Making the Tenda wireless-N USB adapter work in Lucid
Posted: Sun 18 Dec 2011, 22:55
MicroCenter (web site and a handful of stores scattered across the U.S) carries a brand of dirt cheap wireless routers and adapters called Tenda. The USB wireless-N adapters are nearly always OVERPRICED for $10 each.
$10 to add wireless-N to any computer with a free USB port? That's tough to pass up. But the obvious question is whether we can get it to work.
The good news is that with a little tinkering, I was able to get it working quite well in Lucid. No luck so far in Slacko though - not sure what the difference is, but the same trick and same module that works fine in Lucid is a total no-go in Slacko.
So for anyone out there (especially my fellow newbies) who have or might be considering getting that Tenda W311U stick, here's what you need to know to make it work in Lucid 5.28:
It probably won't work straight out of the box. The reason is that there are two different modules that both show up as the "right" one. You have to unload and blacklist the "bad" one, reboot, and configure using the "good" one. Of course, that means you'll have to create a save file to do it (or do it from a frugal or full installation).
Short version for those who know this stuff: unload and blacklist the "rt2800usb" module. The one you want to use is "rt2870sta". It will load on its own after you reboot.
Step by step version for beginners like me:
1) When you first boot from the CD and get past the video configuration prompt, you'll next get the Simple Network Wizard prompt to configure your wireless connection. Just close it. The Simple Network Wizard won't help. You need the "regular" (Dougal's) network configuration tool instead. Click the Control icon (opens the PupControlPanel, or PCP), click the Network tab, and click the Network Setup button.
2) You'll see "rt2800usb" listed as the Module in the row for interface WLAN0. We need to unload it. Click the "Load Module" button.
3) Click the "More" tab and then the "Unload" button. Click the arrow for the drop-down list and select "rt2800usb", then click the "Unload" button.
4) You'll get a warning prompt asking if you want to blacklist this module so that Puppy won't try to load it every time you boot. YES, you want to blacklist this module.
5) The sneaky part: loading or reloading the correct module usually won't work at this point. You have to reboot (and create a save file) and give that module a fresh start. So cancel/exit/close everything and reboot. (And obviously, create a save file - otherwise you'd be right back at step one after rebooting.)
6) Again, skip the simple network setup wizard and use the regular network setup tool instead. Click the Control icon, network tab, and network setup button to open it.
7) You'll probably see "usb" listed as the module for WLAN0 now. This is one of the funky things in Puppy that might need a minor correction in a future version. The module is actually rt2800sta, but it shows up on the interface list as simply "usb".
You can click the Load Module button, More tab, and Unload button and see that rt2800sta is the name of the module that is actually loaded. (And if it isn't already loaded, use the Load Module button to load it. Scroll down the list, click on "rt2800sta", and click the load button.) When you're done, click Cancel to get out of the "Load a network module" window and back to the main Puppy Network Wizard window.
8.) Click the WLAN0 button. Then click the Wireless button to configure it. A window will pop up asking if you want to add this module to the list of modules that supports WPA encryption. Yes, you do. Click "Add To List".
The next window will list usb as the module name and wext as the supplicant driver. Just click the "OK" button.
9) You should be ready to connect to your particular wireless network. Click the big "Scan" button and select your network. You're probably familiar with the process from here.
10) But if you haven't done this before... after you select your network from the list, click the button to choose the type of security and enter the key or password as needed. Click the "Save" button to save your configuration first, then click "Use This Profile" to connect.
After it connects, it will take you back to the "configure network interface" window. You'll need to click the Auto DHCP button to connect to the internet. (With wireless connections, you might have to do this every time you boot.)
Hopefully that will help my fellow beginners get a decent introduction to Puppy's wireless network configuration tool, not to mention getting a bargain of a USB adapter working with our favorite OS.
(Micro Center also has their own store brand of USB flash drives that are dirt cheap. I'll be giving a few of my friends a Lucid CD, wireless-N adapter and 16 GB flash drive with a preconfigured save file for the holidays this year...)
I haven't had any luck getting this process (or the rt2870sta or rt2800usb modules) to work with Slacko yet. That's fine with me, because I'm happy with Lucid. But if anyone figures out how to get this device working in Slacko, please post so that others can use it.
$10 to add wireless-N to any computer with a free USB port? That's tough to pass up. But the obvious question is whether we can get it to work.
The good news is that with a little tinkering, I was able to get it working quite well in Lucid. No luck so far in Slacko though - not sure what the difference is, but the same trick and same module that works fine in Lucid is a total no-go in Slacko.
So for anyone out there (especially my fellow newbies) who have or might be considering getting that Tenda W311U stick, here's what you need to know to make it work in Lucid 5.28:
It probably won't work straight out of the box. The reason is that there are two different modules that both show up as the "right" one. You have to unload and blacklist the "bad" one, reboot, and configure using the "good" one. Of course, that means you'll have to create a save file to do it (or do it from a frugal or full installation).
Short version for those who know this stuff: unload and blacklist the "rt2800usb" module. The one you want to use is "rt2870sta". It will load on its own after you reboot.
Step by step version for beginners like me:
1) When you first boot from the CD and get past the video configuration prompt, you'll next get the Simple Network Wizard prompt to configure your wireless connection. Just close it. The Simple Network Wizard won't help. You need the "regular" (Dougal's) network configuration tool instead. Click the Control icon (opens the PupControlPanel, or PCP), click the Network tab, and click the Network Setup button.
2) You'll see "rt2800usb" listed as the Module in the row for interface WLAN0. We need to unload it. Click the "Load Module" button.
3) Click the "More" tab and then the "Unload" button. Click the arrow for the drop-down list and select "rt2800usb", then click the "Unload" button.
4) You'll get a warning prompt asking if you want to blacklist this module so that Puppy won't try to load it every time you boot. YES, you want to blacklist this module.
5) The sneaky part: loading or reloading the correct module usually won't work at this point. You have to reboot (and create a save file) and give that module a fresh start. So cancel/exit/close everything and reboot. (And obviously, create a save file - otherwise you'd be right back at step one after rebooting.)
6) Again, skip the simple network setup wizard and use the regular network setup tool instead. Click the Control icon, network tab, and network setup button to open it.
7) You'll probably see "usb" listed as the module for WLAN0 now. This is one of the funky things in Puppy that might need a minor correction in a future version. The module is actually rt2800sta, but it shows up on the interface list as simply "usb".
You can click the Load Module button, More tab, and Unload button and see that rt2800sta is the name of the module that is actually loaded. (And if it isn't already loaded, use the Load Module button to load it. Scroll down the list, click on "rt2800sta", and click the load button.) When you're done, click Cancel to get out of the "Load a network module" window and back to the main Puppy Network Wizard window.
8.) Click the WLAN0 button. Then click the Wireless button to configure it. A window will pop up asking if you want to add this module to the list of modules that supports WPA encryption. Yes, you do. Click "Add To List".
The next window will list usb as the module name and wext as the supplicant driver. Just click the "OK" button.
9) You should be ready to connect to your particular wireless network. Click the big "Scan" button and select your network. You're probably familiar with the process from here.
10) But if you haven't done this before... after you select your network from the list, click the button to choose the type of security and enter the key or password as needed. Click the "Save" button to save your configuration first, then click "Use This Profile" to connect.
After it connects, it will take you back to the "configure network interface" window. You'll need to click the Auto DHCP button to connect to the internet. (With wireless connections, you might have to do this every time you boot.)
Hopefully that will help my fellow beginners get a decent introduction to Puppy's wireless network configuration tool, not to mention getting a bargain of a USB adapter working with our favorite OS.
(Micro Center also has their own store brand of USB flash drives that are dirt cheap. I'll be giving a few of my friends a Lucid CD, wireless-N adapter and 16 GB flash drive with a preconfigured save file for the holidays this year...)
I haven't had any luck getting this process (or the rt2870sta or rt2800usb modules) to work with Slacko yet. That's fine with me, because I'm happy with Lucid. But if anyone figures out how to get this device working in Slacko, please post so that others can use it.