Supported Wi-Fi Dongles - TP-Link Don't Work

Product support
1

Hello! I had seen the TP-Link WN725N on the list of supported wifi dongles here, however, when I attempt to use one on a Raspberry Pi CM4 module, I get a kernel error:

This is with balenaOS 2.71.3+rev5 and supervisor 12.3.5

[  128.079179] usb 1-1.2: new high-speed USB device number 3 using dwc2
[  128.284081] usb 1-1.2: New USB device found, idVendor=0bda, idProduct=8179, bcdDevice= 0.00
[  128.292623] usb 1-1.2: New USB device strings: Mfr=1, Product=2, SerialNumber=3
[  128.300100] usb 1-1.2: Product: 802.11n NIC
[  128.304393] usb 1-1.2: Manufacturer: Realtek
[  128.308770] usb 1-1.2: SerialNumber: 00E04C0001
[  128.420976] cfg80211: Loading compiled-in X.509 certificates for regulatory database
[  128.443528] cfg80211: Loaded X.509 cert 'sforshee: 00b28ddf47aef9cea7'
[  128.455193] lib80211: common routines for IEEE802.11 drivers
[  128.461067] lib80211_crypt: registered algorithm 'NULL'
[  128.496255] r8188eu: module is from the staging directory, the quality is unknown, you have been warned.
[  128.517192] Chip Version Info: CHIP_8188E_Normal_Chip_TSMC_D_CUT_1T1R_RomVer(0)
[  128.558238] usbcore: registered new interface driver r8188eu
[  128.621010] r8188eu 1-1.2:1.0: Direct firmware load for rtlwifi/rtl8188eufw.bin failed with error -2
[  128.630369] r8188eu 1-1.2:1.0: Firmware rtlwifi/rtl8188eufw.bin not available
[  128.638822] MAC Address = 98:48:27:e1:7f:12
[  128.673816] R8188EU: indicate disassoc
[  128.673843] usb 1-1.2: USB disconnect, device number 3
2

I also tried the TP Link AC600 which is listed on the supported page and while I see it in dmesg without errors, it still doesn’t appear as a usable interface to network manager:

[ 1343.981569] usb 1-1.2: new high-speed USB device number 4 using dwc2
[ 1344.187498] usb 1-1.2: New USB device found, idVendor=7392, idProduct=7811, bcdDevice= 2.00
[ 1344.196442] usb 1-1.2: New USB device strings: Mfr=1, Product=2, SerialNumber=3
[ 1344.203913] usb 1-1.2: Product: 802.11n WLAN Adapter
[ 1344.208992] usb 1-1.2: Manufacturer: Realtek
[ 1344.213361] usb 1-1.2: SerialNumber: 00e04c000001

root@fde418a:/mnt/boot/system-connections# nmcli device wifi list
root@fde418a:/mnt/boot/system-connections#
3

Well that is odd, I used the WN725N on a balena device just today! My initial suspicion is the driver is not included in the CM4 builds, as we’d likely expect folks to use the variant of the CM4 that has the onboard, soldered down WiFi module…but I happen to know you use a nice carrier board for your :frog:

Let me check with the Devices team and get back to you on this one @keenanjohnson . :slight_smile:

5

Haha yeah this is a variant of the CM4 that doesn’t have onboard wifi. (The version with Wifi is basically impossible to buy right now due to the electronics shortages).

Thanks for looking into it @dtischler!

6

I’ve tried a few other wifi adapters and the same behavior. I’m not an expert, but it looks like kernel support for wi-fi adapters just isn’t included in the cm4 images?

[257783.874812] usb 1-1.2: new high-speed USB device number 7 using dwc2
[257784.100725] usb 1-1.2: New USB device found, idVendor=148f, idProduct=5370, bcdDevice= 1.01
[257784.109375] usb 1-1.2: New USB device strings: Mfr=1, Product=2, SerialNumber=3
[257784.116902] usb 1-1.2: Product: 802.11 n WLAN
[257784.121424] usb 1-1.2: Manufacturer: Ralink
[257784.125769] usb 1-1.2: SerialNumber: 1.0
[257784.310807] usb 1-1.2: reset high-speed USB device number 7 using dwc2
[257784.529694] ieee80211 phy1: rt2x00_set_rt: Info - RT chipset 5390, rev 0502 detected
[257784.566047] ieee80211 phy1: rt2x00_set_rf: Info - RF chipset 5370 detected
[257784.573454] ieee80211 phy1: Selected rate control algorithm 'minstrel_ht'
[257784.620134] ieee80211 phy1: rt2x00lib_request_firmware: Info - Loading firmware file 'rt2870.bin'
[257784.629425] rt2800usb 1-1.2:1.0: Direct firmware load for rt2870.bin failed with error -2
[257784.638158] ieee80211 phy1: rt2x00lib_request_firmware: Error - Failed to request Firmware
[257784.648576] ieee80211 phy1: rt2x00lib_request_firmware: Info - Loading firmware file 'rt2870.bin'
[257784.657748] rt2800usb 1-1.2:1.0: Direct firmware load for rt2870.bin failed with error -2
[257784.666155] ieee80211 phy1: rt2x00lib_request_firmware: Error - Failed to request Firmware
12

For anyone stumbling upon this thread later, this issue was resolved by re-adding the RTL8188EU firmware in balenaOS. :slight_smile:

14

Thanks all! This Github issue tracks the release, as it’s not yet available on the web platform yet :slight_smile:

17

Just closing this loop for anyone that comes after me! The Balena team has deployed a fix that I’ve just verified to work! Thanks all! See the Github issue here.

Release v2.85.2+rev3 or later for the CM4 IO board should work great.