ADR-268: Qualcomm Atheros CSI Platform Strategy

• Status: accepted
• Date: 2026-07-18
• Tags: qualcomm, atheros, csi, ath9k, ath11k, ath12k, simulator

Context

RuView needs a Qualcomm path that is useful before vendor hardware access while remaining honest about firmware boundaries. QCA9300 has demonstrated CSI tooling through ath9k/PicoScenes-class systems. QCN9074 and QCN9274 have upstream Linux connectivity drivers, but upstream ath11k/ath12k support does not by itself prove that raw per-packet complex CSI is exported by public firmware.

Decision

1. Use QCA9300 as the first physical baseline: 802.11n, up to 3x3 MIMO and 20/40 MHz. Accept translated captures from established research tooling.
2. Model QCN9074 (Wi-Fi 6/6E, 4x4, up to 160 MHz) and QCN9274 (Wi-Fi 7, 4x4, up to 160 MHz in protocol v1) as explicitly experimental simulator profiles.
3. Keep firmware/kernel formats behind a Rust adapter. RuView ingests only the validated QCS1 application envelope defined by ADR-269.
4. Never label simulated frames as hardware. Physical support requires captured fixtures, firmware provenance, antenna ordering, scaling and repeatability tests.
5. Prefer an upstream-reviewed Generic Netlink or relay-style export if modern Qualcomm firmware exposes CFR/CSI; do not depend on undisclosed structs.

Consequences

• Development, APIs and downstream sensing can be tested immediately.
• QCA9300 offers the shortest path to real Qualcomm data.
• Modern profiles may remain simulator-only until firmware cooperation exists.
• A translation copy is accepted in exchange for a stable, fuzzable boundary.

Links

• ADR-269: QCS1 wire protocol
• Linux ath11k supported devices
• PicoScenes supported hardware
• ADR-270: vendor integration portfolio and acceptance gates