Mint question

[jnelsoninjax]

I just finished installing Mint and I can not get it to detect my Wi-Fi (USB) I do not have enough Ethernet cable to reach the system. The Wi-Fi dongle is a TP-Link. How can I get it to detect the dongle?

[+thexfile Subscriber²]

...

[jnelsoninjax]

On 11/03/2025 at 17:34, thexfile said:

On the Mint site, you'll have to enable Wi-Fi calling.

If you use Android, there's a setting where you have to enable wi-fi calling too.

I am not trying to make calls, I am trying to get Mint to detect the Wi-Fi dongle so I can have internet

[+thexfile Subscriber²]

Yeah, I realize that after I posted.

[+Good Bot, Bad Bot Subscriber¹]

Does this USB WiFi dongle have Linux support? What's the model?

[jnelsoninjax]

On 11/03/2025 at 17:46, Good Bot, Bad Bot said:

Does this USB WiFi dongle have Linux support? What's the model?

TP-Link Nano AC600 USB Wifi Adapter(Archer T2U Nano)- 2.4G/5G Dual Band.

lsusb shows the device, I just can not get it to connect, and a quick search of the Mint forms seemed to point me to some git commands that will not work without an internet connection.

Edited March 12, 2025 by jnelsoninjax

[Mindovermaster Global Moderator]

Why did you say "can not get it to detect my Wi-Fi". Do you mean you can't go into a GUI and set it?

Why not just get a longer Ethernet cable?

I use this one. Ubuntu/Debian sees it right away.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/116465290359?_skw=alfa+awus036h&itmmeta=01JP3Z8D2VYEKJNK43RNVF9FE2&hash=item1b1ddf4c77:g:tE0AAOSw~~hnn-J3&itmprp=enc%3AAQAKAAAA8MHg7L1Zz0LA5DYYmRTS30kBWNvop%2FhRNKGdoL%2BURltSu%2BLZnFWBkgb31ikObe7M3wQmvakxtIjIHTSmzqMI%2FffHAU6NnU1R5vlMFug52d%2BPqtS84yJS6nXPnNvF%2Fwe5uoNVLWU1N36VOGJAFB6cF748w16oCIBgTrA1Z5%2FPEjBFv2ux66VqUtnrmgFnqrJvaSgiGDe%2BpLIsPc0ka8nB8%2FSK%2FBGZt4FkKHNwHV4YITSSTpF0QSvVI%2FGtjNVaQwYpZXpske2BrIBiUH2pfShymHshrC%2FKs3tO0I4oTTUUmCE%2FQuqKmSeQzUCkadwSFGchWA%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR8rRof-wZQ

TP-Link is iffy. Some times they have Linux support, sometimes they don't. There's a lot of "wifi for linux" There's full flue of different ones.

[+Good Bot, Bad Bot Subscriber¹]

On 11/03/2025 at 19:51, jnelsoninjax said:

TP-Link Nano AC600 USB Wifi Adapter(Archer T2U Nano)- 2.4G/5G Dual Band.

lsusb shows the device, I just can not get it to connect, and a quick search of the Mint forms seemed to point me to some git commands that will not work without an internet connection.

It doesn't look like that part has support in the kernel. Based on this it looks like you have some work to do --> https://askubuntu.com/questions/1514806/tp-link-ac600-archer-t2u-nano-driver-for-ubuntu-24-04

Make your life easy and pick up a USB WIFi dongle that is plug and play with Linux --> https://github.com/morrownr/USB-WiFi/blob/main/home/USB_WiFi_Adapters_that_are_supported_with_Linux_in-kernel_drivers.md

[dwd999]

Short answer: get a dongle with an Intel chip.

[jnelsoninjax]

On 12/03/2025 at 13:31, dwd999 said:

Short answer: get a dongle with an Intel chip.

I did one step better, I order 25 feet of Ethernet and plugged it in directly, no dealing with Wi-Fi

[matt74441]

On 15/03/2025 at 00:41, jnelsoninjax said:

I did one step better, I order 25 feet of Ethernet and plugged it in directly, no dealing with Wi-Fi

That’s why I spent a day running Ethernet drops in my house before I moved in.

[inactive]

I realized you already solved it with a wired connection, which is what I would prefer anyways, especially for anything I more heavily use. but the newest Mint 22 comes with 6.8 kernel (from March 2024), but you can install 6.11 kernel (from Sep 2024) if needed... Update Manager > View > Linux Kernels.

alternatively, LMDE6 (i.e. Linux Mint Debian Edition) comes with the 6.1 kernel (from Dec 2022) by default. but you can install up to 6.12 (from Nov 2024) the last I checked.

but I figure if that adapter is nothing too recent (say roughly a couple of years old or older) and it still don't have any out-of-the-box support, you will probably have to do something like 'Good Bot, Bad Bot' said above.

[jnelsoninjax]

On 15/03/2025 at 07:05, matt74441 said:

That’s why I spent a day running Ethernet drops in my house before I moved in.

Living in an apartment prevents that. Plus the management here is horrible, the cable company needs to run a new coax cable into our unit, but the manager refuses to allow them to drill a hole "can't damage the siding"