xbox360 wireless controller setup on fedora 40

Notes on how to get the controller to connect to the system.

Setup

  • Xbox360 wireless controller + USB receiver dongle
  • Framework 16 laptop running Fedora 40 with Linux kernel 6.9.12

Problem

The controller can’t connect to the system. After pairing, the LEDs on the controller keep blinking. lsusb detects the receiver dongle with no problems, but the system doesn’t see the controller.

Solution

The xpad kernel driver was missing. Running

sudo dnf install -y kernel-modules-extra

followed by a reboot made the controller work flawlessly.