> described in previous posts. (i.e no wifi after boot or logout/login,
> wifi ok after “rcnetwork restart”)
>
> I’ve posted the most recent /var/log/NetworkManager file entries ‘here’
> (http://caprus.com/NetworkManagerFile.txt) in hopes that they might
> offer some help. I’ve labelled the sections that represent the initial
> boot and the result of restarting the network for comparison. I’ve not
> been able to find meaningful differences, but maybe you’ll have better
> luck.
>
> PS: THANK YOU!
>
> (could this simply be a bug? perhaps unique to the rtl8188ce?)
>
>
I think You’re booting now with ethernet cable plugged in (from the logs).
Could You try rebooting with ethernet cable plugged out ?
No ethernet cable has been plugged in, however your comment prompted me to check and find that eth0 was set to activate on boot. I changed that setting to on cable connection, but it made no difference in the behavior when I rebooted.
With all respect I must point out that this is a brand new clean install on a brand new PC, and the behavior could not be the result of my “various attempts at configuration” as the behavior has existed since the OS was installed and has remained relatively unchanged throughout all my/our attempts to resolve the issue. (once acer-wmi had been blacklisted that is)
The only other issue I can think of is the possibility of bad install media. I did verify the media before the install, but I’m going to do so again. In the unlikely event I find that it is bad I’ll report that shortly.
>
> glistwan;2460068 Wrote:
>> See if this file
>> exists :
>> >
> Code:
> --------------------
> > >
> > /etc/sysconfig/network/ifcfg-wlan0
> >
> --------------------
>> >
>>
>> If yes rename it to something else for example ifcfg-wlan0.2012-05-03
>> and
>> reboot. This will hopefully fix things for You.
> I renamed that file and rebooted. There was no change in the symptoms…
> So…
>
> I checked the available connections in YAST and discovered that there
> were now two separate entries for devices both labelled wlan0, however
> one was called “wlan0” and the other “wlan0, error”
>
> That seemed rather strange, particularly as the wlan0 entry was not
> configured. At that point I decided to delete both entries and to
> delete the connections in networkmanager. I then rebooted… no
> connections available (as expected).
>
> YAST showed only one wlan0, and it appeared to be set up right ex that
> it was set up to Activate Device “On Cable Connection”. I changed that
> to “On Boot”. (correct??)
>
> Code:
> --------------------
> # rcnetwork restart
> --------------------
>
> I then went into NetworkManager>Manage Connections expecting to have to
> add the connection back in, however it was already showing up (??). I
> clicked on it, and the network came up. After that I’ve tried rebooting,
> logout/login, etc., etc. and all the behaviors are still the same as
> described in previous posts. (i.e no wifi after boot or logout/login,
> wifi ok after “rcnetwork restart”)
>
> I’ve posted the most recent /var/log/NetworkManager file entries ‘here’
> (http://caprus.com/NetworkManagerFile.txt) in hopes that they might
> offer some help. I’ve labelled the sections that represent the initial
> boot and the result of restarting the network for comparison. I’ve not
> been able to find meaningful differences, but maybe you’ll have better
> luck.
>
> PS: THANK YOU!
>
> (could this simply be a bug? perhaps unique to the rtl8188ce?)
>
>
This is very strange Maybe You need startmode auto ?
Here’s my working NetworkManager log :
http://paste.opensuse.org/view/raw/77138454
And this is my ifcfg-wlan0 file
http://paste.opensuse.org/view/raw/69559033
If changing startmode to auto won’t help I’m afraid your best bet is to
create a bugzilla for this.
I just tried an interesting experiment to try and verify once and for all whether the problem was the result of something I’m doing wrong, the result of a problem with the firmware et al, or a problem with openSUSE 12.1:
with this installation of open SUSE: as described above
with openSUSE live CD: similar behavior ex. no luck after network restart (probably needs acer-wmi blacklisted)
with linuxmint 12 live CD: mac address of wifi card ID’d, but it cannot be activated
with Fedora 16 live CD (x86-64 KDE version): wifi works out of the box
conclusion: This is most likely a bug and it’s not unique to openSUSE, so I’ll be filing a bug report, but first I’m going to load Fedora on this PC so I can get it back to it’s rightful owner who’s very upset that it’s taken five days now to simply load an OS. (She very much wanted openSUSE and had bought a PC whose specs listed a different wifi card, one that was known to work well with openSUSE, but Lenovo pulled a switch on her and installed the rtl8188ce instead.)
More bad news. Fedora’s Live CD did boot successfully a couple of times with a working wifi, but it’s far from consistent, so that didn’t help after all. I’m kinda glad to have an excuse to stay with openSUSE.
I suspect I could run
# rcnetwork restart
from a script file set to run immediately after login, but how can I get it to run as root without input from the user (who just wants to turn on the PC and start working)? I understand the concept, but the implementation is a little out of my comfort zone. I’ve spent time searching on-line for a good way to do so, but not found what I need. Any ideas?
On 05/04/2012 04:06 PM, caprus wrote:
>
> More bad news. Fedora’s Live CD did boot successfully a couple of times
> with a working wifi, but it’s far from consistent, so that didn’t help
> after all. I’m kinda glad to have an excuse to stay with openSUSE.
>
> I suspect I could run
> Code:
> --------------------
> # rcnetwork restart
> --------------------
> from a script file set to run immediately after login, but how can I
> get it to run as root without input from the user (who just wants to
> turn on the PC and start working)? I understand the concept, but the
> implementation is a little out of my comfort zone. I’ve spent time
> searching on-line for a good way to do so, but not found what I need.
> Any ideas?
Yes, add the command to the sudoers list. You can set that up with YaST. You do
need the full path of /sbin/rcnetwork.
Here’s the summary of the steps I needed to take to get this working:
Blacklist acer-wmi in /etc/modprobe.d/50-blacklist.conf
Go to YAST>Security and Users>SudoCreate Command Alias with the name WIFIFIX, the command /bin/systemctl and the parameters restart network.service
Create Rule with:
[INDENT=2]User,Group or Alias = %users[/INDENT]
[INDENT=2]Host or Host Alias = ALL[/INDENT]
[INDENT=2]RunAs or RunAs Alias = %root[/INDENT]
[INDENT=2]Add check at No Password[/INDENT]
[INDENT=2]Add WIFIFIX under Commands to Run[/INDENT]
You probably just need to update the bios. My laptop came with 1.20 so I never had the problem with acer driver loading but I was aware of the problem before I bought it.
<1.20-1.12>
BIOS: 1.20 / EC: 1.12
- (New) "F1-F12" (standard key/special key) handling tool is newly supported.
- (Fix) Fix an issue of smart phone attached system boot.
- (Fix) Fix an issue of wireless network to load unexpected Acer driver.
Did it ever work properly ?