Operation Manual

If apt-cache fails to find the firmware, you may need to make a guess based on the firmware packages in the following list.
Don’t worry if you install the wrong one—any firmware can be quickly uninstalled using apt-get remove, and having multiple
firmware packages does no harm. The following wireless firmware packages are available in the recommended Debian
distribution on the Raspberry Pi:
• atmel-firmware—For devices based on the Atmel AT76C50X chipset
• firmware-atheros—For devices based on Atheros chipsets
• firmware-brcm80211—For devices based on Broadcom chipsets
• firmware-intelwimax—For devices based on Intel’s WiMAX chipsets
• firmware-ipw2x00—For Intel Pro Wireless adapters (including 2100, 2200 and 2915)
• firmware-iwlwifi—For other Intel wireless adapters (including 3945, 4965 and the 5000 series)
• firmware-ralink—For devices based on Ralink chipsets
• firmware-realtek—For devices based on Realtek chipsets
• zd1211-firmware—For devices based on the ZyDAS 1211 chipset
The firmware for the example Zyxel wireless adapter is provided by the firmware-ralink package in this list. This package
can be installed using apt-get, but only while the Pi is connected to the Internet through its wired Ethernet port or a USB
Ethernet adapter. When connected, install the firmware by typing the following:
sudo apt-get install firmwarepackage
Replace firmwarepackage in this command with the name of the package that you found by using apt-cache. For the example
Zyxel NWD2105, the full command would be sudo apt-get install firmware-ralink.
Installing Wireless Firmware Offline
If you can’t connect the Pi to the Internet using any method other than a wireless connection, you’ll need to download the firmware on a different computer.
In a web browser, load a search engine and type the name of the firmware package followed by the name of the distribution you’re using and its version.
If you’re using the recommend Debian distribution, the firmware for the Ralink RT2x00 chipset from the example can be found by searching for firmware-
ralink debian wheezy. The search will lead you to a package file to download. In the case of Debian, this is a .deb file. For Fedora Remix, the same
firmware is provided as a .rpm file.
Download this file, and then copy it to the Pi’s SD card in the /home/pi directory, or onto a USB flash drive or other external storage device. Load the Pi, and
then when it comes time to install the firmware, replace the package name with the name of the file you downloaded. For the example Zyxel NWD2105 card,
the command would be the following:
sudo apt-get install firmware-ralink_0.35_all.deb
With the firmware installed, disconnect the USB wireless adapter and reconnect it to the Pi. This will restart the kernel’s search
for the firmware files, which it will now be able to find. These files will remain in place, and load automatically when the USB
wireless adapter is connected. You will only have to perform the installation process once.
With the firmware installed, setting the wireless connection up should be straightforward. First, check that the USB wireless
adapter is working as it should by using the iwlist command to scan for nearby wireless access points. This list will probably
be larger than a single screen, so pipe the command’s output through less to pause after each screenful, like this:
sudo iwlist scan | less
This command will return a list of all the wireless networks reachable from the Pi and their details (see Figure 4-4). If you receive
an error message at this point—in particular, one that claims the network or interface is down—check that you have installed the
correct firmware, and that the USB wireless adapter is connected to a powered USB hub.
Figure 4-4: Scanning for wireless networks with iwlist