How install driver or enable support for generic USB game controller ?

[aug7744]

How enable or install driver for generic usb controllers (look compatible with PS3 or PC) in Ubuntu 20.04.3 and 21.04 ?
Thanks for your reply.

[TheFu]

There are 100K different USB devices. Each can have a different driver, though most will fall into the USB-Storage or keyboards or mice driver arenas.

Start by looking up the device ID you want to support. lsusb can help with that. Then take that device ID and search for a Linux driver. There is no "general solution" for all devices. Sorry.

I don't have a PS3, but I have a Thrustmaster joystick.

$ lsusb
Bus 001 Device 007: ID 044f:b102 ThrustMaster, Inc.
..... {other devices like USB hubs and PS/2 Keyboard+Mouse Adapter}

Take the 044f:b102 and google for "linux driver 044f:b102" <--- that's an example. Yours WILL be different. BTW, there is no driver for my joystick. There are these devices, which could be close:

b108 T-Flight Hotas X Flight Stick
b10a T.16000M Joystick according to http://www.linux-usb.org/usb.ids A generic joystick driver might work for the simple stuff. IDK.

[aug7744]

Thanks.

[Holger_Gehrke]

Actually, game controllers of all kind are handled by the HID (Human Interface Devices) system. You should find a device file for a connected pad or joystick in /dev/input/js[0-9]. To check whether every input (digital buttons or analog axes) on the device is recognized and correctly interpreted you can use jstest in a terminal or jstest-gtk in a GUI. I currently have a Logitech F310 connected and all 8 axes (two thumbsticks, a dpad and the lower shoulder buttons) and 10 buttons are recognized and the test programs show changing values if I move the sticks or press a button. No installation of drivers necessary, not for this pad or the two others by other manufacturers I used previously.

Holger