M.2 WIFI Cards Previously Not Working (But Working On 2.4.0-BETA)

SOUK

I've been testing some of my M.2 cards that were previously not working properly on versions of PFSENSE prior to 2.4.0 Beta, and I'm just letting you know that the following card is now working as far as I can see, with no errors in the logs for me:

Model: Qualcomm Atheros NFA222.
**Frequency:**2.4 GHz, 5 GHz (Not simultaneously)
Card Type: M.2 2230 | NGFF
Speed: Upto 300Mbps A,B,G,N
Detected As: Atheros AR946x/AR948x
Wi-Fi Modes: Infrastructure (BSS) | Ad-hoc (IBSS) | Access Point (Multiple)

J501 & J401 Connector Type: (See Image) are IPEX/MHF4. So buy IPEX/MHF4 to RP-SMA Antenna WiFi Pigtail cables, which are found on ebay for £0.99p a pair.
Antenna Type: Ideally RP-SMA Dual Band, so buy something like a TP-LINK 2.4G/5G 6dbi Dual Band Omni-directional or better which are really cheap to buy on ebay, like £1.30 each.

Important, Please Note: I had to add the following files that were NOT included in Pfsense 2.4.0 Beta's Kernel by default in to the /boot/kernel directory on my router:

FILES:
if_ath.ko
if_ath_pci.ko

You can obtain these files in the mean time from the official FreeBSD11 ISO, located in the same directory i.e /boot/kernel of the FreeBSD ISO

Please Also Note: I had to also create a file called loader.conf.local, add the following lines to it:


#Atheros
if_ath_load="YES"
if_ath_pci_load="YES"

Then SAVE that file and place it in to my routers /boot directory, and then reboot my device.

Below is an image of the device | Qualcomm Atheros NFA222:

I believe its found in Dell laptops and a few others.

Where to buy: Their are loads of these on ebay from around £4.80 (Cheap), search the terms 'Atheros NFA222'

I hope this helps someone ;)