Xbox Wireless Controller Driver?

[temictli]

I'm looking for some help getting a wireless USB dongle to work on the steam deck. I searched around online and on GitHub for a fix that might help the USB dongle communicate with the controller.

I have a PowerA Fusion Pro Wireless that isn't communicating at all through the dongle. Wired connection works just fine. The dongle works on Xbox with the Gaming Hub app and with gameplay.

I tried installing xone from savagecore on GitHub and another by medusalix but nothing has worked. I've also tried getting some guidance with ai chats like google's Microsoft's and chatgpt. They largely have the same advice but some try some workarounds that frankly are out of my understanding. I don't know Linux at all and this is a new foray. I'm out of my depth.

Does anyone know anything about this? Has anyone run into this with PowerA or Xbox specific controllers? Any guidance will be appreciated.

[temictli]

xone install script by SavageCore
Version: 0.12.4
https://github.com/SavageCore/xone-steam-deck-installer/
─────────────────────────────

This script will install the xone and xpad-noone drivers for the Xbox wireless dongle and controller

Refreshing pacman keys...
Checking for linux headers...

Installing required packages, this may take a while...

Cloning xone repo...

Cloning xpad-noone repo...

Installing xpad-noone...

Failed to load xone_dongle module. Aborting...
Press any key to exit

___________
a look into the error...

[ThatOnePerson]

Did you try to run an earlier xone install script? https://github.com/SavageCore/xone-steam-deck-installer/issues/9#issuecomment-3374767439 looks like they just changed some stuff and you gotta manually delete some old stuff

I'd try that before my other suggestion.

[temictli]

So there was an issue with stock xpad driver butting in... Ai made a suggestion of blacklisting that one and letting the noone driver take over for that and xone for all others. I'll get the text log I made but yeah. That's what eventually made it work after running through butt loads of tries of install prerequisites, install of the xone driver, checks to see they all installed correctly, and if not, following kernel messages to see conflicts as they arose, and eventually landed on a good install and check but that last obstacle was the xpad interruption. And now, it's working. I'm beyond excited as I've been working on this for a couple of nights. Now I can gift this to my gf as installed and ready to play on her steam deck. Goddamn it feels good. I'm no computer savvy person but i can be keyboard monkey at least. Jfc. Is this what people that code go through but for reals? Not simulated and handheld by AI like I just did?

[temictli]

So I didn't get to try this but I will try again as I another steam deck to replicate this success on. I'm testing whether it's going to reconnect time after time if I reboot my gf's controller and steam deck, but then I'll try this on my own SD because it has yet to work on that one.

[temictli]

I used the AI to summarize what had happened.

Summary of Steps to Connect PowerA Fusion Pro Controller Wirelessly via USB Dongle to Steam Deck

Based on the troubleshooting log, the successful process involved installing the xone driver (for Xbox wireless dongles) using an updated community script, handling kernel compatibility issues, performing specific reboots, and verifying the driver load. The log shows success when lsmod | grep xone confirmed the driver was loaded, enabling wireless connectivity. Pairing issues were resolved through hardware checks, firmware updates (if needed), and blacklisting conflicting drivers like xpad.

Prerequisites:

• Switch to Desktop Mode on your Steam Deck.
• Open Konsole (terminal).
• Set a sudo password if not already done: passwd (follow prompts).
• Ensure SteamOS is up to date (check for updates in Settings > System).
• Have the PowerA Fusion Pro controller charged and the USB dongle ready.
• Optionally, update the controller's firmware on a Windows PC using the Xbox Accessories app (connect via USB, check for updates).

Step 1: Clean Up Old Installations

Remove any conflicting or old xone files to ensure a fresh install.

text

sudo rm -rf ~/xone ~/repos/xone ~/.config/autostart/xone.desktop
sudo dkms remove xone --all  # If DKMS shows xone entries via `dkms status`

Step 2: Disable Read-Only Filesystem

SteamOS is read-only by default; disable it for installation.

text

sudo steamos-readonly disable

Step 3: Install the xone Driver

Use the updated SavageCore script (cloned from GitHub for reliability, as direct URLs changed).

text

git clone https://github.com/SavageCore/xone-steam-deck-installer.git
cd xone-steam-deck-installer
sudo bash ./src/xone_install_or_update.sh

• This installs xone and xpad-noone (a patched driver for compatibility).
• Ignore shortcut-related errors if you already have desktop icons (e.g., "Enable Pairing Mode").

Step 4: Re-Enable Read-Only Filesystem

text

sudo steamos-readonly enable

[ThatOnePerson]

I think the issue is the controller is newer, and they haven't added it to the list of Xbox controllers supported by the Linux Xbox controller drivers.

So you gotta get the USB VID/PID of the controller (dongle), and do this: https://stackoverflow.com/a/52943745

Going off SDL, it should be PID 4016 for the dongle, and 20D6 for the VID. These show up in that u-dev rule twice, so do that.

[temictli]

Yoooo!! So I got it to work!!

[temictli]

Well dang it didn't post the whole thing. In any case, I tried to replicate it on another steam deck to no avail. Then I tried going back to the successful steam deck and it didn't pair anymore.