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Hi, we're working on a PI that can run multiple SSIDs on the same USB adapter (commonly referred in this forum as Guest support) and we have come across multiple references to the mt7612u as supporting this. That is great, and that has been beyond helpful! The question I have is, do you know if there are any newer chipsets that also support this feature? Having a wifi6 capable device would be ideal, but I believe the mt7612u is only rated to 866mbps and any USB adapter advertising beyond that is more marketing than actual throughput. It would also be good to have more than one option and not be limited exclusively to mediatek. Thanks! |
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Replies: 2 comments 5 replies
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It would be good to have more good options but the large chipset makers view USB WiFi as a niche market. Being in a niche market means we generally get support for new things later. Right now the only chipset available in USB form for WiFi 6 is the Realtek 8852/32au. My testing of the driver recently caused me to write a review in an effort to make sure Linux users knew just how bad it is. I won't release the driver. The code can be found if you search but it is so bad that it makes me wonder if there are some problems in silicone that can't be corrected in software. I have heard from multiple sources that Realtek has ceased production of the 8852/32au. I have no idea where Realtek is headed with USB and until they start producing mac80211 drivers that are in-kernel, I'm not sure we are missing much. So far Mediatek has not announced, or at least I am not aware, a new WiFi 6 chipset. I'm hoping we hear some about a mt7921u soon. The chances of Atheros or Intel jumping in with a USB chipset are slim to none. I think we will see Mediatek step up and release a new WiFi 6 chipset for the USB market and my best guess is that it will happen at some point this year. Right now the mt7612u is the best combination chipset and driver for Linux users looking for AC1200/1300 speeds. Regards |
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Thank you so much for the reply! That is unfortunate that realtek is the only manufacturer to enter the wifi 6 space! Are you aware of any other chipsets that can be used on a pi hat or pcie card or m.2 form factor or something that can use multiple SSIDs? Thanks again! Thanks again! |
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No. The one I tried is... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09LHQ6TBZ The only reason I bought this adapter is to have something to test with as I attempted to prep and make the driver for the rtl8852/32 chipset available here. I picked this one because it appeared to be a single-state adapter and it is. The DLink that is available the 2 Comfast adapters that you listed are multi-state adapters. I don't think I can overstate just how bad the driver for the rtl8852/32 chipset is. All 3 of the adapters you listed will have that chipset. My recommendation is to stay away from anything that has that chipset. Something that I would like to explore further as I get some time is the Raspberry Pi CM4. You can get a version of the CM4 without wifi and many different carrier board are available. The Intel, Atheros and Mediatek WiFi 6 in-kernel drivers for PCIe and M.2 are excellent. I recently got a new laptop. It has a M.2 wifi 6 card with a mt7921 chipset. It just works. If a carrier board for the CM4 that has a M.2 slot is available, that might be worth exploring but there is the logistically issue of how to handle antennas. |
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Do you know if either of those drivers support (or could support) multi-state ssids on Linux? |
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I was actually wondering if it would be possible to get one of these chipsets directly on the carrier board. Do you have any thoughts on which one would be good to go with? My father-in-law just retired and used to build this kinda stuff, so I think I could get him to tinker with it if I had a good idea of what chipset would be the ideal combo and he also asked for the chipsets data sheet. Any thoughts on that? Would be happy to send you one of whatever I come up with if I get it to work! :D |
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Are you asking if there are in-kernel drivers that can support multiple SSIDs? If so, yes. See: |
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At this point, I'm not the right person to make a recommendation. What you might do is start another issue/discussion with an appropriate title and then outline what you want to do. This repo has a lot of people stopping by in any given week so maybe someone that has information that can help will see a post. |
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It would be good to have more good options but the large chipset makers view USB WiFi as a niche market. Being in a niche market means we generally get support for new things later. Right now the only chipset available in USB form for WiFi 6 is the Realtek 8852/32au. My testing of the driver recently caused me to write a review in an effort to make sure Linux users knew just how bad it is. I won't release the driver. The code can be found if you search but it is so bad that it makes me wonder if there are some problems in silicone that can't be corrected in software. I have heard from multiple sources that Realt…