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#1 2020-02-14 19:09:29

xenobro
Member
Registered: 2019-05-25
Posts: 100

rtl8723bs wifi speed oscillating, too low or card losing connection

Hi everyone, if this is the wrong place, just tell me where to post it and I'll do it.
Sorry also for the long post, but there's a lot of details that can make a difference here.
I have Arch running on a USB 3.0 pendrive in a "Positivo 2 em 1 Q432A" notebook, motherboard CHT12CP, kernel 5.5.3-arch1-1, wireless card rtl8723bs using module r8723bs and a 10 Mbps dl 1 Mbps ul net link, but since I was having some problems with my connection (dl speeds randomly oscillating between 6 and 9.8 Mbps, daily disconnections, etc.), I called my ISP and their technician came 02/06, fixed a cable, changed something in the central and exchanged my modem from a D-Link DSL-2740E to a Mitrastar DSL-2401HN2-E1C.
Since then, all devices in my network get much better speeds and stability, at 10.50+ Mbps dl and 1.3+ Mbps ul constantly, including my Moto G2 2014 phone, a Tanix Tx5 Pro tv box from ~2016 I have here and a friends notebook and phone, except my pc connection, which has worsened abysmally:

My notebook wifi speeds now oscillate between 10.50+ and 2 or 3 Mbps, even getting to 0 Kbps at the worst, but usually between 5 and 7. This can happen at any moment, but seems to be more common at the busiest times (8:00, 18:30, 20:30). Upload is rarely affected.
dhcpcd now takes a lot longer to connect, and may even time out the first time I try.
Connection is sometimes randomly reported to be lost by firefox and iw, even though wpa_supplicant and dhcpcd are still running.
Going to the next room almost disconnects me, going from -45dBm to -75dBm or worse, and to the room besides reports -85dBm then disconnects.
Signal strength can never be better than -45dBm, even when putting the computer literally on top or in front of the modem, while doing the same with my phone gets -25dBm or better.
With my friends similar notebook (Positivo Duo ZR3630, wireless rtl8723bu, module from AUR) side by side with mine, running a clone of my system also on a USB 3.0 pendrive, while hers got 10.80 Mbps dl and 1.5 Mbps ul, mine always got 5 Mbps to 6 Mbps, immediately before or after. Upload got almost the same speed as hers, though it did have a harder time getting there.
On all other devices, larger downloads like, for instance, Ubuntu's iso (2.3GB) from the closest and best mirror, gets 1.2 MB/sec almost all the way, dropping below 1 MB/sec for 1 or 3 seconds mostly, with the peak lowest speed at ~580 KB/sec, and the longest oscillation during <10 secs - 5 secs dropping, 5 secs going up.
On my pc, it can also get 1.2 MB/sec, but there are much more and longer oscillations, while the worse periods get me speeds like 380 KB/sec to 500 KB/sec for hours, sometimes dropping to 180 KB/sec. Also the larger the file, the worse and longer are the oscillations.
In a friends house with 100 Mbps dl and ul, all devices got close to 50 Mbps down and more than 40 Mbps up on wireless; my laptop got ~24 Mbps dl and ~20 Mbps ul at most, usually getting some 20 down and 12 up.

Messing with rtw_ant_num and rtw_btcoex_enable didn't do anything noticeable.
I've also tried downgrading to kernel 5.5.1-arch1-1 and to 2 previous linux-firmwares to no effect.
Windows 10 doesn't show nearly the same symptoms, other than some small oscillation during the times with more interference.
One thing that maybe is worth noting is that my previous modem had 2 external antennas while the new one has none, though my friend's modem also had 2 of them.
Tests were done using Fast, Speedtest and the Brasil Banda Larga (the "official" and best for these tests here) sites and apps for phones, and both on firefox and wget.

So, can anyone help me?

Here's lshw, systool, ip link, ip addr, iw dev wlan0 {link|info} and iw list. If anything else is necessary, just tell me.
Thank you very much, xenobro.

[x@archlinux ~]$ sudo lshw
[sudo] senha para root: 
archlinux                   
    description: Notebook
    product: CHT12CP (3601127)
    vendor: Positivo Tecnologia SA
    version: Tablet
    serial: 4A675V90H
    width: 4294967295 bits
    capabilities: smbios-3.1 dmi-3.1 smp vsyscall32
    configuration: boot=normal chassis=notebook family=CHT12CP sku=3601127 uuid=0C021ECE-9052-0244-8EEA-9A5C1ECE9052
  *-core
       description: Motherboard
       product: CHT12CP
       vendor: Positivo Tecnologia SA
       physical id: 0
       version: 11130211
       serial: 4A675V90H
       slot: family
     *-firmware
          description: BIOS
          vendor: Positivo Tecnologia SA
          physical id: 0
          version: V00.06.X
          date: 09/21/2017
          size: 64KiB
          capacity: 3008KiB
          capabilities: pci upgrade shadowing cdboot bootselect edd int9keyboard int14serial int17printer int10video acpi usb zipboot biosbootspecification netboot uefi
     *-cpu
          description: CPU
          product: Intel(R) Atom(TM) x5-Z8350  CPU @ 1.44GHz
          vendor: Intel Corp.
          physical id: 4
          bus info: cpu@0
          version: Intel(R) Atom(TM) x5-Z8350  CPU @ 1.44GHz
          serial: To Be Filled By O.E.M.
          slot: CHV
          size: 480MHz
          capacity: 1920MHz
          width: 64 bits
          clock: 83MHz
          capabilities: x86-64 fpu fpu_exception wp vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe syscall nx rdtscp constant_tsc arch_perfmon pebs bts rep_good nopl xtopology tsc_reliable nonstop_tsc cpuid aperfmperf tsc_known_freq pni pclmulqdq dtes64 monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr pdcm sse4_1 sse4_2 movbe popcnt tsc_deadline_timer aes rdrand lahf_lm 3dnowprefetch epb pti ibrs ibpb stibp tpr_shadow vnmi flexpriority ept vpid tsc_adjust smep erms dtherm ida arat md_clear cpufreq
          configuration: cores=4 enabledcores=4 threads=4
        *-cache:0
             description: L1 cache
             physical id: 6
             slot: L1 Cache
             size: 32KiB
             capacity: 32KiB
             capabilities: synchronous internal write-back instruction
             configuration: level=1
        *-cache:1
             description: L2 cache
             physical id: 7
             slot: L2 Cache
             size: 1MiB
             capacity: 1MiB
             capabilities: synchronous internal write-back unified
             configuration: level=2
     *-cache
          description: L1 cache
          physical id: 5
          slot: L1 Cache
          size: 24KiB
          capacity: 24KiB
          capabilities: synchronous internal write-back data
          configuration: level=1
     *-memory
          description: System Memory
          physical id: 17
          slot: System board or motherboard
          size: 4GiB
        *-bank
             description: DIMM DDR3 Synchronous 1066 MHz (0,9 ns)
             vendor: 0000
             physical id: 0
             serial: 00000000
             slot: ChannelA-DIMM0
             size: 4GiB
             width: 16 bits
             clock: 1066MHz (0.9ns)
     *-pci
          description: Host bridge
          product: Atom/Celeron/Pentium Processor x5-E8000/J3xxx/N3xxx Series SoC Transaction Register
          vendor: Intel Corporation
          physical id: 100
          bus info: pci@0000:00:00.0
          version: 36
          width: 32 bits
          clock: 33MHz
          configuration: driver=iosf_mbi_pci
          resources: irq:0
        *-display
             description: VGA compatible controller
             product: Atom/Celeron/Pentium Processor x5-E8000/J3xxx/N3xxx Integrated Graphics Controller
             vendor: Intel Corporation
             physical id: 2
             bus info: pci@0000:00:02.0
             version: 36
             width: 64 bits
             clock: 33MHz
             capabilities: pm msi vga_controller bus_master cap_list rom
             configuration: driver=i915 latency=0
             resources: irq:117 memory:90000000-90ffffff memory:80000000-8fffffff ioport:1000(size=64) memory:c0000-dffff
        *-multimedia
             description: Multimedia controller
             product: Atom/Celeron/Pentium Processor x5-E8000/J3xxx/N3xxx Series Imaging Unit
             vendor: Intel Corporation
             physical id: 3
             bus info: pci@0000:00:03.0
             version: 36
             width: 32 bits
             clock: 33MHz
             capabilities: pm msi bus_master cap_list
             configuration: driver=intel_atomisp2_pm latency=0
             resources: irq:255 memory:91000000-913fffff
        *-generic:0
             description: Signal processing controller
             product: Atom/Celeron/Pentium Processor x5-E8000/J3xxx/N3xxx Series Power Management Controller
             vendor: Intel Corporation
             physical id: b
             bus info: pci@0000:00:0b.0
             version: 36
             width: 64 bits
             clock: 33MHz
             capabilities: msi pm bus_master cap_list
             configuration: driver=proc_thermal latency=0
             resources: irq:167 memory:91818000-91818fff
        *-usb
             description: USB controller
             product: Atom/Celeron/Pentium Processor x5-E8000/J3xxx/N3xxx Series USB xHCI Controller
             vendor: Intel Corporation
             physical id: 14
             bus info: pci@0000:00:14.0
             version: 36
             width: 64 bits
             clock: 33MHz
             capabilities: pm msi xhci bus_master cap_list
             configuration: driver=xhci_hcd latency=0
             resources: irq:119 memory:91800000-9180ffff
           *-usbhost:0
                product: xHCI Host Controller
                vendor: Linux 5.5.3-arch1-1 xhci-hcd
                physical id: 0
                bus info: usb@1
                logical name: usb1
                version: 5.05
                capabilities: usb-2.00
                configuration: driver=hub slots=7 speed=480Mbit/s
              *-usb:0
                   description: Video
                   product: USB 2.0 Web Camera
                   vendor: Alcor Micro, Corp.
                   physical id: 3
                   bus info: usb@1:3
                   version: 0.08
                   capabilities: usb-2.00
                   configuration: driver=uvcvideo maxpower=200mA speed=480Mbit/s
              *-usb:1
                   description: Keyboard
                   product: USB KEYBOARD
                   vendor: HAILUCK CO.,LTD
                   physical id: 4
                   bus info: usb@1:4
                   version: 1.00
                   capabilities: usb-1.10
                   configuration: driver=usbhid maxpower=100mA speed=1Mbit/s
           *-usbhost:1
                product: xHCI Host Controller
                vendor: Linux 5.5.3-arch1-1 xhci-hcd
                physical id: 1
                bus info: usb@2
                logical name: usb2
                version: 5.05
                capabilities: usb-3.00
                configuration: driver=hub slots=6 speed=5000Mbit/s
              *-usb
                   description: Mass storage device
                   product: Ultra Fit
                   vendor: SanDisk
                   physical id: 1
                   bus info: usb@2:1
                   version: 1.00
                   serial: 4C530001190318108265
                   capabilities: usb-3.00 scsi
                   configuration: driver=usb-storage maxpower=896mA speed=5000Mbit/s
        *-generic:1
             description: Encryption controller
             product: Atom/Celeron/Pentium Processor x5-E8000/J3xxx/N3xxx Series Trusted Execution Engine
             vendor: Intel Corporation
             physical id: 1a
             bus info: pci@0000:00:1a.0
             version: 36
             width: 32 bits
             clock: 33MHz
             capabilities: pm msi bus_master cap_list
             configuration: driver=mei_txe latency=0
             resources: irq:166 memory:91700000-917fffff memory:91600000-916fffff
        *-isa
             description: ISA bridge
             product: Atom/Celeron/Pentium Processor x5-E8000/J3xxx/N3xxx Series PCU
             vendor: Intel Corporation
             physical id: 1f
             bus info: pci@0000:00:1f.0
             version: 36
             width: 32 bits
             clock: 33MHz
             capabilities: isa bus_master cap_list
             configuration: driver=lpc_ich latency=0
             resources: irq:0
  *-battery
       description: Lithium Ion Battery
       product: SR Real Battery
       vendor: Intel SR 1
       physical id: 1
       version: Date
       serial: 123456789
       slot: I2C2
       configuration: voltage=3,8V
  *-power UNCLAIMED
       description: OEM Define 1
       product: OEM Define 5
       vendor: OEM Define 2
       physical id: 2
       version: OEM Define 6
       serial: OEM Define 3
       capacity: 42mWh
  *-scsi
       physical id: 3
       bus info: scsi@0
       logical name: scsi0
       capabilities: scsi-host
       configuration: driver=usb-storage
  *-network
       description: Wireless interface
       physical id: 4
       logical name: wlan0
       serial: XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX
       capabilities: ethernet physical wireless
       configuration: broadcast=yes driver=rtl8723bs ip=192.168.0.2 multicast=yes wireless=IEEE 802.11gn
[x@archlinux ~]$ sudo systool -vm r8723bs
[sudo] senha para root: 
Module = "r8723bs"

  Attributes:
    coresize            = "638976"
    initsize            = "0"
    initstate           = "live"
    refcnt              = "0"
    srcversion          = "186D2E8CECA5C778F440467"
    taint               = "C"
    uevent              = <store method only>
    version             = "v4.3.5.5_12290.20140916_BTCOEX20140507-4E40"

  Parameters:
    ifname              = "wlan%d"
    rtw_80211d          = "0"
    rtw_ampdu_amsdu     = "0"
    rtw_ampdu_enable    = "1"
    rtw_ant_num         = "1"
    rtw_antdiv_cfg      = "1"
    rtw_antdiv_type     = "0"
    rtw_btcoex_enable   = "1"
    rtw_busy_thresh     = "40"
    rtw_bw_mode         = "33"
    rtw_channel_plan    = "88"
    rtw_channel         = "1"
    rtw_chip_version    = "0"
    rtw_enusbss         = "0"
    rtw_hiq_filter      = "1"
    rtw_ht_enable       = "1"
    rtw_hw_wps_pbc      = "0"
    rtw_hwpdn_mode      = "2"
    rtw_hwpwrp_detect   = "0"
    rtw_initmac         = "(null)"
    rtw_ips_mode        = "1"
    rtw_lbkmode         = "0"
    rtw_low_power       = "0"
    rtw_lowrate_two_xmit= "1"
    rtw_max_roaming_times= "2"
    rtw_mc2u_disable    = "0"
    rtw_network_mode    = "0"
    rtw_notch_filter    = "0"
    rtw_power_mgnt      = "1"
    rtw_qos_opt_enable  = "0"
    rtw_rf_config       = "5"
    rtw_rfintfs         = "2"
    rtw_rx_stbc         = "1"
    rtw_smart_ps        = "2"
    rtw_tx_pwr_by_rate  = "0"
    rtw_tx_pwr_lmt_enable= "0"
    rtw_usb_rxagg_mode  = "2"
    rtw_vcs_type        = "1"
    rtw_vrtl_carrier_sense= "2"
    rtw_wifi_spec       = "0"
    rtw_wmm_enable      = "1"

  Sections:
    .bss                = "0xffffffffc0dbdc00"
    .data               = "0xffffffffc0db7000"
    .exit.text          = "0xffffffffc0d937e5"
    .gnu.linkonce.this_module= "0xffffffffc0dbd880"
    .init.text          = "0xffffffffc0bd3000"
    .note.Linux         = "0xffffffffc0d94024"
    .note.gnu.build-id  = "0xffffffffc0d94000"
    .orc_unwind         = "0xffffffffc0da40d8"
    .orc_unwind_ip      = "0xffffffffc0d9a040"
    .rodata             = "0xffffffffc0d94040"
    .rodata.str1.1      = "0xffffffffc0db31bc"
    .rodata.str1.8      = "0xffffffffc0db4b88"
    .smp_locks          = "0xffffffffc0db5fa8"
    .strtab             = "0xffffffffc0be05b8"
    .symtab             = "0xffffffffc0bd4000"
    .text               = "0xffffffffc0d3b000"
    .text.unlikely      = "0xffffffffc0d921b2"
    __bug_table         = "0xffffffffc0dbd778"
    __mcount_loc        = "0xffffffffc0d977c0"
    __param             = "0xffffffffc0db5fe0"
[x@archlinux ~]$ ip link
1: lo: <LOOPBACK,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 65536 qdisc noqueue state UNKNOWN mode DEFAULT group default qlen 1000
    link/loopback 00:00:00:00:00:00 brd 00:00:00:00:00:00
2: wlan0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc mq state UP mode DORMANT group default qlen 1000
    link/ether XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
[x@archlinux ~]$ ip addr
1: lo: <LOOPBACK,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 65536 qdisc noqueue state UNKNOWN group default qlen 1000
    link/loopback 00:00:00:00:00:00 brd 00:00:00:00:00:00
    inet 127.0.0.1/8 scope host lo
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
    inet6 ::1/128 scope host 
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
2: wlan0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc mq state UP group default qlen 1000
    link/ether XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
    inet 192.168.0.2/24 brd 192.168.0.255 scope global dynamic noprefixroute wlan0
       valid_lft 38202sec preferred_lft 32802sec
    inet6 2804:7f2:891:3743:dfd6:cdaa:2efb:1899/64 scope global dynamic mngtmpaddr noprefixroute 
       valid_lft 43130sec preferred_lft 43130sec
    inet6 fe80::9796:3fc7:e470:537d/64 scope link 
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
[x@archlinux ~]$ iw dev wlan0 link
Connected to XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX (on wlan0)
        SSID: XXXX
        freq: 2437
        signal: -45 dBm
        tx bitrate: 72.2 MBit/s
[x@archlinux ~]$ iw dev wlan0 info
Interface wlan0
        ifindex 2
        wdev 0x1
        addr XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX
        ssid XXXX
        type managed
        wiphy 0
        txpower 12.00 dBm
[x@archlinux ~]$ iw list
Wiphy phy0
        max # scan SSIDs: 9
        max scan IEs length: 2304 bytes
        max # sched scan SSIDs: 0
        max # match sets: 0
        max # scan plans: 1
        max scan plan interval: -1
        max scan plan iterations: 0
        Retry short limit: 7
        Retry long limit: 4
        Coverage class: 0 (up to 0m)
        Supported Ciphers:
                * WEP40 (00-0f-ac:1)
                * WEP104 (00-0f-ac:5)
                * TKIP (00-0f-ac:2)
                * CCMP-128 (00-0f-ac:4)
                * CMAC (00-0f-ac:6)
        Available Antennas: TX 0 RX 0
        Supported interface modes:
                 * IBSS
                 * managed
                 * AP
                 * monitor
        Band 1:
                Capabilities: 0x1862
                        HT20/HT40
                        Static SM Power Save
                        RX HT20 SGI
                        RX HT40 SGI
                        No RX STBC
                        Max AMSDU length: 7935 bytes
                        DSSS/CCK HT40
                Maximum RX AMPDU length 65535 bytes (exponent: 0x003)
                Minimum RX AMPDU time spacing: 16 usec (0x07)
                HT Max RX data rate: 150 Mbps
                HT TX/RX MCS rate indexes supported: 0-7, 32
                Bitrates (non-HT):
                        * 1.0 Mbps
                        * 2.0 Mbps
                        * 5.5 Mbps
                        * 11.0 Mbps
                        * 6.0 Mbps
                        * 9.0 Mbps
                        * 12.0 Mbps
                        * 18.0 Mbps
                        * 24.0 Mbps
                        * 36.0 Mbps
                        * 48.0 Mbps
                        * 54.0 Mbps
                Frequencies:
                        * 2412 MHz [1] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2417 MHz [2] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2422 MHz [3] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2427 MHz [4] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2432 MHz [5] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2437 MHz [6] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2442 MHz [7] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2447 MHz [8] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2452 MHz [9] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2457 MHz [10] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2462 MHz [11] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2467 MHz [12] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2472 MHz [13] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2484 MHz [14] (30.0 dBm)
        Supported commands:
                 * new_interface
                 * set_interface
                 * new_key
                 * start_ap
                 * new_station
                 * set_bss
                 * join_ibss
                 * set_pmksa
                 * del_pmksa
                 * flush_pmksa
                 * frame
                 * set_channel
                 * connect
                 * disconnect
        Supported TX frame types:
                 * IBSS: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * managed: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * AP: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * AP/VLAN: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * P2P-client: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * P2P-GO: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
        Supported RX frame types:
                 * IBSS: 0xd0
                 * managed: 0x40 0xd0
                 * AP: 0x00 0x20 0x40 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0
                 * AP/VLAN: 0x00 0x20 0x40 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0
                 * P2P-client: 0x40 0xd0
                 * P2P-GO: 0x00 0x20 0x40 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0
        WoWLAN support:
                 * wake up on anything (device continues operating normally)
        software interface modes (can always be added):
                 * monitor
        interface combinations are not supported
        Device supports scan flush.
        Supported extended features:

Last edited by xenobro (2020-02-14 20:33:55)

Offline

#2 2020-02-15 06:02:18

ewaller
Administrator
From: Pasadena, CA
Registered: 2009-07-13
Posts: 19,739

Re: rtl8723bs wifi speed oscillating, too low or card losing connection

A couple questions.  Are you using the same wireless card on both computers?  In other words, are you moving them from one machine to the other?

If both machines have their own card, do you see the same reported received power as you move the systems around? Or does one have consistently higher reported values?

Do these cards have integral antennae? or is there antenna feed cables connected to the boards?  If there are antenna feed cables, where are the antennae?  Often they are above the LCD display.


Nothing is too wonderful to be true, if it be consistent with the laws of nature -- Michael Faraday
Sometimes it is the people no one can imagine anything of who do the things no one can imagine. -- Alan Turing
---
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Offline

#3 2020-02-15 11:56:25

xenobro
Member
Registered: 2019-05-25
Posts: 100

Re: rtl8723bs wifi speed oscillating, too low or card losing connection

Hi, ewaller, thank you very much for your reply.

No, I haven't moved the wireless cards between computers: they're internal, onboard. So each computer has its own card.
My friend's notebook gets consistently better signal values, if that's what you mean: when they're side by side where I usually use them, hers and mine have similar values, with mine at -45dBm and hers close to it, but if we take both computers closer to the modem, hers can get to -25dBm, just like my phone, while mine will always get the same -45dBm. Taking them next room, for instance, will get hers something like -50dBm to -60dBm, while mine will go to -75dBm or more. Also, where I'm getting -45dBm, mine can randomly say I'm disconnected, even though I'm less than 6 feet from them modem and in its direct line of view.
As for the antennae, I have no idea: there's no visible antennae, and I can't really open it to see inside because it's still on the warranty and it's an ultrabook (with touchscreen, no less), so it might be a little bit tricky to do it without damaging something.

As an update, running Windows today from around 08:15 AM on, I could see that there is oscillation, albeit much smaller: while my phone got 10.80 Mbps down and 1.3 up, my pc on Windows got 9.97 Mbps down and 0.90 up. Also, downloading 1 GB from Ubuntu iso's 2.3 GB from the best and closest mirror, while I got mostly 1.2 MB/sec, there were about 5 or 6 times that the rate dropped for 5 or more secs to 500 KB/sec and then got back up again for 5 or more secs, and one instance of the speed dropping to 380 KB/sec and going back to the 1.2 MB/sec that lasted around 30 secs.

Do you think it could be a hardware issue? Like a damaged anntena?

Offline

#4 2020-02-15 15:20:19

ewaller
Administrator
From: Pasadena, CA
Registered: 2009-07-13
Posts: 19,739

Re: rtl8723bs wifi speed oscillating, too low or card losing connection

I am thinking it is a hardware issue.  Either an fully or partially unplugged antenna, a poorly assembled RF connector, or a damaged coaxial cable.  The likelihood it is an actual antenna problem is low.

The kind of connector we are talking about are these: https://www.amphenolrf.com/connectors/ammc.html
And the cables like these: https://www.amphenolrf.com/downloads/dl … rawing.pdf

If you can find connectors like this that are accessible, try applying a bit of force to see if they 'snap' together like a snap on a ski jacket.  I would not try disconnecting them as they have a limited number of mating cycles.

I don't normally jump to assume hardware issues in new hardware, but here you have two systems with the same hardware and softwre with different results.  And the same results using two different operating systems.

Last edited by ewaller (2020-02-17 15:19:26)


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Offline

#5 2020-02-17 11:15:34

xenobro
Member
Registered: 2019-05-25
Posts: 100

Re: rtl8723bs wifi speed oscillating, too low or card losing connection

Hi, ewaller.

I think you're right about it being a hardware issue. I'm going to concentrate my efforts on reproducing the issues on Windows throughout this week to confirm this and then contact Positivo's tech support to get them to fix the issue since the laptop is still on warranty.
I'll continue to update the thread until everything's solved to make sure there's no underlying issue besides the hardware problem.

Thanks again,
xenobro

Offline

#6 2020-02-20 08:10:00

xenobro
Member
Registered: 2019-05-25
Posts: 100

Re: rtl8723bs wifi speed oscillating, too low or card losing connection

UPDATES & CORRECTIONS:
Downloading Ubuntu's iso (2.3 GB) from the closest and best mirror with Microsoft Edge (new IE) on Windows 10 on my pc, on my 10 Mbps dl 1 Mbps ul connection, shows pretty much NO OSCILLATION whatsoever: 1.1 MB/sec all the way, with occasional peaks of 1.2, 1.3. Since I wasn't sure if the speeds were being correctly reported, I calculated the 2.3 GB file size x 1024 / 1.1 MB/sec / 60 = 35.68 min, which matches the ~36 mins it took to get it.

Doing the same using Firefox (even after reinstalling it with "factory defaults"), also on Win10, my computer, my 10/1 connection, DOES show a good amount of oscillation in the first GB of the file, starting with 1 or 2 secs of ~900, ~800 KB/sec, then 5 secs down to ~660, ~580 KB/sec and 5 secs going back up, then ~20 secs under 1.0 MB/sec a couple of times and ~35 secs down to 550 KB/sec once, with the lowest speed at 380, but then practically no oscillation after the 1st GB until the last KBs, when it quickly got down to ~880 KB/sec and back up to the usual 1.1 MB/sec. The total time wasn't much longer than with Edge but still noticeably so.

However, my friend's computer - as I mentioned, same brand, pretty much a "previous version" of mine, with MS Edge and Firefox with the same configs, also on my connection - got consistently "slightly" better results: if mine on Edge got 1.1 MB/sec straight through, hers would get 1.2; if mine would get mostly 1.2 on firefox, hers would get 1.3; if mine would get 1.0, hers would get 1.1 ~ 1.2, and so on. This 0.1 MB/sec might seem irrelevant, but it matches the "Brasil Banda Larga" site result differences:
1.1 MB/sec can be anything from 8.80 Mbps to 9.59Mbps, 1.2 MB/sec is 9.60 Mbps to 10.39 Mbps and 1.3 MB/sec would be 10.40+ Mbps;
My pc, even with Edge, got 1.1 ~ 1.2 MB/sec on the file download, rarely 1.3 for a sec; on the test site, it's 9.4 ~ 10.08 Mbps;
My friend's, however, pretty much ALWAYS gets 1.2 ~ 1.3 MB/sec, and 10.77+ Mbps no matter when.
At the worst times, the difference between my pc and hers usually get to 1.0 Mbps on the test site, about 125 KB/sec on downloads.

The real difference though appeared when I put my pc and hers side by side at her house, less than 2 meters from her modem (100 Mbps dl and ul connection), in its line of vision, no obstacles, both running the test site on the same version of both MS Edge and Windows 10, one immediately after another, back to back, 10+ times in a row and some other times at random moments:
Her laptop and all other devices (except my laptop) consistently report 48-52 Mbps dl and 38-42 ul.
My laptop reports 34-38 Mbps dl and usually 34 Mbps (with a peak of 38 Mbps once).

Upload speeds are either minimally affected or not at all with my 10/1 connection or less affected than dl speeds with my friend's 100 dl/ul connection.

So, these lead me to believe there may be 3 different issues here happening simultaneously:
* My pc's wifi speed always being lower than everything else, points to a hardware issue as ewaller mentioned, and without fixing it or at least identifying it with the Positivo's tech support, it seems pretty hard to solve the others;
* Win10 Firefox oscillating but MS Edge not doing so leads me to believe there's a bug or something similar with Win10's version of FF;
* Finally, the extreme oscillations, abysmally low speeds and even occasional disconnections on multiple programs (firefox, wget, fast, speedtest-cli, pacman, ping, etc.) for huge amounts of time ONLY on Linux makes me think there might be Linux module/firmware/config issue besides the hardware one, but without solving the former, it's pretty much impossible to solve the latter.

By the way, after reading on the net about regulatory domains, I checked both my laptop and my friend's with my Linux and got this:

[x@archlinux ~]$ iw reg get
global
country 00: DFS-UNSET
        (2402 - 2472 @ 40), (6, 20), (N/A)
        (2457 - 2482 @ 20), (6, 20), (N/A), AUTO-BW, PASSIVE-SCAN
        (2474 - 2494 @ 20), (6, 20), (N/A), NO-OFDM, PASSIVE-SCAN
        (5170 - 5250 @ 80), (6, 20), (N/A), AUTO-BW, PASSIVE-SCAN
        (5250 - 5330 @ 80), (6, 20), (0 ms), DFS, AUTO-BW, PASSIVE-SCAN
        (5490 - 5730 @ 160), (6, 20), (0 ms), DFS, PASSIVE-SCAN
        (5735 - 5835 @ 80), (6, 20), (N/A), PASSIVE-SCAN
        (57240 - 63720 @ 2160), (N/A, 0), (N/A)
[x@archlinux ~]$ iw phy set BR
command failed: No such file or directory (-2)

And also this:

[x@archlinux ~]$ dmesg|grep cfg80211
[   13.348200] cfg80211: Loading compiled-in X.509 certificates for regulatory database
[   13.370194] cfg80211: Loaded X.509 cert 'sforshee: 00b28ddf47aef9cea7'
[   13.370328] cfg80211: failed to load regulatory.db
[   30.099157] RTL8723BS: rtw_cfg80211_indicate_connect(wlan0) BSS not found !!
[14262.791398] RTL8723BS: rtw_cfg80211_indicate_connect(wlan0) BSS not found !!
[24336.427950] RTL8723BS: rtw_cfg80211_indicate_connect(wlan0) BSS not found !!
[26072.508316] RTL8723BS: rtw_cfg80211_indicate_connect(wlan0) BSS not found !!

Could setting the regulatory domain help on my pc even though my friend's doesn't need it?
Because listing wifi capabilities first on my notebook then on my friend's shows me hers have more options:

Mine:

[x@archlinux ~]$ iw list
Wiphy phy0
        max # scan SSIDs: 9
        max scan IEs length: 2304 bytes
        max # sched scan SSIDs: 0
        max # match sets: 0
        max # scan plans: 1
        max scan plan interval: -1
        max scan plan iterations: 0
        Retry short limit: 7
        Retry long limit: 4
        Coverage class: 0 (up to 0m)
        Supported Ciphers:
                * WEP40 (00-0f-ac:1)
                * WEP104 (00-0f-ac:5)
                * TKIP (00-0f-ac:2)
                * CCMP-128 (00-0f-ac:4)
                * CMAC (00-0f-ac:6)
        Available Antennas: TX 0 RX 0
        Supported interface modes:
                 * IBSS
                 * managed
                 * AP
                 * monitor
        Band 1:
                Capabilities: 0x1862
                        HT20/HT40
                        Static SM Power Save
                        RX HT20 SGI
                        RX HT40 SGI
                        No RX STBC
                        Max AMSDU length: 7935 bytes
                        DSSS/CCK HT40
                Maximum RX AMPDU length 65535 bytes (exponent: 0x003)
                Minimum RX AMPDU time spacing: 16 usec (0x07)
                HT Max RX data rate: 150 Mbps
                HT TX/RX MCS rate indexes supported: 0-7, 32
                Bitrates (non-HT):
                        * 1.0 Mbps
                        * 2.0 Mbps
                        * 5.5 Mbps
                        * 11.0 Mbps
                        * 6.0 Mbps
                        * 9.0 Mbps
                        * 12.0 Mbps
                        * 18.0 Mbps
                        * 24.0 Mbps
                        * 36.0 Mbps
                        * 48.0 Mbps
                        * 54.0 Mbps
                Frequencies:
                        * 2412 MHz [1] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2417 MHz [2] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2422 MHz [3] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2427 MHz [4] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2432 MHz [5] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2437 MHz [6] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2442 MHz [7] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2447 MHz [8] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2452 MHz [9] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2457 MHz [10] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2462 MHz [11] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2467 MHz [12] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2472 MHz [13] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2484 MHz [14] (30.0 dBm)
        Supported commands:
                 * new_interface
                 * set_interface
                 * new_key
                 * start_ap
                 * new_station
                 * set_bss
                 * join_ibss
                 * set_pmksa
                 * del_pmksa
                 * flush_pmksa
                 * frame
                 * set_channel
                 * connect
                 * disconnect
        Supported TX frame types:
                 * IBSS: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * managed: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * AP: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * AP/VLAN: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * P2P-client: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * P2P-GO: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
        Supported RX frame types:
                 * IBSS: 0xd0
                 * managed: 0x40 0xd0
                 * AP: 0x00 0x20 0x40 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0
                 * AP/VLAN: 0x00 0x20 0x40 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0
                 * P2P-client: 0x40 0xd0
                 * P2P-GO: 0x00 0x20 0x40 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0
        WoWLAN support:
                 * wake up on anything (device continues operating normally)
        software interface modes (can always be added):
                 * monitor
        interface combinations are not supported
        Device supports scan flush.
        Supported extended features:

And hers (phy1 and phy0 seem to be wlan1 and wlp0s20u5i2 or something like that, both pointing to the same address):

[x@archlinux ~]$ cat iwlist-zr3630.txt
Wiphy phy1
        max # scan SSIDs: 9
        max scan IEs length: 2304 bytes
        max # sched scan SSIDs: 0
        max # match sets: 0
        max # scan plans: 1
        max scan plan interval: -1
        max scan plan iterations: 0
        Retry short limit: 7
        Retry long limit: 4
        Coverage class: 0 (up to 0m)
        Supported Ciphers:
                * WEP40 (00-0f-ac:1)
                * WEP104 (00-0f-ac:5)
                * TKIP (00-0f-ac:2)
                * CCMP-128 (00-0f-ac:4)
        Available Antennas: TX 0 RX 0
        Supported interface modes:
                 * IBSS
                 * managed
                 * AP
                 * monitor
                 * P2P-client
                 * P2P-GO
        Band 1:
                Capabilities: 0x1862
                        HT20/HT40
                        Static SM Power Save
                        RX HT20 SGI
                        RX HT40 SGI
                        No RX STBC
                        Max AMSDU length: 7935 bytes
                        DSSS/CCK HT40
                Maximum RX AMPDU length 65535 bytes (exponent: 0x003)
                Minimum RX AMPDU time spacing: 16 usec (0x07)
                HT Max RX data rate: 150 Mbps
                HT TX/RX MCS rate indexes supported: 0-7, 32
                Bitrates (non-HT):
                        * 1.0 Mbps
                        * 2.0 Mbps
                        * 5.5 Mbps
                        * 11.0 Mbps
                        * 6.0 Mbps
                        * 9.0 Mbps
                        * 12.0 Mbps
                        * 18.0 Mbps
                        * 24.0 Mbps
                        * 36.0 Mbps
                        * 48.0 Mbps
                        * 54.0 Mbps
                Frequencies:
                        * 2412 MHz [1] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2417 MHz [2] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2422 MHz [3] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2427 MHz [4] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2432 MHz [5] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2437 MHz [6] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2442 MHz [7] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2447 MHz [8] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2452 MHz [9] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2457 MHz [10] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2462 MHz [11] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2467 MHz [12] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2472 MHz [13] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2484 MHz [14] (disabled)
        Band 2:
                Capabilities: 0x1862
                        HT20/HT40
                        Static SM Power Save
                        RX HT20 SGI
                        RX HT40 SGI
                        No RX STBC
                        Max AMSDU length: 7935 bytes
                        DSSS/CCK HT40
                Maximum RX AMPDU length 65535 bytes (exponent: 0x003)
                Minimum RX AMPDU time spacing: 16 usec (0x07)
                HT Max RX data rate: 150 Mbps
                HT TX/RX MCS rate indexes supported: 0-7, 32
                Bitrates (non-HT):
                        * 6.0 Mbps
                        * 9.0 Mbps
                        * 12.0 Mbps
                        * 18.0 Mbps
                        * 24.0 Mbps
                        * 36.0 Mbps
                        * 48.0 Mbps
                        * 54.0 Mbps
                Frequencies:
                        * 5170 MHz [34] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5180 MHz [36] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5190 MHz [38] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5200 MHz [40] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5210 MHz [42] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5220 MHz [44] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5230 MHz [46] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5240 MHz [48] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5260 MHz [52] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5280 MHz [56] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5300 MHz [60] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5320 MHz [64] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5500 MHz [100] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5520 MHz [104] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5540 MHz [108] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5560 MHz [112] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5580 MHz [116] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5600 MHz [120] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5620 MHz [124] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5640 MHz [128] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5660 MHz [132] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5680 MHz [136] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5700 MHz [140] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5745 MHz [149] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5765 MHz [153] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5785 MHz [157] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5805 MHz [161] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5825 MHz [165] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5920 MHz [184] (disabled)
                        * 5940 MHz [188] (disabled)
                        * 5960 MHz [192] (disabled)
                        * 5980 MHz [196] (disabled)
                        * 6000 MHz [200] (disabled)
                        * 6020 MHz [204] (disabled)
                        * 6040 MHz [208] (disabled)
                        * 6060 MHz [212] (disabled)
                        * 6080 MHz [216] (disabled)
        Supported commands:
                 * new_interface
                 * set_interface
                 * new_key
                 * start_ap
                 * new_station
                 * set_bss
                 * join_ibss
                 * set_pmksa
                 * del_pmksa
                 * flush_pmksa
                 * remain_on_channel
                 * frame
                 * set_channel
                 * connect
                 * disconnect
        Supported TX frame types:
                 * IBSS: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * managed: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * AP: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * AP/VLAN: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * P2P-client: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * P2P-GO: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
        Supported RX frame types:
                 * IBSS: 0xd0
                 * managed: 0x40 0xd0
                 * AP: 0x00 0x20 0x40 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0
                 * AP/VLAN: 0x00 0x20 0x40 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0
                 * P2P-client: 0x40 0xd0
                 * P2P-GO: 0x00 0x20 0x40 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0
        WoWLAN support:
                 * wake up on anything (device continues operating normally)
        software interface modes (can always be added):
                 * monitor
        interface combinations are not supported
        Device supports scan flush.
        Supported extended features:
Wiphy phy0
        max # scan SSIDs: 9
        max scan IEs length: 2304 bytes
        max # sched scan SSIDs: 0
        max # match sets: 0
        max # scan plans: 1
        max scan plan interval: -1
        max scan plan iterations: 0
        Retry short limit: 7
        Retry long limit: 4
        Coverage class: 0 (up to 0m)
        Supported Ciphers:
                * WEP40 (00-0f-ac:1)
                * WEP104 (00-0f-ac:5)
                * TKIP (00-0f-ac:2)
                * CCMP-128 (00-0f-ac:4)
        Available Antennas: TX 0 RX 0
        Supported interface modes:
                 * IBSS
                 * managed
                 * AP
                 * monitor
                 * P2P-client
                 * P2P-GO
        Band 1:
                Capabilities: 0x1862
                        HT20/HT40
                        Static SM Power Save
                        RX HT20 SGI
                        RX HT40 SGI
                        No RX STBC
                        Max AMSDU length: 7935 bytes
                        DSSS/CCK HT40
                Maximum RX AMPDU length 65535 bytes (exponent: 0x003)
                Minimum RX AMPDU time spacing: 16 usec (0x07)
                HT Max RX data rate: 150 Mbps
                HT TX/RX MCS rate indexes supported: 0-7, 32
                Bitrates (non-HT):
                        * 1.0 Mbps
                        * 2.0 Mbps
                        * 5.5 Mbps
                        * 11.0 Mbps
                        * 6.0 Mbps
                        * 9.0 Mbps
                        * 12.0 Mbps
                        * 18.0 Mbps
                        * 24.0 Mbps
                        * 36.0 Mbps
                        * 48.0 Mbps
                        * 54.0 Mbps
                Frequencies:
                        * 2412 MHz [1] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2417 MHz [2] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2422 MHz [3] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2427 MHz [4] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2432 MHz [5] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2437 MHz [6] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2442 MHz [7] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2447 MHz [8] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2452 MHz [9] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2457 MHz [10] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2462 MHz [11] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2467 MHz [12] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2472 MHz [13] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 2484 MHz [14] (disabled)
        Band 2:
                Capabilities: 0x1862
                        HT20/HT40
                        Static SM Power Save
                        RX HT20 SGI
                        RX HT40 SGI
                        No RX STBC
                        Max AMSDU length: 7935 bytes
                        DSSS/CCK HT40
                Maximum RX AMPDU length 65535 bytes (exponent: 0x003)
                Minimum RX AMPDU time spacing: 16 usec (0x07)
                HT Max RX data rate: 150 Mbps
                HT TX/RX MCS rate indexes supported: 0-7, 32
                Bitrates (non-HT):
                        * 6.0 Mbps
                        * 9.0 Mbps
                        * 12.0 Mbps
                        * 18.0 Mbps
                        * 24.0 Mbps
                        * 36.0 Mbps
                        * 48.0 Mbps
                        * 54.0 Mbps
                Frequencies:
                        * 5170 MHz [34] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5180 MHz [36] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5190 MHz [38] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5200 MHz [40] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5210 MHz [42] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5220 MHz [44] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5230 MHz [46] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5240 MHz [48] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5260 MHz [52] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5280 MHz [56] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5300 MHz [60] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5320 MHz [64] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5500 MHz [100] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5520 MHz [104] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5540 MHz [108] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5560 MHz [112] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5580 MHz [116] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5600 MHz [120] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5620 MHz [124] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5640 MHz [128] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5660 MHz [132] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5680 MHz [136] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5700 MHz [140] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5745 MHz [149] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5765 MHz [153] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5785 MHz [157] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5805 MHz [161] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5825 MHz [165] (30.0 dBm)
                        * 5920 MHz [184] (disabled)
                        * 5940 MHz [188] (disabled)
                        * 5960 MHz [192] (disabled)
                        * 5980 MHz [196] (disabled)
                        * 6000 MHz [200] (disabled)
                        * 6020 MHz [204] (disabled)
                        * 6040 MHz [208] (disabled)
                        * 6060 MHz [212] (disabled)
                        * 6080 MHz [216] (disabled)
        Supported commands:
                 * new_interface
                 * set_interface
                 * new_key
                 * start_ap
                 * new_station
                 * set_bss
                 * join_ibss
                 * set_pmksa
                 * del_pmksa
                 * flush_pmksa
                 * remain_on_channel
                 * frame
                 * set_channel
                 * connect
                 * disconnect
        Supported TX frame types:
                 * IBSS: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * managed: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * AP: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * AP/VLAN: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * P2P-client: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
                 * P2P-GO: 0x00 0x10 0x20 0x30 0x40 0x50 0x60 0x70 0x80 0x90 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0 0xe0 0xf0
        Supported RX frame types:
                 * IBSS: 0xd0
                 * managed: 0x40 0xd0
                 * AP: 0x00 0x20 0x40 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0
                 * AP/VLAN: 0x00 0x20 0x40 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0
                 * P2P-client: 0x40 0xd0
                 * P2P-GO: 0x00 0x20 0x40 0xa0 0xb0 0xc0 0xd0
        WoWLAN support:
                 * wake up on anything (device continues operating normally)
        software interface modes (can always be added):
                 * monitor
        interface combinations are not supported
        Device supports scan flush.
        Supported extended features:

I should mention that even though her wifi card is dual band, her modem isn't capable of transmitting in 5GHz and all devices are using 2.4GHz.

CORRECTION: While it's true that both my laptop and my friend's report -45dBm side by side at their normal distance from my modem, that in the next room mine gets -65dBm to -70dBm while hers get -55dBm and that hers max out at ~ -60dBm in the farthest place from the modem and mine gets -85dBm or so and then disconnects, NEITHER notebook gets under -45dBm no matter what I do, even literally on top or in front of the modem; ONLY our phones get better values at these positions, reporting -25dBm or less.

Well, for now, this is it:
I'll try to call Positivo's tech support tomorrow and update the thread with any news.
Sorry for the wall of text and thank you in advance for any advice.

Last edited by xenobro (2020-02-20 18:12:00)

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#7 2020-03-15 08:09:14

xenobro
Member
Registered: 2019-05-25
Posts: 100

Re: rtl8723bs wifi speed oscillating, too low or card losing connection

UPDATE 03/15/2020:
Hi, everyone, I've finally got my computer from Positivo's Tech Support - it took so long because first there was the Carnival here, then their systems weren't working until this last Monday.
So, according to them, the ~1Mbps less in download speed in my 10/1 connection and 10-15 Mbps less in my friend's 100/100 (but really ~50/40 on wifi) are due to this notebook having only one small antenna near the keyboard and touchpad while most have 2 longer ones around the monitor, besides a worse quality chipset. That's not even close to being ok, and I'll be contacting consumer advocates to see what can be done, but it's still MUCH better than what's happening on Linux.
Meanwhile, the Firefox oscillating download speed issue also happened on my friend's computer with my system, and on Windows 10, so this seems to be a bug and I'll contact Mozilla about it. Also occasionally and on Linux, the first time I try to save/download something with ff, it "crashes", leaving everything paralyzed for almost a minute, then going back to normal as if nothing ever happened.

But then, the main problem, EXTREMELY low speeds and HUGE oscillations (10 to 2 or 1 point something Mbps, but usually between 3 and 5 Mbps and up to 500 KB/sec dl with any program), disconnections, etc. on my Arch seems to be even worse: now there are times when I can't connect for minutes at a time, and sometimes I get disconnected for the same amount of time, as if the pc couldn't recognize the antenna or if the ISP modem wifi were offline. And as I mentioned, changing the rtw_ant_num value doesn't seem to have any noticeable effect.
What may or may not help: both my ISP's modem and my computer are using 2.4 GHz, 802.11g/n, and the modem has channels and channel bandwidth on auto.
When trying to reconnect and accidentally trying to reexecute wpa_supplicant, I've also seen that my card seems to be using nl80211 with the options "deinit ifname=wlan0 disabled_11b_rates=0", but I can't find this module anywhere, nor any help at all about these options.

Can somebody help me?
Thank you very much in advance, xenobro.

Last edited by xenobro (2020-03-15 08:16:43)

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#8 2020-03-18 10:39:19

xenobro
Member
Registered: 2019-05-25
Posts: 100

Re: rtl8723bs wifi speed oscillating, too low or card losing connection

So, can anyone help me? Or at least point me in the right direction?

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#9 2020-04-19 05:44:48

xenobro
Member
Registered: 2019-05-25
Posts: 100

Re: rtl8723bs wifi speed oscillating, too low or card losing connection

UPDATE 04/19/2020:
Hi, everyone. So now I have a 300 Mbps download 150 Mbps connection with yet another modem (Mitrastar GPT-2741GNAC-N2) which also has no external antennas.
My pc with TP-UE300 on USB 2.0 and a cable connection gets 295+ Mbps dl with the fast test program, 300+ Mbps dl and 150+ ul with speedtest-cli, and dl speeds of 35+ MB/sec on pacman and curl, for instance, with the best server - though I'm having some seemingly unrelated issues with other programs...
All other devices get speeds between 35 and 55 Mbps dl and 40 to 50 Mbps ul, and usually reasonably compatible dl speeds like 4.5 to 6 or 6.5 MB/sec dl.

On Win10, my wifi card can get 30-35 Mbps dl and 30-40 Mbps with MS Edge*, 15-35 Mbps dl and 20-37 Mbps ul with Firefox*, 27-37 Mbps dl and 32-35 Mbps ul with the Speedtest app and 2-4.5 MB/sec dl on both Edge and Firefox.

On Arch, I can get 5.1-21 Mbps dl and 18-23 Mbps ul on Chromium*, 5.2-19 Mbps dl and 18-21.90 Mbps ul on Firefox*, 4.67-12.9 Mbps with Fast CLI program, 6.58-9.93 Mbps dl and 17 Mbps ul on speedtest-cli and finally 0.1-2 MB/sec dl on Chromium, Firefox, wget, curl and pacman.

It's pretty obvious there's a huge difference between Windows 10's and Arch's results, so can somebody help me out here?

*All browsers tests were run with the default configuration, multiple times, on the Brasil Banda Larga, Speedtest and Fast sites.

Last edited by xenobro (2020-04-19 06:22:51)

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