Can't get Realtek RTL8191SEvB wireless adapter to work

[jindrichm]

I've got a new laptop with Ubuntu 10.10 (2.6.35-23-generic x86_64 architecture) and with a wireless adapter I can't get to work. The adapter is Realtek RTL8191SEvB:

$ lspci | grep Network
03:00.0 Network controller: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. RTL8191SEvB Wireless LAN Controller (rev 10)

When I enabled the wireless via Network Manager, its status changed to "disconnected". This is what happened:

$ dmesg | tail
[ 4029.280117] =========>r8192_wx_set_essid():hw radio off,or Rf state is eRfOff, return
[ 4029.327637] ================>r8192_wx_set_scan(): hwradio off

What is installed by default is the linux driver for Realtek 8192 (not 8191):

$ lsmod | grep r8192
r8192se_pci           507324  0

So I tried installing a proper driver from Realtek's website but I haven't managed to get either RTL8191SE-VA2 or RTL8191SU working (and which one is the correct one anyway?).

So I tried the Windows driver via ndiswrapper but it does not fit the hardware I've got - ndisgtk contains:

Hardware present: No

Here is the output of lshw:

 *-network               
       description: Wireless interface
       product: RTL8191SEvB Wireless LAN Controller
       vendor: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.
       physical id: 0
       bus info: pci@0000:03:00.0
       logical name: wlan0
       version: 10
       serial: 1c:65:9d:60:c7:7a
       width: 32 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: pm msi pciexpress bus_master cap_list ethernet physical wireless
       configuration: broadcast=yes driver=rtl819xSE driverversion=0017.0507.2010 firmware=63 latency=0 link=no multicast=yes wireless=802.11bgn
       resources: irq:17 ioport:2000(size=256) memory:f0500000-f0503fff

And here is the output of iwconfig:

$ iwconfig wlan0
wlan0     802.11bgn  Nickname:"rtl8191SEVA2"
          Mode:Managed  Frequency=2.417 GHz  Access Point: Not-Associated   
          Bit Rate:300 Mb/s   
          Retry:on   RTS thr:off   Fragment thr:off
          Power Management:off
          Link Quality=10/100  Signal level=0 dBm  Noise level=-100 dBm
          Rx invalid nwid:0  Rx invalid crypt:0  Rx invalid frag:0
          Tx excessive retries:0  Invalid misc:0   Missed beacon:0

I will be grateful for any suggestions of what should I try next.

[miikos]

I have the exact same problem!
EDIT: except I tried with the 32-bit version as well, but to no avail.

[miikos]

So I tried installing a proper driver from Realtek's website but I haven't managed to get either RTL8191SE-VA2 or RTL8191SU working (and which one is the correct one anyway?).

Actually, it seems neither the 8191SE-VA2 or RTL8191SU are correct, but rather the RTL8192SE. I have the last mentioned driver preinstalled in my windows 7 with the same device and it's working there. I also have 8192 installed by default in Ubuntu. But Realtek's site has no such driver/device listed! Is it exactly the same driver as 8192SE?

EDIT: I'm just blind, it IS the SE driver that is installed by default in Ubuntu too. I even tried updating the driver, but it still doesn't work. More precisely, it sees all the networks but cannot connect to internet.

[jindrichm]

So, if I understand it correctly, you have managed to get Realtek RTL8191SEvB working on Windows 7 with the driver for Realtek RTL8192SE but not in Ubuntu?

I have thought that if this driver works on Windows, it should also work with ndiswrapper on Ubuntu. But, as I have found out, it does not work because the hardware is not recognized as RTL8192SE.

Any ideas how to go about this?

[miikos]

So, if I understand it correctly, you have managed to get Realtek RTL8191SEvB working on Windows 7 with the driver for Realtek RTL8192SE but not in Ubuntu?

I have thought that if this driver works on Windows, it should also work with ndiswrapper on Ubuntu. But, as I have found out, it does not work because the hardware is not recognized as RTL8192SE.

Any ideas how to go about this?

That's correct. I just bought this Lenovo L412 yesterday and everything works fine in windows 7 right out of the box. Windows device manager shows rtl8192se.sys and vwifibus.sys as the driver files. In Ubuntu, it didn't work with the default driver nor with the latest 8192SE linux-driver from Realtek's site.

If the windows 8192SE driver with ndiswrapper doesn't work, I'm out of ideas.

[jindrichm]

When I tried Realtek 8192SE driver for Windows in ndiswrapper I got Hardware present: No message indicating that my wireless adapter was not recognized as Realtek 8192SE.

The thing is that I got the exact same problems with an external USB wireless adapter (this time Ralink), so I wonder if it is really hardware/driver problem. But I should probably try some wireless adapters that are seen as non-problematic in Ubuntu (e.g., Atheros) first.

Now I tried Windows RTL8191SE-VA2 driver version 2017.2 with ndiswrapper and this time it seems it fits the hardware:

$ ndiswrapper -l
net8192se : driver installed
	device (10EC:8172) present (alternate driver: r8192se_pci)

But the problem is that I've lost the wlan0, it's now UNCLAIMED:

$ sudo lshw -c network
  *-network UNCLAIMED     
       description: Network controller
       product: RTL8191SEvB Wireless LAN Controller
       vendor: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.
       physical id: 0
       bus info: pci@0000:03:00.0
       version: 10
       width: 32 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: pm msi pciexpress bus_master cap_list
       configuration: latency=0
       resources: ioport:2000(size=256) memory:f0500000-f0503fff

Maybe this is the way to go.

[dylan noktum]

i have the exact same problem only i am using the 2.6.35-22-generic kernel so it will be great if this can be worked out

[mcpastor]

I have the same wireless controller and came here looking for answers. Mine works with whatever drivers Ubuntu assigned to it, but not always. Sometimes I can't connect from boot, other times I can. Sometimes I get bumped offline and cannot reconnect until 1/2 hour later or so. I don't know anything about the code running behind the scenes, but if you think it would help you to see what's going on in my machine I can try to copy the code and post it here. I'll need some help knowing where to look for the code 'cuz I'm a noob to the Ub.

PS: I have two wireless networks: HOME and WORK. Work logs on very quickly without a problem, but I can't get the internet. When trying to connect to Home, oftentimes I will get the spinning icon for long periods of time and finally a notice that Home is disconnected.

[Jengu]

I have the same problem with a Thinkpad 410s. I can /usually/ connect but sometimes I get disconnected and then it's impossible to reconnect without a reboot.


03:00.0 Network controller: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. RTL8191SEvB Wireless LAN Controller (rev 10)

[frznlogic]

I just solved this problem on a Toshiba Satellite T130-17E laptop with the following network card:

08:00.0 Network controller: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. RTL8191SEvB Wireless LAN Controller (rev 10)

by adding hwwep=0 to the modprobe commandline. Either rmmod r8192se_pci and then:

modprobe r8192se_pci hwwep=0

Ubuntu should be able to join a network now. This turns off hardware wep acceleration. I am now having some problems with a lot of connections getting "stuck" (large downloads, apt-get update for example) and haven't solved that yet. Basically, a download will run for a while, then just get stuck, and I have to stop it and then restart it.

To automate the hwwep setting being set every time you reboot, edit /etc/modprobe.d/realtek.conf (probably doesn't exist) and add the following line:

options r8192se_pci hwwep=0

Good luck!