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Installing Linux WiFi Drivers for Archer T2U AC600 USB WiFi Adapter

Introduction

This tutorial is for people who have recently installed Ubuntu 22.04 LTS on their computer but cannot access the internet via the lab's TP-Link AC600 WiFi USB Adapter. It involves temporarily connecting to another device via ethernet, cloning a git repository containing a Linux-based WiFi driver, and running an executable to load the driver into your device's firmware.

Step 1: Temporarily Connect Your Linux Device to the Internet via Ethernet Port

You'll need a Windows laptop or PC with an ethernet port and an ethernet port on your Linux device.

  1. Connect an ethernet cable between the two devices.
  2. On the Windows computer, open Network Connections (search "Network Connections" in the Windows search box).
  3. Right-click the active internet connection and select Properties.
  4. From the Sharing tab, toggle "Allow other network users to connect" on, and select the relevant ethernet port from the pulldown menu (if you have VPN software installed, you may see several virtual ethernet ports; pick the real one).

After clicking OK, internet should flow to your client device over its ethernet port. This step can be finicky and may require checking/unchecking "Allow other network users to connect through this computer's Internet connection", restarting your computer, and patience. At the end of this step, you should be able to access the internet on your Ubuntu device.

Step 2: Get Backport Drivers for the AC600

With internet on your Ubuntu machine, clone the AC600's Linux driver. You'll need to install git and dkms first:

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade
sudo apt install git
sudo apt install dkms
cd  # install the repo in your root directory, or anywhere on your local drive
git clone https://github.com/morrownr/8821au-20210708.git
cd 8821au-20210708

Step 3: Install Backport Drivers

This step requires a restart, so save any other changes first.

sudo ./install-driver.sh  # starts the installation process

If this worked, after 5-10 seconds a white bar with a purple background should appear in your terminal, starting with "Your system has ______ Secure Boot enabled". To load the driver files onto the firmware:

  1. Click OK.
  2. Enter a password you can remember for Secure Boot; re-type it and press Enter.
  3. Type n when prompted to edit the driver options file now; press Enter.
  4. Type y when prompted to apply the new options by rebooting now; press Enter. Your device will restart.
  5. A blue screen will appear on startup with options: Continue boot, Enroll MOK, Enroll key from disk, Enroll hash from disk. Select Enroll MOK, confirm "Enroll the key(s)" when prompted, and enter the Secure Boot password you created. Select the option to reboot when given.

Upon rebooting, you should have Wi-Fi access if your AC600 USB adapter is plugged in.