Minimal TUI Wi-Fi Manager - Revision history

320x200: /* tweaks */

2024-06-16T18:48:47Z

tweaks

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:48, 16 June 2024
Line 141:		Line 141:
	== tweaks ==		== tweaks ==

	This setup makes use of the <code>wpa-roam</code> feature of <code>wpa_action</code> under Debian. This means that once connected to an hotspot, the underlying network system will hop to another access point of the same name/type and if needed renegotiate a new IP. ~~This~~ is handy if you are moving around a building with a bunch of access points all serving the same SSID. If this is not acceptable for whatever reasons, it's possible to prevent this behavior and be connected only to the hotspot/ap you have allowed in the first place. For this you need to edit <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code> like this:		This setup makes use of the <code>wpa-roam</code> feature of <code>wpa_action</code> under Debian. This means that once connected to an hotspot, the underlying network system will under certain circumstances hop to another access point of the same name/type and, if needed, renegotiate a new IP. Why? Well as the word roam implies, this is handy if you are moving around a building with a bunch of access points all serving the same SSID. If this is not acceptable for whatever reasons, it's possible to prevent this behavior and be connected only to the hotspot/ap you have allowed in the first place. For this you need to edit <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code> like this:

	<pre>		<pre>

320x200: /* How does it work? */

2024-06-16T18:46:02Z

How does it work?

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:46, 16 June 2024
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	* don't connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot unless I explicitly ask the COMPUTAR to do so		* don't connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot unless I explicitly ask the COMPUTAR to do so
	* if I need to connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot, the COMPUTAR should give me a list of the visible ones		* if I need to connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot, the COMPUTAR should give me a list of the visible ones
	* a user-friendly™ interface with fuzzy search should help me tell the COMPUTAR which hotspot I want to connect to		* a user-friendly™ interface with fuzzy search should help me tell the COMPUTAR which visible hotspot I want to connect to
	* if the Wi-Fi hotspot is already known, the COMPUTAR shall connect to it		* once selected and if the Wi-Fi hotspot is already known, the COMPUTAR shall connect to it
	* if the Wi-Fi hotspot is unknown, the COMPUTAR shall ask for the password, save it, and connect to the hotspot		* however if the Wi-Fi hotspot is unknown, the COMPUTAR shall kindly ask me for the password, and if I agree to fulfill this request, the COMPUTAR shall save it, and proceed to connect to the hotspot
			* Oh no. I am now connected with more COMPUTARS

	'''Note:''' if the Wi-Fi hotspot needs to be configured with specific settings (for instance for specific key management settings of for open networks), it is necessary to edit the <code>wpa_supplicant.conf</code> file manually. My rationale is that I need to do this so rarely, that quickly editing a file with a lot of obscure settings outweighs by far the need to make a more complicated shell script to handle such corner case. YMMV :)		'''Note:''' if the Wi-Fi hotspot needs to be configured with specific settings (for instance for specific key management settings of for open networks), it is necessary to edit the <code>wpa_supplicant.conf</code> file manually. My rationale is that I need to do this so rarely, that quickly editing a file with a lot of obscure settings outweighs by far the need to make a more complicated shell script to handle such corner case. YMMV :)

320x200 at 18:41, 16 June 2024

2024-06-16T18:41:33Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:41, 16 June 2024
Line 150:		Line 150:

	And because you will loose the automatic IP request negotiation, you need to un-comment in the script the two lines that call <code>dhclient</code> in <code>connect_essid ()</code>.		And because you will loose the automatic IP request negotiation, you need to un-comment in the script the two lines that call <code>dhclient</code> in <code>connect_essid ()</code>.

			[[Category:Wi-Fi]]

320x200 at 18:41, 16 June 2024

2024-06-16T18:41:07Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:41, 16 June 2024
Line 80:		Line 80:
	echo		echo
	wpa_cli enable_network ${ID}		wpa_cli enable_network ${ID}
	# uncomment following if using with wpa-~~run~~		# uncomment following if using with wpa-conf
	#echo		#echo
	#sudo dhclient -v ${W_IF}		#sudo dhclient -v ${W_IF}
Line 113:		Line 113:
	echo "${ESSID} added, connecting..."		echo "${ESSID} added, connecting..."
	}		}


	# Here we go		# Here we go
Line 140:		Line 139:

	== tweaks ==		== tweaks ==

			This setup makes use of the <code>wpa-roam</code> feature of <code>wpa_action</code> under Debian. This means that once connected to an hotspot, the underlying network system will hop to another access point of the same name/type and if needed renegotiate a new IP. This is handy if you are moving around a building with a bunch of access points all serving the same SSID. If this is not acceptable for whatever reasons, it's possible to prevent this behavior and be connected only to the hotspot/ap you have allowed in the first place. For this you need to edit <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code> like this:

			<pre>
			auto wlp2s0
			iface wlp2s0 inet manual
			wpa-conf /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf
			iface default inet dhcp
			</pre>

			And because you will loose the automatic IP request negotiation, you need to un-comment in the script the two lines that call <code>dhclient</code> in <code>connect_essid ()</code>.

320x200 at 18:20, 16 June 2024

2024-06-16T18:20:54Z

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-Good news! If you don't want to install third party daemons, gooey GUI things, or bloat just so you can connect to a wireless access point, then don't worry, Linux has all the CLI tools necessary to create a minimal on-demand TUI shell script thing to connect to, and manage these very Wi-Fi connections. The following info is for Debian, however the approach will be the same for other distros, including BSD operating systems that will differ mostly for some of the network commands.
+Good news! If you don't want to install third party daemons, gooey GUI things, or bloat just so you can connect to a wireless access point, then don't worry, Linux has all the CLI tools necessary to create a minimal on-demand TUI shell script thing to connect to, and manage these very Wi-Fi connections. The following info is for Debian, however the approach will be the same for other distros, including BSD operating systems that will differ mostly for some of the network commands. Why would you do this? I dunno, aesthetics, religious beliefs, limited resources, or just an opportunity to better understand what's running in the background.
 == How does it work? ==
@@ Line 19: / Line 19: @@
 * if the Wi-Fi hotspot is unknown, the COMPUTAR shall ask for the password, save it, and connect to the hotspot
-'''Note:''' if the Wi-Fi hotspot needs to be configured with specific settings (for instance for specific key management settings of for open networks), it is necessary to edit <code>wpa_supplicant.conf</code> manually. The rationale is that I need this so rarely needed, that quickly editing a file with obscure settings outweighs by far the need to make a more complicated shell script to handle such corner case :)
+'''Note:''' if the Wi-Fi hotspot needs to be configured with specific settings (for instance for specific key management settings of for open networks), it is necessary to edit the <code>wpa_supplicant.conf</code> file manually. My rationale is that I need to do this so rarely, that quickly editing a file with a lot of obscure settings outweighs by far the need to make a more complicated shell script to handle such corner case. YMMV :)
 == Config and script ==
@@ Line 38: / Line 38: @@
   ctrl_interface=DIR=/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=netdev
-If you already have some entries listed (in case you have been using a wifi network manager), make sure to disable each network with <code>disabled=1</code>:
+If you already have some entries listed (in case you have been using a wifi network manager), make sure to disable each network with <code>disabled=1</code>. This is needed to prevent wpa_supplicant to :
 <pre>
 # Settings for my nice network
 network={
-   ssid="Compagnie Créole"
+   ssid="La Compagnie Créole"
    psk="AU BAL AU BAL MASQUÉ OHÉ OHÉ"
    disabled=1
@@ Line 49: / Line 49: @@
 </pre>
 == tweaks ==

320x200 at 17:11, 16 June 2024

2024-06-16T17:11:42Z

@@ Line 33: / Line 33: @@
 </pre>
-=== <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code> ===
+=== <code>wpa_supplicant.conf</code> ===
 == tweaks ==

320x200: /* Use case */

2024-06-16T16:51:30Z

Use case

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:51, 16 June 2024
Line 15:		Line 15:
	* don't connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot unless I explicitly ask the COMPUTAR to do so		* don't connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot unless I explicitly ask the COMPUTAR to do so
	* if I need to connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot, the COMPUTAR should give me a list of the visible ones		* if I need to connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot, the COMPUTAR should give me a list of the visible ones
	* a user-friendly™ interface with fuzzy search should help me tell the ~~COMPUTER~~ which hotspot I want to connect to		* a user-friendly™ interface with fuzzy search should help me tell the COMPUTAR which hotspot I want to connect to
	* if the Wi-Fi hotspot is already known, connect to it		* if the Wi-Fi hotspot is already known, the COMPUTAR shall connect to it
	* if the Wi-Fi hotspot is unknown, ask for the password, save it, and connect to it		* if the Wi-Fi hotspot is unknown, the COMPUTAR shall ask for the password, save it, and connect to the hotspot

	'''Note:''' if the Wi-Fi hotspot needs to be configured with specific settings (for instance for specific key management settings of for open networks), it is necessary to edit <code>wpa_supplicant.conf</code> manually. The rationale is that I need this so rarely needed, that quickly editing a file with obscure settings outweighs by far the need to make a more complicated shell script to handle such corner case :)		'''Note:''' if the Wi-Fi hotspot needs to be configured with specific settings (for instance for specific key management settings of for open networks), it is necessary to edit <code>wpa_supplicant.conf</code> manually. The rationale is that I need this so rarely needed, that quickly editing a file with obscure settings outweighs by far the need to make a more complicated shell script to handle such corner case :)

320x200: /* Config and script */

2024-06-16T16:48:46Z

Config and script

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:48, 16 June 2024
Line 24:		Line 24:
	=== <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code> ===		=== <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code> ===

	Edit <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code> and ~~tweak according~~ to your network name (here wlp2s0).		Edit <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code> and adjust to your network name (here wlp2s0).

	<~~code~~>		<pre>
	auto wlp2s0		auto wlp2s0
	iface wlp2s0 inet manual		iface wlp2s0 inet manual
	wpa-roam /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf		wpa-roam /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf
	iface default inet dhcp		iface default inet dhcp
	</~~code~~>		</pre>

			=== <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code> ===


			== tweaks ==
	=== tweaks ===

320x200: /* How does it work? */

2024-06-16T16:43:49Z

How does it work?

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:43, 16 June 2024
Line 20:		Line 20:

	'''Note:''' if the Wi-Fi hotspot needs to be configured with specific settings (for instance for specific key management settings of for open networks), it is necessary to edit <code>wpa_supplicant.conf</code> manually. The rationale is that I need this so rarely needed, that quickly editing a file with obscure settings outweighs by far the need to make a more complicated shell script to handle such corner case :)		'''Note:''' if the Wi-Fi hotspot needs to be configured with specific settings (for instance for specific key management settings of for open networks), it is necessary to edit <code>wpa_supplicant.conf</code> manually. The rationale is that I need this so rarely needed, that quickly editing a file with obscure settings outweighs by far the need to make a more complicated shell script to handle such corner case :)

			== Config and script ==
			=== <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code> ===

			Edit <code>/etc/network/interfaces</code> and tweak according to your network name (here wlp2s0).

			<code>
			auto wlp2s0
			iface wlp2s0 inet manual
			wpa-roam /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf
			iface default inet dhcp
			</code>




			=== tweaks ===

320x200 at 16:35, 16 June 2024

2024-06-16T16:35:09Z

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 Good news! If you don't want to install third party daemons, gooey GUI things, or bloat just so you can connect to a wireless access point, then don't worry, Linux has all the CLI tools necessary to create a minimal on-demand TUI shell script thing to connect to, and manage these very Wi-Fi connections. The following info is for Debian, however the approach will be the same for other distros, including BSD operating systems that will differ mostly for some of the network commands.
 The use case here is as follow:
@@ Line 8: / Line 19: @@
 * if the Wi-Fi hotspot is unknown, ask for the password, save it, and connect to it
-=== The things that mater ===
+'''Note:''' if the Wi-Fi hotspot needs to be configured with specific settings (for instance for specific key management settings of for open networks), it is necessary to edit <code>wpa_supplicant.conf</code> manually. The rationale is that I need this so rarely needed, that quickly editing a file with obscure settings outweighs by far the need to make a more complicated shell script to handle such corner case :)