Using A Rosewill RNX-N250 on Ubuntu Linux

I was given an opportunity to speak at the California Charter School Conference in Sacramento about using Open Source Software in Education.  I wanted to bring some Linux boxes to demo and show folks how they work. However, I had a problem.  I was told that there may be no wired network at the conference. Since most of our Linux boxes at SCVi are older, donated machines, they don't have a wireless interface.

I needed to pick up some aftermarket wireless adapters so that I'd be able to demo from the machines I planned to bring.  Though, getting devices that work properly on Linux can get interesting at times.  After a little research, I decided to go with the Rosewill RNX-N250 wireless adapter. Fortunately, Newegg was having a "Shell Shocker" deal at the time so I was able to pick them up for $16 each.

When they arrived, I put the CD in the drive and saw drivers for Mac and Windows, but nothing for Linux.  Checking the details on Newegg showed that these devices should work on Linux and that they use the Realtek RTL8192CU chipset.  After some searching around. I was able to find drivers on the Realtech Web Site.

Description	Version	Update Time	File Size	Download
				Site 1	Site 2	Site 3	Site 4	Site 5	Site 6
Linux Kernel 2.6.18~2.6.38 and Kernel 3.0.2 Android 1.6~2.3 and 4.x	3.3.2_3192	2012/1/9	8322k	HK	CN	US2	US3	US1	UK1

The driver only works with Linux Kernel 2.6.18~2.6.38 and Kernel 3.0.2 so you  need to make sure yours is within this range. This can be done in the terminal with the 'uname' command.

$ uname -a

Linux LOGOS 2.6.32-38-generic #83-Ubuntu SMP Wed Jan 4 11:13:04 UTC 2012 i686 GNU/Linux

Once you download the package, you can run the install.sh script and install it. (I had to change permissions on mine).  Once the installation is done, reboot your computer and your wireless adapter should be working.