Atheros 9280 on 2.0-RELEASE: no carrier in 802.11ng mode
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Hi everyone,
I'm using 2.0-Release (nanobsd 4g) on an ALIX board and just switched to a new wireless card. It's a TP-LINK TL-WN861N.
As long as it's set to b or g mode, everything works fine, but as soon as I set it to 802.11ng, it stops working. On the status page things still look ok, but the AP can't be seen by clients, and if I reboot the box, wireless doesn't come up at all.dmesg:
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FreeBSD 8.1-RELEASE-p4 #0: Tue Sep 13 18:02:33 EDT 2011 root@FreeBSD_8.0_pfSense_2.0-snaps.pfsense.org:/usr/obj./usr/pfSensesrc/src/sys/pfSense_wrap.8.i386 i386 Timecounter "i8254" frequency 1193182 Hz quality 0 CPU: Geode(TM) Integrated Processor by AMD PCS (498.05-MHz 586-class CPU) Origin = "AuthenticAMD" Id = 0x5a2 Family = 5 Model = a Stepping = 2 Features=0x88a93d <fpu,de,pse,tsc,msr,cx8,sep,pge,cmov,clflush,mmx>AMD Features=0xc0400000 <mmx+,3dnow!+,3dnow!>real memory = 268435456 (256 MB) avail memory = 243433472 (232 MB) pnpbios: Bad PnP BIOS data checksum netisr_init: forcing maxthreads to 1 and bindthreads to 0 for device polling wlan: mac acl policy registered ipw_bss: You need to read the LICENSE file in /usr/share/doc/legal/intel_ipw/. ipw_bss: If you agree with the license, set legal.intel_ipw.license_ack=1 in /boot/loader.conf. module_register_init: MOD_LOAD (ipw_bss_fw, 0xc0710010, 0) error 1 ipw_ibss: You need to read the LICENSE file in /usr/share/doc/legal/intel_ipw/. ipw_ibss: If you agree with the license, set legal.intel_ipw.license_ack=1 in /boot/loader.conf. module_register_init: MOD_LOAD (ipw_ibss_fw, 0xc07100b0, 0) error 1 wpi: You need to read the LICENSE file in /usr/share/doc/legal/intel_wpi/. wpi: If you agree with the license, set legal.intel_wpi.license_ack=1 in /boot/loader.conf. module_register_init: MOD_LOAD (wpi_fw, 0xc0883050, 0) error 1 ipw_monitor: You need to read the LICENSE file in /usr/share/doc/legal/intel_ipw/. ipw_monitor: If you agree with the license, set legal.intel_ipw.license_ack=1 in /boot/loader.conf. module_register_init: MOD_LOAD (ipw_monitor_fw, 0xc0710150, 0) error 1 K6-family MTRR support enabled (2 registers) ACPI Error: A valid RSDP was not found (20100331/tbxfroot-309) ACPI: Table initialisation failed: AE_NOT_FOUND ACPI: Try disabling either ACPI or apic support. cryptosoft0: <software crypto="">on motherboard padlock0: No ACE support. pcib0: <host to="" pci="" bridge="">pcibus 0 on motherboard pci0: <pci bus="">on pcib0 Geode LX: PC Engines ALIX.2 v0.99h tinyBIOS V1.4a (C)1997-2007 pci0: <encrypt decrypt,="" entertainment="" crypto="">at device 1.2 (no driver attached) vr0: <via 10="" vt6105m="" rhine="" iii="" 100basetx="">port 0x1000-0x10ff mem 0xe0000000-0xe00000ff irq 10 at device 9.0 on pci0 vr0: Quirks: 0x2 vr0: Revision: 0x96 miibus0: <mii bus="">on vr0 ukphy0: <generic ieee="" 802.3u="" media="" interface="">PHY 1 on miibus0 ukphy0: 10baseT, 10baseT-FDX, 100baseTX, 100baseTX-FDX, auto vr0: [ITHREAD] vr1: <via 10="" vt6105m="" rhine="" iii="" 100basetx="">port 0x1400-0x14ff mem 0xe0040000-0xe00400ff irq 11 at device 10.0 on pci0 vr1: Quirks: 0x2 vr1: Revision: 0x96 miibus1: <mii bus="">on vr1 ukphy1: <generic ieee="" 802.3u="" media="" interface="">PHY 1 on miibus1 ukphy1: 10baseT, 10baseT-FDX, 100baseTX, 100baseTX-FDX, auto vr1: [ITHREAD] vr2: <via 10="" vt6105m="" rhine="" iii="" 100basetx="">port 0x1800-0x18ff mem 0xe0080000-0xe00800ff irq 15 at device 11.0 on pci0 vr2: Quirks: 0x2 vr2: Revision: 0x96 miibus2: <mii bus="">on vr2 ukphy2: <generic ieee="" 802.3u="" media="" interface="">PHY 1 on miibus2 ukphy2: 10baseT, 10baseT-FDX, 100baseTX, 100baseTX-FDX, auto vr2: [ITHREAD] ath0: <atheros 9280="">mem 0xe00c0000-0xe00cffff irq 9 at device 12.0 on pci0 ath0: [ITHREAD] ath0: AR9280 mac 128.2 RF5133 phy 13.0 isab0: <pci-isa bridge="">port 0x6000-0x6007,0x6100-0x61ff,0x6200-0x623f,0x9d00-0x9d7f,0x9c00-0x9c3f at device 15.0 on pci0 isa0: <isa bus="">on isab0 atapci0: <amd cs5536="" udma100="" controller="">port 0x1f0-0x1f7,0x3f6,0x170-0x177,0x376,0xff00-0xff0f at device 15.2 on pci0 ata0: <ata 0="" channel="">on atapci0 ata0: [ITHREAD] ata1: <ata 1="" channel="">on atapci0 ata1: [ITHREAD] ohci0: <ohci (generic)="" usb="" controller="">mem 0xefffe000-0xefffefff irq 12 at device 15.4 on pci0 ohci0: [ITHREAD] usbus0: <ohci (generic)="" usb="" controller="">on ohci0 ehci0: <amd cs5536="" (geode)="" usb="" 2.0="" controller="">mem 0xefffd000-0xefffdfff irq 12 at device 15.5 on pci0 ehci0: [ITHREAD] usbus1: EHCI version 1.0 usbus1: <amd cs5536="" (geode)="" usb="" 2.0="" controller="">on ehci0 cpu0 on motherboard orm0: <isa option="" rom="">at iomem 0xe0000-0xea7ff pnpid ORM0000 on isa0 atrtc0: <at real="" time="" clock="">at port 0x70 irq 8 on isa0 ppc0: parallel port not found. uart0: <16550 or compatible> at port 0x3f8-0x3ff irq 4 flags 0x10 on isa0 uart0: [FILTER] uart0: console (9600,n,8,1) uart1: <16550 or compatible> at port 0x2f8-0x2ff irq 3 on isa0 uart1: [FILTER] Timecounter "TSC" frequency 498052921 Hz quality 800 Timecounters tick every 10.000 msec IPsec: Initialized Security Association Processing. usbus0: 12Mbps Full Speed USB v1.0 usbus1: 480Mbps High Speed USB v2.0 ugen0.1: <amd>at usbus0 uhub0: <amd 1="" 9="" ohci="" root="" hub,="" class="" 0,="" rev="" 1.00="" 1.00,="" addr="">on usbus0 ugen1.1: <amd>at usbus1 uhub1: <amd 1="" 9="" ehci="" root="" hub,="" class="" 0,="" rev="" 2.00="" 1.00,="" addr="">on usbus1 ad0: 7815MB <sandisk sdcfx4-8192="" hdx="" 4.28="">at ata0-master PIO4 Root mount waiting for: usbus1 usbus0 uhub0: 4 ports with 4 removable, self powered Root mount waiting for: usbus1 uhub1: 4 ports with 4 removable, self powered Trying to mount root from ufs:/dev/ufs/pfsense1 pflog0: promiscuous mode enabled WARNING: pseudo-random number generator used for IPsec processing</sandisk></amd></amd></amd></amd></at></isa></amd></amd></ohci></ohci></ata></ata></amd></isa></pci-isa></atheros></generic></mii></via></generic></mii></via></generic></mii></via></encrypt></pci></host></software></mmx+,3dnow!+,3dnow!></fpu,de,pse,tsc,msr,cx8,sep,pge,cmov,clflush,mmx>
ifconfig (working, 802.11g):
ath0: flags=8843 <up,broadcast,running,simplex,multicast>metric 0 mtu 2290 ether f4:ec:38:d2:fa:e0 media: IEEE 802.11 Wireless Ethernet autoselect mode 11g <hostap>status: running ath0_wlan0: flags=8843 <up,broadcast,running,simplex,multicast>metric 0 mtu 1500 ether f4:ec:38:d2:fa:e0 inet6 fe80::f6ec:38ff:fed2:fae0%ath0_wlan0 prefixlen 64 scopeid 0xa inet 192.168.xxx.xxx netmask 0xffffff00 broadcast 192.168.xxx.xxx nd6 options=3 <performnud,accept_rtadv>media: IEEE 802.11 Wireless Ethernet autoselect mode 11g <hostap>status: running ssid xxx channel 1 (2412 MHz 11g) bssid f4:ec:38:d2:fa:e0 regdomain 32924 country CN indoor ecm authmode WPA2/802.11i privacy MIXED deftxkey 2 AES-CCM 2:128-bit AES-CCM 3:128-bit txpower 20 scanvalid 60 protmode OFF burst -apbridge dtimperiod 1 -dfs</hostap></performnud,accept_rtadv></up,broadcast,running,simplex,multicast></hostap></up,broadcast,running,simplex,multicast>
ifconfig (not working, 802.11ng), and yes it says 11b :( :
ath0: flags=8843 <up,broadcast,running,simplex,multicast>metric 0 mtu 2290 ether f4:ec:38:d2:fa:e0 media: IEEE 802.11 Wireless Ethernet autoselect mode 11b <hostap>status: running ath0_wlan0: flags=8c43 <up,broadcast,running,oactive,simplex,multicast>metric 0 mtu 1500 ether f4:ec:38:d2:fa:e0 inet6 fe80::f6ec:38ff:fed2:fae0%ath0_wlan0 prefixlen 64 scopeid 0xa inet 192.168.xxx.xxx netmask 0xffffff00 broadcast 192.168.xxx.xxx nd6 options=3 <performnud,accept_rtadv>media: IEEE 802.11 Wireless Ethernet autoselect mode 11ng <hostap>(autoselect <hostap>) status: no carrier ssid xxx channel 1 (2412 MHz 11b) regdomain 32924 country CN indoor ecm authmode WPA2/802.11i privacy MIXED deftxkey 2 AES-CCM 2:128-bit AES-CCM 3:128-bit txpower 20 scanvalid 60 burst -apbridge dtimperiod 1 -dfs</hostap></hostap></performnud,accept_rtadv></up,broadcast,running,oactive,simplex,multicast></hostap></up,broadcast,running,simplex,multicast>
athstats (802.11ng):
athstats: ath0: Invalid argument athstats: ath0: Invalid argument 3626 data frames received 1M current transmit rate 1992 rx failed 'cuz of bad CRC 1163 rx failed 'cuz frame too short 25 rx failed 'cuz of PHY err 25 CCK restart -0/+0 TDMA slot adjust (usecs, smoothed) 39 avg recv rssi -98 rx noise floor 1 switched default/rx antenna Antenna profile: [1] tx 0 rx 3626
athstats (after changing back to 802.11g):
athstats: ath0: Invalid argument athstats: ath0: Invalid argument 4481 data frames received 53 data frames transmit 32 long on-chip tx retries 6 tx failed 'cuz too many retries 36M current transmit rate 1 tx frames with no ack marked 3 tx frames with short preamble 2169 rx failed 'cuz of bad CRC 1200 rx failed 'cuz frame too short 28 rx failed 'cuz of PHY err 28 CCK restart 160 beacons transmitted 3 periodic calibrations -0/+0 TDMA slot adjust (usecs, smoothed) 39 rssi of last ack 32 avg recv rssi -96 rx noise floor 49 tx frames through raw api 1 switched default/rx antenna Antenna profile: [0] tx 46 rx 0 [1] tx 0 rx 4481
I've tried completely deleting the interface and recreating it, but that doesn't change anything. Can you help me or tell me where to look? If you need more info, just let me know. Thanks.
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802.11n is not supported in FreeBSD 8.1 and hence not supported in pfSense 2.0.
Look for 802.11n support in a future version of FreeBSD and hence a future version of pfSense. At least a couple of 802.11n capable devices work fine in 802.11g mode.
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Oh. This is one of the things I should have checked before posting… Sorry about that and thanks for taking the time to answer.
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802.11n is not supported in FreeBSD 8.1 and hence not supported in pfSense 2.0.
Look for 802.11n support in a future version of FreeBSD and hence a future version of pfSense. At least a couple of 802.11n capable devices work fine in 802.11g mode.
This is a big issue imo. G isn't really an option any more when N is cheap and so much faster. It makes pfSense difficult to recommend when you need a separate access point, especially as users already need a separate modem and switch. I really like pfSense but I am going to look elsewhere. Even if we had 1 single high-powered card that worked this would be good.
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Unfortunately we are at the mercy of FreeBSD there. 2.1 will have some N support but G still works well in many environments.
To get N rates you'd need a somewhat beefy piece of equipment anyhow - an ALIX isn't going to cut it for N rates, it doesn't have the CPU power.
Sometimes (more often than not, I've found) a separate AP is a much better idea anyhow. But to each their own.
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Unfortunately we are at the mercy of FreeBSD there. 2.1 will have some N support but G still works well in many environments.
To get N rates you'd need a somewhat beefy piece of equipment anyhow - an ALIX isn't going to cut it for N rates, it doesn't have the CPU power.
Sometimes (more often than not, I've found) a separate AP is a much better idea anyhow. But to each their own.
so would it mean an alix upgrade would also be needed in the future to use a wireless n card?
is there any 8 port switch + ap available, something like a 8 port wifi router so i can replace my switch with that instead of using alix, switch and ap and powering all 3 differently -
so would it mean an alix upgrade would also be needed in the future to use a wireless n card?
is there any 8 port switch + ap available, something like a 8 port wifi router so i can replace my switch with that instead of using alix, switch and ap and powering all 3 differentlyWell ALIX can support N rate cards technically, but its CPU will never be able to push more than about 85Mbit/s, probably less on wireless with all of the overhead there.
I'm not sure what's out there with 8-port switches. I love my Asus RT-N16 with Tomato on it, but I've also heard some good things about Buffalo gear. The RT-N16 has a 4 port gigabit switch on the back, and with Tomato or DD-WRT you can bridge the 5th "wan" port to the switch as well. It's not dual band though so it can only operate in the 2.4GHz range.
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actually i plan to keep alix with pfsense to do traffic shaping etc which will connect to the WAN also and alos i use a 8 port dlink switch to connect all the LAN clients, now due to space constrains i cant add another device to this setup so i was wondering if any such wifi + 8 port switch existed coz to make pfsense work as AP mode is a pain not to mention the stuck beacon errors that keep coming every now and then.
i have only 3 wireless clients so would it be possible to use a n based card in the future on alix for these 3 clients to use 8mbps of internet speed only?
is there any1 using a pfsense as a AP and is rock solid without any errors or dropouts?
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so would it mean an alix upgrade would also be needed in the future to use a wireless n card?
is there any 8 port switch + ap available, something like a 8 port wifi router so i can replace my switch with that instead of using alix, switch and ap and powering all 3 differentlyWell ALIX can support N rate cards technically, but its CPU will never be able to push more than about 85Mbit/s, probably less on wireless with all of the overhead there.
I'm not sure what's out there with 8-port switches. I love my Asus RT-N16 with Tomato on it, but I've also heard some good things about Buffalo gear. The RT-N16 has a 4 port gigabit switch on the back, and with Tomato or DD-WRT you can bridge the 5th "wan" port to the switch as well. It's not dual band though so it can only operate in the 2.4GHz range.
any1 used this http://www.dlink.com/DIR-632
tomato and dd-wrt still dont seem to support it but i guess this would fulfill my purpose only issues is the default d-link firmware have some issues with signal dropouts based on few reviews -
so would it mean an alix upgrade would also be needed in the future to use a wireless n card?
is there any 8 port switch + ap available, something like a 8 port wifi router so i can replace my switch with that instead of using alix, switch and ap and powering all 3 differentlyWell ALIX can support N rate cards technically, but its CPU will never be able to push more than about 85Mbit/s, probably less on wireless with all of the overhead there.
I'm not sure what's out there with 8-port switches. I love my Asus RT-N16 with Tomato on it, but I've also heard some good things about Buffalo gear. The RT-N16 has a 4 port gigabit switch on the back, and with Tomato or DD-WRT you can bridge the 5th "wan" port to the switch as well. It's not dual band though so it can only operate in the 2.4GHz range.
how is the performance of the 4 port switch? can it be compared to using a normal 4 or 8 port switch?