Wireless router dropping connection under load - dmesg shows "ath: phy0: Failed to stop TX DMA, queues=0x004!"

Symptom:
Atheros-chipset based router, specifically:

Router Model

Buffalo WZR-HP-G300NH

Firmware Version

DD-WRT v24-sp2 (05/27/13) std - build 21676

Kernel Version

Linux 3.9.4 #320 Mon May 27 02:09:45 CEST 2013 mips

Was dropping wireless connection to my Nexus 7 (and iPod touch) when downloading anything large, e.g. app updates.

Connection would drop on client, interrupting whatever was downloading, then few seconds later would reconnect and continue, then drop again, etc.

dmesg from shell on the router gave me:

ath: phy0: Failed to stop TX DMA, queues=0x004!

every time it dropped the connection. 

cat /sys/kernel/debug/ieee80211/phy0/ath9k/reset

    Baseband Hang: 2538

Baseband Watchdog:  0

   Fatal HW Error:  0

      TX HW error:  0

     TX Path Hang:  0

      PLL RX Hang:  0

        MCI Reset:  0

REALLY ANNOYING.  Lots of internet sleuthing later, I appear to have found a fix!

TL;DR - TRY THIS

Make sure you're not using WPA2/ TKIP mode! Use AES instead - do not use TKIP.

Simply switching from TKIP to AES made the problem disappear completely. 

SO happy about that.

Work for you? Comment below please :-)

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Django-cms is absurdly good

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Sensor chip w/Active low pin 2 = *NUKE

Maxwell Technologies’ HSN-1000 radiation-hardened Hybrid Nuclear Event Detecto


Kyle : wtf do you use that chip for?
Kyle : bomb warning device?
Dr Tune: no it's to launch a retaliatory nuclear attack
Dr Tune: you hook the active low *NED output (via a fet) to the ignition system on yr ICBM
Dr Tune: optionally you could have a toggle switch or something
 Dr Tune: 4 safeness
Kyle : well at least it triggers on a detonation and not just spotting something in the air
Dr Tune: yeah I wonder how they do production testing
Dr Tune: chips prolly veh expensive
Dr Tune: anyway
Dr Tune: comedic, and I love it just has pin 2 as essentially *NUKE
Kyle : lol yeah
Dr Tune: maybe hook it up to a piezo buzzer or something, so if you don't notice that you've just been nuked, it'll let you know
Kyle : yeah i was thinking its probably part of some sensor network to notify the pentagon or something
Kyle : immediately adjust the defcon level
Kyle : or i guess its not defcon anymore
Dr Tune: ya someone in pentagon has haxored up an arduino
Kyle : go to purple alert or something
Dr Tune: well only what 5 defcons
Dr Tune: so can use an attiny