So, I recently got my hands on this sleek new laptop with the Intel Wi-Fi 6E AX211 card, and I’m really excited about the 160MHz bandwidth it promises. I’ve been using Ubuntu 20.04 LTS for a while now, and it’s been pretty smooth, but I have no clue how to get this Wi-Fi card up and running to actually take advantage of its capabilities.
I’ve read that there are some specific drivers I need to install, but I’m a bit lost in all the technical jargon. I tried searching online, and there are a bunch of guides out there, but it’s hard to tell which ones are current and relevant to my version of Ubuntu. I’m not even sure if the default drivers that come with Ubuntu will work properly, or if I need to manually download and install additional drivers. If I do need to install something, I’m not so savvy with command-line stuff and would love a bit of hand-holding through the process.
Also, once the driver is installed, I hear there are some configurations that I might need to tweak to fully utilize the 160MHz channel widths. What do I need to do for that? Do I have to edit any system files or settings, or is it all handled through a GUI? And how can I check if everything is set up correctly afterward?
I know this is a lot, but I’d appreciate any advice or step-by-step guidance. I’m sure there are others in the same boat as me—eager to unlock all the potential of this Wi-Fi card but not really sure where to start. Has anyone figured this out yet? Any tips or experiences that might help? I’d love to hear how you got it working and if there were any hiccups along the way. Thanks in advance!
To get your Intel Wi-Fi 6E AX211 card working on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS, you will need to ensure you have the latest kernel installed, as support for newer hardware can often lag behind in older distributions. First, confirm your Ubuntu is fully updated by running the following command in the terminal:
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade. If you find that your kernel is below 5.10, it may be necessary to upgrade your kernel manually. You can do this by adding the Ubuntu kernel PPA withsudo add-apt-repository ppa:canonical-kernel-team/ppaand then updating and upgrading again. This process might help install the necessary drivers as many of them are integrated into the latest kernel versions. Additionally, check for specific drivers for the AX211 card; Intel often provides support throughiwlwifi, which is typically included in the kernel, but you may need to load it usingsudo modprobe iwlwifi.After ensuring the drivers are correctly installed, you can configure your Wi-Fi settings to leverage the full capabilities of the 160MHz bandwidth. To do this, you may need to adjust your router settings, ensuring that it supports 160MHz channels, and that it is running on the correct frequency band (5GHz). You can verify if your Wi-Fi card is utilizing the correct channel width by running the command
iw dev wlan0 info(replacewlan0with your wireless interface name), which should show the current supported channel widths. For further configuration, theNetworkManagerGUI allows you to adjust connection settings without manually editing configuration files. Look for the “IPv4 Settings” and “Wi-Fi Security” tabs in your network settings to customize your connection. Checking connection status can be done vianmcli device status, ensuring everything runs smoothly. If you encounter issues or still don’t see the expected performance, consider consulting the latest Intel driver documentations or Ubuntu community forums, where users often share solutions to common setup problems.How to Set Up Intel Wi-Fi 6E AX211 on Ubuntu 20.04
Nice to hear about your new laptop and the Intel Wi-Fi 6E AX211 card! It can indeed be a bit confusing getting everything set up, but I’ll try to break it down for you.
Step 1: Check Existing Drivers
First thing, let’s see if the necessary drivers are already present. Open a terminal (you can find it in your applications) and run:
This will show you the network controllers and the kernel driver in use. Look for something related to the AX211 card. If it shows a driver like iwlwifi, then you might already be good to go!
Step 2: Installing Drivers (if needed)
If you don’t see the proper driver, or if it’s not working well, you might need to update your kernel or install the latest driver.
To update your system (and possibly get the latest drivers), run:
After that, you can install the backport-iwlwifi-dkms package, which has the latest Intel drivers:
Reboot your laptop after installation:
Step 3: Configuring for 160MHz
Once your driver is set up, you’ll want to check if 160MHz is enabled. You can do this by editing a configuration file:
If the file is empty, you can add:
This option helps enable the wider channels. Save the file (in nano, you can do this by pressing
CTRL + Oto write out andCTRL + Xto exit).Step 4: Verifying Your Connection
After rebooting again, you can check if your Wi-Fi connection is using the 160MHz channel by running:
Just replace
wlan0with the actual name of your wireless interface if it’s different (you can find it in the output of thelspcicommand from above).Final Tips
If you’re using any graphical network management tools (like Network Manager), ensure they’re configured correctly too. Sometimes, just reconnecting to your Wi-Fi can help pick up the improved settings.
If you face any issues, you can check the logs for clues using:
Hopefully, this info helps you get the most out of your new Wi-Fi card! Good luck!