Tiny Core Linux
Off-Topic => Off-Topic - Tiny Core Lounge => Topic started by: GNUser on December 22, 2025, 09:43:43 PM
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I just purchased two new controllers for my kids' TCL-powered retro gaming laptop, made by PowerA. The gaming laptop runs mednafen to emulate various videogame consoles. Kids were using two old Logitech gamepads up to now, but the Logitech gamepads got pretty beaten up so needed to be replaced.
mednafen and other games running in TCL do not recognize these xbox controllers at all, so games can only be played using the keyboard for now :(
Interestingly, these xbox controllers work out of the box in Devuan without any special configuration. However, I prefer running TCL on the gaming laptop because it's lighter, easier to understand, easier to customize, etc. So here we are.
I can confirm that the input-joystick-KERNEL extension is loaded:
TCL$ tce-status -i | grep joystick
input-joystick-6.12.11-tinycore64
When I plug in the gamepad in TCL, the xpad kernel module appears in the list of loaded modules:
TCL$ sudo lsmod | sort
Module Size Used by Not tainted
ac 12288 0
agpgart 28672 2 intel_gtt,ttm
backlight 12288 4 i915,drm_display_helper,drm,video
battery 16384 0
ccm 16384 6
cec 36864 2 i915,drm_display_helper
cfg80211 303104 4 mt76x2_common,mt76x02_lib,mt76,mac80211
cpufreq_conservative 12288 0
cpufreq_powersave 12288 0
cpufreq_userspace 12288 0
cqhci 20480 1 sdhci_pci
drm 348160 12 i915,drm_display_helper,drm_kms_helper,ttm,drm_buddy
drm_buddy 16384 1 i915
drm_display_helper 114688 1 i915
drm_kms_helper 102400 2 i915,drm_display_helper
e1000e 167936 0
ff_memless 12288 1 xpad
i2c_i801 24576 0
i2c_smbus 12288 1 i2c_i801
i915 2289664 345
intel_gtt 16384 1 i915
joydev 20480 0
loop 24576 586
lpc_ich 24576 0
mac80211 425984 3 mt76x2e,mt76x02_lib,mt76
mei 69632 1 mei_me
mei_me 24576 0
mmc_core 110592 3 sdhci_pci,sdhci,cqhci
mt76 57344 3 mt76x2e,mt76x2_common,mt76x02_lib
mt76x02_lib 49152 2 mt76x2e,mt76x2_common
mt76x2_common 16384 1 mt76x2e
mt76x2e 20480 0
pcspkr 12288 0
sdhci 40960 1 sdhci_pci
sdhci_pci 53248 0
snd 65536 9 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_ctl_led,snd_hda_codec_realtek,snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec,snd_hwdep,snd_pcm,snd_timer
snd_ctl_led 20480 0
snd_hda_codec 81920 4 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_codec_realtek,snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_intel
snd_hda_codec_generic 57344 1 snd_hda_codec_realtek
snd_hda_codec_hdmi 49152 1
snd_hda_codec_realtek 118784 1
snd_hda_core 49152 5 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_codec_realtek,snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec
snd_hda_intel 28672 0
snd_hda_scodec_component 12288 1 snd_hda_codec_realtek
snd_hwdep 12288 1 snd_hda_codec
snd_intel_dspcfg 12288 1 snd_hda_intel
snd_pcm 86016 4 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec,snd_hda_core
snd_timer 24576 1 snd_pcm
soundcore 12288 2 snd_ctl_led,snd
squashfs 40960 293
ttm 49152 1 i915
uinput 16384 1
uvc 12288 1 uvcvideo
uvcvideo 81920 0
video 57344 1 i915
videobuf2_common 40960 4 uvcvideo,videobuf2_v4l2,videobuf2_vmalloc,videobuf2_memops
videobuf2_memops 12288 1 videobuf2_vmalloc
videobuf2_v4l2 20480 1 uvcvideo
videobuf2_vmalloc 12288 1 uvcvideo
wmi 16384 1 video
xhci_hcd 114688 1 xhci_pci
xhci_pci 16384 0
xpad 36864 0
Also, I see the correct VID:PID in the output of lsusb , but no human-friendly description of the gamepad:
TCL$ sudo lsusb
...
Bus 002 Device 007: ID 20d6:2062
lshw doesn't see the gamepad at all:
TCL$ sudo lshw -class input
*-pnp00:05
product: PnP device PNP0303
physical id: 8
capabilities: pnp
configuration: driver=i8042 kbd
Here are the same commands running on Devuan on identical hardware (same laptop, same gamepad plugged in):
Devuan$ sudo lsmod | sort
ac 16384 0
aesni_intel 122880 4
ahci 49152 2
at24 28672 0
battery 28672 1 thinkpad_acpi
button 24576 0
ccm 20480 6
cec 69632 2 drm_display_helper,i915
cfg80211 1392640 4 mt76,mt76x02_lib,mac80211,mt76x2_common
coretemp 16384 0
cqhci 32768 1 sdhci_pci
crc16 12288 1 ext4
crc32c_generic 12288 0
crc32c_intel 16384 4
crc32_pclmul 12288 0
crct10dif_pclmul 12288 1
cryptd 28672 2 crypto_simd,ghash_clmulni_intel
crypto_simd 16384 1 aesni_intel
drm 774144 12 drm_kms_helper,drm_display_helper,drm_buddy,thinkpad_acpi,i915,ttm
drm_buddy 20480 1 i915
drm_display_helper 274432 1 i915
drm_kms_helper 253952 2 drm_display_helper,i915
e1000e 368640 0
ehci_hcd 110592 1 ehci_pci
ehci_pci 16384 0
evdev 28672 25
ext4 1142784 2
fan 24576 0
ff_memless 16384 1 xpad
gf128mul 16384 1 aesni_intel
ghash_clmulni_intel 16384 0
i2c_algo_bit 16384 1 i915
i2c_i801 36864 0
i2c_smbus 16384 1 i2c_i801
i915 4386816 11
intel_cstate 20480 0
intel_pmc_bxt 16384 1 iTCO_wdt
intel_powerclamp 16384 0
intel_rapl_common 53248 1 intel_rapl_msr
intel_rapl_msr 20480 0
intel_uncore 258048 0
irqbypass 12288 1 kvm
iTCO_vendor_support 12288 1 iTCO_wdt
iTCO_wdt 16384 0
jbd2 200704 1 ext4
joydev 24576 0
kvm 1396736 1 kvm_intel
kvm_intel 413696 0
libahci 61440 1 ahci
libarc4 12288 1 mac80211
libata 462848 2 libahci,ahci
lpc_ich 28672 0
lz4_compress 24576 1 zram
lz4hc_compress 20480 1 zram
mac80211 1449984 3 mt76,mt76x2e,mt76x02_lib
mbcache 16384 1 ext4
mc 94208 4 videodev,videobuf2_v4l2,uvcvideo,videobuf2_common
memconsole 12288 1 memconsole_coreboot
memconsole_coreboot 12288 0
mmc_core 253952 3 sdhci,cqhci,sdhci_pci
Module Size Used by
mt76 139264 3 mt76x2e,mt76x02_lib,mt76x2_common
mt76x02_lib 102400 2 mt76x2e,mt76x2_common
mt76x2_common 32768 1 mt76x2e
mt76x2e 28672 0
nvram 16384 1 thinkpad_acpi
pcspkr 12288 0
platform_profile 12288 1 thinkpad_acpi
psmouse 217088 0
rapl 20480 0
rc_core 73728 1 cec
rfkill 40960 4 thinkpad_acpi,cfg80211
scsi_common 16384 4 scsi_mod,sd_mod,libata,sg
scsi_mod 327680 3 sd_mod,libata,sg
sdhci 86016 1 sdhci_pci
sdhci_pci 98304 0
sd_mod 81920 2
serio_raw 16384 0
sg 45056 0
sha1_ssse3 32768 0
sha256_ssse3 32768 0
sha512_ssse3 53248 0
snd 151552 16 snd_ctl_led,snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hwdep,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec,snd_hda_codec_realtek,snd_timer,thinkpad_acpi,snd_pcm
snd_ctl_led 24576 0
snd_hda_codec 217088 4 snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec_realtek
snd_hda_codec_generic 114688 1 snd_hda_codec_realtek
snd_hda_codec_hdmi 98304 1
snd_hda_codec_realtek 217088 1
snd_hda_core 143360 5 snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec,snd_hda_codec_realtek
snd_hda_intel 61440 3
snd_hda_scodec_component 20480 1 snd_hda_codec_realtek
snd_hwdep 20480 1 snd_hda_codec
snd_intel_dspcfg 40960 1 snd_hda_intel
snd_intel_sdw_acpi 16384 1 snd_intel_dspcfg
snd_pcm 184320 4 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec,snd_hda_core
snd_timer 53248 1 snd_pcm
soundcore 16384 2 snd_ctl_led,snd
sparse_keymap 12288 1 thinkpad_acpi
thinkpad_acpi 163840 0
ttm 106496 1 i915
uinput 20480 1
usb_common 16384 4 xhci_hcd,usbcore,uvcvideo,ehci_hcd
usbcore 409600 6 xhci_hcd,ehci_pci,xpad,uvcvideo,ehci_hcd,xhci_pci
uvc 12288 1 uvcvideo
uvcvideo 155648 0
video 81920 2 thinkpad_acpi,i915
videobuf2_common 81920 4 videobuf2_vmalloc,videobuf2_v4l2,uvcvideo,videobuf2_memops
videobuf2_memops 16384 1 videobuf2_vmalloc
videobuf2_v4l2 36864 1 uvcvideo
videobuf2_vmalloc 20480 1 uvcvideo
videodev 368640 2 videobuf2_v4l2,uvcvideo
watchdog 49152 1 iTCO_wdt
wmi 28672 1 video
x86_pkg_temp_thermal 16384 0
xhci_hcd 364544 1 xhci_pci
xhci_pci 24576 0
xpad 49152 0
zram 49152 1
Devuan$ sudo lsusb
...
Bus 001 Device 006: ID 20d6:2062 PowerA Xbox Series X Wired Controller Black
Devuan$ sudo lshw -class input
...
*-input:2
product: Generic X-Box pad
physical id: 4
logical name: input19
logical name: /dev/input/event17
logical name: /dev/input/js0
capabilities: usb
What am I missing for this gamepad to work in TCL (i.e., for it to show up in the output of lshw and for games to recognize it)?
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Hi GNUser
Looks like you need modules xpad.ko and ff_memless.ko.
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Hi Rich. Yes, I noticed that when I plug the controller in, those two modules appear in the output of lsmod in both Devuan and TCL.
Doesn't this output confirm that those two modules are loaded?
TCL$ sudo lsmod | sort
Module Size Used by Not tainted
ac 12288 0
agpgart 28672 2 intel_gtt,ttm
backlight 12288 4 i915,drm_display_helper,drm,video
battery 16384 0
ccm 16384 6
cec 36864 2 i915,drm_display_helper
cfg80211 303104 4 mt76x2_common,mt76x02_lib,mt76,mac80211
cpufreq_conservative 12288 0
cpufreq_powersave 12288 0
cpufreq_userspace 12288 0
cqhci 20480 1 sdhci_pci
drm 348160 12 i915,drm_display_helper,drm_kms_helper,ttm,drm_buddy
drm_buddy 16384 1 i915
drm_display_helper 114688 1 i915
drm_kms_helper 102400 2 i915,drm_display_helper
e1000e 167936 0
ff_memless 12288 1 xpad
i2c_i801 24576 0
i2c_smbus 12288 1 i2c_i801
i915 2289664 345
intel_gtt 16384 1 i915
joydev 20480 0
loop 24576 586
lpc_ich 24576 0
mac80211 425984 3 mt76x2e,mt76x02_lib,mt76
mei 69632 1 mei_me
mei_me 24576 0
mmc_core 110592 3 sdhci_pci,sdhci,cqhci
mt76 57344 3 mt76x2e,mt76x2_common,mt76x02_lib
mt76x02_lib 49152 2 mt76x2e,mt76x2_common
mt76x2_common 16384 1 mt76x2e
mt76x2e 20480 0
pcspkr 12288 0
sdhci 40960 1 sdhci_pci
sdhci_pci 53248 0
snd 65536 9 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_ctl_led,snd_hda_codec_realtek,snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec,snd_hwdep,snd_pcm,snd_timer
snd_ctl_led 20480 0
snd_hda_codec 81920 4 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_codec_realtek,snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_intel
snd_hda_codec_generic 57344 1 snd_hda_codec_realtek
snd_hda_codec_hdmi 49152 1
snd_hda_codec_realtek 118784 1
snd_hda_core 49152 5 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_codec_realtek,snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec
snd_hda_intel 28672 0
snd_hda_scodec_component 12288 1 snd_hda_codec_realtek
snd_hwdep 12288 1 snd_hda_codec
snd_intel_dspcfg 12288 1 snd_hda_intel
snd_pcm 86016 4 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec,snd_hda_core
snd_timer 24576 1 snd_pcm
soundcore 12288 2 snd_ctl_led,snd
squashfs 40960 293
ttm 49152 1 i915
uinput 16384 1
uvc 12288 1 uvcvideo
uvcvideo 81920 0
video 57344 1 i915
videobuf2_common 40960 4 uvcvideo,videobuf2_v4l2,videobuf2_vmalloc,videobuf2_memops
videobuf2_memops 12288 1 videobuf2_vmalloc
videobuf2_v4l2 20480 1 uvcvideo
videobuf2_vmalloc 12288 1 uvcvideo
wmi 16384 1 video
xhci_hcd 114688 1 xhci_pci
xhci_pci 16384 0
xpad 36864 0
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Hi GNUser
I missed that.
But I saw this for Devuan:
usbcore 409600 6 xhci_hcd,ehci_pci,xpad,uvcvideo,ehci_hcd,xhci_pci
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Hmm, TCL does not seem to have any extension containing "usbcore":
$ provides.sh usbcore
$
Maybe usbcore is a dependency of xpad for Devuan's kernel version (6.12.43) but not for TCL's (6.12.11) for some reason?
"usbcore" does appear in output of dmesg when I plug in the gamepad, even though it does not appear in output of lsmod:
TCL$ dmesg
...
[ 544.800512] usb 2-1.2: new full-speed USB device number 6 using ehci-pci
[ 544.902957] input: Generic X-Box pad as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.0/usb2/2-1/2-1.2/2-1.2:1.0/input/input17
[ 544.903260] usbcore: registered new interface driver xpad
dmesg and lsmod seem to show the expected things, but lsusb and lshw do not :-\
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Do I need to manually create /dev/input/js0 for some reason? I'm going to try it even though I'm not optimistic it's going to help.
EDIT: Manually creating /dev/input/js0 didn't help, but that could be because I'm not creating it correctly. Another thought: Is it possible that TCL's xpad kernel module is missing some required functionality?
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Hi GNUser
Maybe usbcore is built in?
I think you may have to:
dmesg | grep -iE 'VID:PID|X-BOX|other related stuff'for Duvuan and TC and compare what each of them find.
By grepping for just the xbox related stuff you should be able to
see why Devuan works and what TC is missing.
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Hi GNUser
...Is it possible that TCL's xpad kernel module is missing some required functionality?
You mean like SPI:
CONFIG_JOYSTICK_XPAD=m
CONFIG_JOYSTICK_XPAD_FF=y
CONFIG_JOYSTICK_XPAD_LEDS=y
# CONFIG_JOYSTICK_PSXPAD_SPI is not set
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I think you may have to:
dmesg | grep -iE 'VID:PID|X-BOX|other related stuff'for Duvuan and TC and compare what each of them find.
Hi Rich. Devuan shows one line more than TCL:
TCL$ dmesg | grep -iE '20d6:2062|x-box|xbox'
[ 14.829527] input: Generic X-Box pad as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.0/usb1/1-1/1-1.2/1-1.2:1.0/input/input8
Devuan$ sudo dmesg | grep -iE '20d6:2062|x-box|xbox'
[ 30.799826] usb 1-1.2: Product: Xbox Series X Wired Controller Black
[ 30.824141] input: Generic X-Box pad as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1a.0/usb1/1-1/1-1.2/1-1.2:1.0/input/input19
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Hi GNUser
...Is it possible that TCL's xpad kernel module is missing some required functionality?
You mean like SPI:
CONFIG_JOYSTICK_XPAD=m
CONFIG_JOYSTICK_XPAD_FF=y
CONFIG_JOYSTICK_XPAD_LEDS=y
# CONFIG_JOYSTICK_PSXPAD_SPI is not set
Hi Rich. That can't be it, because Devuan treats SPI the same way. This is from Devuan's kernel config:
CONFIG_JOYSTICK_XPAD=m
CONFIG_JOYSTICK_XPAD_FF=y
CONFIG_JOYSTICK_XPAD_LEDS=y
CONFIG_JOYSTICK_WALKERA0701=m
# CONFIG_JOYSTICK_PSXPAD_SPI is not set
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GNUser
Your problem is with ids
1) your ids are not yet uploaded to http://www.linux-usb.org/usb.ids
2) yours are vendor 20d6 and product 2062
modinfo xpad | grep v20D6
alias: usb:v20D6p*d*dc*dsc*dp*icFFisc47ipD0in*
alias: usb:v20D6p*d*dc*dsc*dp*icFFisc5Dip81in*
alias: usb:v20D6p*d*dc*dsc*dp*icFFisc5Dip01in*
Rich correctly spots that modinfo xpad | grep depends -> ffmless
I wonder if Rich has any suggestions on the top part of modinfo...to try a diff parameter?
modinfo xpad
filename: /lib/modules/6.12.11-tinycore64/kernel.tclocal/drivers/input/joystick/xpad.ko.gz
author: Marko Friedemann <mfr@bmx-chemnitz.de>
description: Xbox pad driver
license: GPL
parm: auto_poweroff:Power off wireless controllers on suspend
parm: sticks_to_null:Do not map sticks at all for unknown pads
parm: triggers_to_buttons:Map triggers to buttons rather than axes for unknown pads
parm: dpad_to_buttons:Map D-PAD to buttons rather than axes for unknown pads
alias: usb:v3537p*d*dc*dsc*dp*icFFisc47ipD0in*
SNIP
depends: ff-memless
intree: Y
vermagic: 6.12.11-tinycore64 SMP mod_unload
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Ok I was half right. as usual ;)
1) We agree your device is unknown by product id so I found this page
https://docs.kernel.org/6.18/input/devices/xpad.html
go to this quote but it references dance pads....is that a mat?
17.1.3. Unknown Controllers
If you have an unknown Xbox controller, it should work just fine with the default settings.
HOWEVER if you have an unknown dance pad not listed below, it will not work UNLESS you set “dpad_to_buttons” to 1 in the module configuration.
If your device is not a mat, agreed it claims
Unrecognized models of Xbox controllers should function as Generic Xbox controllers.
And we are back to square one
(2) You could try modding the driver C file from here
https://github.com/paroj/xpad/blob/master/xpad.c
search for 20d6 gives me hits for lines 385/6/7 PLUS there are other lines too
{ 0x20d6, 0x2001, "BDA Xbox Series X Wired Controller", 0, XTYPE_XBOXONE },
{ 0x20d6, 0x2009, "PowerA Enhanced Wired Controller for Xbox Series X|S", 0, XTYPE_XBOXONE },
{ 0x20d6, 0x281f, "PowerA Wired Controller For Xbox 360", 0, XTYPE_XBOX360 },
and other lines. So either raise an issue or copy and modify the 2009 line to 0x2062 and compile it?
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if you are able to built it....then that git website refers to an executable called jstest and that can be found here https://salsa.debian.org/debian/joystick
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Hi aus9. Nice to see you here :)
Thank you for the suggestions, but I'm still puzzled about:
a) why this gamepad works in Devuan without any hacks
and
b) why it doesn't work in TCL even though the correct kernel module (xpad) gets loaded automatically when the gamepad is connected
Is there something I could copy from Devuan over to TCL that might help? I'm going to see whether there's a udev rule in Devuan that is responsible for the trouble-free experience there.
PS: jstest is not installed in Devuan, which actually has very few packages installed (only 997 packages are installed, which on a Debian derivative is quite barebones)
PS2: The new controller is a regular handheld gamepad, not a dancepad.
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/dev/input/js0 is something that we expect to be created without user intervention when things are working correctly, right? If so, which system component is responsible for its creation? That component may be the culprit and may need some kind of nudge.
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I've poked around Devuan so much that my eyes hurt. I feel like I'm looking for a needle in a haystack and am not optimistic about finding what I'm looking for.
I think our best clues at this point are the output of the lsusb and lshw commands in TCL, which I provided up in the first post of this thread.
I have no further leads at this point, would be grateful for any assistance.
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Hi GNUser
If you run this on Duvuan:
dmesg > dmesgDuvuan,txtand attach it to your next post, I'll take a look and see if I
can spot anything.
Doing the same for TC would also be helpful.
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Hi Rich. See attached. The relevant part is at the end--I plug in the gamepad at the 998 timestamp in TCL, 41 timestamp in Devuan.
Note how much more activity from usb occurs in Devuan.
Thank you so much for your help.
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Hi GNUser
Do I need to manually create /dev/input/js0 ...
Is it possible the device was created as /dev/js0 ?
-
Hi Rich. No /dev/js0, either.
My suspicion is beginning to turn to the controller itself. Maybe the manufacturer makes assumptions about GNU+Linux that aren't true of minimalistic distros.
I think the easiest thing to do at this point is to return these gamepads and purchase Logitech ones instead (used if need be). Every Logitech gamepad I've ever used work out of the box with mednafen on every distro including TCL.
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well some good news and lots of bad
voidlinux has a joystick udev rule which is a text file that mentions hwdb.....and not sure how devuan rules for joystick are....but on voidlinux init=runit it is using a fork of systemd for a package called eudev
and it appears to have a hwdb.bin under /etc/udev and I have been unable to run strings /path/file | grep 20d6 or 20D6 to get any hits.
I get no hits searching for hwdb but instead I have a hit for a file called /usr/lib/udev/hwdb.d/70-joystick.hwdb and its text file but me thinks it would be a distraction to post here when you lack the hwdb files to begin with.
We do have our own hdwb TCE but its not the same and its usb ids do not appear to have your vendor product ids
Maybe you can look to see if Devuan has 70-joystick.rules and if that is the reason you have more success there?
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Manually creating /dev/input/js0 didn't help, but that could be because I'm not creating it correctly.
https://www.kernel.org/doc/html/latest/input/joydev/joystick.html#device-nodes
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Hi Rich and aus9. I returned the gamepad to the store, so cannot investigate this further.
While my kids have fun with logitech gamepads, I will educate myself about gamepads on linux and will take another stab at this (getting xbox gamepads to work on TCL) at some later date.
Happy hacking!