Controller not reconnecting - udev does nothing
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Hey guys
Ugh, I’ve hit a roadblock. I bought a 1TB micro SD card and the plan is to load it with loads of games.
So I’m doing a fresh install. I’ve loaded up the latest version of RetroPie, and yesterday’s I started by adding controllers. Mostly 8BitDo but once is custom modded (original 3 button Mega Drive). They all worked fine on my 64Gb setup.
Thing is, none of them would reconnect automatically. I tried creating udev rules, nothing. Tried changing the connect mode, nothing. Only researching and repairing would work.
So, today I wiped and started again - and repeated the process. This time; they all reconnected without issue - all but one - the custom controller.
So I set up a udev rule, and this is what the rule says.
SUBSYSTEM=="input", ATTRS{name}=="SegaMD1", MODE="0666", ENV{ID_INPUT_JOYSTICK}="1"
Yet, it still will no reconnect. It was working fine previously. Is there anything else I can do?
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You didn't specify what system are you using - a Raspberry PI/PC - and how is the custom modded MD controller connected - straight via Bluetooth or does it have an USB dongle ?
If you start the controller after RetroPie starts, does it reconnect automatically ? -
Sorry. It’s a Raspberry Pi 3B+, and yes it’s a HID Bluetooth device (no dongle). Works fine upon first connect but won’t reconnect either after switching controller off and then back on again, or rebooting the Pi.
EDIT: Actually there is a dongle to clarify, but that’s a generic dongle for all Bluetooth devices and not specific to this one controller. I can take this out but I find the onboard Bluetooth isn’t as responsive on the controllers.
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The USB dongle is ok, I don't think that's the cause of the modded controller not re-connecting. The
udev
rule is un-necessary I think, it was added back in the day when 8BitDo controllers' firmware was not making clear the device is a gamepad - I don't think that's the case anymore.I see that the modKit has similar mode-switching capabilities (X-Input/D-Input/MacOS), can you make sure you're power it on with the same mode you used for pairing ? Also, check the battery level - does it have enough charge ?
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1 tb micro SD? How much was that? You sure it's genuine as they cost a lot.
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Yeah it’s fully charged.
How do I do change the mode? It only has these features.
Power On: Press Start
Power Off: A+C and Up
Pairing Mode: A+C and DownIt’s worked fine in the past. It’s weird - I had the same issue with the 8BitDo modkit controllers - and wiping and restarting fixed it - but it’s still an issue for this controller.
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@BuZz Yeah, I got a good deal. It was £470 reduced to £230 or something on Black Friday. Genuine Sandisk.
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@Dinsdale wow. a lot to spend on storage for a cheap SBC.
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@Dinsdale said in Controller not reconnecting - udev does nothing:
How do I do change the mode? It only has these features.
See https://download.8bitdo.com/Manual/Mod-Kit/Mod-Kit-for-MD-Original-controller.pdf for switching modes. Try to use different modes to connect, remember you'll have to re-pair each time you change the connection mode.
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This controller isn’t an 8BitDo though... the 8BitDo nodded controllers work fine. Sorry if that wasn’t clear.
It’s a custom mod that isn’t working fine; though was previously.
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@Dinsdale said in Controller not reconnecting - udev does nothing:
It’s a custom mod that isn’t working fine; though was previously.
I thought the 8BitDo mod kit controller wasn't working - what's does this 'custom mod' consist of ?
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I sent it away to someone to do the modification. It’s a HC-06 HID device. That’s all I know.
It works perfectly, it was before, and is now if you reconnect it. I just don’t get why it won’t reconnect. I’m tempted to wipe and start again.
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@Dinsdale said in Controller not reconnecting - udev does nothing:
I’m tempted to wipe and start again.
If you're already starting from scratch, I don't see how this would solve it. Did you try removing the device and then re-pairing it ? Is there a way to 'reset' (forget pairing) for the device ?
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No way to reset from the device, and yes I’ve tried removing and repairing, which works fine - until I switch the controller off and back on again. It doesn’t pick it back up.
The reason I suggest starting from scratch is because I had the same issue yesterday with the 8BitDo mod controllers and when I started again from scratch, the issue disappeared and only stayed for this HC-06.
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I’m going to try once more with a fresh install on retropie 4.5... then, if no joy, I’m gonna reinstall 4.4 and see if that works.
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No joy on 4.5, so went to 4.4 and it works fine. It reconnects.
Oddly I noticed on 4.5 an error about bluez that isn’t a factor for the 8BitDo modkits as they reconnect, but is for my other controller.
That error isn’t present in 4.4.
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@Dinsdale Your screenshot shows an error that happens during pairing in the Bluetooth setup - possibly a timeout during the process. Re-connection is handled by the OS, there's no RetroPie script involved afterwards - so I don't think that's the problem.
EDIT: you can try and pair the controller manually - see https://approxeng.github.io/approxeng.input/bluetooth.html, the Pairing with Bluetoothctl section).
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