Introduction:
This article presents a solution for using the Realtek RTL8821CE wireless network card with a "mini computer" running Ubuntu. In many Linux distributions, including Ubuntu, the Realtek RTL8821CE driver is not pre-installed in the system library. Consequently, users may face difficulties using WiFi in the operating system. To enable WiFi networking, manual installation of the driver is necessary.
Here's how to install the driver:
Q: How can I check the NIC model under the Ubuntu system?
A: Upon reaching the system desktop, use the key combination Ctrl+Alt+T to open the "Terminal." Then, input the following command to retrieve detailed information about the network card model: sudo lshw -c network
After entering the command, you'll be prompted to input your password (e.g., 123456). Note that the password field won't display any characters as you type. Simply press Enter to confirm once you've entered your password.
The network card models identified by the command are as follows:
(Wired NIC) RTL8111/8168/8411
(Wireless NIC) RTL8821CE
1. Prepare the installation environment
1-1. Use wired network to connect to the Internet, and install git and dkms tools first. Ctrl+Alt+T keys to open the terminal, and enter the following commands in the terminal:
▶ update apt source
▶ sudo apt update
▶ Install the required software
▶ sudo apt install git
The installation was successful, type git --version to see the version:
1-2. sudo apt install build-essential
build-essential is a C/C++ build environment family bucket, you can install all the packages you need to build c/c++.
sudo apt install dkms
DKMS stands for Dynamic Kernel Module Support and is used to maintain Linux drivers that are not integrated into the kernel.
2. Download Driver and Installation
2-1. Download the RTL8821CE driver and unzip it to the Downloads directory. Download address: GitHub - tomaspinho/rtl8821ce
2-2. Ctrl+Alt+T key to open the terminal, input the following command in the terminal to open the directory where the driver file is located:
▶ ls
▶ cd Downloads
▶ cd Drives-Realtek-RTL8821CE-master
▶ cd Drives-Realtek-RTL8821CE-master
PS: "Drives-Realtek-RTL8821CE-master" is the name of the folder, the name of your folder may not be the same as the one in this blog post, please enter the corresponding command according to the actual name of the folder or modify the filename by yourself!
2-3. Run the following commands in the terminal to compile the files and install the driver
▶ sudo make
▶ sudo make install
▶ sudo modprobe 8821ce
▶ sudo reboot
If no error is reported during the installation, you can see the WIFI after reboot under normal circumstances.
