# ipw2200 sloooowwwwdown

## FatherBusa

I'm running the 2.6.14 kerrnel with ipw2200 compiled as a module for wireless.

This module has always worked fine for me, but after the 2.6.14 upgrade, the wireless started getting really slow.  It's slow even if all you're doing is ssh-ing into another box.  If you add, say, streaming audio to the equation, it starts to become really, really slow.

I have hardware crypto disabled, and I'm running the latest stable version of ipw2200, ipw2200-firmware, and ieee80211.  It doesn't matter whether I use iwconfig or wpa_supplicant.  And I can't find any errors in the logs.  It also doesn't seem to be the network; all my other boxes work fine.

Anyone else having this (profoundly annoying) problem?

SteveLast edited by FatherBusa on Wed Nov 30, 2005 9:30 pm; edited 3 times in total

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## dertony

Hi,

I am having the same problem. After the upgrade I only got download/upload rates of around 80kb/s (and no, I weren't using the internet). This came with version 1.0.8 of the ipw2200 drivers. I am now back to 2.6.12 and ipw2200-1.0.6, which works fine.

I believe that the problem has something to do with the kernel inclusion of the ipw drivers, so I've decided to wait for 2.6.15 to give them time to get things straight. Of course, it even better if anyone has a explenation or a solution...

Tony.

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## V-Man

Having the same problem here.  Not sure whether it was the ipw2200 upgrade or the kernel (since I did them both at the same time  :Sad:  ).  My AP is actually a linux box, and when my laptop is up and connected to the network, I get a ton of DUPs reported in dmesg on the AP:

```
wlan0: rx: 8 DUPs in 11 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 15 DUPs in 17 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 89 DUPs in 130 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 113 DUPs in 165 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 7 DUPs in 10 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 9 DUPs in 11 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 7 DUPs in 13 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 8 DUPs in 10 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 8 DUPs in 9 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 43 DUPs in 64 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 10 DUPs in 12 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 136 DUPs in 201 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 43 DUPs in 57 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 42 DUPs in 60 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 38 DUPs in 49 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 19 DUPs in 49 packets received in 10 secs

wlan0: rx: 46 DUPs in 223 packets received in 10 secs
```

This continues until I bring the laptop down.

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## jballou

I cannot even get my IPW2200 to -RUN- in 2.6.14. I'm back to my 2.6.13 kernel now.

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## rwallace

I've got this same problem.  I went from being able to transfer at 2.5MB/s to only about 250kB/s.  I'm still running the 2.6.13 kernel.  The slow down seems to have been caused by upgrading to ipw2200 1.0.8.  If I switch back to 1.0.6 then I go back to full speed.

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## jsivak

 *rwallace wrote:*   

> I've got this same problem.  I went from being able to transfer at 2.5MB/s to only about 250kB/s.  I'm still running the 2.6.13 kernel.  The slow down seems to have been caused by upgrading to ipw2200 1.0.8.  If I switch back to 1.0.6 then I go back to full speed.

 

I had the same problem.. things got better when I unmerged 2.3 and 2.4 of ipw2200-firmware (it was slotted)  and then re-emerged 2.4 ipw2200-firmware, using ipw2200 1.0.8. 

ymmv..

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## FatherBusa

 *Quote:*   

> I had the same problem.. things got better when I unmerged 2.3 and 2.4 of ipw2200-firmware (it was slotted) and then re-emerged 2.4 ipw2200-firmware, using ipw2200 1.0.8. 

 

I think that's the ticket, jsivak.  I unmerged 2.3 and it seemed to solve the problem.  I'm not sure that package should be slotted (I can't really think of a reason for having two firmware drivers for the same chip on the system), but I'll leave that for the maintainers to work out.

Is that it guys?  Did we nail it?  I'll mark this thread solved for now until I hear differently . . .

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## G2k

I unmerged the ipw2200-firmware and then tried to re-emerge it. I got this error

```
 * Determining the location of the kernel source code

 * Found kernel source directory:

 *     /usr/src/linux

 * Found sources for kernel version:

 *     2.6.14-gentoo-r2

 * Checking for suitable kernel configuration options:

 *   CONFIG_IPW2200:     should not be set. But it is.

 * Please check to make sure these options are set correctly.

 * Failure to do so may cause unexpected problems.

 * Once you have satisfied these options, please try merging

 * this package again.
```

so...do I get rid of the firmware in the kernel or do I leave the package unmerged? I'm back to using 2.6.12 for now.

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## dgaffuri

 *G2k wrote:*   

> I unmerged the ipw2200-firmware and then tried to re-emerge it. I got this error
> 
> ```
>  * Determining the location of the kernel source code
> 
> ...

 

Are you sure that you're merging ipw2200-firmware and not ipw2200? The firmware ebuild just copies files in /lib/firmware, and should not check kernel configuration. If, as it appears, you're using the in kernel ipw2200 you need to emerge only firmware. On the other hand if you want to emerge latest ieee80211 and ipw2200 you have to disable the kernel modules.

BTW, it's correct that firmware is slotted, you may have different versions of ipw2200 used by different kernels (for example the one in 2.6.14 kernel, that is 1.0.0, and the emerged 1.0. :Cool:  requiring different versions of firmware (2.2 and 2.4). And I don't understand how unmerging old firmware versions may change ipw2200 performances. AFAIK, 1.0.8 will never load a firmware below 2.4.

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## grimm26

I have a fresh gentoo install with 2.6.14-r2 nitro sources and latest stable ipw2200 module and firmware and my wireless is sloooooooooow as molasses.  I did an xfer from another gentoo box on my lan that is wired and only got about 10-20k/sec.  Something is up.

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## FatherBusa

 *grimm26 wrote:*   

> I have a fresh gentoo install with 2.6.14-r2 nitro sources and latest stable ipw2200 module and firmware and my wireless is sloooooooooow as molasses.  I did an xfer from another gentoo box on my lan that is wired and only got about 10-20k/sec.  Something is up.

 

Yeah, I thought I'd solved it (by unmerging firmware 2.3), but it's back.  Too many active connections and it slows way down.  And even without lots of network traffic, it's slower than usual.

I'd like to file a bug report, but I'd rather not have it say "System is slow -- reproducible always."  Does anyone have any stats or log entries that we could give the developers?  My logs report nothing unusual . . .

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## Ateo

I've got somewhat a similar issue...

Running ~x86 system; all packages current; using gentoo-sources....

For one, I cannot use ipw2200 in the kernel. It all compiles fine but ipw2200 can never load (I've tried built-in and modules). No matter which version of the firmware.

So, I gave up on using the included drivers and instead use the ebuilds. Those work, sort of. All modules always load but whether ipw2200 actually establishes a link or not is the issue. Most of the time it links up, but sometimes it doesn't. When it does link, sometimes speeds are awesome, sometimes they are crap but usually it's acceptable... Acceptable being between 500-900KB/s when my speeds are in the MB's with the previous kernel... Me tinks something is whacky with the kernel + includes ieee80211/ipw2xxx.

Also, the LED for my wireless. Sometimes it flickers randomly which it didn't do with previous kernels.

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## WildChild

 *Ateo wrote:*   

> I've got somewhat a similar issue...
> 
> Running ~x86 system; all packages current; using gentoo-sources....
> 
> For one, I cannot use ipw2200 in the kernel. It all compiles fine but ipw2200 can never load (I've tried built-in and modules). No matter which version of the firmware.
> ...

 

I have exactly the same symptoms with my ThinkPad R51. Usually it the speed is good but it can slow down as low as 8 kbps/sec. Also, when I download big files, the download stop and restart many times and I get a lot of "ipw2200: firmware error, restarting" (or a message like that, I can't remember exactly what is the message) with dmesg. Also, the driver has a lot of problems to connect to my access point.

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## Ateo

 *WildChild wrote:*   

>  *Ateo wrote:*   I've got somewhat a similar issue...
> 
> Running ~x86 system; all packages current; using gentoo-sources....
> 
> For one, I cannot use ipw2200 in the kernel. It all compiles fine but ipw2200 can never load (I've tried built-in and modules). No matter which version of the firmware.
> ...

 

I've gotten that error as well.. Usually when I, like you, am experiencing slowdowns (from acceptable speeds) and I restart the ethX... But it usually restarts anyways.. Weird. I think I'll drop down to 2.6.13-g-r5. That worked well.

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## dgaffuri

I solved the firmware error with

```
options ipw2200 hwcrypto=0
```

in /etc/modules.d/ipw2200.

But that's a rather generic error, and happened with all versions from 1.0.3 to 1.0.8, so could be it was not the same problem as yours.

Except this I had no problems with 2.6.13/4 and 1.0.8. Now I'm running on 2.6.15-rc2 (rc4 from yesterday) using kernel modules and it works well too.

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## FatherBusa

 *dgaffuri wrote:*   

> I solved the firmware error with
> 
> ```
> options ipw2200 hwcrypto=0
> ```
> ...

 

Hmm.  That complicates things a bit.  Turning off hardware crypto was one of the first things I tried.  It made a slight difference, but not much.  What's your setup like?

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## Ateo

Does /etc/modules.d/ipw2200 even make a difference? Doesn't look like it works to me... My led does not activate with this:

```
options ipw2200 led=1
```

. I've run modules-update as well... So, what gives? There is no documentation on this file. The readme it tell you to read is about as useful as staring at the sun..

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## dgaffuri

 *FatherBusa wrote:*   

> What's your setup like?

 

I've ieee80211 and ipw2200 built as modules in vanilla 2.6.15. The hwcrypto one is the only line in ipw2200.conf. I use iwconfig with open WEP and baselayout-1.12.0_pre11-r3 (but this doesn't make a difference). With this version of baselayout I've set hotplug_eth1="no" in /etc/conf.d/net to avoid hotplug starting my network before net.eth1 starts.

When I'm at work I also occasionally use (changing configuration by hand) wpa_supplicant-0.4.7. But I have a problem with this configuration, network doesn't starting at first try after booting (or after modprobing ipw2200), and I'm required to restart net.eth1 manually.

Please ask if you're looking for more specific info.

 *Ateo wrote:*   

> Does /etc/modules.d/ipw2200 even make a difference? Doesn't look like it works to me... My led does not activate with this:
> 
> Code:
> 
> options ipw2200 led=1
> ...

 

It works in the measure that modules-update builds modprobe.conf starting from files in /etc/modules.d, and modprobe passes parameters to ipw2200. If the module doesn't handle it correctly it's another story. Anyway it handles hwcrypto for sure, cause all my firmware errors disappeared.

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## Ateo

 *dgaffuri wrote:*   

> It works in the measure that modules-update builds modprobe.conf starting from files in /etc/modules.d, and modprobe passes parameters to ipw2200. If the module doesn't handle it correctly it's another story. Anyway it handles hwcrypto for sure, cause all my firmware errors disappeared.

 

So is that the correct syntax? Are you sure adding that parameter was definately what made your errors go away or maybe something else while fiddling around trying to fix it? I mean, if led=1 works if passed from modules.autoload, it should work if passed from modules.conf.

Just trying to figure out where the issue is here. Not that it really makes a difference since I can get the led to work...

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## dgaffuri

I'm pretty sure, I've tried to add and remove the hwcrypto and without it I get firmware errors (not so frequently, some per day, but I get them). If I remember correctly (but I don't remember where I read it) the led feature is not working with every board, and may even cause problems.

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## Ateo

 *dgaffuri wrote:*   

> I'm pretty sure, I've tried to add and remove the hwcrypto and without it I get firmware errors (not so frequently, some per day, but I get them). If I remember correctly (but I don't remember where I read it) the led feature is not working with every board, and may even cause problems.

 

It does work for my board. It works if I add ipw2200 led=1 to /etc/modules.autoload/kernel-2.6.... so... me tinks it's a bug in baselayout..??

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## dgaffuri

Check in /etc/modprobe.conf if your option is there, like in

```
options ipw2200 hwcrypto=0
```

If not it's a baselayout problem. If it's there it could be a module-init-tools problem (that is, modprobe doesn't work correctly with its configuration file).

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## Ateo

 *dgaffuri wrote:*   

> Check in /etc/modprobe.conf if your option is there, like in
> 
> ```
> options ipw2200 hwcrypto=0
> ```
> ...

 

I've checked. It is correct. I submitted a bug report for the LED issue...

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## crazy-bee

Cheers, the hwcrypto=0 fixed the slow speed and the firmware error - restarting thing. Thanks!

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## c_t

Woooooooooohaaaaaa! Finally wlan rocks with constantly 54Mbit/s!

```
options ipw2200 hwcrypto=0
```

in /etc/modules.d/ipw2200 did the trick! Using gentoo-sources-2.6.14-r4, ipw2200-firmware-2.4, ipw2200-1.0.8 on Samsung X20 1730 V.

Thanks guys.

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## Ateo

Ok. So the syntax does work....

all options, one line (in /etc/modules.d/ipw2200):

```
options ipw2200 hwcrypt=0 led=1
```

Oh.. adding hwcrypt=0 solves all my issues other than the in tree drivers never working....

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## db_404

Now, I'm seeing this - hwcrypto=0 seems to help some, but speeds are far lower on my ipw2200 than my madwifi desktop box (still down in the 100KB/s range for scp - as opposed to 2MB/s on the other machine copying to the same server).

This is kernel 2.6.14-gentoo-r5, ipw2200-1.08-r1 & ipw2200-firmware-2.4

Any hints??

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## unexist

I just upgraded to ipw2200-1.0.9 and the problem seems to be gone. Disabling the hw-crypto had no effect.

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## PezAreYummy

Hey guys, I'm having some trouble with my intel pro wireless as well. I'm running a 2.6.12-r5 vanilla kernel, with the ipw2200 ebuild on a Dell Latitude D600. I'm curious if anyone also has the D600? Anyway, my problem is that at seemingly random times I will lose my connection all together. If I simply try to /etc/init.d/net.eth1 restart it will hang on Running dhcpcd. 

As such...

```

dorrian@localhost ~ $ /etc/init.d/net.eth1 restart

 * Stopping GNU Krell Monitor daemon ...                                  [ ok ]

 * Unmounting network filesystems ...                                     [ ok ]

 * Stopping eth1

 *   Bringing down eth1

 *     Stopping dhcpcd on eth1 ...                                        [ ok ]

 *     Shutting down eth1 ...                                             [ ok ]

 * Starting eth1

 *   Configuring wireless network for eth1

 *     eth1 connected to "MYessid" at XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX

 *     in managed mode (WEP enabled - open)

 *   Bringing up eth1

 *     dhcp

 *       Running dhcpcd ...          

```

However, if I reboot my computer, it will start up the interface with no problem what so ever. I've tried updating my drivers, and I have tried changing various things in the configuration files, and I've googled this to death. I fear that I really don't know enough about this to even start diagnosing the problem, if anyone could point me in the right direction I'd be much appreciative.

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## PezAreYummy

I've finally come across something that might shed some light on my situation.

After running grep ipw2200 /var/log/messages I found that these messages are repeated a good number of times.

```

Jan 19 01:13:40 localhost ipw2200: Firmware error detected.  Restarting.

Jan 19 01:13:40 localhost ipw2200: Sysfs 'error' log already exists.

```

I'm not sure what this means though, can anyone shed further light for me?

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## ribx

following problem:

kernel: 2.6.15-suspend2-r1

ipw2200: in tree 1.0.8

firmware: 2.4 (portage)

i dont have another firmware installed.

dmesg:

```
...

ipw2200: Firmware error detected.  Restarting.

ipw2200: Sysfs 'error' log already exists.

ipw2200: Firmware error detected.  Restarting.

ipw2200: Sysfs 'error' log already exists.

ipw2200: Firmware error detected.  Restarting.

ipw2200: Sysfs 'error' log already exists.

...

```

and:

```

ipw2200: Unknown parameter `hwcrypt'

```

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## dgaffuri

 *ribx wrote:*   

> 
> 
> ```
> ipw2200: Unknown parameter `hwcrypt'
> ```
> ...

 

It's hwcrypto, not hwcript.

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## ribx

oh jeah  :Smile:  thanks! now its working.

@Ateo: you maybe want to correct your post  :Smile: 

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## vedas

I wish I would have seen this post, I battled this issue for about a month running ipw2200-1.0.8 and finially found   a thread that fixed this (hwcrypto=0).  My problems were very severe when using WEP to the point where I would disconnect frequently after the driver restarted itself over and over again.  Versions up to this point seemed rock stable, I wonder what went wrong.

This is also fixed by running ~x86 version ipw2200-1.0.10 ....

FROM http://ipw2200.sf.net (1.0.9 changelog)

 *Quote:*   

> 
> 
>     * Scale firmware loading watchdog with the firmware size (thanks to Peter Jones)
> 
>     * Add module parameter to enable/disable roaming
> ...

 

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## BlackEdder

I can also report success by upgrading to version 1.0.10. Hwcrypto didn't seem to make a difference.

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## mirko_3

Hmmm... Would hwcrypto=0 hurt battery life?

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