Wifi randomly disconnects on Acer running Ubuntu GNOME 16.04.3

What is the output of:

sudo lshw -C network; sudo iwlist scan | egrep -i 'chan|ssid'

Thanks

First output:
  *-network
       description: Wireless interface
       product: Qualcomm Atheros
       vendor: Qualcomm Atheros
       physical id: 0
       bus info: pci@0000:03:00.0
       logical name: wlp3s0
       version: 31
       serial: 74:df:bf:80:42:c1
       width: 64 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: pm msi pciexpress bus_master cap_list ethernet physical wireless
       configuration: broadcast=yes driver=ath10k_pci driverversion=4.4.0-96-generic firmware=WLAN.TF.1.0-00267-1 ip=10.0.1.149 latency=0 link=yes multicast=yes wireless=IEEE 802.11abgn
       resources: irq:18 memory:94200000-943fffff
  *-network
       description: Ethernet interface
       product: RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller
       vendor: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.
       physical id: 0.1
       bus info: pci@0000:04:00.1
       logical name: enp4s0f1
       version: 12
       serial: 54:ab:3a:98:1d:87
       size: 10Mbit/s
       capacity: 1Gbit/s
       width: 64 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: pm msi pciexpress msix vpd bus_master cap_list ethernet physical tp mii 10bt 10bt-fd 100bt 100bt-fd 1000bt 1000bt-fd autonegotiation
       configuration: autonegotiation=on broadcast=yes driver=r8169 driverversion=2.3LK-NAPI duplex=half firmware=rtl8411-2_0.0.1 07/08/13 latency=0 link=no multicast=yes port=MII speed=10Mbit/s
       resources: irq:19 ioport:3000(size=256) memory:94404000-94404fff memory:94400000-94403fff

Second output:
                    Channel:7
                    Frequency:2.442 GHz (Channel 7)
                    ESSID:"My Wifi"
                    Channel:1
                    Frequency:2.412 GHz (Channel 1)
                    ESSID:"NETGEAR43"
                    Channel:1
                    Frequency:2.412 GHz (Channel 1)
                    ESSID:"NETGEAR43_2GEXT"
                    Channel:6
                    Frequency:2.437 GHz (Channel 6)
                    ESSID:"CenturyLink0350"
                    Channel:6
                    Frequency:2.437 GHz (Channel 6)
                    ESSID:""
                    Channel:6
                    Frequency:2.437 GHz (Channel 6)
                    ESSID:""
                    Channel:6
                    Frequency:2.437 GHz (Channel 6)
                    ESSID:""
                    Channel:6
                    Frequency:2.437 GHz (Channel 6)
lo Interface doesn't support scanning.

enp4s0f1 Interface doesn't support scanning.

                    ESSID:"Scheurich3386"
                    Channel:153
                    ESSID:"My Wifi"

Run:

echo "options ath10k_pci nohwcrypt=1" | sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/ath10k_fix.conf > /dev/null

reboot to test

Thanks for the suggestion.

I tried that but the disconnects have still happened, though. I have a script set up to log the time when a ping fails, and one of them was at 2:15:00 AM PDT. This is the output of dmesg -T leading up to and shortly after the failure:

[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] wlp3s0: authenticate with <MAC address>
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] wlp3s0: send auth to <MAC address> (try 1/3)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] wlp3s0: authenticated
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] wlp3s0: associate with <MAC address> (try 1/3)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: World regulatory domain updated:
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: DFS Master region: unset
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (start_freq - end_freq @ bandwidth), (max_antenna_gain, max_eirp), (dfs_cac_time)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (2402000 KHz - 2472000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (2457000 KHz - 2482000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (2474000 KHz - 2494000 KHz @ 20000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (5170000 KHz - 5250000 KHz @ 80000 KHz, 160000 KHz AUTO), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (5250000 KHz - 5330000 KHz @ 80000 KHz, 160000 KHz AUTO), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (0 s)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (5490000 KHz - 5730000 KHz @ 160000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (0 s)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (5735000 KHz - 5835000 KHz @ 80000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (57240000 KHz - 63720000 KHz @ 2160000 KHz), (N/A, 0 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] wlp3s0: RX AssocResp from <MAC address> (capab=0x1411 status=0 aid=22)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] wlp3s0: associated
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] ath: EEPROM regdomain: 0x8348
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] ath: EEPROM indicates we should expect a country code
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] ath: doing EEPROM country->regdmn map search
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] ath: country maps to regdmn code: 0x3a
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] ath: Country alpha2 being used: US
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] ath: Regpair used: 0x3a
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] ath: regdomain 0x8348 dynamically updated by country IE
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: Regulatory domain changed to country: US
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: DFS Master region: FCC
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (start_freq - end_freq @ bandwidth), (max_antenna_gain, max_eirp), (dfs_cac_time)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (2402000 KHz - 2472000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 3000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (5170000 KHz - 5250000 KHz @ 80000 KHz, 160000 KHz AUTO), (N/A, 1700 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (5250000 KHz - 5330000 KHz @ 80000 KHz, 160000 KHz AUTO), (N/A, 2300 mBm), (0 s)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (5490000 KHz - 5730000 KHz @ 160000 KHz), (N/A, 2300 mBm), (0 s)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (5735000 KHz - 5835000 KHz @ 80000 KHz), (N/A, 3000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] cfg80211: (57240000 KHz - 63720000 KHz @ 2160000 KHz), (N/A, 4000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:53 2017] wlp3s0: Limiting TX power to 30 (30 - 0) dBm as advertised by <MAC address>
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:59 2017] wlp3s0: deauthenticating from <MAC address> by local choice (Reason: 3=DEAUTH_LEAVING)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:59 2017] cfg80211: World regulatory domain updated:
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:59 2017] cfg80211: DFS Master region: unset
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:59 2017] cfg80211: (start_freq - end_freq @ bandwidth), (max_antenna_gain, max_eirp), (dfs_cac_time)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:59 2017] cfg80211: (2402000 KHz - 2472000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:59 2017] cfg80211: (2457000 KHz - 2482000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:59 2017] cfg80211: (2474000 KHz - 2494000 KHz @ 20000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:59 2017] cfg80211: (5170000 KHz - 5250000 KHz @ 80000 KHz, 160000 KHz AUTO), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:59 2017] cfg80211: (5250000 KHz - 5330000 KHz @ 80000 KHz, 160000 KHz AUTO), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (0 s)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:59 2017] cfg80211: (5490000 KHz - 5730000 KHz @ 160000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (0 s)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:59 2017] cfg80211: (5735000 KHz - 5835000 KHz @ 80000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:14:59 2017] cfg80211: (57240000 KHz - 63720000 KHz @ 2160000 KHz), (N/A, 0 mBm), (N/A)
[Wed Sep 20 02:15:01 2017] IPv6: ADDRCONF(NETDEV_UP): wlp3s0: link is not ready
[Wed Sep 20 02:15:02 2017] [drm:intel_pipe_update_end [i915_bpo]] *ERROR* Atomic update failure on pipe A (start=43607 end=43608) time 322 us, min 1073, max 1079, scanline start 1066, end 1088
[Wed Sep 20 02:15:06 2017] ath10k_pci 0000:03:00.0: no channel configured; ignoring frame(s)!

To give more info on the problem background, this is a new install of Ubuntu (about 5 days old). When I first installed it, it wasn't picking up wifi, and I had to use a wired connection to run the initial updates. I've used an Ubuntu 16.04.2 live disc in the past on the same device with no wifi problems.

I booted into a live usb for vanilla Ubuntu 16.04.3, and the wifi worked fine without any disconnects. The modules present on the live usb that aren't on my installation are:
- aufs
- crypto_simd
- dm_log
- dm_mirror
- dm_region_hash
- i915
- intel_cstate
- intel_pch_thermal
- intel_rapl_perf
- isofs
- nls_iso8859_1
- nls_utf8
- pcbc
- snd_soc_sst_match

The ones present on my installation that weren't on the live usb are:
- ablk_helper
- ansi_cprng
- binfmt_misc
- ctr
- drbg
- dw_dmac_core
- gf128mul
- i915_bpo
- intel_ips
- lrw
- pci_stub
- v4l2_common
- vboxdrv
- vboxnetadp
- vboxnetflt
- vboxpci

I've also saved a copy of the live usb's /etc/modprobe.d/ directory and outputs of the following commands if they're needed:
- uname -r
- lsmod
- dmesg -T
- wireless-info

Something that caught my eye was that on the live usb, the i915 driver was installed, whereas on my installation, the backport i915_bpo was installed. I don't know how relevant it is to the problem, though. My knowledge on how modules work is very limited.

As a small side note, I've also tried disabling 802.11n by adding "options iwlwifi 11n_disable=1" in modprobe.d/iwlwifi.conf, with no success. Since posting the original problem, I've changed the boot parameter pci to noaer due to shorter boot times while having the same connection stability as nomsi.

I think I fixed it. The issues were likely coming from the Ubuntu GNOME installer using kernel 4.4, which caused the i915 backport to be used. I don't think the backport worked well with my laptop. To fix it, I installed the HWE kernel by running:

sudo apt-get install linux-generic-hwe-16.04

Kernel version is now 4.10.0-35-generic, dmesg output looks normal, and the i915 driver is installed. I'll reopen this if the issues turn up again, but I'm optimistic.

I bet this is caused by ath10k not liking wifi power management being enabled, in terminal

sudo sed -i 's/wifi.powersave = 3/wifi.powersave = 2/' /etc/NetworkManager/conf.d/default-wifi-powersave-on.conf
systemctl restart network-manager.service