System can't remember Bluetooth controller

FormulaFox

Hey, everyone. Got a weird issue here...

I'm using Batocera on a Lenovo x140e, and I'm trying to set up a Bluetooth controller on it. Now, it pairs fine, and configures fine, and handles the UI fine, but games simply won't recognize inputs from it, and if the system resets I cannot reconnect it. I have go through the pairing process again.

Have I missed a step?

The controller is an Ipega 9055(re-purposing from an abandoned portable Raspberry Pi project).

EDIT: I have connected a PS3 controller as well, and get the exact same result.

joinski

FormulaFox

could you describe step-by-step what you do to get this issue? (i would like to try to reproduce)
at least the PS3 controller should work without issues.
otherwise maybe the bluetooth of the Lenovo x140e is not supported correctly. do you have the possibility to test an external bluetooth usb dongle?

FormulaFox

joinski I've tried with an external dongle(borrowed the one on my main PC which does not have built-in Bluetooth) - it was in fact the first thing I tried because I didn't initially realize the computer had Bluetooth. If I need to do something to make sure it's using the dongle, let me know - I've not found anything in the documentation to help with that(not saying there isn't anything there, just that I haven't found it - I can sometimes be an idiot and miss things that I should've found easily, but I do at least try to find info before I pester people for help).

Here's the steps as I do them:
1) Go to Controller Settings
2) Put gamepad in paring mode
3) select Pair Bluetooth Device
4) Once I get the "Controller Paired" message I go to Configure a Controller
5) I configure the Bluetooth gamepad (it is correctly identified as an Ipega 9055, for the record)
6) Unplug the USB gamepad I was using(so the BT gamepad will be recognized as Player 1)
7) Verify gamepad is working in menus and in game by playing a few random games
8) Shut down or reboot system via Start button menu
9) Attempt to connect Bluetooth controller after system restarts, it does not connect.

I have to plug the USB gamepad back in and repeat steps 1-4 to get the BT controller connected. With the PS3 controller once I pair(by plugging in the USB cable for ~10 seconds, then unplugging and hitting the Home button), steps 5-9 go exactly the same.

joinski

FormulaFox

try this method:
https://batocera.org/wiki/doku.php?id=en:bluetooth_controllers-manual_setup

PS3 controller should work without issues (i never had issues with my ps3 controllers)

FormulaFox

joinski

I should have mentioned I'd already tried that - my bad(remember how I said I can be an idiot sometimes? 😛 ). But just to be sure I did it again(as I had only done it ONCE before, but I'd tried the normal method four or five times), and got the same result. It connects, it works, but the system won't remember it after being restarted.

t0nito

FormulaFox Same here, tried everything but didn't work, had to pair everytime I restarted. -I lost patience and I went back to retropie because of this issue that and because there is no way to have different custom resolutions per system. Too bad cause I really like Batocera but this blutooth issue is very annoying.

joinski

t0nito

which controller do you use? and did you test with current beta 5.25?
i have just made several tests on my RPi3B and PC (Intel NUC) and i was able to pair different controllers (sometimes i had to try several times) within Batocera Controller Settings, Pair a Bluetooth Controller.
For 8bitdo controllers you should use the D-Input Mode (Start + B ), then press and hold the pair button for a few seconds. It could take up to 1 minute for successfull pairing.
I also made several restarts of the system and my controllers still connected without issues.
I was successfully able to pair PS4, PS3, 8bitdo SF30 Pro and Wii U Pro Controller. The 8bitdo SN30 Pro + gave me some problems (did only work with a USB Bluetooth dongle (Logilink BT0007) so far)

Regarding different custom resolutions per system: Where is the problem? You can change Video Mode in Game Settings, Advanced for every system individually.

prog-amateur

joinski

Hello same issue here (but also an issue where both controllers work in batocera UI but do not work ingame, as described in this topic : https://forum.batocera.org/d/3116-controller-not-recognized-in-game-only).

Comming back to this specific topic (bluetooth controller not remembered), mine is an 8bitdo NES30 Pro, a very popular controller, known by batocera.

joinski

prog-amateur
I own several different 8bitdo controllers (SF30 Pro, SN30 Pro +, DIY Kit for SNES, SFC30) and all of them can be paired and work well. But unfortunately i do not own the NES30 Pro.
Did you try with internal Bluetooth of the RPi/PC or with a USB bluetooth dongle?
I read somewhere, that the 8bitdo M30 also seems to be a bit problematic.
Don't know why some 8bitdo controller models work and some not. This has to be investigated.
Maybe you can join discord and talk with susan34 (aka nadenislamarre). He is aware on the general bluetooth issue and wants to test something and will hopefully improve reliability and compatability. But he also has a lot on his to do list and wants to make one step after the other. So maybe it will take some (more) time. You have to keep in mind, that all devs of batocera also have a private life and can only work on Batocera in their spare/free time. And there will always be some bugs/issues with compatability of certain devices (the devs do not own every controller on the market. so they can not easily test and debug issues with them. They need help from the community).
I know this can be frustrating (having issues/problems), but Batocera is a non-comercial project and you can not have such high expectations like you would have with big companies like Nintendo/Sony/Microsoft in terms of Support/Bugfixing etc.
Sorry for the long text. But I had the feeling that I had to explain a little bit. Because there are always people who seem annoyed and impatient.

FormulaFox

I'm using 5.24 - latest one I could get on the main site. How do I get 5.25?

joinski

FormulaFox

For RPi3:
https://batocera.org/upgrades/rpi3/beta/last/

For x86_64:
https://batocera.org/upgrades/x86_64/beta/last/

prog-amateur

joinski Hello and thank you for your reply. I just forgot to mention that I am on x86_64 architecture.

I have also tested with my SNES30 Pro and it gives me the same issue : both arcade stick and SNES30 Pro work on batocera menu/game selection, and do not work in-game.

On another computer (almost same config : architecture, CPU Brand, etc.), if I use the SNES30 Pro gamepad as the main gamepad, everything works just fine in batocera menu and in-game too.

It means it seems that batocera do not gives access to controllers when more than 1 pad / stick are paired, no matter if it is retroarch or FBA emulator (I have tested both).

FormulaFox

joinski

Thanks, I'll install it later tonight and see how things go. I fully understand that the devs have lives to worry about, as I have the same(this isn't even my top-priority retrogaming project), so I for one won't be getting impatient waiting for any fixes this issue may reveal to be needed.

But I would like to bring something else to your attention that should be looked at when time allows - I initially wrote this down as bad luck and nothing of note, but after downloading Batocera 5.25 and encountering it again I can be relatively sure there's an issue with your filehosting. Both when I initially downloaded 5.24 and now with grabbing 5.25, I had to restart the download three or four times because the download would get interrupted and couldn't be resumed. This obviously isn't a SERIOUS issue, as I of course got the images both times, but when time allows it would probably be a good idea to look into if there's anything that can be fixed serverside on this. It works well enough now, sure, but I think we can agree that we don't want it to get worse if something can be done.

FormulaFox

joinski

Okay, so, I overwrote Batocera with an install of Ubuntu to try and get Batocera 5.25 installed. I flashed the 5.25 image, told it to install....

..and it installed 5.24. Which, unsurprisingly, generated the same problem with connecting to my controller. What the bleep happened?

To summarize the current situation: If I run Batocera 5.25 off of a USB stick while 5.24 is installed, it won't recognize my network connection and refuse to install.

If I run Batocera 5.25 installer while Ubuntu is my base OS, it installs Batocera 5.24.

So....How do I get it to install 5.25 with this going on?

(I've tried this twice, BTW)

FormulaFox

I cannot test 5.25. It refuses to connect to my network(neither wireless or through ethernet) and as a result will not let me install it.

t0nito

I also have the NES30 pro with those issues and in 5.25 those issues ramain.

prog-amateur

Hello all, please find my feedback : following developpers advise, I have upgraded to batocera 5.25 beta and the problem is solved. Also no need to run batocera-save-overlay anymore to remember the bezels and shaders. This is a perfect version !!! Thank you very much again for your advise

joinski

FormulaFox

I do not know what you are doing (i do not understand).
Could you explain a bit more?
Are you trying to install Batocera 5.25 beta from here:
https://batocera.org/upgrades/x86_64/beta/last/
to your PC/Notebook? did you try to flash the image via etcher?
https://www.balena.io/etcher/
this does always work for me.

FormulaFox

joinski

Okay, here's the longer step-by-step version for clarity.

I flashed 5.25, from the link your provided, do an 8-gig flash drive Etcher.
When I run it off the flash drive while Batocera 5.24 is installed to the laptop, it cannot recognize my Bluetooth controller or network connections, making it impossible for me to test anything.

I overwrote my Batocera 5.24 installation with Ubuntu to see if that made a difference. Running Batocera 5.25 off the flash drive under this setup does get it recognizing the network and the Bluetooth, but it won't remember my Bluetooth gamepad under this setup(which I actually expected).

If I then tell Batocera 5.25 to install to disk -the laptop's internal hard drive- the version it installs is ALWAYS 5.24. I've tried this three times now - it just will not install 5.25.

I know it's weird, but I hope that cleared it up.

EDIT: I just noticed at your link that there's a newer build of 5.25 up than the one I tried(I was trying one dated 2020/01/18, and I see the one up now is dated 2020/01/24), I will give the new version a try to cover all bases.

EDIT 2: Same thing. Installs 5.24 2019/11/05 build instead of 5.25.

joinski

FormulaFox

i still don't get what you are doing.
and that's why i can not help you.

if you want to install 5.25 on the internal hard disk, i would suggest to plug this hard disk into another pc (internally or externally via SATA to USB-Adapter) and flash 5.25 in the same way you would do it to a usb flash drive.

FormulaFox

joinski

It's an internal laptop drive. I can't remove it. (proprietary BS - Lenovo doesn't want you messing with the internals)

I'm installing Batocera to it from the flash drive using the "install Batocera on a new disk" option in the System Settings menu.

EDIT: A friend might have the right tools to get the drive out. I'll keep you posted.

FormulaFox

joinski

Okay, I was wrong - friend came by(who has far more hardware experience than me) and found the hidden screw holding the drive in place(if I ever meet the Lenovo engineer who decided to do that, I WILL punch him in the face). I used a USB enclosure to flash the image straight to the drive.

The issue continues. 5.25 still can't remember the Bluetooth gamepad after I pair it.