b43-fwcutter ☆

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Description:
Extract firmware from Braodcom 43xx driver files

Type: Formula | Latest Version: 019@0 | Tracked Since: Dec 17, 2025

Links: Homepage | formulae.brew.sh

Category: System utilities

Tags: firmware wireless broadcom drivers linux

Install: brew install b43-fwcutter

About:
b43-fwcutter is a specialized utility designed to extract proprietary firmware files from Broadcom driver packages. This tool is essential for enabling wireless functionality on Linux systems using Broadcom 43xx chipsets, as these devices require external firmware to operate. It allows users to legally extract and install the necessary firmware blobs without relying on proprietary drivers.

Key Features:

Extracts firmware from proprietary Broadcom driver archives
Supports multiple Broadcom chipset generations
Simple command-line interface for easy integration
Generates standard kernel firmware files

Use Cases:

Enabling Wi-Fi on Linux laptops with Broadcom 43xx chipsets
Extracting firmware for custom embedded Linux systems
Troubleshooting wireless driver issues on Linux

Alternatives:

broadcom-wl – Proprietary driver package that includes firmware; b43-fwcutter provides extraction only
ndiswrapper – Windows driver wrapper for Linux; b43-fwcutter is native firmware extraction tool

License: BSD-2-Clause

Bottles available for: arm64_tahoe, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_ventura, arm64_monterey, arm64_big_sur, sonoma, ventura, monterey, big_sur, catalina, arm64_linux, x86_64_linux

Version History

Detected	Version	Rev	Change	Commit
Sep 13, 2025 1:43pm		0	VERSION_BUMP	3566b377