Broadcom Wireless

This document is being revised with new instructions - please stand by

While newer Broadcom cards should work without issue, some older laptops (particularly HP/Compaq and Dell D-series) include older B43xx wireless cards that don't work out of the box, due to missing firmware. To determine if you have one of these cards, follow the instructions on the Network Card Determination page - if you see a Broadcom B43xx device, follow these steps to make it work:

1. Plug in to a wired connection to the internet.
2. Go to System and select Synaptic Package Manager. If you don't see Synaptic Package Manager, then open a terminal (ctrl-alt-t) and type "sudo synaptic" followed by the enter key.
3. Click the Reload button at the top to refresh the package list.
4. Click in the Quick filter box at the top, and type bcmwl
5. Select the box next to bcmwl-dkms and choose Mark for installation
6. Click on Apply

When the install completes, reboot your machine and see if the adapter works. If it doesn't, follow steps 1,2, and 4 above, then:

1. Select the box next to bcmwl-dkms and choose Mark for complete removal
2. Click in the Quick filter box at the top, and type b43
3. Select the box next to firmware-b43-installer and choose Mark for installation
4. Select the box next to firmware-b43legacy-installer and choose Mark for installation
5. Click on Apply

When the install completes, reboot your machine and see if the adapter works. If it still doesn't follow the steps above, except select firmware-b43-lpphy-installer prior to clicking Apply. Reboot again, and your wireless adapter should work.

Important note: This update makes changes to the boot configuration of the ubermix install on your device. If you wish for these changes to survive a reset or to customize the install key for use on additional similar devices, you MUST follow steps 1-6 under "Rebuilding the base image) on the 4 - Customization page.