[SOLVED] Install Intel Wireless Drivers

[freakyfranks]

Hello all.

I successfully installed Mageia on my first try and love the "auto allocate" function during the disk partition stage. Not only did it partition the hard drive just like I would have manually, but it saved all of the personal files and put them where they were supposed to reside after the install...genius! I am trying Linux for the first time on an older Dell Inspiron 6400 and am thoroughly impressed how it gave the old machine a completely new personality along with a very perceptible performance boost over Windows XP. I have everything working except wifi. I have updated all of the software via ethernet and have the correct driver copied to the desktop. I just can't copy the file to the /lib/firmware folder due to "access denied". I have gained root privileges, tried su -, "cp iwlwifi-3945-2.ucode /lib/firmware" but I get "no file or directory". I try drag and drop but "access denied". I've changed permissions of the folder to read and write, but still access denied. I want this OS to work on my first install so I can start to promote it. I hope I am just overlooking a simple step somewhere, because I can't find the solution with Google after searching for 24hrs. Maybe I am not searching for the right thing? Any help will be appreciated and the solution will warrant a donation to the cause.

Thanks!

[doktor5000]

No need to copy anything anywhere manually, just take a look at https://wiki.mageia.org/en/Software_management to enable nonfree repositories and then at https://wiki.mageia.org/en/Setup_wireless_networking

[freakyfranks]

Thank you for the prompt response. After following these steps with a few trials and errors, I finally installed the correct file to make wireless work. I would have never looked beyond the 4 choices to check if you didn't point out to click "add" and select all the other ones. Once again, great job on this OS and no doubt it will catch on. If I could suggest something that would alleviate questions such as mine from former windows users, I would like to see a more intuitive response from the OS when asking for a missing file or installing hardware. I knew what it needed, it told me what it needed and where it needed it, I found it from another online PC and copied to the desktop, but for the life of me could not put the file where it needed to go. I guess the process is a little more complicated than I thought it should be to install drivers. One thing I am not used to is an OS telling me I can't do something when I am the one who installed it. I apparently have much to learn. If the wireless config wizard would have asked me for the file that was missing, I would have pointed it to the file to stop the message. Anyway, a donation is on the way and once again, great job! It is a work of art and needs more exposure. I'll be playing with it daily and I'm pretty sure to hit a wall again.

Thanks!!!!

[doktor5000]

If I could suggest something that would alleviate questions such as mine from former windows users, I would like to see a more intuitive response from the OS when asking for a missing file or installing hardware. I knew what it needed, it told me what it needed and where it needed it, I found it from another online PC and copied to the desktop, but for the life of me could not put the file where it needed to go. I guess the process is a little more complicated than I thought it should be to install drivers.

Totally comprehensible. Most users now already know that for wireless devices, that need additional packages not coming with the free DVD or a default install, will need to "bootstrap" their wireless connection via wired connection to internet. For those the LiveCD is a better option, as it contains the needed drivers.

For the driver and needed software installation, yes there's definitely improvement, you're totally right there.

Please mark the thread accordingly by editing the topic of the first post and prefix it by [SOLVED], thanks

[freakyfranks]

Thanks again.

Donation sent!