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Problems with my Marvell AVASTAR Wireless-AC Network Controller

Anonymous
2023-03-27T17:29:44+00:00

Hello,

unfortunately my Wifi connection is really bad on my surface device. On all other devices, connected to the same wifi, the speed is almost 4x faster. I am sure the problem is there because of the installed network adapter ( it is relatively old, no updates available). I searched the internet for solutions and tried so many things...nothing worked. Then I read that you can change the roaming aggressiveness in the network adapter settings...at least normally. Unfortunately my adapter doesn't even have this option, Is that normal? I would like to have that option to experiment with it...and best would be to update the driver or even install a new one because the wifi is really slow. Unfortunately I couldn't upload screenshots here :(

Thank you for your help.

Of course I will assist you with more screenshots and details if necessary.

Have a great day and thank you so much for the help,

Marc

Surface | Surface Pro | Network

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  1. Anonymous
    2023-05-21T05:20:27+00:00

    Hi,

    I had the same issue with you and found a useful post. I followed the steps he recommended and the solution worked! I hope this could solVe your problem too.

    This solution below installs newer drivers (hard to find and Windows Update don't suggest them).

    This fixes the problem with WPA2/WPA3 mixed not downgrading to WPA2.

    Download the 623kb .cab file with net in the name "Marvell Semiconductor, Inc. - Net - 15.68.17015.112" from https://www.catalog.update.microsoft.com/Search.aspx?q=15.68.17015.112

    Enable popups and download .cab file, Firefox gave warning about .cab file, accept anyway.

    Open the .cab file with Windows builtin (double click). Drag the 3 files to a folder. .inf and .sys files are important!

    Right click the .inf file and choose Install. Accept warnings.

    Now your wifi driver with WPA2/WPA3-mixed fix is installed in Windows, not applied yet.

    Go to Device Manager and choose Network -> "Marvell AVASTAR Wireless-AC Network Controller. Update Driver. Choose on my computer. Let me choose from a list on my Computer.

    You should have 4 drivers in the list where 2 ending in (Microsoft) these are old drivers. 2 drivers ending in (Marvell Semiconductor, Inc.). Choose Marvell ones and install.

    Reboot and connect again!

    Best of luck!

    T.

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  1. Anonymous
    2023-03-27T20:57:25+00:00

    Hi im.m4rc,

    Thank you for reaching Microsoft Community. We're sorry for the inconvenience this has caused you. Allow me to ask few questions to help us further isolate the problem.

    May I know what version of Windows are you on?

    What brand and model of modem or router do you have?

    Network adapter for your Surface does not support roaming aggressiveness in the adapter settings.

    You may try the following steps below.

    Force the device to shut down and restart.

    Press and hold down the power button until your Surface shuts down and restarts and you see the Windows logo screen (about 20 seconds), then release the power button.

    Run Windows Network Troubleshooter.

    Select Start and type settings.  Select Settings > System > Troubleshoot. Select Additional Troubleshooters. Select Network Adapter > Run. Follow the steps in the troubleshooter and see if that fixes the problem.

    Then try the suggested steps provided from this article Fix Wi-Fi connection issues in Windows - Microsoft Support to fix or narrow down the connection problem.

    Your Wi-Fi network might be affected by the network's frequency band, channel congestion, and/or signal strength.  For more info, see Wi-Fi problems and your home layout.

    Let us know how it goes.

    Kind regards,

    Lavenia

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  2. Anonymous
    2023-03-28T16:12:57+00:00

    Will you check if which band does your network adapter is set to?

    Open Device Manager >> expand the network adapters >> right-click on your network driver (Marvell AVASTAR Network Controller) and select properties > choose advanced > under property select band and see what value it is set to. If set to Auto, try changing the band to either 2.4 GHz or 5GHz and see if it makes any changes on your connection speed.

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  3. Anonymous
    2023-03-27T22:28:13+00:00

    Unfortunately, after completing all of the mentioned advices from you and from the websites, the problem still persists...

    There is definitely no problem with the router. It is very weird because once I run the network adapter troubleshooter, it fixed the problem and everything worked well! The connection speed was only little less than on my phone (Wifi 5 support on my laptop vs. Wifi 6 on my phone). Then suddenly, the speed was low again (barely 100 Mbits with a 500 Mbits availability) which it continues to be until now. The troubleshooter can't find the problem. It seems like there is some small setting or option somewhere in my laptop (I am clearly no expert) that needs to be switched on/off but I don't know what it is. I spent literally days now trying to figure it out...

    Also tried the network reset twice, no change.

    I hope you might have some additional suggestions for me.

    Thank you so much,

    Marc

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  4. Anonymous
    2023-03-27T21:36:22+00:00

    Thank you for your response! I use Windows 11.My router is a FR!TZBox 6660 Cable.I will try your suggestions in a second. Just out of curiosity, can you tell me the reason why roaming aggressiveness is not available for this adapter?I will let you know how it goes,Marc

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