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Wifi Dongle possible solution? help needed.

I have used the 702 as an AP and a router, it is also supposed to be capable of being a WiFi client (as it would be in a situation like this), a WiFi extender, and a bridge. Granted it only has the one physical Ethernet port, but it can be powered from the Humax USB port (or another port, or the included wall-wart USB power adapter - also handy for things).

I find the 702 so handy I have just bought two more so I can have each set to a different configuration that I use occasionally and not have to worry about reconfiguring them (once configured, they just boot up in that configuration each time). That accounts for two, the other two are available for anything else.
 
I've got a TP Link TL-WR710N on order. This plugs directly into the mains and has 2 ethernet ports and a USB port. What I am interested in is the USB port: it supplies power but also has a data link so you can plug in a portable hard drive and share it on your network.
 
I have managed to get hold of an Edimax EW=7711UAn dongle that does not work with the HDR-Fox: the dongle is detected but no wireless networks are seen. This came in a box without a Windows 8 sticker on it. It also came supplied with the older instruction leaflet and older driver CD. When installed on my Windows 7 laptop (using the supplied driver CD) the dongle was recognised but no networks were observed. Using the inbuilt WiFi on my laptop, I updated the driver over the internet (device manager). It worked correctly with the updated driver. This in itself seems rather poor: supplying a WiFi dongle that does not work correctly, requiring an existing network connection and update to fix!

I ran the 'cat /proc/bus/usb/devices' command and the results are posted below. The significant differences are in line 8: #EPs= 5 (#EPs= 7 with a functional dongle) and the fact that the output for the non-functional dongle is two lines shorter: no lines for 'Ad=05' and 'Ad=06'
Code: 
Non-functional dongle
T:  Bus=01 Lev=01 Prnt=01 Port=01 Cnt=01 Dev#=  3 Spd=480 MxCh= 0
D:  Ver= 2.00 Cls=00(>ifc ) Sub=00 Prot=00 MxPS=64 #Cfgs=  1
P:  Vendor=7392 ProdID=7711 Rev= 1.01
S:  Manufacturer=Ralink
S:  Product=802.11 n WLAN
S:  SerialNumber=1.0
C:* #Ifs= 1 Cfg#= 1 Atr=80 MxPwr=450mA
I:  If#= 0 Alt= 0 #EPs= 5 Cls=ff(vend.) Sub=ff Prot=ff Driver=rt2870
E:  Ad=81(I) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
E:  Ad=01(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
E:  Ad=02(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
E:  Ad=03(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
E:  Ad=04(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
 
Functional dongle
T:  Bus=01 Lev=01 Prnt=01 Port=01 Cnt=01 Dev#=  4 Spd=480 MxCh= 0
D:  Ver= 2.00 Cls=00(>ifc ) Sub=00 Prot=00 MxPS=64 #Cfgs=  1
P:  Vendor=7392 ProdID=7711 Rev= 1.01
S:  Manufacturer=Ralink
S:  Product=802.11 n WLAN
S:  SerialNumber=1.0
C:* #Ifs= 1 Cfg#= 1 Atr=80 MxPwr=450mA
I:  If#= 0 Alt= 0 #EPs= 7 Cls=ff(vend.) Sub=ff Prot=ff Driver=rt2870
E:  Ad=81(I) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
E:  Ad=01(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
E:  Ad=02(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
E:  Ad=03(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
E:  Ad=04(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
E:  Ad=05(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
E:  Ad=06(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
 
I'm wondering if it is possible to hack the eeprom of a non-functioning Edimax dongle to make it work? It is known that if you plug a working dongle into a Mac, it makes it incompatible with the HDR-FOX: http://hummy.tv/forum/threads/wireless-dongle-stopped-working.1250/ and it looks like this changes the parameter 'Driver=rt2870' to 'Driver=(none)':* so the parameters can be deleted. If the parameter '#EPs= 5' could be changed to '#EPs= 7' would that do the trick?

I found a website which describes how suitable dongles with the rt2870 chipset can be hacked to make them work with Samsung TVs: http://wiki.samygo.tv/index.php5/Using_NoN-Samsung_USB_WiFi_dongles_with_TV so perhaps this approach could be modified?

Alternatively, could the driver file on the Hummy be modified? This may be easier and would not risk bricking the dongle. However, the eeprom method would not require installation of the custom firmware.

*Edit: it also seems to change some parameters in the second line - 'Cls=06(still) Sub=02' rather than 'Cls=00(>ifc ) Sub=00'
 
The driver can be modified easily enough. I've compiled my own version in the past. It would even be possible to use an updated version of the driver which may just work with the newer dongle, however the latest version is much bigger than the one so would use more kernel memory.

As a first approach, I think trying the dongle with a Humax running a custom kernel (with printk enabled) and custom Wifi driver compiled against the same kernel configuration would be a good idea. That would allow the driver to output status and debug messages that could be retrieved with the dmesg command.
 
I've recently been setting up a HDR-FOX for a relative. I needed to get a dongle, and as Amazon don't have the Tenda 311U+ in stock I took a chance on the Edimax EW-7711UAn. The dongle came with an updated driver CD, and colour installation guide (as seen before) but the box now has 'Windows 8 support' printed on the box, not as a sticker (see photo). Due to the updated packaging and the time passed since reports of this dongle not working, it is likely that the one I received is new stock. The new one works. I've posted diagnostic output below. If anyone does order one from Amazon or elsewhere, please post in this thread and let us know if it is working or not.

Code: 
T:  Bus=01 Lev=01 Prnt=01 Port=00 Cnt=01 Dev#=  2 Spd=480 MxCh= 0   
D:  Ver= 2.00 Cls=00(>ifc ) Sub=00 Prot=00 MxPS=64 #Cfgs=  1         
P:  Vendor=7392 ProdID=7711 Rev= 1.01                               
S:  Manufacturer=Ralink                                             
S:  Product=802.11 n WLAN                                           
S:  SerialNumber=1.0                                                 
C:* #Ifs= 1 Cfg#= 1 Atr=80 MxPwr=450mA                               
I:  If#= 0 Alt= 0 #EPs= 7 Cls=ff(vend.) Sub=ff Prot=ff Driver=rt2870 
E:  Ad=81(I) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms                         
E:  Ad=01(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms                         
E:  Ad=02(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms                         
E:  Ad=03(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms                         
E:  Ad=04(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms                         
E:  Ad=05(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms                         
E:  Ad=06(O) Atr=02(Bulk) MxPS= 512 Ivl=0ms
 

Attachments

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Reading this thread with interest. I have one of the Edimax dongles that worked fine ( with occasional dropouts), but shortly after i fitted a new HD it stopped working. I bought a new dongle and this hasnt worked either so i have been without network access since November, which is frustrating when i want to search for new channels but cannot use my custom firmware favourites backup.
Any advice gratefully received. Unfortunately the router is upstairs ( box downstairs) so running a cable isnt yet an option, and i have tried both front and back USB ports.
 
I got a compatible wifi dongle from Amazon, but found that iPlayer was a bit stuttery with it (connecting to my PlusNet FTCC 40MB connection). So I've put in a couple of TPLink homeplugs, and am using a wired connection, and now it's super fast.
 
The stutter was probably due to your wifi router or a lot of traffic in your house at the time. I'm on wifi and can watch iplayer in hd without stutter on my 5.5mb connection.
 
Nope. The broadband, router and traffic is identical, the only difference is that it's a wired homeplug connection to the router now. Wifi is just not as good for streaming HD video.
 
Yes but my point was that your wifi router maybe capped at a certain throughput. Like I said, I use wifi and I do not have stutter and my connection speed is nowhere near as fast as yours..
 
Not all dongles are created equal. Of the Edimax EW-7711 models the 'mini' version (which I think they have stopped making) is poor but the one with the antenna, the 'UAN' model, is really good. Don't be fooled by the speed at which the Humax claims to be connected. I use the custom firmware iPlayer test. Download a programme and watch the download speed in Web-If. With the mini dongle the maximum download speed is about 5 Mbps and this fluctuates between 1 and 5 Mbps. With the 'UAN' model I get a steady 28-30 Mbps download speed (the typical max. on my broadband is about 33 Mbps). Usually you can improve WiFi performance by connecting the dongle by a short USB cable rather than plugging it directly into the unit. This effect is most noticeable with the more compact dongles. If you do have an Edimax dongle though, they tend to bundle a short USB cable which can be bent and retains its shape: don't use this cable it affects the WiFi performance quite badly.
 
MontysEvilTwin said:
If you do have an Edimax dongle though, they tend to bundle a short USB cable which can be bent and retains its shape: don't use this cable it affects the WiFi performance quite badly.
Click to expand...

oh! I'm using this... do you have any figures for with and without, in your setup, please? thanks...
 
MontysEvilTwin said:
If you do have an Edimax dongle though, they tend to bundle a short USB cable which can be bent and retains its shape: don't use this cable it affects the WiFi performance quite badly.
Click to expand...
I threw the cable away as just plugging it in to the Humax (without anything plugged in the other end) caused the machine to crash and reboot. Bizarre but true. The damned thing is periodically unreliable for reasons I have not got to the bottom of.
 
cdmackay said:
oh! I'm using this... do you have any figures for with and without, in your setup, please? thanks...
Click to expand...
Not off the top of my head. I think it was more the fact that it made the network speed less stable, with regular brief drop outs. On a PC you might not notice it but when playing hi def content on a remote machine over a samba share the playback was stuttery. Removing the cable cured the problem immediately. Dongles like the Edimax EW-7711UAN (with a sizeable antenna) are fine plugged into the Humax directly. Smaller dongles do seem to benefit from the use of a USB extension lead. For a compact solution these adapters are quite useful. They do block the Ethernet port if used in the rear USB, but of course that is not an issue if you are using a wireless dongle.

Edit. If you want to assess how the cable affects your setup, try the iPlayer download test I suggested in post#32. Pick a programme, download it for a couple of minutes with and without the cable, and watch the download speed in Web-If > browse media files, assuming you have custom firmware installed.
 
prpr said:
I threw the cable away as just plugging it in to the Humax (without anything plugged in the other end) caused the machine to crash and reboot. Bizarre but true.
Click to expand...

I had a similar issue with a USB extender cable that came with a USB GPS dongle. Crashed my laptop whenever it (the extender) was connected.

I assumed there was a short or something, in the cable, but never checked it - just threw it.
 
Today I connected the 'non-functional' Edimax EW-7711UAN dongle, discussed in post #23 of this thread, to a HDR-FOX (1.03.12/ CFW 3.02) and found it now to be fully functional. It is known that connecting an Edimax EW-7711UAN to a Mac makes changes to eeprom settings (see here) causing the HDR-FOX to see the dongle as a camera. I ran the 'cat /proc/bus/usb/devices' command and now the parameter '#EPs' = 7 (was previously 5), indicating that the eeprom setting has been changed. Unless this was caused by recent updates to the custom firmware (CFW 3.02), the only thing that comes to mind is that I used this dongle with a laptop running Ubuntu 12.04 a few weeks ago and wonder if the eeprom could have been modified when it was being installed? It may be difficult to confirm as there probably aren't many of the dongles around with this 'fault'.

As an aside, I have seen it reported that this model of dongle is now in version 2 (was 1.0D) which uses a different chipset and is incompatible with the HDR-FOX.
 
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