How to Fix Activation of Network Connection Failed in Linux

In this post, we are going to illustrate how to fix "Activation of Network Connection Failed" in Linux; therefore, be tuned to catch everything.

Actually, when you happen to see the "Activation of Network Connection Failed" message within Linux, it most of the time simply means that an attempt to connect to a network failed. A message like this indicates that, due to some sort of problem either with the setup or with the hardware, Network Manager was unable to start a network interface. Mostly, these kinds of errors occur because of some fault in the router's configuration or compatibility issues between the system's network interface. 

The network connection could not be activated.

Some of the other possible causes are problems with drivers, incompatible hardware, or deactivated network interfaces.

Fixes for this mistake are detailed in this article.

1. Disable/Enable the Network Connection

This may also be due to intermittent network stack or IP address conflict issues. Sometimes, reconnecting the network to the router will refresh its stack or update its IP or DNS entries. Disabling the network connection and then reconnecting will reset the network settings back to their default.

Open your system Settings and then select Network on the left-hand side.

Flip the switch to the off position to disable the pesky connection.Disable the Internet Connection 

Restart the system. Once you have rebooted, enable the network connection and check if the problem has gone away. 

If it does not, press Alt + F2 to open a Run command box, then type in:editor for nm-connection

Removing everything beneath the network type you were having problem with ex: ethernet, for example). The Link

Close all the network editors then click on the system tray's network icon.

Disable the network and re-enable it again. Take Action from the System Tray to Disable the Network Connection

Restart your computer to see if this problem has gone away.

2. Disable Fast Boot - Dual Boot System

This can be done by turning off Fast Boot in Windows, so that Linux does connect to the network. Since Fast Boot puts some hardware into hibernation mode, like network devices, Linux may not be able to initialize them correctly. Disabling Fast Boot will reset hardware during booting and will correctly configure them with Linux.

Type Control Panel in the search bar, once Windows + S is pressed, and click on Control Panel. Open Windows Control Panel  

Click on Hardware and Sound to open the menu. Boot into the "Hardware and Sound" menu.  

Click Power Options. Find the Power Options in the Control Panel.  

From the left menu, click on Choose what the power buttons do. Control Panel: Choose What the Power Buttons Do

Now, uncheck the box to turn off Fast Startup. If this is grayed out, click the link that says Change Settings that are Currently Unavailable. Flip the switch to turn off fast startup.  

Apply changes, reboot into Linux, and see if this fixes the problem. Reinstalling Linux may work, too.

3. Disable Connect Automatically for the Network

This sometimes means your device constantly tries to connect you to networks that aren't set right or aren't available; hence, the problems. By turning "Connect Automatically" off, these failed attempts will be stopped; thus, you will get to select the network when it is up and running. That means no problems and more control on your part.

• Open Settings on your Linux and click Network.

• Click the gear icon next to the network that is giving you an issue. Click the Gear Icon of the Network

• Uncheck Connect Automatically option and apply your changes. Disable Connect Automatically

• Verify if the issue in the connection is resolved.

4. Change DNS to DNSMASQ for the Network

Your system will be able to handle DNS queries faster by replacing DNSMASQ. DNSMASQ caches recent requests locally and acts like a very basic DNS forwarder and cache for quick resolution of domain names. It avoids issues with slow DNS servers and enhancing response times for the same searches over and over again. The command to run in terminal will be: Open configuration editor for Network Manager by writing sudo gedit /etc/NetworkManager/NetworkManager.conf.

Replace dns with dnsmasq and save the file.

Restart your computer to check if this problem has disappeared.

5. Set Correct Date/Time of Your System

If the system clock is set incorrectly, it may just cause issues with secure connections because SSL certificates rely on correct timestamps for their validity. If the connection problem was actually due to a date/time mismatch, then rectifying it will ensure that the certificates will be checked correctly, and thus the problem will be resolved.

Click the bottom left corner of the screen and select Settings from the pop-up menu. 

On the left side menu, select Date & Time. 

Slide the Off button for Auto-Date and Time.

When the time and date have been updated correctly, the problem should no longer exist. Change the Time and Date

6. Delete Bluetooth Devices in your System's Settings

Any old connected device which interferes can cause problems in establishing a newer connection. Reset the Bluetooth stack by removing those useless devices; it will let your system focus on the newer links without any previous problems. 

Pull out all Bluetooth accessories linked to your computer.

Open Settings, then click on Bluetooth on the left side.

Disable Bluetooth Turn off wireless

To access the Bluetooth Control panel on Linux: Open terminal and type:bluetoothctl.

Wait for the list of Bluetooth devices and then type the following: remove using bluetoothctl Alphabetical order: AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF

First, find your device's ID string from gear icon > Device Name > Network Icon and replace AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF with it.

Test that the problem is fixed by repeating the process on all devices. 

If that doesn't work check where the .crt file is located. if in a folder that has spaces in the name remove the spaces and check to see if the problem still persists.

7. Blacklist Other Communication Devices

Having other communication devices on, like Bluetooth or extra network adapters, interferes with your main network connection. You may clear any potential conflicts by excluding them from the system's network and get the system to connect reliably to the right interface. 

Press the "Sudo lshw -C network" command on Linux terminal.Initialize Network Connections in Linux Terminal

Now you should see all the devices on your network. Look for that unused device, for example, cdc_ether and unplug it. 

To make a new blacklist file, press this command: run "sudo nano gedit /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist-cdc theraphy.conf"Create Record to Block the Offending Connection 

Into the file: blacklist cdc_ether blacklist usbnet, add these lines. The Network Device Should be blocked 

Later on, before restarting your machine, remember to save the file.

Restart and check if the problem is resolved. Note that you should activate the internal 4G device by yourself whenever you need it.

8. Remove Network Drivers from the Blacklist

Because they conflict, some network drivers may be blacklisted that preclude needed drivers from being used. You may need to remove some or all of them in order for the system to load the drivers which allow the proper network interface to work.

To open the /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf file in the Linux terminal, type: sudo gedit. Get the Blacklist File Opened

Open the file and check if there is any driver or module, which is connected to the network on the banned list. Remove bcma and bcmsmac entries from the list if your network card is from Broadcom.  

Restart your computer to check whether this solves the problem.

9. Reinstall Network Manager

This can be due to malfunctioning Network Manager. Reinstallation will delete all the corrupted files and settings and will reset default network management to the system.

To restart the network-manager.service start Linux command prompt and write: sudo systemctl restart. disable Network Configuration

Check if the issue has been resolved.

If not, then force-reload Network Manager using the following command: sudo /etc/init.d/network-manager force-reload.

After typing your password when prompted, you can check if the problem has been solved.

This command will reinstall Network Manager and its Gnome counterpart if the above one didn't work. Remove the Network Manager application.

Check if the problem is solved.

10. Disable Power Management of the Network Card/Driver

Power management can disrupt network stability due to the turning off of the network card for saving power. This is particularly true for laptops. Disabling it, by which the network card is kept on, there will be no dropped connections or failure of activation, hence network stability is ensured.

•  Open the Linux terminal and run the following commands one by one:sudo apt-get install linux-headers-generic build-essential dkms sudo apt-get install git git clone https://github.com/pvaret/rtl8192cu-fixes.git sudo dkms add ./rtl8192cu-fixes sudo dkms install 8192cu/1.11 sudo depmod -a sudo cp ./rtl8192cu-fixes/blacklist-native-rtl8192.conf /etc/modprobe.d/

•  Now reboot the system and check whether the issue is resolved or not.

11. Disable Hardware Encryption by Network Device

Connection failures sometimes occur due to the faulty hardware encryption of the network devices. In cases that involve driver or firmware limitations, these need to be turned off to allow software to handle encryption. 

Run this from the Linux main menu: run "options rt2800pci nohwcrypt=y" - This command disables hardware encryption for the network device.

Then, run the following in the terminal:running "sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/rt2800pci.conf" from the terminal Execute the following command: sudo modprobe -rfv rt2800pci run "modprobe -v rt2800pci" ran sed -i's/3/2/' /etc/NetworkManager/conf.d/* on the command line 

Restart your computer to see if this fixed the problem.

12. Update the Kernel of Your Linux Distro to the Latest Build

Do upgrade your Linux kernel for bug fixes, improved performance, or hardware incompatibility, as several network problems are caused because of this. An upgraded kernel might contain fixes for driver issues or problems with the network stack. However, you need to insert this command in the Linux terminal: sudo apt-get upgrade linux-image-genericRevise the Core Software of Linux 

Restarting your computer may resolve the problem in your connection. 

13. Upgrade Your Linux Variant to the Latest Build

The latest kernel, drivers, and network tools can be obtained from an updated version of Linux to iron out the bugs and incompatibilities. If you are experiencing issues related to outdated drivers, incompatible hardware, or incorrect configuration settings, try upgrading to the latest version. You can do this by running the command "sudo apt-get upgrade" in the Linux terminal. Ubuntu Upgrade

You will then be presented with a list of available updates after you have entered your user account password.

Next, confirm the update by pressing y and then Enter.

The problem should now be resolved once the update is complete.

Only in the worst case, try to reinstall your Linux distribution. Try updating the system BIOS, WICD network manager, and iwconfig first. You may also want to try disabling TCP or using IPV6 Link-Local. 

That is all about How to Fix Activation of Network Connection Failed in Linux, so let's hope we were as helpful as possible.