WiFi Stuttering/slow on Torizon OS

Technical Support
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1

Hi,

We just migrated from using the tdx-reference-minimal image to Torizon OS 7.1 and we are noticing that the WiFi having some lagging issues that we did not see previously. We have the Wifi configured as an AP and are able to ssh into the board just fine, but we are noticing some lagginess sometimes when typing. As a test, were ran 10000 pings and got 0 dropped packets but did see some instances where the pings took 2-3 seconds to respond (as opposed to a couple milliseconds). Have you see this issue before with the Torizon build? We don’t believe we saw the same behavior when using the tdx-reference-minimal OS build. Is there anything we can do to further troubleshoot the issue?

2

Hi, I’m the Toradex AI Assistant.

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Hello and thank you for your question!

Your experience is understandable—migrating from tdx-reference-minimal to Torizon OS 7.1 represents a significant change, particularly regarding how Wi-Fi and Access Point (AP) mode are managed. Here are some troubleshooting steps and explanations to help you address the Wi-Fi latency issues on Torizon OS:

1. Access Point Configuration

On Torizon OS 7.0.0 and later, AP mode configuration through NetworkManager has been disabled due to known issues. Instead, you should manage the AP setup through hostapd. If you previously used NetworkManager for AP mode, this could explain the lag:

2. Network Management Differences

  • The tdx-reference-minimal image uses connman for network management, while Torizon OS uses NetworkManager. These manage interfaces differently and may have different default behaviors regarding power management or interface standby.
    More information here

3. Check Interface Status and Logs

  • Use nmcli device to monitor the network device state and check for transient disconnects or state changes.
  • Inspect system logs with:
    journalctl -u hostapd
journalctl -u NetworkManager
dmesg | grep wlan
    Look for errors or repeated restarts related to Wi-Fi.

4. Resource Usage

  • Torizon OS is container-optimized, and running extra containers or resource hunger programs may lead to occasional latency. Monitor CPU and memory usage with top or htop to ensure the device isn’t running into resource bottlenecks.

5. Adjust Power Management

  • Verify if power management features are active on your Wi-Fi interface, which could introduce latency. Disabling power save might help. You can usually do this by running:
    iw dev <interface> set power_save off

6. Stability of Hostapd

  • Sometimes, the default hostapd settings aren’t best for every environment. Consider tuning parameters like wmm_enabled, beacon_int, and max_num_sta in your /etc/hostapd.conf.
    See configuration details

Summary

The latency issue is likely a result of the architectural and configuration differences between tdx-reference-minimal (with connman) and Torizon OS (with NetworkManager + hostapd). Double-check that hostapd is responsible for AP mode and tune its configuration as needed. Pay attention to power management and system resource usage, as Torizon’s containerization can provoke different performance characteristics.

If you provide the contents of your /etc/hostapd.conf and more details about your deployment (e.g., which Wi-Fi chip/module, typical client load), I can suggest further optimizations.

For generic AP setup guidance on Torizon, please see:

Let me know what you find after checking these aspects!

Best regards,
Toradex AI Assistant.

3

Hi Allan,

Which reference image were you working with before trying out Torizon 7.1?

Best,

Michael Park
Toradex

4

Hi Allan,

Just to be sure, as I have stumped over a very similar issue these days - have you tried to disable wireless power management for the connection in NetworkManager (setting wifi.powersave=2)?

Note: I did not cross-check with tdx-reference-minimal image (isn’t it using connman or systemd-networkd there, afair, maybe power management is handled differently there?).

5

Hi Michael, Sorry about the delay. We were previously using the tdx-reference-minimal-image 6.8. On that version, we were not having these same issues with the wifi.

6

Thanks for the suggestion! I believe we did try to set that setting but it’s possible it didn’t stick properly. How did you set that configuration?

7

Hey @allang1,

I’m not familiar directly with this issue, still looking into it but as a sanity check, are you utilizing antennas (qty 2) with the module?

-Eric

8

Hi @eric.tx ,

I believe we are only using a single antenna. I don’t believe it would be easy to add in a second antenna in the current configuration of our system. However, this is the same hardware configuration that was working on the previous version of the OS.

-Allan

9

Please try to do single antenna setup as described here.

10

Hi @allang1 ,

All set here? Can we close this ticket?

Best,