linux-drivers/
drivers/net/wireless/intel/iwlwifi

Intel Wireless Wi-Fi (iwlwifi) adapters, including Wi-Fi 6/6E/7

Intel's family of laptop and desktop Wi-Fi cards spanning roughly the last fifteen years, from the older 7000/8000-series through AX200/AX210 (Wi-Fi 6/6E) and the current BE200/BE201/BE202 Wi-Fi 7 modules. These are the wireless chips found in the vast majority of Intel-based laptops sold today.

keep conf=0.98 deploy=high replacement=none subsystem=net category=networking-wireless
98%

recommendation

It should stay in the kernel because this is one of the most widely deployed wireless drivers in Linux and Intel is still shipping new Wi-Fi 7 hardware (BE200 series and newer Q4 2025 parts) that depends on it. Upstream activity is intense, with substantive fixes and new-generation enablement still landing in 2026, and there is no replacement driver on the horizon.

repository signals

292 files
180,758 source lines
2,344 commits, 5y
+108,428 / −48,957 lines added / removed, 5y
142 authors, 5y
monthly commits · 2021-04-21 → 2026-04-21 · 2,344 total · active in 60/61 months
2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2021-04: 1 commit · +1 −0 2021-05: 1 commit · +1 −1 2021-06: 46 commits · +1,664 −844 2021-07: 5 commits · +89 −12 2021-08: 85 commits · +2,245 −901 2021-09: 7 commits · +14 −6 2021-10: 74 commits · +2,685 −1,284 2021-11: 16 commits · +4,609 −88 2021-12: 94 commits · +2,440 −853 2022-01: 49 commits · +1,473 −1,190 2022-02: 45 commits · +966 −411 2022-03: 17 commits · +420 −313 2022-04: 2 commits · +94 −94 2022-05: 18 commits · +217 −201 2022-06: 6 commits · +87 −89 2022-07: 4 commits · +9 −12 2022-08: 1 commit · +1 −1 2022-09: 24 commits · +1,035 −589 2022-10: 12 commits · +151 −145 2022-11: 26 commits · +1,299 −205 2022-12: 13 commits · +123 −77 2023-01: 13 commits · +324 −70 2023-02: 1 commit · +0 −7 2023-03: 136 commits · +9,511 −2,798 2023-04: 90 commits · +1,667 −709 2023-05: 40 commits · +772 −340 2023-06: 120 commits · +4,790 −4,018 2023-07: 2 commits · +19 −26 2023-08: 37 commits · +438 −355 2023-09: 40 commits · +757 −239 2023-10: 60 commits · +2,016 −1,018 2023-11: 1 commit · +1 −1 2023-12: 28 commits · +279 −225 2024-01: 68 commits · +2,170 −1,096 2024-02: 99 commits · +1,491 −885 2024-03: 49 commits · +992 −313 2024-04: 30 commits · +2,058 −829 2024-05: 96 commits · +3,604 −1,889 2024-06: 50 commits · +3,637 −3,723 2024-07: 44 commits · +982 −322 2024-08: 30 commits · +562 −261 2024-09: 9 commits · +117 −89 2024-10: 42 commits · +719 −343 2024-11: 1 commit · +1 −1 2024-12: 88 commits · +2,107 −1,343 2025-01: 6 commits · +151 −104 2025-02: 39 commits · +29,303 −384 2025-03: 54 commits · +1,267 −640 2025-04: 77 commits · +2,912 −2,189 2025-05: 152 commits · +7,968 −7,768 2025-06: 52 commits · +758 −554 2025-07: 83 commits · +1,903 −2,677 2025-08: 53 commits · +970 −3,432 2025-09: 30 commits · +1,105 −602 2025-10: 18 commits · +1,393 −1,074 2025-11: 25 commits · +1,086 −167 2025-12: 3 commits · +24 −13 2026-01: 17 commits · +610 −864 2026-02: 6 commits · +179 −215 2026-03: 3 commits · +146 −41 2026-04: 0 commits · +0 −0

sources

  1. git.kernel.org

    Kernel history shows substantive iwlwifi fixes still landing in 2026, indicating active upstream maintenance rather than removal.

  2. git.kernel.org

    Kernel history shows new iwlwifi MLD/Wi-Fi generation work in 2026, consistent with ongoing enablement for current hardware.

  3. wireless.docs.kernel.org

    Linux Wireless documentation describes iwlwifi as the driver for Intel’s current wireless chips and lists Wi-Fi 7 BE200/BE201/BE202 support.

  4. intel.com

    Intel marks the BE200 as Launched with Linux support, showing iwlwifi-backed hardware remained a live product line in and beyond 2025.

  5. intel.com

    Intel’s current Wi-Fi 7 product page lists BE200/BE201/BE202 and newer Q4 2025 parts, indicating ongoing new deployments in the same driver family.

codex reasoning notes (technical)

Real driver directory: Kconfig and module-bearing sources under drivers/net/wireless/intel/iwlwifi. lore-http/lei were unavailable here (MCP resources empty; shell lei missing), so upstream activity was grounded from local kernel git history via exec_command, then mapped to canonical kernel.org commit URLs by canonical recall. Kernel docs URL was obtained via web search/open. Intel product/spec URLs were obtained via web search/open. Evidence points to a heavily maintained, current-shipping Intel WLAN stack with active 2026 fixes/feature work and no natural upstream replacement driver, so removal/deprecation is not justified.