How To: Configure Wireless with Ralink (rt2500) Level One WNC 0301 in Fedora 7

If you are searching for wireless lan configuration in Fedora Core 6, a detailed description is available here. Though Fedora 7 – Moonshine detect the Ralink rt2500 Level One WNC-0301 wireless lan card, the network doesn’t work properly with default drivers. You may be able to connect sometime, but some other time it may not function properly. Because ralink drivers are not yet stable. See the discussions here. So, here is a step by step complete reference to how to make it work properly.

Step 1: Download the latest CVS release of Ralink rt2500 drivers from here.

Step 2: Unload the kernel module for rt2500 drivers

[root@bordeaux kulbirsaini] rmmod rt2500pci [Enter]

Step 3: Go to the directory /lib/modules/2.6.21-1.3194.fc7/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/mac80211/rt2x00 and take backup of the current rt2500pci driver module.

[root@bordeaux rt2x00] mv rt2500pci.ko back.rt2500pci.ko [Enter]

Step 4: Untar the download driver tar ball and change to the directory ./rt2500-cvs-XXXXXXXXXX/Module/

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[root@bordeaux Module] make [Enter]
[root@bordeaux Module] make install-fedora [Enter]

Step 5: Open /etc/modprobe.conf file and add a line

alias wlan0 rt2500

Save the file and load the rt2500 driver.

[root@bordeaux kulbirsaini] modprobe rt2500 [Enter]

Step 6: Go to the directory /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ and create a file named ifcfg-wmaster0. Copy the contents of ifcfg-wlan0 to the ifcfg-wmaster0. If you don’t have ifcfg-wlan0 file, then issue command ‘neat’ as root and add new wireless device with appropriate configurations and ifcfg-wlan0 will be created in the process.

Step 7: Activate the device, what else ???

PS1 : You can refer to my ifcfg-wlan0 and ifcfg-wmaster0 files.

PS2 : You can ask for more details on any issues in the any of the above steps.

 

29 thoughts on “How To: Configure Wireless with Ralink (rt2500) Level One WNC 0301 in Fedora 7

  1. Great guide!
    However, this method is not working for me. Whenever I try to activate the device, I get the following error:

    rt2500 device wlan0 does not seem to be present, delaying initialization

    Any ideas on what might be going wrong here? I have tried pretty much all the rt2500 drivers I could find (from the rt2x00 project and from Ralink) but nothing works.

    Thanks for any help you can supply!

    -linnerd40

  2. @linnerd40
    hey did you try adding the line
    ##############
    alias wlan0 rt2500
    ###############
    to the /etc/modprobe.conf file.
    after adding this line do
    [root@server saini] modprobe rt2500 [Enter]
    [root@server saini] depmod -a [Enter]

    hope this works …

  3. hello!

    i’ve done everything you say
    (even depmod -a) but i get the same error when i try to activate the device

    rt2500 device wmaster0 does not seem to be present…

    any ideas?

  4. Step 2: Unload the kernel module for rt2500 drivers

    [root@bordeaux kulbirsaini] rmmod rt2500pci [Enter]
    ________________________
    Sorry, I am a beginer of linux.
    I don’t understand, how i must unload the kernal..?

    Could you explain it?

  5. @JP
    See, there are kernel modules for each and every part of the hardware, which helps the operating system to communicate with the hardware.
    e.g. We have kernel module ‘nvidia’ through which OS communicates with your graphics card. Similarly for communicating with wireless lan card we have different kernel modules for different wireless cards.
    In this case, by default the non-working kernel module is loaded. So, you have to remove(or unload) that module (we insert(or load) modules which are required for communication).

    Don’t be sorry for anything. Everyone has to learn step by step. I think I explained the concept pretty clearly.

  6. Hello. I’m new in Fedora 7 (and new in Linux). My “RaLink RT2500 802.11g Cardbus/mini-PCI (rev 01)” doesn’t work. Which tools I need to install with yum for “make” and “make install” (step 4)?. Beforehand thank you very much.

    Argel.

  7. Hi. When I enter the order “make”, appears the following error:

    [root@localhost Module]# make
    make: *** /lib/modules/2.6.21-1.3194.fc7/build: No existe el fichero o el directorio. Alto.
    rt2500.ko failed to build!
    make: *** [module] Error 1

    [root@localhost Module]# dir
    2.4.x CVS md5.c RT2500STA.dat rtmp.h rtmp_wep.c
    2.6.x docs md5.h rt2560.h rtmp_info.c sanity.c
    assoc.c eeprom.c mlme.c rt2x00debug.h rtmp_init.c sync.c
    auth.c ifcfg-ra0 mlme.h rt_config.h rtmp_main.c TESTING
    auth_rsp.c iwpriv_usage.txt oid.h rtmp_data.c rtmp_tkip.c wpa.c
    connect.c Makefile README rtmp_def.h rtmp_type.h wpa.h
    [root@localhost Module]#

    Thank you for your help.

  8. @Argel
    oops … you don’t have kernel-source installed on your system.
    download kernel-devel-2.6.21-1.3194.fc7.*.rpm and install it on your system and follow the steps above. It’ll be done.

    Also, I think I asked to install the source or kernel-devel package in the howto itself.

  9. I am trying to install the Edimax wifi card with the Ralink chip I finaly called the co. and they told me to down load the newest driver from Ralink (IS_Linux_STA_6x_D_1.1.1.0.tar.gz) Every thing worked fine untill the line 7> $load

    #[kernel 2.6]
    # $/sbin/insmod rt61.ko
    # $/sbin/ifconfig ra0 inet YOUR_IP up
    I can’t get any thing to happen at this point can you help. thanks in advance BCH

  10. @Bill
    run the ‘neat’ command and check in hardware section for your wireless card. If its not there then reload the rt61.ko module by
    #$ /sbin/rmmod rt61
    #$ /sbin/modprobe rt61
    #$ depmod -a

    and now check the hardware section. if you wlan card is listed over there then in interface section add new wireless interface and fill the required sections. I think it should work then.

    If it doesn’t work, then please post the details of the wlan card, OS, kerenel, and procedure you followed.

  11. In trying to configure the card in network confiuration this mess. came up “System-config-network” The Ethernet card could not be inittialized.Please verify your setting and try again.
    in the window it said Command failed: /sbin/modprobe ray_cs Output: Fatal:Module ray_cs not found. Yousaid over inthe interface section add new wireless interface where is this?
    BCH

  12. here is what I have in modprobe.conf alias scsi_cs hostadapter ata_piix
    options ray_cs (32-bit nonrefetchable) irq=11 alias eth0 ray_cs

  13. when trying to activate the card in Network Confiuration I get message cannot activate device eth0! ray_cs device eth0 does not seem to be present, delaying initialization.

  14. @Bill
    your wlan module is not properly loaded if you are getting error “can’t find eth0” …

    how can i get what you posted on f3dora, if you don’t give me the url. paste something over there, it’ll redirect you to a new url, gimme that url.

  15. I got my card up and running by reinstalling f7 and recompiling the driver every thing seems to work but istill can’t get on the internet through my wireless router. I tried everyting I know which is not much in f7 but I can’t browse the inet.

  16. No. Fedora 9 has come a long way in terms of wifi support. Grab your copy and checkout 🙂

  17. You you could change the webpage name title How To: Configure Wireless with Ralink (rt2500) Level One WNC 0301 in Fedora 7 | Fedora Linux to more suited for your webpage you write. I loved the the writing however.

  18. Hello, I tried to follow the instructions, but on step 3 I get following result:
    ich@ubuntu:/lib/modules/2.6.35-31-generic/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/rt2x00$ mv rt2500pci.ko back.rt2500pci.ko
    mv: cannot move `rt2500pci.ko’ to `back.rt2500pci.ko’: Permission denied

    can somebody please help me?

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