Can't connect to WiFi anymore - SSID's not showing up anymore

Dandy_J

Pi Model or other hardware: 3
Power Supply used: official raspberry
RetroPie Version Used: 4.3
Built From: Pre made SD Image on RetroPie website
USB Devices connected: 2TB HD flat32
Controller used: Wiimote
Guide used:
https://github.com/RetroPie/RetroPie-Setup/wiki/Running-ROMs-from-a-USB-drive
https://www.retro-programming.de/retro-welt-2/hardware/raspberry-pi-als-emulator-retropie/retropie-controller-einrichten/retropie-bluetooth-controller/retropie-wiimote-bluetooth/

WiFi worked without a problem the last 6 months. Yesterday, I did two things:

I manually mounted a usb hard drive (see guide)
I set up an additional wiimote controller (see guide) to my existing ps3 controller.

Shortly afterwards I noticed that retropie->WiFi->connect to WiFi Network does not list the WiFi networks it should list. This is what it lists:

0
H Hidden ESSID

Both my home network and my iPhone hotspot (who are up and running) are not listed (as well as all the neighbours' stuff).

I do not know whether this issue is related two the external hd mount or the wiimote setup.

I have checked WiFi country and it is correctly set.

Output of Show IP Adress is:

Your IP is :

Output of 'ip addr show':
1: lo: <LOOPBACK,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 65536 qdisc noqueue state UNKNOWN group default qlen 1
...
2: eth0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,SLAVE,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc pfifo_fast state DOWN group default qlen 1000
...

Any idea how I get this back running?

mitu

Is the external driver powered through the Raspberry Pi USB port ? Does the problem go away if you remove the drive ?

Dandy_J

Yes, it has no other power supply than the usb port.

If I remove the drive I do not have the retropie menu item in EmulationStation anymore (Just Last Played and Favorites).

mitu

@dandy_j A 2TB drive will draw more power than the Pi might be able to supply. You didn't specify which power source are you using, but I suggest you use a separate power source for the external hdd.

Dandy_J

@mitu: power source is Stontronics Switching Adapter Model DSA-13PFC-05. Input 100-240V 50/60HZ 0.5A. OUTPUT 5.1V 2.5A

Everything else works fine.

I guess I can use a separate power source for the external hdd by using a usb hub in-between, but my sole usb hub is broken, so unless a wonder happens, I'll have to wait till Monday to check this proposal out.

Dandy_J

I did now externally power my usb hd via an usb hub. However, this did not resolve the issue. Any other ideas?

mitu

@dandy_j Can you run sudo rfkill unblock all (from the terminal, after exiting Emulationstation) and see if you can detect the wifi networks afterwards.
Is your WiFi configured for 2.4 Ghz b/g or it's just 5Ghz ? The PI only has 2.4 Ghz capabilities.