# lwfinger/rtw89

Driver for Realtek 8852AE, an 802.11ax device

Repository: https://github.com/lwfinger/rtw89
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/rtw89
Language: C
License: GPL-2.0
License Family: copyleft
Last push: 2024-08-25T04:05:00+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 32/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 2072, "days_push": 738, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1502, forks 186 (observed 2026-08-28T04:04:54.426569+00:00)

## What it is
An out-of-tree Linux kernel driver for Realtek RTW89-series Wi-Fi chips (8851BE, 8852AE/BE/CE, 8922AE), covering 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) and Wi-Fi 7 devices. It provides up-to-date driver code for kernels where the in-tree version is missing or outdated.

## Use cases
- get Wi-Fi working for Realtek 8852AE on Linux
- install driver for Realtek 8852BE wifi card
- enable Wi-Fi 7 support for Realtek 8922AE
- fix missing wifi driver on Ubuntu or Fedora
- build Realtek rtw89 driver with DKMS
- use Realtek 8851BE wireless card on Linux

## When to choose
- your Realtek RTW89-series Wi-Fi card is not recognized or unstable with the in-kernel driver
- you run a kernel older than the version that merged rtw89 support
- you need the latest fixes for 8851BE/8852AE/8852BE/8852CE/8922AE chips

## When to avoid
- you use older Realtek chips like RTL8188EE or RTL8723BE, which are handled by the kernel or rtw88
- you need a driver for Windows or macOS
- you cannot build kernel modules or install kernel headers

## Facets
- artifact type: library
- maturity: active
- function: networking
- domain: operating-systems, hardware, developer-tools
- platform: -
- tags: wifi-driver, realtek, kernel-module, 80211ax, wifi-7, dkms, out-of-tree-driver, linux

## Member repositories
- lwfinger/rtw89 (main) score 32

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:54.426569+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T04:32:53.571744+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/lwfinger/rtw89 (fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:54.426569+00:00, sha 559b7174c237)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.