If your Killer Wireless AX1650 is not seen or used by your Linux Computer, and you are using Ubuntu 16.04 or later, (or another version of Debian Linux), you can use this guide to Backport the drivers from the latest version of Ubuntu/Debian. We have confirmed that this will restore Wireless connectivity using the AX1650 in Ubuntu 16.04/18.04/19.04.
This guide closely follows the steps found within the AX1650-in-Debian-Ubuntu article.
However, these steps show what will be needed if the Computer with the AX1650 Wireless Adapter has no access to the Internet at all. You will need another Computer with internet access and a USB drive or another method to transfer the files to the Computer without internet access.
Using a Computer with Internet access, download the following files and transfer them to a USB drive. The Build-Essential.deb file will need to be chosen by you to match your specific system:
- Build-Essential.deb
https://packages.ubuntu.com/xenial/build-essential - Backport-Iwlwifi
git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/iwlwifi/backport-iwlwifi.git - Linux-Firmware
git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/firmware/linux-firmware.git
Another Linux machine was used to ‘git clone’ the Git Repository addresses during verification of these steps.
If you are trying to use Windows to download the above git content, you may need this:
https://gitforwindows.org/
Once you have downloaded the above content and moved the files to your Computer with the AX1650, the Computer should have two directories and the .deb file chosen by you:
- backport-iwlwifi/
- linux-firmware/
- build-essential_12.1ubuntu2_amd64.deb
(example filename chosen for my 64-bit system)
Before proceeding, Secure Boot must be disabled in your BIOS. If you are unsure how to disable Secure Boot, please refer to your machine or motherboard’s support materials or website. Once that is done, you can begin the process of building and installing the Backport Driver onto your Computer.
Type or copy and paste the following commands in a terminal, one line at a time, pressing Enter after each command.
Make sure you update the .deb filename to match the one you chose earlier:
$ sudo dpkg -i build-essential_12.1ubuntu2_amd64.deb
Now we will need to move the Iwlwifi firmware to your ‘/lib/firmware/’ folder and then Create/Install the Backported Iwlwifi Driver:
$ cd linux-firmware
$ sudo cp iwlwifi-* /lib/firmware/
$ cd ..
$ cd backport-iwlwifi
$ sudo make defconfig-iwlwifi-public
$ sudo make -j4
$ sudo make install
This command might also be needed for your machine to use the Driver from boot:
$ update-initramfs -u
Then restart your Computer!
Once you have done this, you should be able to connect to your wireless access point.