<!-- SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0-only -->

# rtw89-steam-frame dkms

DKMS wrapper for the patched Realtek rtw89 driver used by the **Valve Steam Frame**
wireless adapter (`28de:2432`, RTL8852CU).

It builds the *in-tree* rtw89 source for whatever kernel you run (fetched from
`gregkh/linux`), applies the **steam-frame patches** (pulled at register time via git
from [Davenport-Physics/rtw89-steam-frame](https://github.com/Davenport-Physics/rtw89-steam-frame)),
and auto-rebuilds on every kernel upgrade through the Arch DKMS pacman hooks.

## Why

The Frame advertises a 6 GHz **VLP** power class and the stock driver honors it,
capping the dongle at 7/4 dBm (1TX/2TX) — roughly 10 dB below what the Windows driver
uses. That deficit caused MAC-layer retry storms and bursty micro-stutters in VR
streaming (see [SteamVR-for-Linux#965](https://github.com/ValveSoftware/SteamVR-for-Linux/issues/965)).

`reg6_pwr_override=1` switches the adapter to the **LPI** table (12/11 dBm at 160 MHz),
which on this system removed the missed-frame stalls even at ~1.8x the previous load.
`disable_2ghz=Y` additionally disables the useless 2.4 GHz band (and the scan-offload
USB resets associated with it).

## Install / re-register

    ./register.sh         # As root

This clones upstream, stages `/usr/src/rtw89-steam-frame-0.1`, and runs
`dkms add/build/install` for the current kernel. After that, the Arch pacman hooks
(`/usr/share/libalpm/hooks/70-dkms-*`) rebuild it automatically on every kernel update.

Optional env overrides: `RTW89_UPSTREAM`, `RTW89_UPSTREAM_REF`, `RTW89_KVER`.

## Preconditions

- `linux-headers` installed and kept in sync with `linux`.
- Network access at (re)build time — the kernel's rtw89 source and the patches are
  both fetched over HTTPS.

## Files

| file          | purpose |
|---------------|---------|
| `dkms.conf`   | DKMS metadata (module list, install location) |
| `build.sh`    | DKMS build step: fetch rtw89 for `$kernelver`, patch, build, verify |
| `register.sh` | pull upstream patches via git, stage, `dkms add/build/install` |

## Module parameters

Add this to `modprobe.d`, e.g. `/etc/modprobe.d/rtw89-steam-frame.conf`:

    `options rtw89_core reg6_pwr_override=1 disable_2ghz=Y`

You might also want to disable advanced power management if not done so already
(also supported by in-kernel driver):

    `options rtw89_core disable_ps_mode=Y`