Re: [PATCH v2] wifi: mwifiex: ignore ROM regulatory hint on WRT3200ACM/WRT32x

[Jeff Chen]

On Fri, Jul 31, 2026 at 09:31:18 AM +0300, Georgi Valkov wrote:
> WRT3200ACM and WRT32x routers always report a fixed US regulatory domain
> from the mwifiex ROM, which conflicts with the platform regulatory
> configuration on units sold outside the US market. For example:
> - phy0 mwlwifi 5 GHz, hard-coded region 98 EU mapped to FR
> - phy1 mwlwifi 2.4 GHz, hard-coded region 98 EU mapped to FR
> - phy2 mwifiex 2.4 and 5 GHz, hard-coded region US
> 
> When the system boots, it detects a conflict between the user selected
> region and the radios, e.g. BG FR US, and applies extreme restrictions,
> preventing use of 5 GHz and DFS channels. This also affects phy0.
> 
> Ignore the incorrect regulatory hint in the ROM of these devices, so
> userspace can set the correct platform regulatory domain. These radios
> are locked to the hard-coded configuration for which they are certified,
> so the only impact is that the region conflict is avoided and the 5 GHz
> radios can be used.
> 
> The change affects only WRT3200ACM and WRT32x routers, and helps
> overcome the incorrect behaviour of proprietary radio firmware.
> 
> [1] https://github.com/kaloz/mwlwifi/issues/173#issuecomment-307879699
> [2] https://github.com/openwrt/openwrt/issues/9956
> 
> Tested-on: WRT3200ACM, OpenWrt
> Cc: stable@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Signed-off-by: Georgi Valkov <gvalkov@xxxxxxxxx>
> ---

Hi Georgi,

Thanks for the V2. The updated strings now match both environments.

However, checking board-specific DT strings inside a generic peripheral driver 
is still not a good idea. 

Since you asked about a better approach, why not consider the solution 
mentioned by openwrt-ai using the "reg_alpha2" module parameter? 

If OpenWrt injects "reg_alpha2=00" via a modprobe conf file under 
target/linux/mvebu/, the ROM regulatory hint can be overridden from userspace 
without needing any hardcoded logic inside the upstream driver.

Best regards,

Jeff