Realtek 8192ee on Debian Jessie

[karuvally]

Hi,
I have a ThinkPad-L440 with Realtek 8192ee wireless card (They call it ThinkPad wireless)
After installing, I could not connect to the router, and the dmesg output read:

Code: Select all

[   11.883642] rtl8192ee 0000:02:00.0: firmware: failed to load rtlwifi/rtl8192eefw.bin (-2)
[   11.883684] rtl8192ee 0000:02:00.0: Direct firmware load failed with error -2

A quick search on the internet lead me here https://wiki.debian.org/rtl819x#r8192ee,
I promptly install firmware-realtek package, but to absolutely no effect. During next boot, the same error pops up again...

I then removed the firmware-realtek package and installed the backports-drivers https://backports.wiki.kernel.org
Now the wireless card gets detected and I can connect to the router, but sometimes, the connection fails and the following shows up in dmesg

Code: Select all

[ 2275.327157] IPv6: ADDRCONF(NETDEV_UP): wlan1: link is not ready
[ 2276.314512] wlan1: authenticate with b8:a3:86:87:83:aa
[ 2276.331484] wlan1: send auth to b8:a3:86:87:83:aa (try 1/3)
[ 2276.435435] wlan1: send auth to b8:a3:86:87:83:aa (try 2/3)
[ 2276.539516] wlan1: send auth to b8:a3:86:87:83:aa (try 3/3)
[ 2276.643593] wlan1: authentication with b8:a3:86:87:83:aa timed out
[ 2277.724631] wlan1: authenticate with b8:a3:86:87:83:aa
[ 2277.758033] wlan1: send auth to b8:a3:86:87:83:aa (try 1/3)
[ 2279.229247] wlan1: send auth to b8:a3:86:87:83:aa (try 2/3)
[ 2280.205782] wlan1: send auth to b8:a3:86:87:83:aa (try 3/3)
[ 2280.309861] wlan1: authentication with b8:a3:86:87:83:aa timed out

I am tired and worn out
I know that Realtek chipsets are known to have problems in Linux, but I do not want to go back to Windows.

[stevepusser]

The most common fix for dropouts is to disable the power management:

su -c 'iwconfig wlan0 power off'

There's no doubt a config file for that driver that setting can be added to, someplace...

Code: Select all

# modinfo rtl8192ee

filename:       /lib/modules/4.0-1.dmz.3-liquorix-amd64/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/rtlwifi/rtl8192ee/rtl8192ee.ko
firmware:       rtlwifi/rtl8192eefw.bin
description:    Realtek 8192EE 802.11n PCI wireless
license:        GPL
author:         Larry Finger    <Larry.Finger@lwfinger.net>
author:         Realtek WlanFAE <wlanfae@realtek.com>
alias:          pci:v000010ECd0000818Bsv*sd*bc*sc*i*
depends:        rtlwifi,rtl_pci,btcoexist,mac80211
intree:         Y
vermagic:       4.0-1.dmz.3-liquorix-amd64 SMP preempt mod_unload modversions 
parm:           swenc:Set to 1 for software crypto (default 0)
 (bool)
parm:           ips:Set to 0 to not use link power save (default 1)
 (bool)
parm:           swlps:Set to 1 to use SW control power save (default 0)
 (bool)
parm:           fwlps:Set to 1 to use FW control power save (default 1)
 (bool)
parm:           msi:Set to 1 to use MSI interrupts mode (default 1)
 (bool)
parm:           debug:Set debug level (0-5) (default 0) (int)
parm:           disable_watchdog:Set to 1 to disable the watchdog (default 0)
 (bool)

So there's some parms (parameters) to fiddle around with.

You could also try manually removing that kernel module and reloading it to see if that gets it back up and running.

The Jessie firmware is missing that file, as you have found, but the Siduction 0.43.3 or the MEPIS 12 CR version ported from it both contain it and are safe to install on any Debian release, if you want to try the 3.16 kernel version.

[karuvally]

Thanks friend,
I tried to use iwconfig with the backports drivers, then I found out that, the hardware was not properly getting identified as wireless card.
Then I uninstalled backports, installed the firmware-realtek from siduction, and the hardware is working now, and is less buggy.

The connection still drops now and then, but fortunately, most of the time, it gets reconnected.
I cannot set the power option as it is not supported. When I do 'iwconfig wlan1', I get the following result

Code: Select all

wlan1     IEEE 802.11bgn  ESSID:"Karuvally"  
          Mode:Managed  Frequency:2.462 GHz  Access Point: B8:A3:86:87:83:AA   
          Bit Rate=1 Mb/s   Tx-Power=20 dBm   
          Retry short limit:7   RTS thr=2347 B   Fragment thr:off
          Encryption key:off
          Power Management:off
          Link Quality=62/70  Signal level=-48 dBm  
          Rx invalid nwid:0  Rx invalid crypt:0  Rx invalid frag:0
          Tx excessive retries:0  Invalid misc:93   Missed beacon:0

So I guess Power Management is off.
I do all my development in Linux, and cannot leave this fun platform.
Its sad that computer companies are not serious about Linux

[v&n]

With many realtek drivers, which have 'ips' and 'fwlps' set to 'enabled' (1) by default, disabling them by setting their value to '0' (or 'N' if parameter accepts 'boolean' values) quite often resolves the disconnection issue. As such, please try this -

Code: Select all

sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/rtl8192ee.conf <<< "options rtl8192ee ips=N fwlps=N"

Then either reboot or simply reload the driver with -

Code: Select all

sudo modprobe -rv rtl8192ee
sudo modprobe -v rtl8192ee

If it doesn't seem to help, you can reset the parameters to defaults by removing the conf file created above -

Code: Select all

sudo rm /etc/modprobe.d/rtl8192ee.conf

..followed by a driver reload (or reboot).

Please try and let us know if it worked for you too.

[karuvally]

Hi, I am a person owning the ill famed Realtek 8192ee wireless card. It is not working fine, but I am not here to talk about my misfortune.
I want people, who use this card to share their experience using it under Debian or Linux in general.
Please tell others how you solved the problems with the card or is still going through the misery.
Moderators, please don't delete this post, because there is no reliable information on the internet regarding this card under Linux,
the pages that do exist are either outdated or are not detailed. This is my humble attempt to solve the problem.
Come on people, this is the time to show your spirit

[fireExit]

It is already supported in sid with firmware-realtek (0.44)

firmware-nonfree (0.44) unstable; urgency=medium

[ Raphaël Hertzog ]
* Switch to linux-support-3.16.0-4.

[ Sophie Brun ]
* iwlwifi: Add Intel Wireless 3160, 7260 7265 and 7265D firmware version
23.11.10.0 (ABI 10)
* iwlwifi: Update Intel Wireless 3160, 7260 and 7265 firmware to version
25.228.9.0 (ABI 9)
* realtek: Add RTL8192EE, RTL8723AU rev A with-Bluetooth and RTL8821AE
WoWLAN firmware for use with the rtl8192ee, r8723au and rtl8821ae drivers

This usually means that later on the development cycle this support will be added to Jessie through jessie-bpo.

[karuvally]

Hello there,
I try to did what you told me. But there is no module named rtl8192ee in my system, it is r8192ee
I tried writing the settings to '/etc/modprobe.d/r8192ee.conf', but after reloading the module, my card could not connect to AP,
But when it did connect, it failed within minutes. This is a very frequent problem that I have to face these days.
I don't think the setting you gave me worsened the effect. If others can use this device reliably,
I suspect something is wrong with my networking hardware.
Let me replace my router, I will post the results then.
I am typing these words from Windows, as Linux no longer connects to the AP.

[karuvally]

Yes, making it working on debian is possible, but the point is that, the driver is incredibly buggy.
I was just asking people, who own the device, what they have done to get rid of the disconnections...
Or just share with the world, what they are going through...

[dasein]

DO NOT DOUBLE POST: http://forums.debian.net/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=10653

[stevepusser]

Apparently the Jessie 3.16 kernel driver is "r8192ee", and it's a staging (known bugs) driver. The latest kernels have a renamed driver that's moved out of staging.

/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/rtlwifi/rtl8192ee/rtl8192ee.ko

Perhaps the combination of the 4.0 Liquorix kernel and the firmware from Sid will get it working better, though I would have thought the backports drivers would have provided the same driver.

[karuvally]

Today, I tried searching "realtek 8192ee arch" and found this http://damienfirmenich.com/2015/04/12/t ... 191ee.html,
the article points to the new rtlwifi repo at https://github.com/lwfinger/rtlwifi_new
Installed the driver from the repo and things are a bit better now.

For some strange reason, the r8192ee module gets loaded during boot time, though I had uninstalled "firmware-realtek" package
The module which comes from the repo is "rtl8192ee" and not "r8192ee"
So I did an

Code: Select all

rmmod r8192ee

And did

Code: Select all

modprobe rtl8192ee

This repo has the latest drivers for the device, more upto date than backports.
My router is an ancient one, so I am replacing it this week hoping to see better results...
So if you are running any Linux distribution and have r8192ee, the above repo is your best bet.

[v&n]

Removing firmware doesn't prevent a driver from loading, it only won't work after loading if the firmware is removed.

So I did an

Code: Select all

rmmod r8192ee

And did

Code: Select all

modprobe rtl8192ee

Instead of manually removing the offending driver every time you boot, you can simply blacklist it so it doesn't load at all -

Code: Select all

su
echo "blacklist r8192ee" >> /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf
exit

This is also the recommended method to prevent a driver from loading at boot time.

And if you also need to manually load the correct driver rtl8192ee every time even after blacklisting the offending one, check the blacklist file to make sure the correct one is not blacklisted -

Code: Select all

grep 8192 /etc/modprobe.d/*

If it doesn't seem to be blacklisted in any of the blacklisting files, try running 'depmod' after loading it -

Code: Select all

sudo depmod -a

..followed by a reboot and see if the module loaded this time -

Code: Select all

lsmod | grep 8192

If not, then as a last resort, you can force it to load by adding it to the /etc/rc.local file -

Code: Select all

sudo sed -i '/^exit 0/ i modprobe rtl8192ee' /etc/rc.local

The above code will insert a line "modprobe rtl8192ee" just above the last line which should always be "exit 0" in the rc.local file.

[stevepusser]

Debian removes nonfree firmware blobs from inkernel drivers and makes them available in the firmware packages. The vendor or a modified vendor source package, such the git repo version you reference, will install the firmware along with the drivers--and will do the same when integrated into the kernel build. It's just Debian that takes the extra step to strip the blobs.

[karuvally]

I took some ethernet patch cable I was using a while back, connected it to my current router and laptop.
I am not getting mobility, that's right. But the whole experience is far better than using my Wi-Fi
I will be keeping tab of the driver development, and will switch to it, once it becomes stable.