Starting Skype causes wlan to disconnect (ath9k_htc)

[aneurysm1985]

I am running Linux Mint 13 (64 Bit, Maya) with the current repository version of Skype installed (Version: 4.1.0.20.0-0ubuntu0.12.04.2). I get internet through a TP-Link TL-WN822N v2 USB wireless adapter (Atheros AR9287 chip / ath9k_htc driver)

My wireless internet is otherwise working fine...

...until I open the application Skype. Opening this software causes the wireless connection to disconnect. The only way to resolve the issue is to restart Linux.

After this problem happens, my computer doesn't shut down/reboot cleanly. Instead, I getting a black screen with white text. Here are some of the lines which I wrote down:

ath: Failed to wake up in 500us
ath: Chip reset failed
ath: Unable to reset Channel (2412 Mhz) reset status -22

(Is there some sort of way I can access the full version of this text, such as a Linux log file, so I can post it here for you to see?)

After I press enter a few times on this screen it comes up with the message saying "caught shutdown signal", and then reboots.

Please let me know if I can help you diagnose and solve my problem. Thanks in advance.

[AlbertP]

Have you already tried using compat-drivers to get a newer ath9k_htc driver? Last time we used compat-drivers it was for the Asus N13 stick, so it didn't install the ath9k_htc driver (that's why we had to uninstall compat-drivers). But it can be installed again after selecting the ath9k_htc driver:

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./scripts/driver-select ath9k_htc

Then please run make and sudo make install again.

[aneurysm1985]

Here is the output of that, AlbertP:

(within a Terminal window in the directory I extracted the compat-drivers-3.8.3.2 to):
./scripts/driver-select ath9k_htc
make
sudo make install

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make -C /lib/modules/3.2.0-23-generic/build M=/home/stuart/compat-drivers-3.8.3-2 modules
make[1]: Entering directory `/usr/src/linux-headers-3.2.0-23-generic'
  Building modules, stage 2.
  MODPOST 6 modules
make[1]: Leaving directory `/usr/src/linux-headers-3.2.0-23-generic'
make -C /lib/modules/3.2.0-23-generic/build M=/home/stuart/compat-drivers-3.8.3-2 "INSTALL_MOD_DIR=updates"  \
		modules_install
make[1]: Entering directory `/usr/src/linux-headers-3.2.0-23-generic'
  INSTALL /home/stuart/compat-drivers-3.8.3-2/compat/compat.ko
  INSTALL /home/stuart/compat-drivers-3.8.3-2/compat/sch_codel.ko
  INSTALL /home/stuart/compat-drivers-3.8.3-2/compat/sch_fq_codel.ko
  INSTALL /home/stuart/compat-drivers-3.8.3-2/net/mac80211/mac80211.ko
  INSTALL /home/stuart/compat-drivers-3.8.3-2/net/rfkill/rfkill-regulator.ko
  INSTALL /home/stuart/compat-drivers-3.8.3-2/net/wireless/cfg80211.ko
  DEPMOD  3.2.0-23-generic
make[1]: Leaving directory `/usr/src/linux-headers-3.2.0-23-generic'
depmod will prefer updates/ over kernel/ -- OK!

Now run:

sudo make unload to unload all: wireless, bluetooth and ethernet modules
sudo make wlunload to unload wireless modules
sudo make btunload to unload bluetooth modules

Run sudo modprobe driver-name to load your desired driver.
If unsure reboot.

I then ran the following commands (please correct me if I can doing this wrong):

sudo make unload

Code: Select all

Stoping bluetooth service..
Rather than invoking init scripts through /etc/init.d, use the service(8)
utility, e.g. service bluetooth stop

Since the script you are attempting to invoke has been converted to an
Upstart job, you may also use the stop(8) utility, e.g. stop bluetooth
Rather than invoking init scripts through /etc/init.d, use the service(8)
utility, e.g. service bluetooth status

Since the script you are attempting to invoke has been converted to an
Upstart job, you may also use the status(8) utility, e.g. status bluetooth
bluetooth stop/waiting
Unloading rtlwifi...
FATAL: Module rtlwifi is in use.
Unloading mac80211...
FATAL: Module mac80211 is in use.
Unloading cfg80211...
FATAL: Module cfg80211 is in use.

(At which point my TP-Link wireless adaptor stopped working).
sudo make wlunload

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Unloading rtlwifi...
FATAL: Module rtlwifi is in use.
Unloading mac80211...
FATAL: Module mac80211 is in use.
Unloading cfg80211...
FATAL: Module cfg80211 is in use.

sudo make btunload

Code: Select all

Stoping bluetooth service..
Rather than invoking init scripts through /etc/init.d, use the service(8)
utility, e.g. service bluetooth stop

Since the script you are attempting to invoke has been converted to an
Upstart job, you may also use the stop(8) utility, e.g. stop bluetooth
Rather than invoking init scripts through /etc/init.d, use the service(8)
utility, e.g. service bluetooth status

Since the script you are attempting to invoke has been converted to an
Upstart job, you may also use the status(8) utility, e.g. status bluetooth
bluetooth stop/waiting

And then...
sudo modprobe ath9k_htc
...at which point the TP-Link network adapter started working again.

Unfortunately, when I started the Skype software, the same problem happened that I originally described: it did not connect to Skype, and the connection disconnected.

(Maybe this is not surprising? I believe I originally installed my driver through that same compat-drivers archive...)

My current problem
Anyway, my current problem is the USB adapter is not yet working, even after about 6 system reboots. (I am posting this forum message from another PC).

In the first reboot I was getting the same black screen ath: Chip reset failed messages, as described in my first post. Unfortunately, the problem is now not resolving itself after a system reboot.

For the subsequent reboots, I am getting a message saying something about an error with "modem-manager[931]" in there.

(Any guides to access a log file with these full error messages, once I reboot the computer?)

Any suggestions on how to 1) restore network adapter functionality right now, and 2) fix Skype from behaving in this way?

[AlbertP]

You can run this command to see the errors from the driver:

Code: Select all

dmesg | grep ath

[aneurysm1985]

Here's the output from dmesg | grep ath

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[   19.757789] ath: disagrees about version of symbol wiphy_apply_custom_regulatory
[   19.757792] ath: Unknown symbol wiphy_apply_custom_regulatory (err -22)
[   19.757798] ath: disagrees about version of symbol freq_reg_info
[   19.757800] ath: Unknown symbol freq_reg_info (err -22)

[aneurysm1985]

OK, I managed to get the internet working again, after monkeying around with commands from this thread.

However, I am relunctant to open Skype again (due to the recurring problems with this software - and I now have work to do, so don't want to mess around with my PC right now).

Here is the current output of dmesg | grep ath with the ath9k_htc's network functionality working fine:

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[   19.971248] usb 1-6: ath9k_htc: Transferred FW: htc_7010.fw, size: 72992
[   20.032481] ath9k_htc 1-6:1.0: ath9k_htc: HTC initialized with 45 credits
[   20.195962] ath9k_htc 1-6:1.0: ath9k_htc: FW Version: 1.3
[   20.195965] ath: EEPROM regdomain: 0x809c
[   20.195966] ath: EEPROM indicates we should expect a country code
[   20.195968] ath: doing EEPROM country->regdmn map search
[   20.195969] ath: country maps to regdmn code: 0x52
[   20.195971] ath: Country alpha2 being used: CN
[   20.195972] ath: Regpair used: 0x52
[   20.199121] Registered led device: ath9k_htc-phy0
[   20.199125] usb 1-6: ath9k_htc: USB layer initialized
[   20.199142] usbcore: registered new interface driver ath9k_htc

Can someone suggest a technique for me to see exactly what is happening with Skype at the point when I open the software. To identify exactly what it is doing to my network drivers.

[aneurysm1985]

It is 1 week since my last message. Just bumping this thread / my question.

[aneurysm1985]

Just advising that this problem seems to have resolved itself. Possibly due to recent packages downloaded through Update Manager.

Will mark this as '[solved]', and only post here again if the problem flares up again.

[aneurysm1985]

Spoke too soon

Skype no longer seems to instantly cause my wi-fi to crash/disconnect. Encouragingly, it allows me to log into Skype, and see which of my contacts are online. (This is something that wasn't happening when I first posted this bug report).

However, it is still crashing/disconnecting my wireless networking after a short amount of time. Maybe 30 seconds or so. From this point onwards, the only way I have been able to restart my network connectivity is to reboot my computer.

During the shutdown process, I am still getting the error messages such as "ath: Failed to wake up in 500us", which I originally reported in this thread.

Please let me know ideas for diagnosing/fixing this Skype/wlan problem.