How to Enable Wi-Fi on a Linux Laptop: From Drivers to Network Settings

1. The network icon is located in the tray (near the clock).
2. Right click → Enable Wi-Fi.

If there is no network icon at all, it means that NetworkManager No network devices were found. Please proceed to diagnostics via the terminal.

3. Diagnosing the Wi-Fi adapter in the terminal

If the graphical interface doesn't help, check if the adapter is recognized by the system. Open the terminal (Ctrl + Alt + T) and run the commands:

# Checking network interfaces
ip a
or an obsolete command (if the ip is not set)
ifconfig -a

Checking Wi-Fi drivers
lspci -knn | grep -iA3 net
For USB adapters:
lsusb

In the output, look for lines with Network controller or Wireless. For example:

03:00.0 Network controller [0280]: Intel Corporation Wi-Fi 6 AX200 [8086:2723] (rev 1a)
Subsystem: Intel Corporation Wi-Fi 6 AX200NGW [8086:0024]
Kernel driver in use: iwlwifi

Please note:

• 🔍 Adapter name (For example, Intel AX200, Broadcom BCM43142).
• 🚀 Driver (in line Kernel driver in use). If it is not there, the driver is not installed.
• ⚠️ Interface state: in the output ip a look for wlan0 or wlp3s0. If the status UP no - the adapter is disabled.

Check the output of `ip a` for a wireless interface|Make sure `lspci` has a line with "Network controller"|Remember the driver name (if any)|Check if the Wi-Fi light on your laptop is on-->

4. Enabling Wi-Fi via the terminal

If the adapter is recognized but disabled, you can activate it using commands. First, check the current status:

rfkill list

In the output, look for a block with Wireless LAN. For example:

1: phy0: Wireless LAN
Soft blocked: yes
Hard blocked: no # Hardware blocking (if "yes" - check the switch on the laptop)

If Soft blocked: yes, unlock the adapter:

sudo rfkill unblock wifi

Then enable the interface (replace wlan0 to your interface from the output ip a):

sudo ip link set wlan0 up

To connect to the network, use nmcli (utility NetworkManager):

# View available networks
nmcli dev wifi list
Connect to the network (replace SSID and password)
nmcli dev wifi connect "Network_Name" password "password"

5. Installing drivers for the Wi-Fi adapter

If in the output lspci there is no line Kernel driver in use, the driver for your adapter is not installed. Let's look at solutions for popular chips:

Chip manufacturer	Adapter models	Solution
Intel	AX200, AX210, 8265, 7265	Kernel drivers. Update your system: sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade.
Broadcom	BCM4311, BCM4313, BCM4360	Install the proprietary driver: sudo apt install broadcom-sta-dkms (Ubuntu/Debian).
Realtek	RTL8188EE, RTL8723DE, RTL8821CE	Download the driver from GitHub and compile.
Qualcomm Atheros	AR9285, AR9485	Driver ath9k in the kernel. Check the module loading: lsmod | grep ath9k.

For Broadcom And Realtek Often additional steps are required:

1. Install build packages:

   sudo apt install build-essential dkms linux-headers-$(uname -r)

2. Download the driver (for example, for Realtek RTL8821CE):

   git clone https://github.com/tomaspinho/rtl8821ce
   cd rtl8821ce
   chmod +x dkms-install.sh
   sudo ./dkms-install.sh

3. Reboot the system.

⚠️ Attention: After updating the kernel, the driver may stop working. In this case, reinstall it or use dkms for automatic reassembly.

6. Setting up NetworkManager and alternative connection methods

If Wi-Fi is turned on but networks are not showing up or connecting, the problem may be NetworkManager or its configuration. Check the service status:

sudo systemctl status NetworkManager

If the service is not active, start it:

sudo systemctl start NetworkManager
sudo systemctl enable NetworkManager

Alternative connection methods:

• 📡 WPA_Supplicant: utility for connection without NetworkManager.

  wpa_passphrase "NetworkName" "Password" | sudo tee /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf
  sudo wpa_supplicant -B -i wlan0 -c /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf
  sudo dhclient wlan0

• 🔄 Wicd: lightweight network manager (alternative to NetworkManager).

  sudo apt install wicd

• 🛠️ Manual setup V /etc/network/interfaces (for experienced users).

If your connection keeps dropping or your speed is slow, check your power saving settings:

iwconfig wlan0 | grep "Power Management"
If enabled, disable:
sudo iwconfig wlan0 power off

7. Solving specific problems

Some errors require a customized approach. Let's look at some typical cases:

Problem 1The network is visible, but it doesn't connect with an error. Authentication failed.

• Check the case of your password (Linux is case sensitive).
• Make sure your router is not using WPA3 - Some older drivers don't support it. Switch to WPA2 in the router settings.
• Update wpa_supplicant:

  sudo apt update && sudo apt install wpasupplicant

Problem 2: The adapter switches off periodically.

• Disable power saving for Wi-Fi as shown in the previous section.
• Check the logs for errors:

  dmesg | grep iwlwifi # For Intel
  journalctl -u NetworkManager --no-pager | tail -n 20

Problem 3: Wi-Fi works, but is very slow.

• Change the channel on your router (select in the settings) 1, 6 or 11 for 2.4 GHz).
• Turn it off 802.11n in the adapter settings (if there are compatibility issues):

  sudo iwconfig wlan0 11n off

⚠️ AttentionRouter settings (such as encryption type or channel) can affect connection stability. If problems began after changing the router's configuration, try resetting it to factory settings.

FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions about Wi-Fi on Linux

Why did Wi-Fi stop working after updating the kernel?

When updating the kernel, old drivers (especially self-built ones, as for Realtek) may stop loading. Solutions:

1. Reinstall the driver (for example, for rtl8821ce restart dkms-install.sh).
2. Use dkms for automatic reassembly:

   sudo dkms autoinstall

3. Rollback the kernel (if the new kernel is incompatible):

   sudo apt install linux-image-5.15.0-XX-generic # Specify the older version

How to connect to a hidden Wi-Fi network?

Use nmcli:

nmcli dev wifi connect "Network_Name" password "password" hidden yes

Or via GUI: in the list of networks, select Connect to a hidden network and enter the SSID manually.

Is it possible to use a Windows Wi-Fi adapter on Linux?
Yes, but:
• Drivers for Windows (.exe or .inf) are not compatible with Linux.
• Some USB adapters (eg. TP-Link TL-WN725N) are supported out of the box.
• For the rest, look for Linux drivers on the manufacturer's website or in repositories (for example, ndiswrapper for old adapters).
How to share Wi-Fi from a Linux laptop?

Create an access point via hostapd:

1. Install packages:

   sudo apt install hostapd dnsmasq

2. Set up hostapd.conf (specify SSID, password, channel).
3. Start the access point:

   sudo systemctl start hostapd

Detailed instructions depend on the distribution. For Ubuntu there is a utility ap-hotspot, simplifying the process.

Why is Wi-Fi disabled by default in some distributions (e.g. Kali Linux)?

In security testing distributions (e.g. Kali Linux or Parrot OS) network interfaces are often disabled to prevent accidental connections. To enable:

sudo systemctl start NetworkManager
sudo systemctl enable NetworkManager

Also check if your Wi-Fi is being blocked by tools like macchanger or airmon-ng.