Score:0

How to get Realtek RTL8852AE WiFi card to work on my new laptop

kp flag

I bought a new Lenovo Ideapad 5 Pro that ships with this network card, full name:

Realtek RTL8852AE WiFi 6 802.11ax PCIe Adapter

Ubuntu (or any other linux distribution) does not recognize or provide drivers for this wireless card. Please tell me if there is a viable solution to this problem, or I will have to wait for an unknown amount of time until the driver is provided.

I already searched through askubuntu and found this Network driver for Realtek 8852 20.10

but the guide is very hard for me to understand, they use an unofficial driver from a kind git user, and say that I will need to rebuild it every time my system gets updated. Another big concern for me is, even if I were to do all this, how can I get it installed in the first place? The driver itself requires some packages that I would need to install first, which I cannot do without internet connection. My laptop does not have an ethernet port, only wireless card that does not work. I am desperate to make Linux work on my main machine and I don't want to give up.

chili555 avatar
cn flag
I understand it looks daunting, but it is pretty easy and we can guide you. Can you tether your phone? Welcome to Ask Ubuntu.
SHC MostWanted avatar
kp flag
@chili555 Help is greatly appreciated. I found an option on my android phone that says "Ethernet tethering - Share phone's internet connection via USB ethernet." so I assume yes, I can.
ChanganAuto avatar
us flag
Tip: Make sure your phone is connected to WiFi before connecting the cable and enabling the tethering option so you don't spend your (mobile) data plan.
chili555 avatar
cn flag
Please tether your phone and do: `sudo apt update && sudo apt -y install git build-essential linux-headers-generic` Are there any errors? If not, I will propose a step-by-step answer.
waltinator avatar
it flag
See https://askubuntu.com/questions/425155/my-wireless-wifi-connection-does-not-work-what-information-is-needed-to-diagnos/425180
SHC MostWanted avatar
kp flag
@chili555 done! No errors :)
Score:1
cn flag

Now that you have installed the prerequisites successfully by tethering, let's install the driver. It can all be done from the terminal!

git clone https://github.com/lwfinger/rtw89.git
cd rtw89
make
sudo make install
sudo modprobe rtw89pci

Your wireless should now be working.

When Update Manager offers and installs a later kernel version, also known as linux-image, after the requested reboot, you must rebuild the driver:

cd rtw89
make clean
git pull
make
sudo make install
sudo modprobe rtw89pci

Please retain the rtw89pci directory and these instructions for that time.

SHC MostWanted avatar
kp flag
Worked perfectly, thank you very much!
chili555 avatar
cn flag
Awesome! Glad it's working as expected. Have fun!
ar flag
If you get the error `modprobe: ERROR: could not insert 'rtw89pci': Operation not permitted` then you will have to disable Secure Boot in the BIOS/UEFI, and try the `sudo modprobe rtw89pci` again.
mchid avatar
bo flag
The instructions now say to use `sudo make sign-install` to use with secure boot.
Riptide avatar
mt flag
Worked beautifully after a restart. Thanks a lot
Score:0
vg flag

Currently, the simplest and most elegant solution to this problem (and Ethernet issues for some other Lenovo models, like the P14s Gen2) if you are running 20.04 seems to be: sudo apt install linux-oem-20.04d

Swartex avatar
am flag
@pzegadlo Thank you very much! had the same problem with Wi-Fi, oem kernel version helped
David avatar
cn flag
Is there any documentation to support your answer?
pzegadlo avatar
vg flag
Sure: https://github.com/lwfinger/rtw89/issues/75
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