Does the Ralink Technology RT2500 Wireless 802.11bg work on Linux?
Supported. Kernel ID match for
rt2500pci — Linux 3.0 or earlier. Driver-family firmware is listed in linux-firmware. Install the appropriate distribution firmware package.Technical details
| Device category | Wi-Fi adapter |
|---|---|
| Bus | PCIe |
| Device IDs | 1814:0201 |
| Kernel driver | rt2500pci |
| In kernel since | Linux 3.0 or earlier |
Firmware requirement
Driver-family firmware is listed in linux-firmware. Install the appropriate distribution firmware package. This is a driver-family list, not a per-device requirement. Optional features and other chips may use different files. Presence is checked against linux-firmware WHENCE File and Link records, including patterns.
| Firmware | Manifest check |
|---|---|
rt2561.bin | Listed in WHENCE |
rt2561s.bin | Listed in WHENCE |
rt2661.bin | Listed in WHENCE |
rt2860.bin | Listed in WHENCE |
rt2870.bin | Listed in WHENCE |
rt73.bin | Listed in WHENCE |
Firmware packaging varies by distribution; consult Debian firmware guidance or Arch network setup guidance. A missing manifest entry does not mean the device is unsupported.
Which distros work?
| Distro | Kernel | Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| Arch Linux | ✅ 7.2 | Kernel ID match available; install the appropriate distro firmware package |
| Fedora 44 | ✅ 7.2 | Kernel ID match available; install the appropriate distro firmware package |
| Fedora 43 | ✅ 7.2 | Kernel ID match available; install the appropriate distro firmware package |
| openSUSE Tumbleweed | ✅ 7.2 | Kernel ID match available; install the appropriate distro firmware package |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | ✅ 7.0 | Kernel ID match available; install the appropriate distro firmware package |
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | ✅ 6.8 | Kernel ID match available; install the appropriate distro firmware package |
| Ubuntu 22.04 LTS | ✅ 5.15 | Kernel ID match available; install the appropriate distro firmware package |
| Debian 13 | ✅ 6.12 | Kernel ID match available; install the appropriate distro firmware package |
| Debian 12 | ✅ 6.1 | Kernel ID match available; install the appropriate distro firmware package |
Is this my device?
Run lspci -nn and look for 1814:0201. Paste IDs into the home lookup.
Sources
- drivers/net/wireless/ralink/rt2x00/rt2500pci.c
- drivers/net/wireless/ralink/rt2x00/rt2800pci.c
- drivers/net/wireless/ralink/rt2x00/rt2800usb.c
- drivers/net/wireless/ralink/rt2x00/rt61pci.c
- drivers/net/wireless/ralink/rt2x00/rt73usb.c
Listed ID matches are not hands-on tests of speed, Bluetooth version, or every device feature. See how this works and more Wi-Fi adapters.