Re: RTL8187SE staging Linux driver

[Larry Finger <Larry.Finger@lwfinger.net>]

[-- Attachment #1: Type: text/plain, Size: 1755 bytes --]

On 09/10/2013 10:59 AM, Andrea Merello wrote:
> Hello,
>
> As you probably know, in the current Linux kernel there is a staging
> driver for the RTL8187SE device (based on my older RTL8180/RTL8185
> Linux driver), while there also a regular (not staging) driver
> supporting older RTL8185 and RTL8180 devices
> (net/wireless/rtl818x/rtl8180) .
>
> As far as I can see, the RTL8187SE device seems not so much different
> from an RTL8185 device.
> I would like to try (in my spare time) to add support for RTL8187SE
> device in the current RTL818x driver, in order to avoid code
> duplication, remove a driver from staging, and make RTL8187SE using
> mac80211.
>
> Do any one of you have any comment/objection/suggestions about this ?
>
> Is it possible to get the RTL8187SE documentation to make things easier?
>
> For now I will probably keep different RF code for the two cards even
> if the RTL8225 (zebra 2) radio is used by both RTL8187SE and some
> RTL8185 devices, however if I could get enough documentation about it,
> it would be great to try to merge also RF code..

I too would be very happy for you to do this. At one point, I was trying to do 
this and I had a version that very nearly worked. The driver was receiving data 
and transmitting short packets but failing on longer ones. Length 42 was OK, but 
68 failed. At that point, the chip locked up and needed to be power cycled. It 
seems that I got the DMA wrong, but I could never find it, and eventually, I had 
to move on.

At the moment, I am working at getting it to build on the current kernel. When I 
finish that, I will send the code to you. Even if you decide to scrap it, it may 
help you a little.

Attached is the datasheet, which is the only documentation I have.

Larry



[-- Attachment #2: RTL8187SE_DataSheet_1.0.pdf --]
[-- Type: application/pdf, Size: 718269 bytes --]