I took out a my Intel dual band Wireless AC 7260 card model number 7260HMW from another laptop. I wanted to install it in my thinkpad. Upon doing so and rebooting, the computer said unauthorized wifi card and I need to remove it. I read that Lenovo does this to force the use of IBM wifi cards. I am currently running Ubunut 14.04 and I know it has native support for this card whereas 13 did not. Is there a way to get around bios reading the wifi card?
2 Answers
Not unless you're willing to replace the BIOS. IBMs are usually considered "corporate" machines and this restriction is a "feature" so that you as a user can not install an unsecured or untested Wi-Fi card and bring down your corporate network.
Even in the "home" space, it is still considered a "security feature". This is a design decision by IBM and there's not going to be a good way around it. Your best bet is to replace the computer or buy a supported Wi-Fi card.
Also, keep in mind that some platforms (There is an Intel-based one that I can't remember at the moment) are based on CPU, Wi-Fi, and GPU all working together in unison to achieve "better" battery life v.s. performance. If your system is using a platform like this it may not be able to run a Wi-Fi card that does not conform.
You have to modify your BIOS or the ID of your card. See the Problem with unauthorized MiniPCI network card article on the ThinkWiki for details.
answered Apr 1, 2015 at 15:03
