[gentoo-user] Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice)

[gentoo-user] Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice)

[walt]

My ISP just forced me to upgrade to a new fiberoptic plan with very
little advance notice.

I can't complain too much because my download speed is three times
faster than yesterday, but now I need to use a USB WiFi adapter if
I want to use my main desktop machine anywhere other than my kitchen.

(Don't ask -- the details are too stupid to post -- but I'm now using
a wired ethernet connection from my kitchen :)

The Cable Guy from my ISP gave me (for free) a D-Link USB WiFi adapter:

Bus 002 Device 003: ID 07d1:3c0a D-Link System DWA-140 RangeBooster N Adapter(rev.B2) [Ralink RT3072]

I did some googling and enabled the "appropriate" kernel drivers, then
rebooted and now the output from ifconfig includes this interface:

wlan0: flags=4099<UP,BROADCAST,MULTICAST>  mtu 1500
        ether b8:a3:86:99:a8:d8  txqueuelen 1000  (Ethernet)
        RX packets 0  bytes 0 (0.0 B)
        RX errors 0  dropped 0  overruns 0  frame 0
        TX packets 0  bytes 0 (0.0 B)
        TX errors 0  dropped 0 overruns 0  carrier 0  collisions 0

My yes-or-no question:  does the appearance of "wlan0" imply that
my new kernel drivers are the right ones for this particular D-Link
WiFi adapter?

If not, I'll either buy a better USB WiFi adapter or continue to
google it.

Thanks.

Re: [gentoo-user] Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice)

[Alec Ten Harmsel]

On 10/02/2014 10:05 PM, walt wrote:
> I did some googling and enabled the "appropriate" kernel drivers, then
> rebooted and now the output from ifconfig includes this interface:
>
> wlan0: flags=4099<UP,BROADCAST,MULTICAST>  mtu 1500
>         ether b8:a3:86:99:a8:d8  txqueuelen 1000  (Ethernet)
>         RX packets 0  bytes 0 (0.0 B)
>         RX errors 0  dropped 0  overruns 0  frame 0
>         TX packets 0  bytes 0 (0.0 B)
>         TX errors 0  dropped 0 overruns 0  carrier 0  collisions 0
>
> My yes-or-no question:  does the appearance of "wlan0" imply that
> my new kernel drivers are the right ones for this particular D-Link
> WiFi adapter?
It's certainly a great sign, but it may or may not be enough. I'm by no
means an expert, but I believe I have to install some extra firmware
(b43-firmware) to use on my laptop as it's not in the kernel (unless I'm
clueless with kernel config). Without b43-firmware, the interface shows
up and is recognized, but can't be used iirc.
> If not, I'll either buy a better USB WiFi adapter or continue to
> google it.
>
> Thanks.
>
>
If you buy a new one, go with a PCI card. PCI is a much better bus than
USB - more power so the chipset does the majority of the processing
instead of the typical USB designs that offload a bunch of it to your
CPU. Also, if you buy a new one, I've had fantastic experiences with
Intel chipsets.

Alec

Re: [gentoo-user] Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice)

[J. Roeleveld]

On Thursday, October 02, 2014 10:24:51 PM Alec Ten Harmsel wrote:
> On 10/02/2014 10:05 PM, walt wrote:
> > I did some googling and enabled the "appropriate" kernel drivers, then
> > rebooted and now the output from ifconfig includes this interface:
> > 
> > wlan0: flags=4099<UP,BROADCAST,MULTICAST>  mtu 1500
> > 
> >         ether b8:a3:86:99:a8:d8  txqueuelen 1000  (Ethernet)
> >         RX packets 0  bytes 0 (0.0 B)
> >         RX errors 0  dropped 0  overruns 0  frame 0
> >         TX packets 0  bytes 0 (0.0 B)
> >         TX errors 0  dropped 0 overruns 0  carrier 0  collisions 0
> > 
> > My yes-or-no question:  does the appearance of "wlan0" imply that
> > my new kernel drivers are the right ones for this particular D-Link
> > WiFi adapter?
> 
> It's certainly a great sign, but it may or may not be enough. I'm by no
> means an expert, but I believe I have to install some extra firmware
> (b43-firmware) to use on my laptop as it's not in the kernel (unless I'm
> clueless with kernel config). Without b43-firmware, the interface shows
> up and is recognized, but can't be used iirc.

In my experience, when it shows in "ifconfig", it is loaded.
You might want to check the "dmesg" output to see if it is missing firmware 
somewhere.
Did you try "dhcpcd wlan0" to see if it gets an IP-adress?

> > If not, I'll either buy a better USB WiFi adapter or continue to
> > google it.
> > 
> > Thanks.
> 
> If you buy a new one, go with a PCI card. PCI is a much better bus than
> USB - more power so the chipset does the majority of the processing
> instead of the typical USB designs that offload a bunch of it to your
> CPU. Also, if you buy a new one, I've had fantastic experiences with
> Intel chipsets.

Is this a laptop or desktop?
For a laptop, check if you have any of the following slots available:
- mini-PCIe
- PCMCIA
- (whatever that smaller pcmcia-slot is some laptops have these days)

If yes, try to get a wifi-card that fits in those. Externally accessible slots 
are easier to use.

--
Joost

[gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice)

[walt]

On 10/02/2014 09:39 PM, J. Roeleveld wrote:
> 
> On Thursday, October 02, 2014 10:24:51 PM Alec Ten Harmsel wrote:
>> On 10/02/2014 10:05 PM, walt wrote:
>>> I did some googling and enabled the "appropriate" kernel drivers, then
>>> rebooted and now the output from ifconfig includes this interface:
>>>
>>> wlan0: flags=4099<UP,BROADCAST,MULTICAST>  mtu 1500
>>>
>>>         ether b8:a3:86:99:a8:d8  txqueuelen 1000  (Ethernet)
>>>         RX packets 0  bytes 0 (0.0 B)
>>>         RX errors 0  dropped 0  overruns 0  frame 0
>>>         TX packets 0  bytes 0 (0.0 B)
>>>         TX errors 0  dropped 0 overruns 0  carrier 0  collisions 0
>>>
>>> My yes-or-no question:  does the appearance of "wlan0" imply that
>>> my new kernel drivers are the right ones for this particular D-Link
>>> WiFi adapter?
>>
>> It's certainly a great sign, but it may or may not be enough. I'm by no
>> means an expert, but I believe I have to install some extra firmware
>> (b43-firmware) to use on my laptop as it's not in the kernel (unless I'm
>> clueless with kernel config). Without b43-firmware, the interface shows
>> up and is recognized, but can't be used iirc.
> 
> In my experience, when it shows in "ifconfig", it is loaded.
> You might want to check the "dmesg" output to see if it is missing firmware 
> somewhere.
> Did you try "dhcpcd wlan0" to see if it gets an IP-address?

That doesn't work (yet).  An error message said that /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf
was missing, so I copied this example from a man page:

#cat /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf 
ctrl_interface=DIR=/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=wheel

network={
	ssid="myhomewireless"
	scan_ssid=1
	key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
	psk="mypsk"
}

#dhcpcd wlan0
dhcpcd[1415]: version 6.4.7 starting
dhcpcd[1415]: wlan0: adding address fe80::f45c:642e:a392:f47c
dhcpcd[1415]: if_addaddress6: Permission denied
dhcpcd[1423]: wlan0: starting wpa_supplicant
dhcpcd[1415]: wlan0: waiting for carrier
dhcpcd[1415]: timed out
dhcpcd[1415]: allowing 8 seconds for IPv4LL timeout
dhcpcd[1415]: timed out
dhcpcd[1415]: exited

NetworkManager gets wlan0 working normally, but the problem is the
network doesn't come up until I log in and use the NetworkManager
panel applet to enter the psk manually.  Ugh.

So, the hardware works but I need to configure the network properly.
Anyone have an idea how I can get the connection working automatically
during boot?

Thanks.

BTW, this is ifconfig after NetworkManager brings wlan0 up:

wlan0: flags=4163<UP,BROADCAST,RUNNING,MULTICAST>  mtu 1500
        inet 192.168.1.75  netmask 255.255.255.0  broadcast 192.168.1.255
        inet6 fe80::baa3:86ff:fe99:a8d8  prefixlen 64  scopeid 0x20<link>
        inet6 2602:306:c4d4:cf40:baa3:86ff:fe99:a8d8  prefixlen 128  scopeid 0x0<global>
        ether b8:a3:86:99:a8:d8  txqueuelen 1000  (Ethernet)
        RX packets 317  bytes 18320 (17.8 KiB)
        RX errors 0  dropped 0  overruns 0  frame 0
        TX packets 82  bytes 38743 (37.8 KiB)
        TX errors 0  dropped 0 overruns 0  carrier 0  collisions 0

[gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice) [SOLVED]

[walt]

On 10/03/2014 07:21 AM, walt wrote:
> On 10/02/2014 09:39 PM, J. Roeleveld wrote:

>> Did you try "dhcpcd wlan0" to see if it gets an IP-address?
> 
> That doesn't work (yet).  An error message said that /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf
> was missing, so I copied this example from a man page:
> 
> #cat /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf 
> ctrl_interface=DIR=/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=wheel
> 
> network={
> 	ssid="myhomewireless"
> 	scan_ssid=1
> 	key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
> 	psk="mypsk"
> }
> 
> #dhcpcd wlan0
> dhcpcd[1415]: version 6.4.7 starting
> dhcpcd[1415]: wlan0: adding address fe80::f45c:642e:a392:f47c
> dhcpcd[1415]: if_addaddress6: Permission denied
> dhcpcd[1423]: wlan0: starting wpa_supplicant
> dhcpcd[1415]: wlan0: waiting for carrier
> dhcpcd[1415]: timed out
> dhcpcd[1415]: allowing 8 seconds for IPv4LL timeout
> dhcpcd[1415]: timed out
> dhcpcd[1415]: exited
> 
> NetworkManager gets wlan0 working normally, but the problem is the
> network doesn't come up until I log in and use the NetworkManager
> panel applet to enter the psk manually.  Ugh.

The Arch wiki was very helpful once I knew where to start looking:

The solution was to disable NetworkManager (per Alan's oft-posted advice)
and enable wpa_supplicant.service and dhcpcd.service.  I suppose my earlier
wpa_supplicant problem was caused by a conflict with NetworkManager.

Many thanks to everyone who replied.  Very helpful as always.

Re: [gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice) [SOLVED]

[Alan McKinnon]

On 03/10/2014 19:24, walt wrote:
> On 10/03/2014 07:21 AM, walt wrote:
>> On 10/02/2014 09:39 PM, J. Roeleveld wrote:

>> NetworkManager gets wlan0 working normally, but the problem is the
>> network doesn't come up until I log in and use the NetworkManager
>> panel applet to enter the psk manually.  Ugh.
> 
> The Arch wiki was very helpful once I knew where to start looking:
> 
> The solution was to disable NetworkManager (per Alan's oft-posted advice)
> and enable wpa_supplicant.service and dhcpcd.service.  I suppose my earlier
> wpa_supplicant problem was caused by a conflict with NetworkManager.


You'll be surprised to hear NetworkManager is now what I use :-)

I couldn't get wicd to connect using this new-fangled usb 3G dongle
thing work supplied, whereas nm just worked. And there's a really nice
KDE plasma widget for a front-end.

nm has come a long way  of late it seems. Perhaps I should revise my
stance on it :-)


-- 
Alan McKinnon
alan.mckinnon@gmail.com

Re: [gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice) [SOLVED]

[Neil Bothwick]

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On Fri, 03 Oct 2014 21:21:03 +0200, Alan McKinnon wrote:

> nm has come a long way  of late it seems. Perhaps I should revise my
> stance on it :-)

The main reason wicd development has stopped is that the developer
started using NetworkManager.


-- 
Neil Bothwick

... if (pot.coffee == EMPTY) { programmer->brain = OFF };

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Re: [gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice) [SOLVED]

[Mick]

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On Monday 06 Oct 2014 11:53:54 Neil Bothwick wrote:
> On Fri, 03 Oct 2014 21:21:03 +0200, Alan McKinnon wrote:
> > nm has come a long way  of late it seems. Perhaps I should revise my
> > stance on it :-)
> 
> The main reason wicd development has stopped is that the developer
> started using NetworkManager.


Am I the only one still using /etc/conf.d/net and wpa_cli / wpa_gui?

-- 
Regards,
Mick

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Re: [gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice) [SOLVED]

[Dale]

Mick wrote:
> On Monday 06 Oct 2014 11:53:54 Neil Bothwick wrote:
>> On Fri, 03 Oct 2014 21:21:03 +0200, Alan McKinnon wrote:
>>> nm has come a long way  of late it seems. Perhaps I should revise my
>>> stance on it :-)
>> The main reason wicd development has stopped is that the developer
>> started using NetworkManager.
>
> Am I the only one still using /etc/conf.d/net and wpa_cli / wpa_gui?
>

I still use the net file.  I'm still wired only so no need for the rest,
at least I guess I don't need the rest.  Let's just say that the net
file currently works.  ;-)

Dale

:-)  :-)

Re: [gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice) [SOLVED]

[Mick]

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On Monday 06 Oct 2014 23:34:43 Dale wrote:
> Mick wrote:
> > On Monday 06 Oct 2014 11:53:54 Neil Bothwick wrote:
> >> On Fri, 03 Oct 2014 21:21:03 +0200, Alan McKinnon wrote:
> >>> nm has come a long way  of late it seems. Perhaps I should revise my
> >>> stance on it :-)
> >> 
> >> The main reason wicd development has stopped is that the developer
> >> started using NetworkManager.
> > 
> > Am I the only one still using /etc/conf.d/net and wpa_cli / wpa_gui?
> 
> I still use the net file.  I'm still wired only so no need for the rest,
> at least I guess I don't need the rest.  Let's just say that the net
> file currently works.  ;-)
> 
> Dale
> 
> :-)  :-)


Same here, well, almost ...

The only feature that I can't get to work with my router is configuring a 
static address for the particular router MAC address, but using dhcpd for any 
other wired gateway I happen to connect to with my laptop.

# Define the gateways you want to configure
gateways_enp11s0="10.10.10.1,00:AA:BB:CC:DD:EE,10.10.10.7"
# Define the IP and netmask when using gateway 10.0.0.1
config_010010010001_00AABBCCDDEE="10.10.10.7/24"
# Define the default route for gateway 10.0.0.1
routes_010010010001_00AABBCCDDEE="default via 10.10.10.1"
# Define the DNS servers to use with gateway 10.0.0.1
dns_servers_010010010001_00AABBCCDDEE="10.10.10.1"
fallback_enp11s0="dhcp"

The above always fails to set a static IP address and defaults to using dhcp a 
few seconds later. I have been blaming the router and its firmware for this, 
unless you can see something wrong in my configuration.

-- 
Regards,
Mick

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Re: [gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice) [SOLVED]

[Neil Bothwick]

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On Tue, 7 Oct 2014 05:59:28 +0100, Mick wrote:

> The only feature that I can't get to work with my router is configuring
> a static address for the particular router MAC address, but using dhcpd
> for any other wired gateway I happen to connect to with my laptop.

Do you have admin access on the router? If so, it would be simpler to
configure the router's DHCP server to provide the specified address to
your laptop, then you can use DHCP for everything.


-- 
Neil Bothwick

Cross-country skiing is great in small countries.

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Re: [gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice) [SOLVED]

[J. Roeleveld]

On Monday, October 06, 2014 11:06:03 PM Mick wrote:
> On Monday 06 Oct 2014 11:53:54 Neil Bothwick wrote:
> > On Fri, 03 Oct 2014 21:21:03 +0200, Alan McKinnon wrote:
> > > nm has come a long way  of late it seems. Perhaps I should revise my
> > > stance on it :-)
> > 
> > The main reason wicd development has stopped is that the developer
> > started using NetworkManager.
> 
> Am I the only one still using /etc/conf.d/net and wpa_cli / wpa_gui?

For wired desktops, I use the /etc/conf.d/net file.
For laptops, where I need to connect to different WIFI networks regularly, I 
like the way NM just seems to work.
I always had issues with wpa_cli/wpa_gui, even when following how-tos online.

Never mind trying to connect to different VPNs.

--
Joost

Re: [gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice) [SOLVED]

[hogren]

Le Tue, 07 Oct 2014 08:22:35 +0200,
"J. Roeleveld" <joost@antarean.org> a écrit :

> 
> On Monday, October 06, 2014 11:06:03 PM Mick wrote:
> > On Monday 06 Oct 2014 11:53:54 Neil Bothwick wrote:
> > > On Fri, 03 Oct 2014 21:21:03 +0200, Alan McKinnon wrote:
> > > > nm has come a long way  of late it seems. Perhaps I should
> > > > revise my stance on it :-)
> > > 
> > > The main reason wicd development has stopped is that the developer
> > > started using NetworkManager.
> > 
> > Am I the only one still using /etc/conf.d/net and wpa_cli / wpa_gui?
> 
> For wired desktops, I use the /etc/conf.d/net file.
> For laptops, where I need to connect to different WIFI networks
> regularly, I like the way NM just seems to work.
> I always had issues with wpa_cli/wpa_gui, even when following how-tos
> online.
> 
> Never mind trying to connect to different VPNs.
> 
> --
> Joost

Hello,

Like Joost, I think that it's a good thing to just use /etc/conf.d/net
where you always use the same WiFi network(s). When you are mobile, you
should use a network manager (wicd, Network Manager, or other).

Regards,

Hogren

Re: [gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice) [SOLVED]

[J. Roeleveld]

On Tuesday, October 07, 2014 09:50:04 AM hogren wrote:
> Le Tue, 07 Oct 2014 08:22:35 +0200,
> 
> "J. Roeleveld" <joost@antarean.org> a écrit :
> > On Monday, October 06, 2014 11:06:03 PM Mick wrote:
> > > On Monday 06 Oct 2014 11:53:54 Neil Bothwick wrote:
> > > > On Fri, 03 Oct 2014 21:21:03 +0200, Alan McKinnon wrote:
> > > > > nm has come a long way  of late it seems. Perhaps I should
> > > > > revise my stance on it :-)
> > > > 
> > > > The main reason wicd development has stopped is that the developer
> > > > started using NetworkManager.
> > > 
> > > Am I the only one still using /etc/conf.d/net and wpa_cli / wpa_gui?
> > 
> > For wired desktops, I use the /etc/conf.d/net file.
> > For laptops, where I need to connect to different WIFI networks
> > regularly, I like the way NM just seems to work.
> > I always had issues with wpa_cli/wpa_gui, even when following how-tos
> > online.
> > 
> > Never mind trying to connect to different VPNs.
> > 
> > --
> > Joost
> 
> Hello,
> 
> Like Joost, I think that it's a good thing to just use /etc/conf.d/net
> where you always use the same WiFi network(s).

Actually, that is not what I said.
I use /etc/conf.d/net for wired desktops.
All wireless is done using NM.

> When you are mobile, you
> should use a network manager (wicd, Network Manager, or other).

You should use whatever you prefer. For ease-of-use, a working GUI can be 
preferable.

--
Joost

Re: [gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice) [SOLVED]

[hogren]

Le Tue, 07 Oct 2014 10:01:57 +0200,
"J. Roeleveld" <joost@antarean.org> a écrit :

> 
> On Tuesday, October 07, 2014 09:50:04 AM hogren wrote:
> > Le Tue, 07 Oct 2014 08:22:35 +0200,
> > 
> > "J. Roeleveld" <joost@antarean.org> a écrit :
> > > On Monday, October 06, 2014 11:06:03 PM Mick wrote:
> > > > On Monday 06 Oct 2014 11:53:54 Neil Bothwick wrote:
> > > > > On Fri, 03 Oct 2014 21:21:03 +0200, Alan McKinnon wrote:
> > > > > > nm has come a long way  of late it seems. Perhaps I should
> > > > > > revise my stance on it :-)
> > > > > 
> > > > > The main reason wicd development has stopped is that the
> > > > > developer started using NetworkManager.
> > > > 
> > > > Am I the only one still using /etc/conf.d/net and wpa_cli /
> > > > wpa_gui?
> > > 
> > > For wired desktops, I use the /etc/conf.d/net file.
> > > For laptops, where I need to connect to different WIFI networks
> > > regularly, I like the way NM just seems to work.
> > > I always had issues with wpa_cli/wpa_gui, even when following
> > > how-tos online.
> > > 
> > > Never mind trying to connect to different VPNs.
> > > 
> > > --
> > > Joost
> > 
> > Hello,
> > 
> > Like Joost, I think that it's a good thing to just
> > use /etc/conf.d/net where you always use the same WiFi network(s).
> 
> Actually, that is not what I said.
> I use /etc/conf.d/net for wired desktops.
> All wireless is done using NM.

yes, sorry, I mixed two ideas in my mind before to write ^^.

> > When you are mobile, you
> > should use a network manager (wicd, Network Manager, or other).
> 
> You should use whatever you prefer. For ease-of-use, a working GUI
> can be preferable.
> 
> --
> Joost
> 

Hogren

Re: [gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice)

[Fernando Rodriguez]

On Friday 03 October 2014 7:21:58 AM walt wrote:
> On 10/02/2014 09:39 PM, J. Roeleveld wrote:
> > 
> > On Thursday, October 02, 2014 10:24:51 PM Alec Ten Harmsel wrote:
> >> On 10/02/2014 10:05 PM, walt wrote:
> >>> I did some googling and enabled the "appropriate" kernel drivers, then
> >>> rebooted and now the output from ifconfig includes this interface:
> >>>
> >>> wlan0: flags=4099<UP,BROADCAST,MULTICAST>  mtu 1500
> >>>
> >>>         ether b8:a3:86:99:a8:d8  txqueuelen 1000  (Ethernet)
> >>>         RX packets 0  bytes 0 (0.0 B)
> >>>         RX errors 0  dropped 0  overruns 0  frame 0
> >>>         TX packets 0  bytes 0 (0.0 B)
> >>>         TX errors 0  dropped 0 overruns 0  carrier 0  collisions 0
> >>>
> >>> My yes-or-no question:  does the appearance of "wlan0" imply that
> >>> my new kernel drivers are the right ones for this particular D-Link
> >>> WiFi adapter?
> >>
> >> It's certainly a great sign, but it may or may not be enough. I'm by no
> >> means an expert, but I believe I have to install some extra firmware
> >> (b43-firmware) to use on my laptop as it's not in the kernel (unless I'm
> >> clueless with kernel config). Without b43-firmware, the interface shows
> >> up and is recognized, but can't be used iirc.
> > 
> > In my experience, when it shows in "ifconfig", it is loaded.
> > You might want to check the "dmesg" output to see if it is missing firmware 
> > somewhere.
> > Did you try "dhcpcd wlan0" to see if it gets an IP-address?
> 
> That doesn't work (yet).  An error message said that 
/etc/wpa_supplicant.conf
> was missing, so I copied this example from a man page:
> 
> #cat /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf 
> ctrl_interface=DIR=/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=wheel
> 
> network={
> 	ssid="myhomewireless"
> 	scan_ssid=1
> 	key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
> 	psk="mypsk"
> }
> 
> #dhcpcd wlan0
> dhcpcd[1415]: version 6.4.7 starting
> dhcpcd[1415]: wlan0: adding address fe80::f45c:642e:a392:f47c
> dhcpcd[1415]: if_addaddress6: Permission denied
> dhcpcd[1423]: wlan0: starting wpa_supplicant
> dhcpcd[1415]: wlan0: waiting for carrier
> dhcpcd[1415]: timed out
> dhcpcd[1415]: allowing 8 seconds for IPv4LL timeout
> dhcpcd[1415]: timed out
> dhcpcd[1415]: exited
> 
> NetworkManager gets wlan0 working normally, but the problem is the
> network doesn't come up until I log in and use the NetworkManager
> panel applet to enter the psk manually.  Ugh.
> 
> So, the hardware works but I need to configure the network properly.
> Anyone have an idea how I can get the connection working automatically
> during boot?
> 
> Thanks.
> 
> BTW, this is ifconfig after NetworkManager brings wlan0 up:
> 
> wlan0: flags=4163<UP,BROADCAST,RUNNING,MULTICAST>  mtu 1500
>         inet 192.168.1.75  netmask 255.255.255.0  broadcast 192.168.1.255
>         inet6 fe80::baa3:86ff:fe99:a8d8  prefixlen 64  scopeid 0x20<link>
>         inet6 2602:306:c4d4:cf40:baa3:86ff:fe99:a8d8  prefixlen 128  scopeid 
0x0<global>
>         ether b8:a3:86:99:a8:d8  txqueuelen 1000  (Ethernet)
>         RX packets 317  bytes 18320 (17.8 KiB)
>         RX errors 0  dropped 0  overruns 0  frame 0
>         TX packets 82  bytes 38743 (37.8 KiB)
>         TX errors 0  dropped 0 overruns 0  carrier 0  collisions 0
> 
> 

As for NetworkManager, just log in to your DE as root or run kde-nm-
connection-editor as root (assuming you're using KDE) and setup the 
connection, then check "All users may connect to this network" on the general 
tab of the connection details. It will then connect at boot whenever the 
network is available (if you enable the NetworkManager service at boot) and it 
also has the advantage that although the PSK is still stored as plain-text 
only root has access to it. That's specially useful if your wifi login is also 
your active directory (or similar) account.

It's also nicer for laptops if you connect to multiple networks. My ISP has 
hotspots all over the city and NM keeps me connected while driving around with 
barely any (noticeable) disconnects. You can also connect to VPNs just a 
easily.


----------
Fernando Rodriguez
frodriguez.developer@outlook.com

[gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice)

[walt]

On 10/03/2014 11:28 AM, Fernando Rodriguez wrote:
>> > NetworkManager gets wlan0 working normally, but the problem is the
>> > network doesn't come up until I log in and use the NetworkManager
>> > panel applet to enter the psk manually.  Ugh.

> As for NetworkManager, just log in to your DE as root or run kde-nm-
> connection-editor as root (assuming you're using KDE) and setup the 
> connection, then check "All users may connect to this network" on the general 
> tab of the connection details. It will then connect at boot whenever the 
> network is available (if you enable the NetworkManager service at boot) and it 
> also has the advantage that although the PSK is still stored as plain-text 
> only root has access to it.

I'd love to make that work, but so far it doesn't for me.  I ran xfce4 as
root, used the nm-applet to configure the wlan0 connection to "Store the
password for all users" but it didn't stick.  Next reboot I had to do it
all again.

Question:  do you see wpa_supplicant running after bootup?  I do, now
that I created /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf.  NetworkManager
has a hook that starts it running if that file exists. (Or maybe dhcpcd
has the hook, can't remember now. they're both running in the background.)

Re: [gentoo-user] Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice)

[Frank Steinmetzger]

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On Thu, Oct 02, 2014 at 10:24:51PM -0400, Alec Ten Harmsel wrote:

> > If not, I'll either buy a better USB WiFi adapter or continue to
> > google it.
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> If you buy a new one, go with a PCI card. PCI is a much better bus than
> USB - more power so the chipset does the majority of the processing
> instead of the typical USB designs that offload a bunch of it to your
> CPU. Also, if you buy a new one, I've had fantastic experiences with
> Intel chipsets.

OTOH (I not only have 5 fingers, but) one disadvantage of PCI cards is their
possibly bad orientation. Their antennae are hidden behind a metal box in a
corner, which may impede reception. With a USB dongle, you can plug it into
an extension cable and then position wherever it’s best suited.

If your network speed is so great and CPU is so weak that it’s becoming a
performance drain, then that’s another pair o’shoes.
-- 
Gruß | Greetings | Qapla’
Please do not share anything from, with or about me with any Facebook service.

“Really, I'm not out to destroy Microsoft.
That will just be a completely unintentional side effect.” – Linus Torvalds

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[gentoo-user] Re: Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice)

[Grant Edwards]

On 2014-10-04, Frank Steinmetzger <Warp_7@gmx.de> wrote:
> On Thu, Oct 02, 2014 at 10:24:51PM -0400, Alec Ten Harmsel wrote:
>>
>> > If not, I'll either buy a better USB WiFi adapter or continue to
>> > google it.
>>
>> If you buy a new one, go with a PCI card. PCI is a much better bus
>> than USB - more power so the chipset does the majority of the
>> processing instead of the typical USB designs that offload a bunch of
>> it to your CPU. Also, if you buy a new one, I've had fantastic
>> experiences with Intel chipsets.
>
> OTOH (I not only have 5 fingers, but) one disadvantage of PCI cards
> is their possibly bad orientation. Their antennae are hidden behind a
> metal box in a corner, which may impede reception. With a USB dongle,
> you can plug it into an extension cable and then position wherever
> it’s best suited.

With a PCI card, you can plug into it an extension cable and then
position the antenna wherever it's best suited.

-- 
Grant

Re: [gentoo-user] Noob WiFi question (yes-or-no answer will suffice)

[J. Roeleveld]

On Thursday, October 02, 2014 07:05:51 PM walt wrote:
> My ISP just forced me to upgrade to a new fiberoptic plan with very
> little advance notice.
> 
> I can't complain too much because my download speed is three times
> faster than yesterday, but now I need to use a USB WiFi adapter if
> I want to use my main desktop machine anywhere other than my kitchen.

What about upload speed?
Don't forget, with most domestic connections, if you use 50% of your uplink, 
you loose 50% of your downlink.

For example:
You get 20Mbit down and 1Mbit up
You use something that continuously uses 512Kbit of your uplink, then you only 
have 10Mbit downlink left.

This is really usefull (NOT) when you use remote control applications 
(desktop, shells,...) where the used uplink and downlink are mostly similar.

> (Don't ask -- the details are too stupid to post -- but I'm now using
> a wired ethernet connection from my kitchen :)

Send it to me off-list if you prefer, I am curious why you think the details 
are too "stupid" to post.
I've seen properties where various wires enter the building in the kitchen and 
because that's where the main connections are, the modem/router/whatever needs 
to be there.
Worst location I ever saw was a guy who had the modem installed in the 
bathroom (by the ISP), because there was no room in the small cupboard where 
the phone line entered the building. (Bathroom was on other side of the wall)

--
Joost