Re: How to install wifi firmware with no wired connection
Date: Sat, 24 Oct 2026 17:46:56 UTC
HI I will try again to explain what I see: The BOOT-ONLY and DISC1 installmedia is prepared with iwlwifi/rtw88 firmware installed in the installmedia kernel so that IF the user knows all the Network info required , including the AccessPoint authentication password WPA stuff, the network name a.s.o The WIFI will connect to the AP and the firmware PACKAGE will be downloaded and installed on the installation target The WIFI Firmware packages do not exist as PACKAGES on the BOOT-ONLY and DISC1 installmedia . the wifi firmware packages does exist on the DVD1 installmedia. The DVD1 installmedia only exists in ISO-format on the download site. it does not exist as a MEMstick image. Thus the novice user does not download the DVD1.ISO as it needs additional effort and knowledge to convert to a MEMstic image. I tried to write a one-pager on how to convert the DVD1.ISO to a MEM-stick image and mount it as REPO_DIR to be able to install wifi_firmware_kmod packages. On the Forum and Discord we get weekly requests from users with laptops the have no wired Ethernet port nor a DVD player on How to deploy the wifi-firmware to their machine Way back (CDROM.com / FreeBSD 5 era ) BSDinstall had menu-driven installation of Packages . why dont we bring that back in ? So the user can select which WIFI Firmware to install. Regards //Lars -- ------------------------- Lars Tunkrans Oracle SPARC/Solaris System Administrator Fujitsu M12 SPARC Specilaist On 10/24/26 05:38, Adrian Chadd wrote: > > > On Fri, 23 Oct 2026 at 20:30, Jordan Hubbard > <jordan.hubbard@gmail.com> wrote: > > Is there some particular reason this is a documented work-around > rather than simply including the wifi firmware in the installer > image? > > It’s so straight-forward to include the firmware on the > installation ISO, even with limits on the ISO size (the >2GB ISO > images are probably, in fact, a little bloated!) that I must be > missing something? > > > I was under the impression that the wifi firmware packages /are/ > included in the full ISO images. > They're not included in the smaller ones, and I do hit cases where > firmware just isn't installed > and I have to do it post installation. > > If people can share what they have, what they're trying to install > (specifically which installer > image down to its filename), I can go chase it down with release/src > manager teams. > > I've poked them recently about including some more wifi/bt firmware in > base > so at least /one/ wifi chipset (realtek usb/pcie) works with base > only, but that's .. > a rough argument rn. > > -adrian > > > - Jordan > >> On Oct 21, 2026, at 5:53 AM, Devin Teske <dteske@freebsd.org> wrote: >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >>> On 21 Oct 2026, at 3:53 AM, Tomek CEDRO <tomek@cedro.info> wrote: >>> >>> On Wed, Oct 21, 2026 at 10:16 AM Lars Tunkrans >>> <drsnx60@gmail.com> wrote: >>>> hi >>>> Here is a one-pager documentation that I feel is >>>> missing from >>>> the handbook. >>>> AN often recurring issue in forums and discord is a user >>>> with a >>>> new laptop without wired Ethernet connection. >>>> the problem becomes how to install WIFI-Firmware when you >>>> cant download anything to the machine. >>>> There may be other ways to solve the issue , but this is >>>> what I came up with. >>> >>> Thanks Lars, +1 to add to Handbook, these hints may come handy >>> also in >>> other similar situations :-) >>> >> >> I filed a bug for this issue back in May, and even included >> remediation steps: >> >> https://bugs.freebsd.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=295433 >> >> I will have a look at the proposed handbook additions soon >> >> I am curious how close our steps are to each other >> >> Thank you, Lars, for taking this on as well >> — >> Devin > -- ------------------------- Lars Tunkrans Oracle SPARC/Solaris System Administrator Fujitsu M12 SPARC Specilaist