Wireless-tools -- how to use it?

coffeebug · 08-20-2010, 08:20 AM

Could've used previous thread but I guess its really a separate issue. I did search for similar threads.

Running Debian --- 2.6.26-2-686 #1 SMP

I was recommended to use wireless-tools from http://packages.debian.org/lenny/net/wireless-tools.

So I installed it. What does it do? How do you start it? There are no "shortcuts" to launch it. Aren't there man pages for it? Is this actually the package I need to connect to my home wireless network?

Thank you so much,
Jim

pielas · 08-20-2010, 08:30 AM

You should look at programs named iwconfig and iwlist. For example with iwlist you can scan for avalible wireless networks.

coffeebug · 08-20-2010, 08:14 PM

What I've found is that its not a gui program, its a collection of terminal commands. They have their own man pages.
As far as I can tell, they are:
iwconfig, iwlist, iwspy, and iwpriv.

I thought I could expect documentation on the Debian site, yet only found at: http://www.hpl.hp.com/personal/Jean_...nux/Tools.html

Not for this thread, but, I scanned and found my home network but I currently cannot get iwconfig to accept an access point, and I need to put iwconfig into a boot-time script.

sag47 · 08-20-2010, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coffeebug

I scanned and found my home network but I currently cannot get iwconfig to accept an access point, and I need to put iwconfig into a boot-time script.

This all depends on what the encryption of your wireless router is. If you're using WEP encryption then you can just use wireless tools with a few easy steps.

Code:

iwlist
ifconfig wlan0 down
iwconfig wlan0 enc "<YOUR HEX ENC KEY>" channel <your wireless channel from iwlist> mode Managed
ifconfig wlan0 up
dhclient wlan0

If your network is some form of WPA then you need to look into wpa_supplicant and wpa_supplicant.conf and create a configuration that works with your wireless.

If you find a configuration that works for you then refer to the debian reference on creating or modifying runlevel S scripts and how to implement them. In particular the following sections may interest you.
3.5.7. Network interface initialization
Chapter 5. Network setup

As for the command documentation using google always helps. Just search "man <command>" in google and you'll likely find useful documentation on what you inquire.

Also typing "<command> --help" may also present useful information.

Hope that helps,
SAM

coffeebug · 08-24-2010, 08:06 AM

Thanks. That helps! It'll take approximately two weeks to work through this.

djsmiley2k · 08-24-2010, 08:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coffeebug

Thanks. That helps! It'll take approximately two weeks to work through this.

Hehe theres a reason I dont like debian - the lack of resources of what seems to be classed as "obvious stuff

"

Stick with it - If you know your key, and know your network then it can be setup quite quickly, but iwconfig can be strange at times (and if like me, you have a wifi card which randomly refuses to work!) however once your setup its a kind of "set and forget" thing. I've had to reconfigure my wireless about.... 5 times in as many years and even then it was because I moved house etc and ended up with a new router/wifi network.

sag47 · 08-24-2010, 10:04 AM

I just edited the wiki and added entries which answer your question pretty much straight forward.

http://wiki.linuxquestions.org/wiki/..._configuration

I also added the following sections to it...
2.1 Gaining root access
3.2 Use WPA/WPA2 Personal
3.3 Use WPA/WPA2 Enterprise
3.5 Autostarting network configuration

See them all (including example configurations, etc.) at the wiki page.
http://wiki.linuxquestions.org/wiki/Wireless_networking

genogebot · 08-24-2010, 05:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sag47

I just edited the wiki...

Any chance of adding a section to the wiki about enabling and disabling wireless cards using iwconfig? It took me ages to figure this out by myself (http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...1/#post4066717), and others may find it useful.

sag47 · 08-25-2010, 12:11 AM

@genogebot: anyone can edit the wiki. just create a user and do it

sag47 · 08-25-2010, 12:49 PM

Hey genogebot,
I added it to the wireless wiki. However I highly encourage you, and others, to create a wiki login so that you can contribute to it as you find and create answers to others' questions!

SAM

the trooper · 08-25-2010, 01:57 PM

@coffebug

Did you look at the link that snowpine posted in your previous thread?,the one for the Debian wiki?
See the relevant link here:

http://wiki.debian.org/WiFi/HowToUse

Many users favour using wicd,just as a hint.

Quote:

Hehe theres a reason I dont like debian - the lack of resources of what seems to be classed as "obvious stuff

You just need to know where to look

.

genogebot · 08-25-2010, 06:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sag47

@genogebot: anyone can edit the wiki. just create a user and do it

Ok thanks, I didn't realise that - I thought maybe you had to be some sort of wiki guru - off to create a user now

coffeebug · 10-04-2010, 07:50 AM

I decided on using same thread because the big problem is still about wireless-tools > iwconfig.

Someone at the local user group installed wicd on my Compaq/broadcom4312, and it connected to a totally unsecured wireless network at the local hackerspace, but it always fails to obtain an IP at my home (currently wpa2/psk/aes).

I checked the bugs page < http://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/pkgre...i?package=wicd >, and maybe I'm experiencing an issue mentioned there, so I ditched wicd.

I made the following script (but I wasn't able to make it executable with chmod +x ; I'll deal with that later).

Following my script and keyboarding commands into a root terminal fails too, particularly at the "custom pass phrase" (what my 2wire router calls security). I read iwconfig doesn't do pass phrase but I'm unclear on hex vs ascii.

The access point never wants to associate.

So here is the script I had hoped I would boot with:

iwconfig wlan0
ifconfig wlan0 down
iwconfig wlan0 essid Mordor
iwconfig wlan0 channel 6

iwconfig wlan0 key restricted 2a3b4a5c
#this one bombs, I've tried different sets of digits, quotes,
# words, etc.here's the diagnostic:
#Error for wireless request "Set Encode" (8B2A) :
# SET failed on device wlan0 ; Invalid argument.
#

#not sure if master mode is appropriate...??
iwconfig wlan0 mode master
ifconfig wlan0 up
wpa_supplicant -Dwext -B -dd -K -h -v -w -N -iwlan0

dhclient wlan0

Still, I feel too close to just bail on Debian and go Ubuntu.

Also, I just installed network-manager-gnome; I already was in netdev group, I tried restarting init.d/dbus, and still do not see a frontend.

sag47 · 10-04-2010, 09:26 AM

You want the managed mode. You're not running an Ad-Hoc network...

Code:

iwconfig wlan0 mode Managed

Next you need to create a wpa_supplicant.conf to supply your router with a wpa passphrase...

Code:

ctrl_interface=/var/run/wpa_supplicant

network={
        ssid="Mordor"
        scan_ssid=1
        key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
        psk="frodo"
}

Where frodo is your wpa passphrase. Alternatively if you don't want people to easily know your network key then you can encode the passphrase with wpa_passphrase and use it instead of frodo.

Code:

wpa_passphrase Mordor frodo

Then once you have your wpa_supplicant.conf file you need your script which I wrote directly into the LQ Wiki for you.

Code:

#!/bin/sh 
iface=wlan0

#shut down interface
ifconfig $iface down

#set ad-hoc/management of wireless device
iwconfig $iface mode Managed

#enable interface
ifconfig $iface up

#stop any persistent wireless wpa2 sessions
killall wpa_supplicant

#apply WPA/WPA2 personal settings to device
wpa_supplicant -B -Dwext -i $iface -c ./wireless-wpa.conf -dd

#obtain an IP address
dhclient $iface

If you just want the bare minimum commands like your script then here they are corrected...

Code:

#!/bin/sh
ifconfig wlan0 down
iwconfig wlan0 mode Managed
ifconfig wlan0 up
wpa_supplicant -B -Dwext -i wlan0 -c ./wireless-wpa.conf -dd
dhclient wlan0

LQ Wiki Articles
http://wiki.linuxquestions.org/wiki/...FWPA2_Personal
http://wiki.linuxquestions.org/wiki/WPA#How_to_use_WPA

coffeebug · 10-08-2010, 11:57 AM

My Windows machine has IP address automatically obtained
(on this wireless network).
From the lq wiki I changed the location to
/etc/wireless-wpa.conf
instead of
./wireless-wpa.conf

Also my root shell doesn't recognize hwinfo as a command.

I think the wpa_supplicant command worked, it didn't complain so hope you didn't need to see that clutter.

I hate to be a pill but this will take me a couple of years w/o help. THANK YOU SO MUCH!!

Looking at the output below, I suspect the unknown hardware address type 801 and socket/fallback point to a problem...Here is the output from dhclient:

POS-Compaq:/home/evil# dhclient wlan0
There is already a pid file /var/run/dhclient.pid with pid 3267
killed old client process, removed PID file
Internet Systems Consortium DHCP Client V3.1.1
Copyright 2004-2008 Internet Systems Consortium.
All rights reserved.
For info, please visit http://www.isc.org/sw/dhcp/

wmaster0: unknown hardware address type 801
wmaster0: unknown hardware address type 801
Listening on LPF/wlan0/00:90:4b:5e:f3:8e
Sending on LPF/wlan0/00:90:4b:5e:f3:8e
Sending on Socket/fallback
DHCPDISCOVER on wlan0 to 255.255.255.255 port 67 interval 5
DHCPDISCOVER on wlan0 to 255.255.255.255 port 67 interval 10
DHCPDISCOVER on wlan0 to 255.255.255.255 port 67 interval 21
DHCPDISCOVER on wlan0 to 255.255.255.255 port 67 interval 16
DHCPDISCOVER on wlan0 to 255.255.255.255 port 67 interval 9
No DHCPOFFERS received.
No working leases in persistent database - sleeping.