WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

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RyanHolmesUK

WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by RyanHolmesUK »

First week of using Linux here, just switched over from Win 10 so any help would be appreciated greatly.

The WiFi always shows that it is connected to my laptop, but doesn't seem to be receiving a signal. This only happens occasionally, maybe 7/8 times per day but it's annoying when it randomly drops out during a movie etc.

Any advice?
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srq2625

Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by srq2625 »

More information is needed to provide answers. Please run the following command in a terminal window and post the results back here (identifies your WiFi adapter):

Code: Select all

lspci | grep Network
Others will come along with more knowledge and probably ask for additional information, but this will get it started.
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kc1di
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Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by kc1di »

Hello RyanHolmesUK and welcome to Linux Mint Forums,

There could be many causes of what you describe. Best place to start is by going to a terminal and getting an overview of your system with this command.

Code: Select all

inix -Fxz
then post the results here. This page also has some good ideas to check out. https://sites.google.com/site/easylinux ... t/internet

Good luck in sorting it out.
Easy tips : https://easylinuxtipsproject.blogspot.com/ Pjotr's Great Linux projects page.
Linux Mint Installation Guide: http://linuxmint-installation-guide.rea ... en/latest/
Registered Linux User #462608
RyanHolmesUK

Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by RyanHolmesUK »

srq2625 wrote: Fri Jun 22, 2018 7:09 am More information is needed to provide answers. Please run the following command in a terminal window and post the results back here (identifies your WiFi adapter):

Code: Select all

lspci | grep Network
Others will come along with more knowledge and probably ask for additional information, but this will get it started.
When i typed in the command, this appeared.

02:00.0 Network controller: Qualcomm Atheros Device 0042 (rev 31)
RyanHolmesUK

Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by RyanHolmesUK »

RyanHolmesUK wrote: Fri Jun 22, 2018 4:34 am First week of using Linux here, just switched over from Win 10 so any help would be appreciated greatly.

The WiFi always shows that it is connected to my laptop, but doesn't seem to be receiving a signal. This only happens occasionally, maybe 7/8 times per day but it's annoying when it randomly drops out during a movie etc.

Any advice?
wlp2s0 IEEE 802.11 ESSID:"VodafoneConnect65617226"
Mode:Managed Frequency:5.5 GHz Access Point: 00:9A:CD:BB:20:C7
Bit Rate=1 Mb/s Tx-Power=24 dBm
Retry short limit:7 RTS thr:off Fragment thr:off
Power Management:on
Link Quality=47/70 Signal level=-63 dBm
Rx invalid nwid:0 Rx invalid crypt:0 Rx invalid frag:0
Tx excessive retries:0 Invalid misc:30 Missed beacon:0

lo no wireless extensions.
RyanHolmesUK

Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by RyanHolmesUK »

kc1di wrote: Fri Jun 22, 2018 7:21 am Hello RyanHolmesUK and welcome to Linux Mint Forums,

There could be many causes of what you describe. Best place to start is by going to a terminal and getting an overview of your system with this command.

Code: Select all

inix -Fxz
then post the results here. This page also has some good ideas to check out. https://sites.google.com/site/easylinux ... t/internet

Good luck in sorting it out.
Hello, Thanks for the welcome!

Here are the details:
System: Host: ryan-Lenovo-ideapad-320S-14IKB Kernel: 4.13.0-45-generic x86_64 (64 bit gcc: 5.4.0)
Desktop: Cinnamon 3.6.7 (Gtk 3.18.9-1ubuntu3.3)
Distro: Linux Mint 18.3 Sylvia
Machine: System: LENOVO product: 80X4 v: Lenovo ideapad 320S-14IKB
Mobo: LENOVO model: LNVNB161216 v: SDK0J40700 WIN
Bios: LENOVO v: 4QCN43WW(V2.07) date: 03/09/2018
CPU: Dual core Intel Pentium 4415U (-HT-MCP-) cache: 2048 KB
flags: (lm nx sse sse2 sse3 sse4_1 sse4_2 ssse3 vmx) bmips: 9216
clock speeds: max: 2300 MHz 1: 800 MHz 2: 800 MHz 3: 800 MHz
4: 800 MHz
Graphics: Card: Intel Device 5906 bus-ID: 00:02.0
Display Server: X.Org 1.18.4 drivers: intel (unloaded: fbdev,vesa)
Resolution: 1366x768@60.00hz
GLX Renderer: Mesa DRI Intel HD Graphics 610 (Kaby Lake GT1)
GLX Version: 3.0 Mesa 17.2.8 Direct Rendering: Yes
Audio: Card Intel Device 9d71 driver: snd_hda_intel bus-ID: 00:1f.3
Sound: Advanced Linux Sound Architecture v: k4.13.0-45-generic
Network: Card-1: Qualcomm Atheros Device 0042
driver: ath10k_pci bus-ID: 02:00.0
IF: wlp2s0 state: up speed: N/A duplex: N/A mac: <filter>
Card-2: Atheros usb-ID: 001-003
IF: null-if-id state: N/A speed: N/A duplex: N/A mac: N/A
Drives: HDD Total Size: NA (-) ID-1: /dev/nvme0n1 model: N/A size: 128.0GB
Partition: ID-1: / size: 113G used: 15G (14%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/nvme0n1p2
ID-2: swap-1 size: 4.15GB used: 0.00GB (0%) fs: swap dev: /dev/dm-0
RAID: No RAID devices: /proc/mdstat, md_mod kernel module present
Sensors: System Temperatures: cpu: 36.5C mobo: N/A
Fan Speeds (in rpm): cpu: N/A
Info: Processes: 206 Uptime: 4:34 Memory: 1159.1/3811.6MB
Init: systemd runlevel: 5 Gcc sys: 5.4.0
Client: Shell (bash 4.3.481) inxi: 2.2.35
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kc1di
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Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by kc1di »

You have the correct driver installed. there are a couple things you can try.
1. go to network manager click on the Icon and Network Settings and go to IPV6 tab and change it from automatic to ignore.
2. check which channel is being assinged by your router and select channel 6 or 11 or another one that is not so congested.
3. you may also want to turn power management off it's currently on.
this page tells you how to do that, https://unix.stackexchange.com/question ... ermanently
try it first see if it makes a difference if it does then make it permanent.
Easy tips : https://easylinuxtipsproject.blogspot.com/ Pjotr's Great Linux projects page.
Linux Mint Installation Guide: http://linuxmint-installation-guide.rea ... en/latest/
Registered Linux User #462608
RyanHolmesUK

Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by RyanHolmesUK »

kc1di wrote: Fri Jun 22, 2018 9:15 am You have the correct driver installed. there are a couple things you can try.
1. go to network manager click on the Icon and Network Settings and go to IPV6 tab and change it from automatic to ignore.
2. check which channel is being assinged by your router and select channel 6 or 11 or another one that is not so congested.
3. you may also want to turn power management off it's currently on.
this page tells you how to do that, https://unix.stackexchange.com/question ... ermanently
try it first see if it makes a difference if it does then make it permanent.
I tried your suggestions and some others i found when scanning the forum and i'm sure they have worked. My link connection rating has shot up from 62% to 94%, the speed of the internet connection has increased dramatically and it hasn't cut out since i made the alterations. Thanks for your help!
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kc1di
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Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by kc1di »

Your welcome glad to be of help :)
Easy tips : https://easylinuxtipsproject.blogspot.com/ Pjotr's Great Linux projects page.
Linux Mint Installation Guide: http://linuxmint-installation-guide.rea ... en/latest/
Registered Linux User #462608
RyanHolmesUK

Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by RyanHolmesUK »

Hello again

The WiFi issue solved itself for what seemed to be a day or two....and then it began playing up again. I haven't responded since then as i've been super busy, but the WiFi issue is starting to get on my nerves and is making me regret downloading Linux.

I have downloaded an application called Wavemon to check my signal strength, and it says:

Link Quality: 64% (44/70)
(Green Line underneath the Link Quality)

Signal Level: -65dBm (0.13 nW)
(There is a red line underneath the Signal Level)

Statistics
RX 31,300 (28.57 MiB), Drop: 91
TX: 13,033 (1.55 MiB), Failed: 2

I've tried moving my laptop near, away, next to the WiFi and the signal quality just doesn't seem to change. I have 2 'bars' of signal on the WiFi logo constantly and loading up basic webpages just doesn't happen often.

I know weak WiFi is an issue with Linux, i've read other people's complaints, but is there anyone who has had this issue before and fixed it?

Cheers
RyanHolmesUK

Weak WiFi

Post by RyanHolmesUK »

Hello,

The WiFi connection on Linux Mint since downloading has been very poor in comparison to Windows. I have tried to change basic things like the WiFi channel, DNS settings etc and followed some advice i've found online but nothing seems to have worked.

I have downloaded an application called Wavemon to check my signal strength, and it says:

Link Quality: 64% (44/70)
(Green Line underneath the Link Quality)

Signal Level: -65dBm (0.13 nW)
(There is a red line underneath the Signal Level)

Statistics
RX 31,300 (28.57 MiB), Drop: 91
TX: 13,033 (1.55 MiB), Failed: 2

I've tried moving my laptop near, away, next to the WiFi hub and the signal quality just doesn't seem to change. I have 2 'bars' of signal on the WiFi logo constantly and loading up basic web-pages just doesn't happen often.

I know weak WiFi is an issue with Linux, i've read other people's complaints, but is there anyone who has had this issue before and fixed it?

Cheers
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Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by Moem »

Mod note:
Topics merged, as they are about the same issue.
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If your issue is solved, kindly indicate that by editing the first post in the topic, and adding [SOLVED] to the title. Thanks!
JeremyB
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Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by JeremyB »

Does iwconfig show wifi power management back on
RyanHolmesUK

Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by RyanHolmesUK »

JeremyB wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 7:34 am Does iwconfig show wifi power management back on
lo no wireless extensions.

wlp2s0 IEEE 802.11 ESSID:"VodafoneConnect65617226"
Mode:Managed Frequency:2.412 GHz Access Point: 00:9A:CD:BB:20:C5
Bit Rate=1 Mb/s Tx-Power=20 dBm
Retry short limit:7 RTS thr:off Fragment thr:off
Power Management:on
Link Quality=63/70 Signal level=-47 dBm
Rx invalid nwid:0 Rx invalid crypt:0 Rx invalid frag:0
Tx excessive retries:0 Invalid misc:2 Missed beacon:0
JeremyB
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Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by JeremyB »

Code: Select all

sudo sed -i 's/3/2/' /etc/NetworkManager/conf.d/*
Reboot and see if it is normal
RyanHolmesUK

Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by RyanHolmesUK »

JeremyB wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 10:28 am

Code: Select all

sudo sed -i 's/3/2/' /etc/NetworkManager/conf.d/*
Reboot and see if it is normal
iwconfig now shows Power management off, but unfortunately hasn't changed the signal level after rebooting and leaving it a while. Running out of idea's! Got any more solutions?
JeremyB
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Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by JeremyB »

The signal level isn't very important, do some speedtest checks and see if the up/download speeds are good
The signal level is part of the kernel module, the person maintaining that module could make it say 100% easily all the time
RyanHolmesUK

Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by RyanHolmesUK »

JeremyB wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 6:58 pm The signal level isn't very important, do some speedtest checks and see if the up/download speeds are good
The signal level is part of the kernel module, the person maintaining that module could make it say 100% easily all the time
Speed tests are the same, i'm getting around 35-37mbps download and 9mbps upload, that's the speeds i'm supposed to be getting. The issue is the connection just seems to drop out often, it won't load simple webpages then i get the "cannot load webpage" white screen, but once i refresh a couple of times it comes back on.
RyanHolmesUK

Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by RyanHolmesUK »

stylefree wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 9:20 pm i also just switched from windows to linux mint. I noticed the same, as my connection speed are faster in windows than in linux mint.

just wondering is this normal or something need to be done?
Seems to be normal. I've seen so many comments on this. Bit of a shame really.
RyanHolmesUK

Re: WiFi signal connection appears to be weaker than when used on Win 10

Post by RyanHolmesUK »

stylefree wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 9:20 pm i also just switched from windows to linux mint. I noticed the same, as my connection speed are faster in windows than in linux mint.

just wondering is this normal or something need to be done?
Jeremy has posted many solutions for other people on this forum and they have worked for others. They might work for you, check them out.
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