Recommended WiFi Dongles

[Vespa]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0886DXQBX/

I ordered this one awhile back and since the update to the main Linux, I am able to use it with no issues.

I think most of the dongles with a Realtek RTL8821CU chipset should work with the latest update.

Seconding this recommendation. Works like a dream.

Thank you for quoting this! Hmm not sure why mine isn't working

[Sigismond0]

I also have the one just linked.

It works for both Wi-Fi and BT. However, the Wi-Fi transfer is always slow, maxing out at around 4MB/s but usually running slower. Have been wondering if anyone ever sees faster Wi-Fi file xfer speeds with MiSTer?

Mister Addons did a shootout of read/write speeds. These black/green modules come it at ~13/7.5 MBps R/W. Not as good as some of the higher performing standalone modules, but performs well enough compared to a lot of the ones tested. A performance hit I'm willing to take for the convenience, but might not be ideal if you're using CIFS/SMB.

https://misteraddons.com/blogs/news/mis ... d-shootout

Thank you for quoting this! Hmm not sure why mine isn't working

Hard to say. Given the already cheap price ($15) from a reputable source, it might just be a case of getting a bad one from Ali.

[pepito]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0886DXQBX/

I ordered this one awhile back and since the update to the main Linux, I am able to use it with no issues.

I think most of the dongles with a Realtek RTL8821CU chipset should work with the latest update.

Seconding this recommendation. Works like a dream.

Thank you for quoting this! Hmm not sure why mine isn't working

mine is working but only 1 time per 10!
Boring...
I'm using the Ethernet wireline now..

[Vespa]

Hard to say. Given the already cheap price ($15) from a reputable source, it might just be a case of getting a bad one from Ali.

It's strange that it works on a Win10 PC, oh well, only bought it to save a USB slot.

[Sarge]

I seem to be running into an issue getting WiFi working on mine as well. I ordered the "Ovker" Bluetooth+WiFi one on Amazon, and Windows identifies it as a RTL8821CU as others have gotten working here. Using a USB 2.1 hub (just installed) but only the stock power supply. However, I've only got the dongle hooked up right now, and Bluetooth seems to work with a Wii U Pro Controller. The wifi.sh script fails on "Failed to bring up wlan0". I think I've edited the configuration file correctly with my SSID and password (and changed the country code to US). Is there anything else I'm missing?

EDIT: Never mind, I'm dumb. Need to rename "_wpa_supplicant.conf" to "wpa_supplicant.conf" and make sure SSID and password in quotes and not apostrophes (from a previous attempt to get it running). Looks like I'm rolling now.

EDIT 2: So can a Series X controller pair properly with this dongle? It seems to pair up according to the script, but the controller doesn't respond, continuing to flash it's light instead as if it hadn't paired.

[MaxPlaysMiSTer]

EDIT: Never mind, I'm dumb. Need to rename "_wpa_supplicant.conf" to "wpa_supplicant.conf" and make sure SSID and password in quotes and not apostrophes (from a previous attempt to get it running). Looks like I'm rolling now.

Ugh I was totally making this same mistake. Thank you for editing your post!

[nothing]

which are the recommended combined bluetooth and wifi dongles? ie 2 in 1 dongles

This one works: https://aliexpress.com/item/1005003037645459.html

I just bought this and the wifi part of this doesn't work on Mister (okay on Win10 PC), it's using a Realtek 8821CU according to the hardware ID. Can anyone confirm the Realtek chip in their 2 in 1? thanks

Same thing is happening to me -> viewtopic.php?t=4776

Did you ever solve it?

[ghorricks]

I know people have quoted getting certain speeds from their WiFi, but I am not sure how they are measuring this.
If there is something built in that I can run to report the speed, this will help me with selection of the best WiFi AP and positioning of the Mister or WiFi dongle on an extension in/on my Arcade cabinet.

[Blade Runner]

Is it recommended to use a separate WiFi adapter and Bluetooth
Or is a 2 in 1 adapter ok to use without any drawbacks?

[rhester72]

No issues here with a 2-in-1...does what it says on the tin.

[Vespa]

This one works: https://aliexpress.com/item/1005003037645459.html

I just bought this and the wifi part of this doesn't work on Mister (okay on Win10 PC), it's using a Realtek 8821CU according to the hardware ID. Can anyone confirm the Realtek chip in their 2 in 1? thanks

Same thing is happening to me -> viewtopic.php?t=4776

Did you ever solve it?

Sorry for the late reply, I never did, went back to using two dongles, didn't feel like rolling the dice on another 2 in 1

[BackDrift]

I seem to be running into an issue getting WiFi working on mine as well. I ordered the "Ovker" Bluetooth+WiFi one on Amazon, and Windows identifies it as a RTL8821CU as others have gotten working here. Using a USB 2.1 hub (just installed) but only the stock power supply. However, I've only got the dongle hooked up right now, and Bluetooth seems to work with a Wii U Pro Controller. The wifi.sh script fails on "Failed to bring up wlan0". I think I've edited the configuration file correctly with my SSID and password (and changed the country code to US). Is there anything else I'm missing?

EDIT: Never mind, I'm dumb. Need to rename "_wpa_supplicant.conf" to "wpa_supplicant.conf" and make sure SSID and password in quotes and not apostrophes (from a previous attempt to get it running). Looks like I'm rolling now.

EDIT 2: So can a Series X controller pair properly with this dongle? It seems to pair up according to the script, but the controller doesn't respond, continuing to flash it's light instead as if it hadn't paired.

Hmm did the wifi script ever work after you changed wpa_supplicant.conf? I also am getting the "Failed to bring up wlan0" message I changed the wpa_supplicant.conf correctly but no luck.

[NineX]

Most cheap dongles based on realtek suffer by driver quality I fixed problem with mine by replacing realtek driver in mister.

https://github.com/MiSTer-devel/Linux-K ... /issues/39 <- see instructions i posted compiled module for mister.

[Missus]

In case this helps anyone, I am using this USB WiFi/BT module without a single functional issue:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07YDFZWT8

It affords both radios in a small form factor and only uses a single USB port.

With regard to speed, it's hard to say what throughput is possible and there are many variables between everyones RF environment and their WiFi network/gear.

Having WiFi is just a bonus that allows me to utilize basic network access without wiring up to my ethernet network when that is not convenient.

When doing large data transfers or when feeling the 'need for speed', I just hook up ethernet.

One option for those who want the absolute fastest speeds over wireless would be to opt for an ethernet to WiFi bridge with the best radio support for your network infrastructure.

[NineX]

New set of updated Realtek Drivers for wifi USB dongles
https://github.com/MiSTer-devel/Linux-K ... er/pull/42
Binary package in comments.
Enjoy xD

[BackDrift]

Most cheap dongles based on realtek suffer by driver quality I fixed problem with mine by replacing realtek driver in mister.

https://github.com/MiSTer-devel/Linux-K ... /issues/39 <- see instructions i posted compiled module for mister.

What dongle where you using and can I get this fix by using the update scrips?

[NineX]

What dongle where you using and can I get this fix by using the update scrips?

Code: Select all

RTL8812au:
ID 0BDA:8812
ID 0BDA:881A
ID 0BDA:881B
ID 0BDA:881C
ID 050D:1106
ID 7392:A822
ID 7392:B822
ID 0DF6:0074
ID 04BB:0952
ID 0789:016E
ID 0409:0408
ID 0B05:17D2
ID 0E66:0022
ID 0586:3426
ID 2001:3313
ID 1058:0632
ID 1740:0100
ID 2019:AB30
ID 07B8:8812
ID 0846:9051
ID 2001:330E
ID 2001:3313
ID 2001:3315
ID 2001:3316
ID 13B1:003F
ID 2357:0101
ID 2357:0103
ID 2357:010D
ID 2357:010E
ID 2357:010F
ID 2357:0122
ID 20F4:805B
ID 0411:025D
ID 050D:1109
ID 148F:9097
ID 2604:0012


RTL8821au:
ID 0BDA:0811
ID 0BDA:0821
ID 0BDA:8822
ID 0BDA:A811
ID 0BDA:0820
ID 0BDA:0823
ID 7392:A811
ID 7392:A812
ID 7392:A813
ID 7392:B611
ID 04BB:0953
ID 2001:3314
ID 2001:3318
ID 0E66:0023
ID 056E:400E
ID 056E:400F
ID 0411:0242
ID 2019:AB32
ID 0846:9052
ID 0411:029B
ID 056E:4007
ID 3823:6249
ID 2357:011E
ID 2357:0120
ID 2357:011F
ID 20f4:804b

RTL8821cu:
ID 0BDA:B82B
ID 0BDA:b820
ID 0BDA:C821
ID 0BDA:C820
ID 0BDA:C82A
ID 0BDA:C82B
ID 0BDA:C82C
ID 0BDA:C811
ID 0BDA:8811
ID 0BDA:2006
ID 0BDA:8731
ID 0BDA:C80C
ID 2001:331d
ID 7392:C811
ID 7392:D811

RTL88x2bu:
ID 0BDA:B82C
ID 0BDA:B812
ID 0BDA:B81A
ID 7392:B822
ID 7392:C822
ID 7392:D822
ID 7392:E822
ID 7392:F822
ID 13b1:0043
ID 2357:012D
ID 2357:0138
ID 2357:0115
ID 2357:012E
ID 2357:0116
ID 2357:0117
ID 0846:9055
ID 0b05:1841
ID 0B05:184C
ID 0B05:19AA
ID 0B05:1870
ID 0B05:1874
ID 2001:331E
ID 2001:331C
ID 2001:331F
ID 20F4:808A
ID 13B1:0045
ID 04CA:8602
ID 0E66:0025
ID 13B1:0043
ID 0BDA:2102

[Shuffle7]

my wifi dongle no longer works after changing the router password. it just says unable to connect every time. so frustrating. used the script above, deleted wifi from scripts and used update all and it reinstalls but still no luck.

[NineX]

my wifi dongle no longer works after changing the router password. it just says unable to connect every time. so frustrating. used the script above, deleted wifi from scripts and used update all and it reinstalls but still no luck.

1) what kind of dongle you have?
lsusb output please
2)
you can manually edit /media/fat/linux/wpa_supplicant.conf to make sure your wifi password is right , or invoke
wpa_passphrase YOURSSID yourwifipass > /media/fat/linux/wpa_supplicant.conf
then
execute sync
then reboot

also after that operation please double check /media/fat/linux/wpa_supplicant.conf contents.
it should looks like that:
network={
ssid="ssid"
#psk="password"
psk=44116ea881531996d8a23af58b376d70f196057429c258f529577a26e727ec1b
}
where ssid is your wifi name #psk is password yopu supplied ,psk is yoourpassword encoded

[Shuffle7]

download.jpg

Thanks NineX !
Took the sd card from mister, loaded onto my pc, then i edited wpa_supplicant.conf with notepad. included the router name and password where you mentioned. Saved. put the micro sd card back in the mister. Went to scripts and selected wifi, but still asking for password which doesn't work.

[NineX]

Thanks NineX !
Took the sd card from mister, loaded onto my pc, then i edited wpa_supplicant.conf with notepad. included the router name and password where you mentioned. Saved. put the micro sd card back in the mister. Went to scripts and selected wifi, but still asking for password which doesn't work.

1) picture of dongle not help, connect your mister to ethernet ssh to it , and run lsusb ,then copy output please, multiple wireless chips may exist in same package
2) after if you editing wpa_supplicant.conf by hand , then you should not need to run wifi script it should autoconnect
however as you are doing it on windows/mac
then
network={
ssid="yourssid"
psk="yourpass"
}

for more investigation , or keep your mister hook trough ethernet , or connect to it via usb then find which com port it got assigned and use putty terminal to attach to port then login as root and execute:

lsusb
iwconfig
ifconfig

[Shuffle7]

Hi NineX really appreciate your help

this is my config file
ctrl_interface=/run/wpa_supplicant
update_config=1
country=UK

network={
ssid="router"
psk="password"
}

and i ran lsub and iwconfig - please see screenshot

really appreciate your help

[NineX]

ok , so 2 things.
1) lsmod - need to know which driver is attached to your dongle , because it seems its not one i updated , so maybe i need extend list to update that one too
EDIT it looks like it uses 8188EU driver which is outdated.

2)
please execute:
cat /tmp/messages | grep wpa

EDIT: i'll try to backport driver.
if you already installed patch i provided , please uninstall it for now.
i will provide new bundle of drivers when those will be ready.

[NineX]

Bad news , your dongle will probably not work ,as 8188 driver are woring with max 5.10 kernel...
and i didn't found one that may compile with 5.15 kernel

[Shuffle7]

Thanks Ninex - excuse me for being a bit dumb, but is that because the dongle is obsolete now, what does 5.10 kernel mean? Maybe i should buy a new one any recommendations

[NineX]

i am using TP-link archer t2u nano

[NineX]

Thanks Ninex - excuse me for being a bit dumb, but is that because the dongle is obsolete now, what does 5.10 kernel mean? Maybe i should buy a new one any recommendations

kernel is core of the operating system, its being actively developed, so it has versions. mister actually uses kernel version 5.15.
challenge here is that realtek have long tradition of creating drivers for they devices then dump it to community.
as linux kernel evolves , its structure/functions may change ,so old driver without propper maintainer may become obsolete.
last driver i found on github , was abandoned, developer point it will work with max 5.10 version of kernel.

drivers that i updated recently in mister ,have strong userbase ,so someone actively keeps them compatible even with 6.0 kernel...
in post above i pointed one of dongles that actually is in the ist of known to work dongles, and actually utilize drivers i updated.

[Shuffle7]

got this to work finally, i bought a new dongle in the end but the old one i thought had stopped working now works. In the linux folder I had _wpa_supplicant.conf AND wpa_supplicant.conf (one without underscore). I deleted the file with the underscore at the start. And in it changed country code to GB and input the router name and password. Not sure which one or if both did the trick but voila!

ctrl_interface=/run/wpa_supplicant
update_config=1
country=GB

network={
ssid="router"
psk="password"
}

thanks for your help NineX

[Sarge]

Hmm did the wifi script ever work after you changed wpa_supplicant.conf? I also am getting the "Failed to bring up wlan0" message I changed the wpa_supplicant.conf correctly but no luck.

Sorry I missed your post, yes, I managed to get it all working correctly.

[NineX]

https://github.com/MiSTer-devel/Linux-K ... 042023.zip
another patch to Realtek rtl88x2bu/rtl8812au/rtl8821au/rtl8821cu based WiFi Dongle
if anyone had previous patch installed please delete /root/RTL_BACKUP
Have Fun xD