Netgear WG111 and WPA

[bobeltomate]

Ok, since this forum was one of the most useful places in getting my WG111 to work under Knoppix (version 3.9), I figured I'd share the steps I found (and maybe some others can find useful information for thier WPA-enabled network/cards). Since this is my first sucess in wireless with WPA, forgive me if i state things obvious to most of the forum's readers...

First off, since Knoppix didn't seem to know how to deal with the card(other than detecting the device at boot as a "usb device"), I had to use the Windows drivers off of the install CD for the netcard. So, be sure to have the install CD available (or at least the *.inf file and i think the *.sys file as well). Also, for whatever reason I was unable to find/access a wpa_supplicant.conf file from my Knoppix CD. it locks up the OS when i use tab complete and ls sometimes. Anyway, here's the notes I took as I wrestled with the install (minus the major sensitive details of my own security of course, which wouldn't help anyone else anyway)...... :)

Purpose: The commands necessary for Knoppix 3.9 to network with wpa-psk network,
using a usb 2.0 card from Netgear, WG111, and linksys router, WRT54G(i believe, router's in the other room).

programs needed:
wpa_supplicant - to make the WPA part work
route - tell linux where to go for net access
iwconfig - just to check settings and troubleshoot
wpa_passphrase - makes life easier

files generated:
(optional) networksetup [script]
(required) wpa_supplicant.conf [config file]


commands in order:
mount /dev/cdrom/ /mnt/cdrom/ ##(or wherever the install cdrom w/ the .inf is located)
ndiswrapper ##(gui program, used to grab .inf from install cd, found...
##...in Knoppix->Network/Internet->ndiswrapper configuration)
wpa_passphrase MySSIDHere MyPassphraseHere > /home/knoppix/wpa_supplicant.conf ##(this makes it easier a bit later)
##(required: edit wpa_supplicant.conf to add extra settings needed for your network)
wpa_supplicant -ddKt -i wlan0 -c /home/knoppix/wpa_supplicant.conf -Dndiswrapper ##(adding -N worked...
##...once earlier today, but not this time, adding -B makes it run in the background)
##(optional: put the above long command into networksetup script w/ "echo" and...
##...">" redirect, then as root "chmod" it with 700)
pump -i wlan0 ##(this let's the interface grab an IP from DHCP-enabled router)
route add default gw <gateway ip address> ##(tells Linux where to go for internet)

[begin wpa_supplicant.conf]

ctrl_interface=/home/knoppix/wpa_supplicant
eapol_version=1
ap_scan=1
network={
ssid="MySSIDHere"
scan_ssid=1
#psk="MyPassphraseHere"
psk=(...this is from the wpa_passphrase command earlier, hex version of key i believe)
proto=WPA
key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
pairwise=TKIP
group=TKIP
}


[end wpa_supplicant.conf]


sites that helped me out(read tons of man pages too):
http://www.knoppix.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12351
http://hostap.epitest.fi/cgi-bin/viewcvs.cgi/*checkout*/hostap/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf?rev=HEAD&content-type=text/plain

Hope this helps someone out,
bobeltomate

[bobeltomate]

oh, if it would help to sticky it, then i trust a mod will do that. i'm more of a forum reader than poster, so i don't know if i can even sticky one my own, at least after i already posted it...

-bobeltomate

[Harry Kuhman]

On stickys - these were handy to a point, particularly when the wiki was down (being replaced with a different wiki code) this spring. At that time I did make a very few posts sticky that seemed to merit it. But unfortunately I've put a lot more effort into unsticking posts, even just questions that someone was asking.

Unfortunately, when we get more than two or three stickys at the top of a forum, it really does get in the way of scanning new posts, particularly for busy forums and for users who may visit once a day or less. When the new posts scroll of the bottom of the screen because the top is full of old stickys it creates problems. And now that we have the wiki back up and functional again, there seems to be less valid purpose in making a sticky.

I would suggest one of two things:

If you have good information to share, add it to a wiki article, or create a new wiki article if there doen't seem to be an appropiate one. In this case I would suggest that the wiki could stand to have a good top level section titled "Wireless Networking" (Please don't start a top level section with something as specific as the WG111). This new section might contain a brief overview of wireless networking, a few words on the probolems Linux faces with closed source drivers and undocumented ship sets, and then a number of entries on what is known about support for individual cards. If you didn't feel like writing the above two sections, you could easily stub them out and leave that work for someone else who comes along, and then just add your section. If you want help with this I would be glad to assist and get the wiki section going, so that you could add your information.

I find it much better to put good information like this in one place that people can be directed to. On fact, I try hard to give little downloading infomation in the forums any more; rather than duplicate the downloading information I just direct people to the downloading faq. If the answer to their question is not there I think it's better to incorporate it the faq or clarify the faq based on their question and then send them to it rather than provide a "one user fix" in the forums and see the question again in a few days. A side benefit is that the faq may also contain other important information that the new user isn't aware and there is some small chance that they may actually look at that information too. I certainly anticipate that a Wireless Networking faq would be a great place to collect, organize and update this data.


If for some reason you don't wish to add the information to the wiki, then the next best thing is to do what you did, use a good subject line with the key information present. People need to learn to search the forums a bit, we can't have all of the articles that give information about specific network adapters as stickys (but we can and should have them as individual sections in a Wireless FAQ in the wiki). The search feature with a WG111 keyword will find your article here, but will not be sticky and seen by every user every time they look for new posts in the forum.

[bobeltomate]

cool beans. I'm completely new to wikis (unsure even where the term wiki came from), but if you're willing to help me and set up a section on networking, than I'm all for it, even if i just post what little I've learned over time. I'm a bit of a paranoid about security sometimes, so what I want to do is often hard to figure out or at best obscure, at least to those not well versed in the ways of Linux. but yeah, since I'm a reader more than poster, if I could put something in one place people can get to, i've done my 2 cents of input into the world of Linux. Not to mention that I would know where to go to find things I once knew (Linux is NOT like riding a bike for me I'm afraid, i tend to forget what I've once learned in it). summed up; sounds cool, how could I help with the wiki stuff?

[Harry Kuhman]

cool beans. I'm completely new to wikis (unsure even where the term wiki came from)
The concept and term is credited to Ward Cunningham (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ward_Cunningham), a programmer I actually know from my school days (although I'm certain he doesn't recall my name). Appropriately enough the above link is to the Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page) article about him.


...but if you're willing to help me and set up a section on networking, than I'm all for it, even if i just post what little I've learned over time. ..... summed up; sounds cool, how could I help with the wiki stuff?
OK, I've created a crude framework for a Wirless Networking section in the wiki. You get to the wiki by following the documentation link near the top of this page. I would use another window or tab in your browser, as you're going to want this forum article soon.

Next you need to create a wiki account. The wiki and forum are different programs, so your forum account is not linked to your wiki account. Sill, everyone uses the same name in the wiki and the forums. You can look around the wiki before you create an account but you should have one to edit.

Look around at some of the articles (including the downloading faq) to see what typical entries look like. You may notice that there is a great degree of differece between some articles and others at the moment.

OK, time to contribute:

Go to the Main page. Open the Wireless Networking article (near the bottom of the main section). You'll see it's pretty much stubs at this point. There is a stub waiting for your contribution. Click on the [EDIT] link to the right of the Netgear WG111 stub and you'll open the article in the editor. Replace the stub text with information that you want in the wiki. I expect you'll copy a lot of your above forum post, although you'll want to clean up things targeted at the forum, like the mention of the forum and the mention of making the article sticky. Use the show preview function a lot to see how things are coming. When you are totally happy with how it looks, click the save page button. You have contributed to the wiki.

If you want to work on the other stubs that I made, feel free. If not I'll flesh the out when I have time. I'll also add an entry for the wireless card that I have that works, and if no one else does, at least start one for a card I have that I can't make work under Knoppix.

I obviously didn't include all of the topics that will show up in this section over time. For example, I didn't mention the "wrapper" stuff at all (although it likely will be mentioned under Linux Wireless Network Issues but it still merits it's own section.

If you want to add a new section: Go back to the main page and then click on Wireless Networking to open the Wireless Networking document again. Since you want to add something that there isn't an existing right hand [edit] link for, use the edit "tab" near the top of the page. The main page of this document will open in edit mode. You can see how the lines have been formatted. Enter your new topic in the same manner (likely with 4 = before and after the title and simple text for the body).

You can "edit" other articles to see how they have been formated (take care not to resave these pages if you just opened them to look at them), and/or you can read more about editing wiki articles and the special markup language at the Wikipedia help page (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Contents).

That should be enough to make you dangerous. Have fun. Let me know how you make out (use Private Message if you want, but posting back here may encourage others to contribute too).

[bobeltomate]

armed with my sucess using the usb card, i may try to get my Moto WN825G working.... if i can i'll post steps on that too. most i've read about it so far is that one person got it to work, but most others just remove authentication in frustration. between flakey internet and job hunting tho, i'm likely not to post much (or worse, forget that i have an account here after a while). if anyone has the same moto card and by chance reads this, btw, feel free to post any thing you found out, i'd hate to spend as many days getting that to work as i did for this one.

[Harry Kuhman]

armed with my sucess using the usb card, i may try to get my Moto WN825G working.... if i can i'll post steps on that too. ...
OK, but how about moving what you have already done into the wiki? I created the framework for you and gave you some idea where to start, vet the empty framework is still all that's sitting there. I don't plan on putting your information into the wiki myself, as I don't have that card and so have no way to check the validity of the data, Please understand I'm not doubting your data, just that I would not post it myself into the wiki unless I at least could verify it.

[bobeltomate]

heh, wiki stuff is fun, reminds me of the days i fiddled around in HTML for kicks. hope this helps folks get connected, some of that stuff should be applicable to other cards, at least from what i've seen in these forums.

[bobeltomate]

didn't hit refresh there. i added it to the wiki right after i posted here, so it should be there now. maybe i'll add something else if i see a blank i can fill, it was fun. oh, and if anyone sees an error, sorry in advance.

[Harry Kuhman]

didn't hit refresh there. i added it to the wiki right after i posted here, so it should be there now. maybe i'll add something else if i see a blank i can fill, it was fun. oh, and if anyone sees an error, sorry in advance.
Yup, it's there now. Makes more sense that lots of unorganized sicky notes at the top of each forum. no? Hopefully others can be encouraged tp add their results getting their wireless stuff to work there and we can build up a decent collection of what works and what still does not.