Atheros AR9485 wifi disconnects randomly

I have a Lenovo with a AR9485 but I don't have any close neighbors with wifi and your channel and regulatory settings are the only issues I saw. I know chili555 would suggest using 20Mhz instead of 40 if you have that option on the wireless router

Here is one of his posts copied:

First, check the settings in the router. WPA2-AES is preferred; not any WPA and WPA2 mixed mode and certainly not TKIP. Second, if your router is capable of N speeds, I have better luck with a channel width of 20 MHz in the 2.4 GHz band instead of automatic 20/40 MHz. I also have better luck with a fixed channel, either 1, 6 or 11, rather than automatic channel selection. After making these changes, reboot the router.

Next, I recommend that your regulatory domain be set explicitly. Check yours:

sudo iw reg get 

If you get 00, that is a one-size-maybe-fits-all setting. Find yours here Then set it temporarily:

sudo iw reg set IS  

Of course, substitute your country code if not Iceland. Set it permanently:

gksudo gedit /etc/default/crda

Use nano or kate or vim if you don't have the text editor gedit.

Change the last line to read:

REGDOMAIN=IS

Proofread carefully, save and close the text editor.

Next, I'd set IPv6 to Ignore in Network Manager

I've a Realtek based receiver that has the same problem. Disconnecting and reconnecting makes it working again. It is difficult to troubleshoot and it goes in the direction of 'opinion based' but as far as I can tell it is a matter of interference. Many devices like microwave ovens, doorbells, remotes and of course other AP's use the same frequency band which obfuscates or weakens the signal of your AP. Your output file shows lots of other AP's and a relatively weak signal of yours.

The indicator you mention only shows there's a connection with an AP, it basically shows there's a carrier signal. The carrier signal is why you can scan for wireless networks. It does not tell you that anything useful is send or received. If your connection is secured it regularly changes the encryption key and depending on your settings it can even change channel. If the encryption key changes during a period of weak signal the receiver can loose track of it. However it does see the carrier and thinks it is still connected.

There are a few things you can try to improve the situation:

• Move closer to your AP, but that's not really a solution. Nevertheless this really works.
• Change the channel of your AP to one that's less crowded. You can try all the channels you can set.
• If your devices support it try to change to the 5 GHz band which has more channels and is less crowded than the 2.4 GHz band.
• If the problem persists buy a range extender although this actually worsens the situation in the long term because everyone buys range extenders so more or less there's a wireless war going on these days.