DualSense Blues: Linux Needs udev Hacks to Keep Advanced Controllers Connected
A mandatory udev rule—specifically `ACTION=="add", SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="0b05", ATTRS{idProduct}=="190e", RUN+="/usr/bin/hciconfig hci1 reset"`—is necessary to keep a DualSense controller registering after a reboot on Linux systems.
Users are stuck fighting hardware initialization. HumbleExaggeration confirmed the DualSense needed this specific rule to reset the Bluetooth dongle. Meanwhile, Bonje stated that the Legion Go fails to expose crucial features like gyro or touchpads over Bluetooth, despite technical efforts with udev rules and inputplumber. thatcrow noted the PS4 demands a full re-pair every single time on Manjaro KDE. Even the Legion Go user pointed out the charge puck accessory fails to make the halves work as one wired unit.
The instability boils down to system-level Bluetooth management. The clear friction points are hardware initialization failure and incomplete feature mapping. Implementing system-level fixes like udev rules appears to be the only viable path, but users are dealing with varied, controller-specific failure modes.
Key Points
DualSense requires a specific udev rule to stabilize connectivity after reboot.
HumbleExaggeration provided the precise udev rule necessary to reset the Bluetooth dongle upon system boot.
Advanced features (gyro, touchpad) are not reliably exposed via Bluetooth for all controllers.
Bonje reported that the Legion Go exhibits this failure despite checking udev rules and inputplumber.
PS4 controllers suffer from persistent, mandatory re-pairing issues.
thatcrow reported needing a full re-pair process every time on Manjaro Linux.
Fixing connectivity requires deep system intervention, targeting hardware IDs.
The solution cited for the DualSense is an explicit system fix (udev rule) rather than simple software pairing.
Source Discussions (3)
This report was synthesized from the following Lemmy discussions, ranked by community score.