Seeking USB 3.0 fix advice while using rEFInd

N1X3L

Recently made the move from another distro and fully embraced Solus Budgie on both my machines. Mostly loving it, however, my desktop is not using it's 3.0 USBs. I found a "iommu=soft" fix on these forums, except I'm not using GRUB, and I'm unsure how to translate it. Should I be attempting to apply that aforementioned fix with clr-boot-manager and then… running a sudo sync && sudo clr-boot-manager update command maybe? Or is this an unsupported problem of my own design, and I should respectfully see myself out and attempt soliciting help from rEFInd? Thank you in advance for any advice that's offered.

JacekJagosz

It seems like you can add add a kernel commandline parameter to clr-boot-manager like here, but I haven't done it myself so be careful.

N1X3L

Thank you, I appreciate the response. I attempted to be careful, but didn't get very far. I tried a test run of the sudo clr-boot-manager update command, and it absolutely killed both the rEFInd and Linux Boot Loader, and caused the ESP to fail a filesystem check. I was able to fsck that partition. However, nothing could recover the boot loader, be it formal solutions, informal solutions, or 3rd party solutions. Out of desperation, I reinstalled Solus, formatting only the ESP and /root. I was up and running in no time because I keep my /home on a different partition.

Finally, I was able to append the echo 'iommu=soft' | sudo tee /etc/kernel/cmdline kernel parameter to Solus boot, but to no avail. I tried setting my UEFI with and without Legacy Support; with and without EHCI Handoff. My front USB 3.0 ports aren't being recognized by Windows 10 either, and the more I'm reading, that's apparently something for which ASUS ROG motherboards are infamous. I was unsure if I could delete the cmdline file outright, but I was able to blank it by using the sudo tee /etc/kernel/cmdline command, and then just interrupting (Ctrl+C) that command while it hangs there.

My front 3.0 USBs still aren't working (while the 2.0s are), but the longer I've looked for solutions, the more conflicting suggestions I've found, and I think I've suffered enough for now. I'll just use the motherboard to adjust the boot order as a kind of poor man's boot loader, and keep crawling around on the floor to the back of my computer if I need access to a 3.0 USB port — because then I at least still have a (mostly) functioning computer. Thank you again!

WetGeek

N1X3L My front 3.0 USBs still aren't working (while the 2.0s are),

Does your motherboard supprt USB 3.0? Are you sure the front panel USB ports are plugged into to the proper ports on the motherboard?

The fact that they're not recognized by Windows 10 either implies that the problem is hardware related, rather than something you can fix with a setting change or software installation.

N1X3L

The motherboard does. It contains settings for both Renesas and NEC (over PCH), and an lsusb reports 3.0 root hubs. I'm going to assume — let me finish — they are properly connected, because their associated 2.0 USBs are fully functional. However, your point is very well taken, and checking the connections is never a bad thing. I'll give my case a good old-fashioned tear down over my holiday break to further investigate.

And yes, it's quite perplexing. Those front 3.0 USBs used to work under Windows 7, but not Linux Mint. However, that was also prior to a cross-country move that could've loosened a connection. So again, that tear down and inspection is long overdue. I'll update this thread once I eventually complete it. Thank you!