This is a rewritten the same Article originally posted on 2017-02-23.


The official Linux driver for EW-7833UAC supports Linux kernel v2.6 to v4.4 only.  Any versions other than those are not supported.  For kernel higher than v4.4, the only workaround is to use an open source driver from GitHub.  Here's the link for your reference.

https://github.com/tpircher/rtl8814AU

[ Note:  The above driver is forked from https://github.com/diederikdehaas/rtl8814AU. ]


Steps have been tested using the following Linux distributions:

  • Debian 9.4, kernel v4.9.0-6
  • Ubuntu 16.04.4, kernel v4.13.0-37 and Ubuntu 17.10, kernel v4.13.0-37
  • OpenSUSE Tumbleweed(20180319), kernel 4.15.10-1
  • Fedora 27, kernel 4.15.10-300
  • Manjaro 17.1.6, kernel v4.15.10-1


A Terminal program is being used to run all the commands listed below.  Commands are listed in green color below and should be typed one command at a time.  The '$' and '#' signs are just the prompt to indicate whether you're normal or root user.  Neither character should be included, i.e. do not type that character.



[1.]  Make sure your system is able to access the Internet.


[2.]  Open a Terminal program from your Operating System(OS).

 

[3.]  Make sure your system is up-to-date and reboot it if necessary after being updated/upgraded, especially upgraded to a newer kernel.  This step is totally optional and you don't have to do it but it is recommended.

Debian & Ubuntu

$ sudo apt update

$ sudo apt upgrade

$ sudo reboot

OpenSUSE

$ sudo zypper update

$ sudo zypper dup

$ sudo reboot

Fedora 27

# dnf update
# dnf reboot

Manjaro

$ sudo pacman -Syu

$ sudo reboot


[4.]  Install the necessary files to compile and install the driver if they haven't been installed by default during OS installation.

Debian & Ubuntu

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

OpenSUSE

$ sudo zypper in kernel-desktop-devel dkms git

Fedora 27

# dnf install kernel-develop kernel-headers dkms git

Manjaro

$ sudo pacman -S linux413-headers dkms git


[5.]  Clone the GitHub repository

$ git clone https://github.com/tpircher/rtl8814AU.git/

[ Note:  After 'rt' are letters 'l' (like lemon), not number '1' (like 1990).  And right after '88' is a number '1' (like 1990), not a letter 'l' (like lemon).  Typing them wrong will cause GitHub to prompt you inputting a Username and a Password, or saying repository not found. ]


[6.]  Change directory.

$ cd rtl8814AU


[7.]  Switch to the root user if you are not one.  Skip this one if you've already logged in as root.

$ sudo su


[8.]  The following commands are from the README.md file in the GitHub repository.

# cp -R . /usr/src/rtl8814au-4.3.21
# dkms build -m rtl8814au -v 4.3.21
# dkms install -m rtl8814au -v 4.3.21


[9.]  Restart your computer for the new driver to take effect.

# reboot


[10.] There is a bug related to Network Manager that keeps prompting you to input the Security Key (a.k.a. Network Password).  The workaround is to edit the NetworkManager.conf file.

# nano /etc/NetworkManager/NetworkManager.conf

[ Note: nano is a Text Editor for my personal preference.  You can use any Editor that you prefer, e.g. vi, gedit, etc. ]

Add the following lines at the end of the file.

[device]

wifi.scan-rand-mac-address=0

Save the file and then restart the Network Manager service.

# systemctl restart NetworkManager.service



The last step (#10, modified the NetworkManager.conf) may not be needed depending on your system.  It is provided here just as a precaution.  You can simply skip it first to see how the driver is doing on your system.


Once finished rebooting your system, you should be able to make a WiFi connection using EW-7833UAC.  It is best to input the commands using Copy & Paste function, i.e. copy the command from here and paste it into the Terminal prompt.  If your Linux distribution does not list here, you may need to find out the equivalent commands for your OS, especially for Steps 2 and 3.


To uninstall/remove the installed driver and source, do the following.


[A.]

# dkms remove rtl8814au/4.3.21 --all

# rm -rf /usr/src/rtl8814au-4.3.21

# reboot




Known Issue:

In rare cases, Network Manager(NM) will keep asking you to re-input the WiFi Security Key even with modification applied (Step #10).  You just need to keep input it.  After several tries, you should be reconnected back to your WiFi network.


That's it and enjoy!



Technial Support Team

Edimax USA

Santa Clara, CA

USA




/*** EOF ***/

Created:  2017-10-26  3:41 PM
Modified:  2018-03-22  11:37 AM