Installing a WNA3100 driver Ubuntu Mate

I'm trying to get a wifi adapter to work. Completely new to linux.

I've downloaded a driver as an .inf file, but the driver tool says it's invalid.

I've tried installing it through command line, but ndiswrapper doesn't work.

Other urls found in this thread:

ndiswrapper.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php/Netgear_WNA3100
ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2264020
twitter.com/SFWRedditVideos

bamp

rebump

i tried with this exact netgear dongle and i couldn't do it unless i emulated windows or some shit, good luck if you manage it

...

Holy shit, are you me? I didn't reply earlier because I didn't want to discourage, and I was hoping OP would get an answer.

i felt bad so had to say something, I can still see my dongle in the corner and get flashbacks trying everything possible for hours for it to work only to give up

Serious truth to that.

Anyways op,
Broadcom is shit and won't work without windows drivers and ndiswrapper

ndiswrapper.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php/Netgear_WNA3100

Heh, you're onto something

forgot to say that if it doesn't work with ndiswrapper you're likely fucked. just go on amazon and get one, make sure it's compatible BEFORE YOU GET IT

wait just a sec mate are you using 32 bit ubuntu or 64 bit

buy this instead.

Has op jumped ship? i was ready to help but ok....

It is the year 2018 and fucking around with ndiswrapper is still a thing.
Its been over a decade since I first struggled with that issue myelf for the first time. There have been threads about it here on Sup Forums periodically for just as long. For dedicated Linux support forums it goes back even longer.

Nice to see some things never change.

64 bit

Nah still here

I had Fedora on an old laptop years ago and it took me 2 days to get the wifi working.
I remember using ndiswrapper a fuckton and installing random drivers until one worked.

i'd buy a new card before dealing with ndiswrapper

On that note, I'm astonished that OP is having this problem 8 years later on the "normie" Linux distro.
IIRC I downloaded every driver version from the official site (broadcom probably) and went down the list until the wifi worked.
Note that this was the built-in wifi and not a USB one. I have no idea how that's going to go for you.

If someone could explain this to a very linux-unskilled person...

I've tried installing it through various commands. If anyone is interested/wants to help, I'll later paste the error message I got, something along the lines of "fatal error could not be found".

Now I did "sudo apt-get install ndisgtk" and I get something that'd be in English "can't lock (?) the administrative folder (var/lip/dpkg/). Is another process using it?"

This is a fresh linux install, was the same before I updated it too

really dumb idea but try it with 32 bit. it's impractical and stupid, you should always install the version specific to your architecture (duh) BUT:

I remember something about installing on 64-bit causing a lot of uninitialized variables.

Linux is just a kernel.

Alright, I realize I did not need ndiswrapper since it's included as a program.

Now I've tried to install it both through wine (it keeps asking me to plug it in) and on the ndiswrapper program it says that the driver is invalid. It asks for an inf file but well it doesn't work.

Correct. OP should've said "Linux-based operating systems." or as the rest of Sup Forums would say:

I'd just like to interject for a moment. What you’re referring to as Linux, is in fact, GNU/Linux, or as I’ve recently taken to calling it, GNU plus Linux. Linux is not an operating system unto itself, but rather another free component of a fully functioning GNU system made useful by the GNU corelibs, shell utilities and vital system components comprising a full OS as defined by POSIX. Many computer users run a modified version of the GNU system every day, without realizing it. Through a peculiar turn of events, the version of GNU which is widely used today is often called “Linux”, and many of its users are not aware that it is basically the GNU system, developed by the GNU Project. There really is a Linux, and these people are using it, but it is just a part of the system they use. Linux is the kernel: the program in the system that allocates the machine’s resources to the other programs that you run. The kernel is an essential part of an operating system, but useless by itself; it can only function in the context of a complete operating system. Linux is normally used in combination with the GNU operating system: the whole system is basically GNU with Linux added, or GNU/Linux. All the so-called “Linux” distributions are really distributions of GNU/Linux.

are you using the driver that came with your adapter or that you've downloaded? try extracting the driver file from the windows installer that came with it.

Isn't that an old adapter? Why not buy a new one?

I downloaded it. I extracted it, only thing that can be run is inf-file that doesn't work.

...wait
running?
it's not an executable, why are you trying to execute it?

meant run in the software that resembles ndiswrapper.

Ok. So I googled a bit, there is a user on an ubuntu forum that also downloaded the same inf. file as I did, and he came to the conclusion that it doesn't work.

ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2264020