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NutmegCT

NutmegCT

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Dusting off my Fedora 19 laptop ... how the heck do I update to the latest stable version of Fedora?

I'm logged in a [user1] with user1's password.
In terminal, I type yum update
In terminal, I try login root
In terminal, I try sudo root [password]

So far no joy.

(I'm already getting the heebie jeebies that this will be a rabbit hole of no return.)
 
NutmegCT said:
Dusting off my Fedora 19 laptop ... how the heck do I update to the latest stable version of Fedora?

I'm logged in a [user1] with user1's password.
In terminal, I type yum update
In terminal, I try login root
In terminal, I try sudo root [password]

So far no joy.

(I'm already getting the heebie jeebies that this will be a rabbit hole of no return.)
Click to expand...
To switch to root, either "sudo su" with your password or "su" with root's password. Once root, "yum update". Or you can do "sudo yum update".

The current version of fedora is 38. I doubt that one can do an automatic update from 19 to 38, but it's worth a shot. Fedora's documentation on updating a system is rather incomplete.
 
From 19 to 38 is a bridge too far, methinks.

A simple "su" should bring up "password:" prompt. But it would be a good idea to back up any files of import to an external storage thingie and get the current Fedora .iso saved as well. Scrape 19 off and install the new version.
 
Well, after six attempts at finding a 32 bit Linux system, I settled on Debian 12. As the installer couldn't set up DHCP, and various other technical hangups, I finally got it running this morning. Yeehaa!

But there's no wireless. Setup says it needed a Broadcom 43 chip "driver".

Searching for about eight hours, I found many references to B43 installation techniques for Debian, and many pages saying "click here for the installer", but those either went to a 404 error, or a "we've moved the drivers to [e.g.} this linked site". The linked site would give lots of installation instructions - but no actual installer. Or another link to a list of installers, but none for B43 use. And there are dozens of different Broadcom chips, so there's no guarantee a specific B43 driver installer would work. And many webpages describing the pro's and con's of various Broadcom chips and installers, but no specific instructions on which installer might be needed. I also found several "WIFI chip identifier" apps, but none for the Broadcom units. Brain overload for me.

Could a Linux-person please tell me what "apt-get" commands I should use in Terminal, to download and install a B43 driver?

Thanks.
Tom M.
using Debian 12 on a Dell Latitude D610 laptop.
 
Thank you Greg! I'll give this a try. I've found several 32 bit Linux sources, but I imagine they'd all have the wifi chip issue.

I tried Ubuntu and Fedora about fifteen years ago; always ended up hitting roadblocks with finding certain apps and drivers. Maybe this time I'll have more luck.

Thanks for your help.
Tom M.
 
OK - I got the zip downloaded using the Debian Firefox browser. Unzipped and got the B43 folder on my desktop.

But I can't move the folder into /lib/firmware. The "create folder" is greyed out.
 
Tom, you shouldn't have any problems downloading and installing Linux Mint 19.2. I downloaded the proper iso file and burnt it to a disc. Cold boot the computer with the disc in the drive and it should boot into the disc to install. If 19 still gives you a problem, download and install LM17 then upgrade from there. PJ
 
Nope - folders in Firmware dont' include a B43 folder.

Was I supposed to be "root" when I did all this?
 
OK - will log out, log in as root, and try try again.
 
Success! logged out, then logged back in as root. Now have root desktop - but can't find the desktop folder for my non-root username. My username desktop is where the original zip file and extracted files are. As root, I want to move all those files from my username Desktop to a new B43 folder in Firmware. Used file manager to get to "root" of hard drive file system. What folder would have the non-root user's desktop folder?

Sorry this is so cumbersome to me. I can speak AngloSaxon, but not Linux!
 
Try this.
Log in as your regular user.
Open a window in file manager.
You should see your name towards the top with arrows on either side. Click the left arrow and choose the hard drive icon.
Open the lib folder. Open the firmware folder.
Right click an open space inside the window. Choose "Open as root"
Right click an open space in that new window and click "Create New Folder".
Make a B43 folder.
Go back to your unzipped files on your desktop. Select all (control A).
Move them to the lib/firmare/B43 folder.
Lastly, do the modprobe command in a terminal as root.
 
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Frankly, I hardly ever use terminal, so it is a learning experience every time I need to get in there. Things can probably get done more directly in terminal than my last post, but researching the correct syntax takes longer for me.
 
Ps. I left out a folder (which I corrected above). On the 6th line I added "open the firmware folder". Sorry if I sent you into a tail spin with that.
 
The fun never ends!

Logged in as user, went to Firmware folder, right clicked - and the choice Open as Root doesn't show

So I logged out again, logged in as Root, and kept poking around in every folder from \ on down, and finally found that the User Desktop folder is in the Root Home folder.

Opened the User Desktop, found the b43 folder, copied, and pasted into Firmware folder.

Then ran the modprobe b43 command, which didn't give me an error message so I assume it worked.

Wifi still appearing in Connections window, but won't activate.

Restarting system, log in as root

Still no wifi connection. I've marked Wifi and Ethernet as automatic connection. Unplugged ethernet, lost internet, opened Network connections, wifi still shows no connection.

Note: I had to manually add Wifi connection using xfce network manager. Heaven knows if I entered the right choices when I set that up.

Onward through the fog. Thanks for hanging in there with me. Maybe we should change to Conversation instead of all the public posts.
Tom M.
 
btw - the wifi chip is a Broadcom 4318.
Interesting that I've found about a half dozen references to "firmware-b43-fwcutter", etc., which is supposed to have the 4318 driver. But I've found no actual source for the file. Ran apt-get update and apt-get upgrade, then tried apt-cache b43, but get no results.
 
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