linux-wireless-reg-unlocked

Patched Intel iwlwifi and Linux cfg80211/regulatory subsystems to override firmware and regulatory restrictions, exposing additional Wi-Fi capabilities (including 6 GHz).

This project provides external kernel modules for Arch Linux that modify both the Intel iwlwifi driver and the cfg80211 regulatory layer, allowing advanced users to bypass multiple layers of wireless restriction without rebuilding the full kernel.

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🚀 Features

iwlwifi (driver / NVM layer)

• Add lar_disable module parameter
• Disable Intel iwlwifi LAR (Location Aware Regulatory)
• Override NVM channel flags:
  • Force-enable NVM_CHANNEL_VALID
  • Force-enable active transmission (ACTIVE, IBSS)
  • Remove NO_IR restrictions (allow AP / initiating transmissions)
• Expose channels normally filtered out by firmware/NVM
• Relax channel capability restrictions (bandwidth / usage)
• Force-enable additional 6 GHz channel capabilities (VLP / AFC related flags)

cfg80211 (regulatory layer)

• Allow unsigned regulatory database (regdb)
• Ignore driver-provided regulatory hints
• Ignore Country IE regulatory updates

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⚠️ Disclaimer

🚨 IMPORTANT

This project intentionally bypasses regulatory enforcement mechanisms at multiple layers:

• Firmware (NVM interpretation)
• Driver (iwlwifi)
• Kernel regulatory layer (cfg80211)

This may:

• Violate local wireless communication laws
• Cause interference with licensed spectrum users (e.g. DFS radar bands)
• Enable transmission where it is normally prohibited

This project is for research and experimental purposes only.

You are fully responsible for compliance with local regulations.

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📥 Installation

Manual build

git clone https://github.com/TenkyuChimata/linux-wireless-reg-unlocked.git
cd linux-wireless-reg-unlocked
makepkg -si

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🔧 Usage

Reboot after installation to load the modified modules.

This package installs a modprobe configuration enabling:

options iwlwifi lar_disable=Y

Verify module parameter:

modinfo iwlwifi | grep lar_disable

Check regulatory and channel state:

iw reg get
iw phy

You may still manually set a regulatory domain:

sudo iw reg set JP

Note: cfg80211 regulatory enforcement is partially bypassed, so this may not behave as on stock systems.

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📡 What is modified

1. iwlwifi (NVM parsing layer)

• iwl-nvm-parse.c
  • Overrides firmware-provided channel flags
  • Forces channels to be treated as valid and usable
  • Removes NO_IR restrictions
  • Modifies channel capability flags (bandwidth / usage)
  • Enables additional 6 GHz capabilities

2. iwlwifi (driver behavior)

• Adds lar_disable parameter
• Treats LAR as disabled when requested
• Prevents firmware-driven regulatory updates from restricting operation

3. cfg80211 / regulatory

• net/wireless/reg.c
  • Ignores driver regulatory hints
  • Ignores Country IE updates
  • Allows non-signed regulatory database usage

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🧩 How it works

This project modifies multiple enforcement layers:

Layer	Behavior
Firmware (NVM)	Channel validity and capability flags overridden
iwlwifi	LAR disabled and channel filtering bypassed
cfg80211	Regulatory merging and enforcement disabled

Key idea:

Instead of trusting firmware/regulatory input, the driver forces channels and capabilities to be available.

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🧪 Tested hardware

• Intel AX211

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⚠️ Known limitations

• Firmware may still block actual RF transmission on some channels
• Displayed capabilities may exceed real hardware capability
• 5 GHz / 6 GHz AP operation may still fail depending on firmware
• AFC / VLP behavior may not fully match real regulatory requirements
• Behavior varies across firmware versions and chipsets
• Future kernel updates may break patch compatibility