SSV6256P (SSV6X5X) WiFi Driver for Linux Kernel 6.x+

This repository contains my port of the SV6256P / SSV6X5X SDIO Wi‑Fi driver from legacy Linux 4.4 to Linux 6.x and above.
The driver now builds and runs on modern kernels, with updated mac80211/cfg80211 integration.

📖 Background

The SSV6256P is a dual-band WiFi chipset from iComm Semiconductor, commonly found in low-cost TV boxes, embedded Linux devices, and IoT applications. The original driver was designed for Linux kernel 4.4, but modern Linux distributions use kernel 6.x which introduced significant changes to the mac80211 wireless stack.

This repository contains a fully functional port of the SSV6256P driver to Linux kernel 6.x+, with all necessary API adaptations and bug fixes.

Tested Hardware

• SoC: Allwinner H616 (ARM Cortex-A53)
• Board: X96 Q TV Box
• Interface: SDIO
• Kernel: Armbian_25.05.0_linux_6.12.11-edge-sunxi64

✅ Kernel Compatibility

Kernel Version	Status	Notes
6.12.x	✅ Tested	Tested on 6.12.11
6.13.x+	✅ Tested	Tested on 6.18.23
7.0.x+	✅ Expected	Should work (API-compatible)
6.6 LTS	✅ Tested	Tested on 6.6.44
5.x	❌ Not supported	Use original driver
4.x	❌ Not supported	Use original driver

📦 Prerequisites

Required Packages (Debian/Ubuntu)

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y build-essential linux-headers-$(uname -r) git

Required Packages (Arch Linux)

sudo pacman -S base-devel linux-headers

Required Packages (Fedora/RHEL)

sudo dnf install kernel-devel kernel-headers gcc make

🔨 Installation

Method 1: DKMS (Recommended)

DKMS automatically rebuilds the driver when you upgrade the kernel.

# Install prerequisites
sudo apt-get install -y dkms build-essential linux-headers-$(uname -r) git

# Clone and install
git clone https://github.com/cdhigh/armbian_sv6256p.git
cd armbian_sv6256p
sudo bash ./install-dkms.sh
sudo modprobe ssv6x5x

Method 2: Manual Compilation

# Install prerequisites
sudo apt-get install -y build-essential linux-headers-$(uname -r) git

# Clone and build
git clone https://github.com/cdhigh/armbian_sv6256p.git
cd armbian_sv6256p
make ARCH=arm64 KSRC=/lib/modules/$(uname -r)/build
ls -lh ssv6x5x.ko

Manual Installation

sudo cp ./ssv6x5x-wifi.cfg /lib/firmware/
sudo cp ./ssv6x5x-sw.bin /lib/firmware/
sudo mkdir -p /lib/modules/$(uname -r)/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/ssv6256p/
sudo cp ./ssv6x5x.ko /lib/modules/$(uname -r)/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/ssv6256p/
sudo depmod -a
sudo modprobe ssv6x5x

Method 3: Armbian Extension

For building custom Armbian images with SSV6X5X support:

# Copy the extension to your Armbian build environment
cp -r armbian/extensions/ssv6x5x.sh /path/to/armbian-build/userpatches/extensions/

# Build with the extension enabled
./compile.sh ENABLE_EXTENSIONS="ssv6x5x"

🚀 Usage

Verify Driver Loading

Check kernel log for successful initialization:

dmesg | grep -i ssv

Identify Network Interface

ip link show
# or
iw dev

Look for wlan0 or similar interface.

Scan for Networks

sudo iw dev wlan0 scan | grep SSID

Connect to WiFi

nmcli device wifi connect "YourSSID" password "YourPassword"
or
nmtui

📦 DKMS Management

# Check driver status
dkms status ssv6x5x

# Rebuild for current kernel
sudo dkms build ssv6x5x/6.0.0
sudo dkms install ssv6x5x/6.0.0

# Uninstall
sudo dkms remove ssv6x5x/6.0.0 --all

Credits

• Vendor driver sources
• Linux mac80211 maintainers for API references
• Community help on porting legacy Wi‑Fi drivers