GL.inet Opal, rtl8192eu, USB WFI

manojpk · December 22, 2023, 4:03am

I have a rtl8192eu USB WIFI Dongle which I am trying to use as a third WIFI for WAN access .
The driver is loaded, but I am not able to get any connectivity.
/: Bus 01.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=dwc2/1p, 480M
|__ Port 1: Dev 2, If 0, Class=Vendor Specific Class, Driver=rtl8xxxu, 480M

The following are the config parameters for the WIFI Device.
config wifi-device ‘radio5’
option type ‘mac80211’
option country ‘US’
option channel ‘auto’
option band ‘2g’
option hwmode ‘11g’
option noscan ‘0’
option netisolate ‘0’
option max_all_num_sta ‘64’
option path ‘platform/17000000.usb/usb1/1-1/1-1:1.0’
option htmode ‘HT40’
option disabled ‘0’
Is there a there any configuration issue? Can you point me to the right driver for rtl8192eu if driver may be the issue?
Thanks

silkweb · December 22, 2023, 2:30pm

Here is a thread about Wi-Fi dongles:

groentjuh · December 22, 2023, 2:48pm

I would like to add to this a Github page:

github.com

morrownr/USB-WiFi/blob/main/home/USB_WiFi_Adapters_that_are_supported_with_Linux_in-kernel_drivers.md

## USB WiFi adapters that are supported with Linux `in-kernel` drivers

USB WiFi adapters that are supported with `in-kernel` drivers are plug-and-play with most desktop distros. Additional work may be required for server distros as the maintainers of server distros seem to think that there are ethernet cables everywhere a user may choose to locate a server. Linux `in-kernel` drivers are preferable over `out-of-kernel` drivers for most users and use cases as problems with locating, installing and maintaining drivers are dramatically reduced allowing for a better experience.

Note: All USB WiFi adapters listed here are single-state (no Windows driver inside), single-function (no Bluetooth support) and use in-kernel drivers (Plug and Play). Buying adapters that meet this criteria greatly increases the probability of a satisfying experience.

-----

Recent changes:

- 2023-10-15 - checked and updated adapter links and prices.
- 2023-09-21 - added Fenvi FU-AX1800 (AXE3000) to mt7921au chipset section. 
- 2023-07-05 - added ALFA AWUS036AXM (AXE3000) to mt7921au chipset section.
- 2023-05-18 - added ALLNET ALL-WA1200AC (AC1200) to mt7612u chipset section.
- 2023-05-17 - updated ALFA AWUS036ACU (AC1200) to rtl8812bu chipset section.
- 2023-04-10 - added BrosTrend AC3L (AC1200) to rtl8812bu chipset section.
- 2023-03-05 - deleted some old adapters that were overpriced.
- 2023-02-15 - added Panda PAU0B (AC600) to the mt7610u chipset section.
- 2023-02-01 - added ALFA AWUS036AXML (AXE3000) to mt7921au chipset section.
- 2023-02-01 - added Netgear A8000 (AXE3000) to mt7921au chipset section.

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This github contains several USB-adapters, which have in-kernel drivers. You are likely to get those to work by installing a kmod and firmware package, given the kernel mentioned is older than those on the GL-iNet device you are using.

I do own a COMFAST CF-953AX, which will do fine on a GL-iNet A1300 with stock OpenWRT 23.05.2 (with ath10k-firmware-qca4019-ct package replaced by ath10k-firmware-qca4019).

manojpk · December 22, 2023, 3:22pm

I am prepared to spend some time compiling the driver for this target device(Opal). What hardware do I need? Can it be done on the router itself (does it have enough resources?) Any step-by-step guidance will be appreciated.
On the OpenWrt distribution, I see the following folders for MIPS
• mt7620
• mt7621
• mt76x8
• rt288x
• rt305x
• rt3883
Which one is compatible with SFT1200?
Thanks

groentjuh · December 22, 2023, 4:12pm

The SFT1200 does not have a stock OpenWRT build. It is a proprietary chipset, so none of those listed.

manojpk · December 24, 2023, 6:04am

Thanks, everyone. I was able to get mt7601u working with OPAL. (Used EDUP MS8551 WIFI Adapter with Antenna).
Now I have a pretty good configuration with OPAL. 2.4G WIFI bridged with LAN1 constituting one subnet, 5G WIFI bridged with LAN2 constituting another subnet, mt7601u (2.4G) serving as WWAN.

glinoob · May 31, 2024, 4:47pm

Beware false hope from that USB-wifi page ... the commits to various drivers seem to make it into OpenWRT kernels at a substantially slower rate than they make it into kernels distributed with desktop versions of Linux.

I previously ran into issues where fixes to mt76 were taking forever to show up in OpenWRT.