HP Omen 17 + Ubuntu 22.04 + RTL8852BE WiFi issue

[alchemistx]

Hi.

I purchased a HP Omen 17 and installed Ubuntu 22.04.5 LTS. Prior to that, I have disabled Secure Boot and turn off Fast Boot in my Windows11. Unfortunately, I am not seeing any WiFi adapter (RTL8852be) in my Network Manager.

seneca2@seneca2-OMEN-Gaming-Laptop-17z-db100:~$ sudo lshw -C network
*-network
description: Ethernet interface
product: RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller
vendor: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.
physical id: 0
bus info: pci@0000:02:00.0
logical name: eno1
version: 16
serial: f8:ed:fc:73:31:53
size: 1Gbit/s
capacity: 1Gbit/s
width: 64 bits
clock: 33MHz
capabilities: pm msi pciexpress msix bus_master cap_list ethernet physical tp mii 10bt 10bt-fd 100bt 100bt-fd 1000bt-fd autonegotiation
configuration: autonegotiation=on broadcast=yes driver=r8169 driverversion=6.8.0-65-generic duplex=full firmware=rtl8168h-2_0.0.2 02/26/15 ip=192.168.2.3 latency=0 link=yes multicast=yes port=twisted pair speed=1Gbit/s
resources: irq:48 ioport:f000(size=256) memory:fce04000-fce04fff memory:fce00000-fce03fff
*-network UNCLAIMED
description: Network controller
product: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.
vendor: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.
physical id: 0
bus info: pci@0000:03:00.0
version: 00
width: 64 bits
clock: 33MHz
capabilities: pm msi pciexpress cap_list
configuration: latency=0
resources: ioport:e000(size=256) memory:fcd00000-fcdfffff

I have tried a couple of things including following the instructions found here: https://github.com/lwfinger/rtw89

However, even though I could load the driver without error,  when I perform the following:

seneca2@seneca2-OMEN-Gaming-Laptop-17z-db100:~$ lspci -nnk | grep -i network -A3
pcilib: Error reading /sys/bus/pci/devices/0000:00:08.3/label: Operation not permitted
03:00.0 Network controller [0280]: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. Device [10ec:b520]
DeviceName: Realtek Wi-Fi 6 RTL8852BE-VT-CG+ BT5.4 (802.11ax 2x2)
Subsystem: Hewlett-Packard Company Device [103c:88e9]
04:00.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: NVIDIA Corporation Device [10de:2d19] (rev a1)

It does not say "Kernel driver in use: rtw89pci”.

Seeking help on making RTL8852BE to work with my Ubuntu 22.04.

Thank you very much!

[Dragora]

Hi alchemistx

Your HP Omen 17 with the RTL8852BE Wi-Fi adapter isn't working on Ubuntu 22.04 because the Ubuntu kernel doesn't include the necessary driver for that specific network card model by default. The rtw89 series driver for Realtek was added to more recent kernels.

Solution

To fix the problem, you need to install the rtw89 driver from the GitHub repository. The steps you tried to follow are correct, but the absence of "Kernel driver in use: rtw89pci" indicates that the driver was loaded but not activated or properly associated with the device. It's possible you're missing some packages or the process wasn't fully completed.

Follow these detailed steps to compile and install the driver:

1. Install Necessary Dependencies: Open a terminal and run the following commands. This will ensure you have all the tools needed to build the driver.

Bash

sudo apt update
sudo apt install git dkms build-essential

dkms is important because it allows the kernel module to persist through kernel updates.

2. Clone the Driver Repository:

Clone the rtw89 repository from GitHub, as it is the most up-to-date source for the driver.

Bash

git clone https://github.com/lwfinger/rtw89.git

This will create a folder named rtw89 in your current directory.

3. Compile and Install the Driver: Navigate to the repository folder and run the installation script that compiles the code and installs it as a dkms module.

Bash

cd rtw89
sudo make
sudo make install

The sudo make install command will handle installing the driver in the correct system location.

4. Load the Kernel Module: Next, load the kernel modules so the system recognizes them.

Bash

sudo modprobe rtw89pci

This command activates the driver for the specific hardware.

5. Verify the Driver Is Active: Now, check if the driver is in use. The lspci command you used before should now show a different result.

Bash

lspci -nnk | grep -i network -A3

You should see a line that says "Kernel driver in use: rtw89pci". If you don't, you may need to reboot your system for the changes to fully apply.

6. Reboot and Check the Connection: Reboot your laptop to ensure the changes persist after startup.

Bash

sudo reboot

After rebooting, go to your network settings. You should see the available Wi-Fi networks in the Network Manager menu. If not, check lshw again to make sure there are no errors.

If the steps above don't work, consider updating your Ubuntu kernel to a more recent version (for example, by upgrading to a newer Ubuntu version like 24.04), as later versions have better compatibility with newer hardware.

I hope the above is helpful

[alchemistx]

Thank you for your prompt reply, as mentioned in my post, I've tried: 

git clone https://github.com/lwfinger/rtw89.git

But the issue persist, are there other things I could potentially try? 

Much appreciation for your very prompt support and help!

[Dragora]

Hi alchemistx

Given the lshw output showing your Realtek RTL8852BE WiFi adapter as UNCLAIMED, it's clear the system lacks a working driver. The fact that building the rtw89 driver from source didn't work and you still don't see "Kernel driver in use" suggests a problem with the driver installation or a mismatch with your kernel. This is a common issue with newer hardware on older kernel versions like the one in Ubuntu 22.04.5 LTS.

The two primary approaches to fix this are updating your kernel or ensuring the manual driver installation is done correctly, with an emphasis on using dkms (Dynamic Kernel Module Support).

Solution 1: Switch to a Newer Kernel (Recommended)

This is the most reliable solution. Many users have confirmed that the RTL8852BE is natively supported in newer Linux kernels (e.g., 6.2 and newer). The kernel that comes with Ubuntu 22.04.5 LTS is likely too old. Installing the HWE (Hardware Enablement) kernel will give you a newer, officially supported kernel.

1. Open your terminal.

2. Install the HWE kernel with this command:

   Bash

   sudo apt update
   sudo apt install --install-recommends linux-generic-hwe-22.04

3. Once the installation is finished, reboot your laptop.

   Bash

   sudo reboot

After the reboot, the system will start with the new kernel, and the rtw89 driver should be loaded automatically. Check if your WiFi adapter is now working in the Network Manager.

Solution 2: Correctly Install the Driver Manually with DKMS

If you absolutely must stick with your current kernel, you'll need to ensure the manual driver installation process is flawless. The key is using DKMS, which ensures the driver persists through kernel updates. It also handles the build process for your specific kernel version.

1. First, make sure you have all the necessary build tools and kernel headers. This is a crucial step that can often be missed.

   Bash

   sudo apt update
   sudo apt install build-essential dkms git linux-headers-$(uname -r)

2. Navigate to the directory where you cloned the rtw89 repository:

   Bash

   cd rtw89

3. Now, install the driver using the dkms framework. This is more reliable than a simple make && sudo make install.

   Bash

   sudo dkms add .
   sudo dkms install rtw89/$(ls -d rtw89/ | sed 's/rtw89\///g')

4. After the installation, load the kernel module:

   Bash

   sudo modprobe rtw89pci

5. Reboot your system to apply all changes.

   Bash

   sudo reboot

After the reboot, use lspci -nnk | grep -i network -A3 again. You should now see a line that says "Kernel driver in use: rtw89pci". If not, check your dmesg output for any errors related to the rtw89 driver or firmware loading.

Fixing "No WiFi Adapter Found" on Ubuntu This video provides a general guide for troubleshooting "No WiFi Adapter Found" errors on Ubuntu, which can be a helpful starting point.

I hope the above is helpful

[alchemistx]

Thank you for your reply. I tried updating my kernel as per your suggestion but the problem remains. It might be that RTE8852BE is too new for Ubuntu 22.04. I had to use 22.04 so that I could work with ROS2 Humble.

I circumvented the problem for the time being by using a WiFi dongle on my linux instead.