How to configure wireless network card

[Chethiya K Ranaweera]

Hi,
I need to find out some info on wireless network cards in FC5. I want
to know where the wireless profiles are stored at and which files are
associated with my wireless network card. Thanks

[Eduardo Dela Rosa]

Hi,

look inside this directory:

/etc/sysconfig/networking/profiles/default

your wireless profile can be ifcfg-eth1 or something else.

inside your /etc/modprobe.conf, you might see an entry like this:

alias eth1 ipw2100

this indicates that your ifcfg-eth1 is actually run as ipw2100 module (the
module
name may appear differently depending on your notebook's wireless card.

hth.

On 11/29/06, Chethiya K Ranaweera  wrote:
> Hi,
> I need to find out some info on wireless network cards in FC5. I want
> to know where the wireless profiles are stored at and which files are
> associated with my wireless network card. Thanks
> --
> CK
>
> --
> fedora-list mailing list
> [e-mail]
> To unsubscribe: https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-list

[Timothy Murphy]

Eduardo Dela Rosa wrote:
> look inside this directory:
>
> /etc/sysconfig/networking/profiles/default
>
> your wireless profile can be ifcfg-eth1 or something else.

As a matter of interest,
what is the relation between (in my case)
/etc/sysconfig/networking/profiles/default/ifcfg-eth0
/etc/sysconfig/networking/devices/ifcfg-eth0
/etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0
?

I'm pretty sure the last is the one looked at, if there is any difference.
It seems crazy to have these different files 
apparently serving the same purpose.

[Aaron Konstam]

On Wed, 2006-11-29 at 01:16 -0500, Chethiya K Ranaweera wrote:
> Hi,
> I need to find out some info on wireless network cards in FC5. I want
> to know where the wireless profiles are stored at and which files are
> associated with my wireless network card. Thanks
> -- 
> CK

Well the profiles for wireless connections should be in:
.gconf/system/networking/wireless/networks/

Do you mean files that identify your wireless card?
--
=======================================================================
The first duty of a revolutionary is to get away with it. -- Abbie
Hoffman
=======================================================================
Aaron Konstam telephone: [phone] e-mail: [e-mail]

[Michael P. Brininstool]

I do not have a ~/.gconf/system directory at all....

-----Original Message-----
From: [e-mail] [mailto:[e-mail]]
On Behalf Of Aaron Konstam
Sent: Wednesday, November 29, 2006 9:23 AM
To: For users of Fedora
Subject: Re: How to configure wireless network card

On Wed, 2006-11-29 at 01:16 -0500, Chethiya K Ranaweera wrote:
> Hi,
> I need to find out some info on wireless network cards in FC5. I want 
> to know where the wireless profiles are stored at and which files are 
> associated with my wireless network card. Thanks
> --
> CK

Well the profiles for wireless connections should be in:
.gconf/system/networking/wireless/networks/

Do you mean files that identify your wireless card?
--
=======================================================================
The first duty of a revolutionary is to get away with it. -- Abbie Hoffman
=======================================================================
Aaron Konstam telephone: [phone] e-mail: [e-mail]

--
fedora-list mailing list
[e-mail]
To unsubscribe: https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-list

[Matthew Saltzman]

On Wed, 29 Nov 2006, Michael P. Brininstool wrote:
> I do not have a ~/.gconf/system directory at all....

Then you aren't using NetworkManager.

Most of the settings you care about can be manipulated in 
system-config-network.  Most of those are in 
/etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth*.

If you use NetworkManager, profiles of wireless networks you have visited 
are kept in the .gconf subdir and keys are kept in your GNOME keyring.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: [e-mail] [mailto:[e-mail]]
> On Behalf Of Aaron Konstam
> Sent: Wednesday, November 29, 2006 9:23 AM
> To: For users of Fedora
> Subject: Re: How to configure wireless network card
>
> On Wed, 2006-11-29 at 01:16 -0500, Chethiya K Ranaweera wrote:
> > Hi,
> > I need to find out some info on wireless network cards in FC5. I want
> > to know where the wireless profiles are stored at and which files are
> > associated with my wireless network card. Thanks
> > --
> > CK
>
> Well the profiles for wireless connections should be in:
> .gconf/system/networking/wireless/networks/
> Do you mean files that identify your wireless card?
>
> =======================================================================
> The first duty of a revolutionary is to get away with it. -- Abbie Hoffman
> =======================================================================
> Aaron Konstam telephone: [phone] e-mail: [e-mail]
>
> --
> fedora-list mailing list
> [e-mail]
> To unsubscribe: https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-list

[Michael P. Brininstool]

What package is NetworkManager in?

-----Original Message-----
From: [e-mail] [mailto:[e-mail]]
On Behalf Of Matthew Saltzman
Sent: Wednesday, November 29, 2006 11:06 AM
To: For users of Fedora
Subject: RE: How to configure wireless network card

On Wed, 29 Nov 2006, Michael P. Brininstool wrote:
> I do not have a ~/.gconf/system directory at all....

Then you aren't using NetworkManager.

Most of the settings you care about can be manipulated in
system-config-network.  Most of those are in
/etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth*.

If you use NetworkManager, profiles of wireless networks you have visited
are kept in the .gconf subdir and keys are kept in your GNOME keyring.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: [e-mail] 
> [mailto:[e-mail]]
> On Behalf Of Aaron Konstam
> Sent: Wednesday, November 29, 2006 9:23 AM
> To: For users of Fedora
> Subject: Re: How to configure wireless network card
>
> On Wed, 2006-11-29 at 01:16 -0500, Chethiya K Ranaweera wrote:
> > Hi,
> > I need to find out some info on wireless network cards in FC5. I want 
> > to know where the wireless profiles are stored at and which files are 
> > associated with my wireless network card. Thanks
> > --
> > CK
>
> Well the profiles for wireless connections should be in:
> .gconf/system/networking/wireless/networks/
> Do you mean files that identify your wireless card?
>
> ======================================================================
> = The first duty of a revolutionary is to get away with it. -- Abbie 
> Hoffman 
> ======================================================================
> = Aaron Konstam telephone: [phone] e-mail: 
> [e-mail]
>
> --
> fedora-list mailing list
> [e-mail]
> To unsubscribe: https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-list

[Matthew Saltzman]

On Wed, 29 Nov 2006, Michael P. Brininstool wrote:
> What package is NetworkManager in?

Umm, NetworkManager (should also pull in NetworkManager-glib and 
NetworkManager-gnome).
> -----Original Message-----
> From: [e-mail] [mailto:[e-mail]]
> On Behalf Of Matthew Saltzman
> Sent: Wednesday, November 29, 2006 11:06 AM
> To: For users of Fedora
> Subject: RE: How to configure wireless network card
>
> On Wed, 29 Nov 2006, Michael P. Brininstool wrote:
> > I do not have a ~/.gconf/system directory at all....
>
> Then you aren't using NetworkManager.
>
> Most of the settings you care about can be manipulated in
> system-config-network.  Most of those are in
> /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth*.
>
> If you use NetworkManager, profiles of wireless networks you have visited
> are kept in the .gconf subdir and keys are kept in your GNOME keyring.
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: [e-mail]
> > [mailto:[e-mail]]
> > On Behalf Of Aaron Konstam
> > Sent: Wednesday, November 29, 2006 9:23 AM
> > To: For users of Fedora
> > Subject: Re: How to configure wireless network card
> >
> > On Wed, 2006-11-29 at 01:16 -0500, Chethiya K Ranaweera wrote:
> > > Hi,
> > > I need to find out some info on wireless network cards in FC5. I want
> > > to know where the wireless profiles are stored at and which files are
> > > associated with my wireless network card. Thanks
> > > --
> > > CK
> >
> > Well the profiles for wireless connections should be in:
> > .gconf/system/networking/wireless/networks/
> > Do you mean files that identify your wireless card?
> >
> > ======================================================================
> > = The first duty of a revolutionary is to get away with it. -- Abbie
> > Hoffman
> > ======================================================================
> > = Aaron Konstam telephone: [phone] e-mail:
> > [e-mail]
> >
> > --
> > fedora-list mailing list
> > [e-mail]
> > To unsubscribe: https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-list

[Timothy Murphy]

Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > I do not have a ~/.gconf/system directory at all....
>
> Then you aren't using NetworkManager.

In my experience, NM just adds another layer of obfuscation
to an already confusing (and confused) setup.
I found after a lot of experiment (and requests on the NM mailing list)
that NM just did not work with my WiFi card,
a standard (if old) Orinoco Gold PCMCIA card.
Basically, it tried to turn the card to a mode it did not support.

The support for WiFi under Fedora is unbelievably bad.
There are files all over the place that might or might not
have some relevance.
> Most of the settings you care about can be manipulated in
> system-config-network.  Most of those are in
> /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth*.

In my experience - admittedly not for some time -
system-config-network is liable to make a bad situation even worse.
> If you use NetworkManager, profiles of wireless networks you have visited
> are kept in the .gconf subdir and keys are kept in your GNOME keyring.

Are you saying that you have to use GNOME in order to use NM?
Wouldn't surprise me.

[Matthew Saltzman]

On Thu, 30 Nov 2006, Timothy Murphy wrote:
> Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > > I do not have a ~/.gconf/system directory at all....
> >
> > Then you aren't using NetworkManager.
>
> In my experience, NM just adds another layer of obfuscation
> to an already confusing (and confused) setup.
> I found after a lot of experiment (and requests on the NM mailing list)
> that NM just did not work with my WiFi card,
> a standard (if old) Orinoco Gold PCMCIA card.
> Basically, it tried to turn the card to a mode it did not support.

I sort-of recall that thread.  I have a relatively old Orinoco card in one 
machine that works just fine with NM, except that there's no WPA support. 
I did nothing special to configure it, just used the standard tools 
(system-config-network and NM).
> The support for WiFi under Fedora is unbelievably bad.
> There are files all over the place that might or might not
> have some relevance.

The support for WiFi in Linux in general is a mess.  There's some pressure 
(much of it due to the NM developers) to standardize what can be 
standardized.  Fedora's attempts to hide the ugliness from the user have 
been only partially successful, and when they don't work, the view under 
the hood is downright scary.
> > Most of the settings you care about can be manipulated in
> > system-config-network.  Most of those are in
> > /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth*.
>
> In my experience - admittedly not for some time -
> system-config-network is liable to make a bad situation even worse.

For quite some time now, I've used s-c-n to configure networking almost 
exclusively and it's almost always done the job.  The profile stuff always 
seemed a bit flakey, but I gave it up for NM in FC5 and never looked back.

If you can live with the standard tools to admin your box, it's a lot 
easier to do so than to try to remember how to make everything 
interoperate smoothly by hand.
> > If you use NetworkManager, profiles of wireless networks you have visited
> > are kept in the .gconf subdir and keys are kept in your GNOME keyring.
>
> Are you saying that you have to use GNOME in order to use NM?
> Wouldn't surprise me.

Not at all (though I am in fact using GNOME).  But you do have to have the 
keyring, and if you want to do something by hand to the keys that 
NetworkManager manages (e.g., delete them), you need to run 
gnome-keyring-manager.  I don't know if there is a KDE interface to the 
keyring.

There's a KDE applet for NM now, and AIUI, the GNOME applet will run OK in 
the KDE panel.

[Timothy Murphy]

Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > In my experience, NM just adds another layer of obfuscation
> > to an already confusing (and confused) setup.
> > I found after a lot of experiment (and requests on the NM mailing list)
> > that NM just did not work with my WiFi card,
> > a standard (if old) Orinoco Gold PCMCIA card.
> > Basically, it tried to turn the card to a mode it did not support.
>
> I sort-of recall that thread.  I have a relatively old Orinoco card in one
> machine that works just fine with NM, except that there's no WPA support.
> I did nothing special to configure it, just used the standard tools
> (system-config-network and NM).

Your posting led me to try NetworkManager again,
but my experience was no better than before:
starting NM has the immediate effect of stopping my WiFi connection,
which until then was working perfectly ...

I see in /var/log/messages:
======================================
Dec  2 22:11:27 martha NetworkManager: <WARNING>
  get_scan_results (): card took too much time scanning.  Get a better one.
Dec  2 22:11:27 martha NetworkManager: <WARNING>
  nm_device_802_11_wireless_scan (): device eth0 returned an error.
======================================
Yes, well - either my card is not working properly,
or NetworkManager has a long was to go ...

Running "sudo service network restart" does not restore the link.
I have to re-boot the machine.

After that everything - except NM - is working again,
and scanning seems to work without any problem:
======================================
[tim@martha ~]$ sudo iwlist eth0 scan
eth0      Scan completed :
          Cell 01 - Address: 8A:13:22:EE:C9:17
                    ESSID:"maths.tcd.ie"
                    Mode:Ad-Hoc
                    Frequency:2.457 GHz (Channel 10)
                    Signal level:-57 dBm  Noise level:-97 dBm
                    Encryption key:on
======================================

The card is a Lucent Technologies Gold PCMCIA card (11b),
with, according to /var/log/dmesg, 
"Firmware determined as Lucent/Agere 6.04".

[Matthew Saltzman]

On Sat, 2 Dec 2006, Timothy Murphy wrote:
> Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > > In my experience, NM just adds another layer of obfuscation
> > > to an already confusing (and confused) setup.
> > > I found after a lot of experiment (and requests on the NM mailing list)
> > > that NM just did not work with my WiFi card,
> > > a standard (if old) Orinoco Gold PCMCIA card.
> > > Basically, it tried to turn the card to a mode it did not support.
> >
> > I sort-of recall that thread.  I have a relatively old Orinoco card in one
> > machine that works just fine with NM, except that there's no WPA support.
> > I did nothing special to configure it, just used the standard tools
> > (system-config-network and NM).
>
> Your posting led me to try NetworkManager again,
> but my experience was no better than before:
> starting NM has the immediate effect of stopping my WiFi connection,
> which until then was working perfectly ...
> I see in /var/log/messages:
>
> Dec  2 22:11:27 martha NetworkManager: <WARNING>
>  get_scan_results (): card took too much time scanning.  Get a better one.
> Dec  2 22:11:27 martha NetworkManager: <WARNING>
>  nm_device_802_11_wireless_scan (): device eth0 returned an error.
> ======================================
> Yes, well - either my card is not working properly,
> or NetworkManager has a long was to go ...
>
> Running "sudo service network restart" does not restore the link.
> I have to re-boot the machine.
>
> After that everything - except NM - is working again,
> and scanning seems to work without any problem:
> ======================================
> [tim@martha ~]$ sudo iwlist eth0 scan
> eth0      Scan completed :
>          Cell 01 - Address: 8A:13:22:EE:C9:17
>                    ESSID:"maths.tcd.ie"
>                    Mode:Ad-Hoc
>                    Frequency:2.457 GHz (Channel 10)
>                    Signal level:-57 dBm  Noise level:-97 dBm
>                    Encryption key:on
> ======================================
>
> The card is a Lucent Technologies Gold PCMCIA card (11b),
> with, according to /var/log/dmesg,
> "Firmware determined as Lucent/Agere 6.04".

Mine's Lucent/Agere 8.10.  Other than that, don't know what to say. 
Sorry....

[Timothy Murphy]

Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > Your posting led me to try NetworkManager again,
> > but my experience was no better than before:
> > starting NM has the immediate effect of stopping my WiFi connection,
> > which until then was working perfectly ...

...
> > The card is a Lucent Technologies Gold PCMCIA card (11b),
> > with, according to /var/log/dmesg,
> > "Firmware determined as Lucent/Agere 6.04".
>
> Mine's Lucent/Agere 8.10.  Other than that, don't know what to say.

Thanks.
I think I have a card with v8.10 firmware - I'll try that.

I still consider there is something fundamentally wrong
with the approach of NM.
If a WiFi device is working perfectly without NM,
then it should work with NM, IMHO.
It's absurd for NM to complain about the device if it doesn't.
(Recall that NM says "card took too much time scanning.  Get a better one".)

[Matthew Saltzman]

On Sun, 3 Dec 2006, Timothy Murphy wrote:
> Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > > Your posting led me to try NetworkManager again,
> > > but my experience was no better than before:
> > > starting NM has the immediate effect of stopping my WiFi connection,
> > > which until then was working perfectly ...
>
> ...
> > > The card is a Lucent Technologies Gold PCMCIA card (11b),
> > > with, according to /var/log/dmesg,
> > > "Firmware determined as Lucent/Agere 6.04".
> >
> > Mine's Lucent/Agere 8.10.  Other than that, don't know what to say.
>
> Thanks.
> I think I have a card with v8.10 firmware - I'll try that.
>
> I still consider there is something fundamentally wrong
> with the approach of NM.
> If a WiFi device is working perfectly without NM,
> then it should work with NM, IMHO.
> It's absurd for NM to complain about the device if it doesn't.
> (Recall that NM says "card took too much time scanning.  Get a better one".)

NM is more than just a connection profile manager (system-config-network 
can do that part, more or less).  It also wants to support seamless 
roaming and other features to make dynamic connections transparent. Browse 
the NM mailing list to see discussions about complexities of getting 
reliable, dynamic connectivity over wireless.  Timing and signal quality 
issues abound and support for the scanning NM needs to do is highly 
variable across cards and drivers.

[Timothy Murphy]

On Sunday 03 December 2006 17:30, Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > > > The card is a Lucent Technologies Gold PCMCIA card (11b),
> > > > with, according to /var/log/dmesg,
> > > > "Firmware determined as Lucent/Agere 6.04".
> > >
> > > Mine's Lucent/Agere 8.10.  Other than that, don't know what to say.

I found a card with firmware version 8.10 , so I've been trying that.
Sadly, my experience of NM (NetworkManager)
has if anything been even worse than before.
> NM is more than just a connection profile manager (system-config-network
> can do that part, more or less).  It also wants to support seamless
> roaming and other features to make dynamic connections transparent. Browse
> the NM mailing list to see discussions about complexities of getting
> reliable, dynamic connectivity over wireless.  Timing and signal quality
> issues abound and support for the scanning NM needs to do is highly
> variable across cards and drivers.

Yes, it seems to me it is trying to do far too much,
and not doing anything very well.
If as you say it is difficult to cover all cards and drivers
maybe it is not a good idea to try.

I spent this afternoon trying to use NM with two different 
remote WiFi devices, a PCI Agere/Orinoco device and a Linksys WRT54GL.
I had zero success with both.
According to /var/log/messages the connection failed in both cases
because it ran out of time.

Incidentally one of the devices had WEP encryption
but NM never asked me about this
so I don't see how it could possibly have worked.

There appeared to be no place for any kind of configuration,
and the sole documentation provided with NM
appeared to be a short README.

I googed for an NM tutorial or FAQ but had no joy.

What is really disturbing is that Windows XP has no problem
accessing either of these WiFi devices
(both running on Linux machines!).

WiFi under Fedora really is dreadful.
The only thing I can say for it
is that SuSE was even worse.

Why do none of the WiFi programs
tell you what they have found,
eg "Connected to remote machine but encryption key required",
which it is clear they have learned from /var/log/messages ?

I should add that I have WiFi working perfectly,
by editing /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0 .

[Matthew Saltzman]

On Sun, 3 Dec 2006, Timothy Murphy wrote:
> On Sunday 03 December 2006 17:30, Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > > > > The card is a Lucent Technologies Gold PCMCIA card (11b),
> > > > > with, according to /var/log/dmesg,
> > > > > "Firmware determined as Lucent/Agere 6.04".
> > > >
> > > > Mine's Lucent/Agere 8.10.  Other than that, don't know what to say.
>
> I found a card with firmware version 8.10 , so I've been trying that.
> Sadly, my experience of NM (NetworkManager)
> has if anything been even worse than before.
> > NM is more than just a connection profile manager (system-config-network
> > can do that part, more or less).  It also wants to support seamless
> > roaming and other features to make dynamic connections transparent. Browse
> > the NM mailing list to see discussions about complexities of getting
> > reliable, dynamic connectivity over wireless.  Timing and signal quality
> > issues abound and support for the scanning NM needs to do is highly
> > variable across cards and drivers.
>
> Yes, it seems to me it is trying to do far too much,
> and not doing anything very well.
> If as you say it is difficult to cover all cards and drivers
> maybe it is not a good idea to try.

So they do a reasonable thing when the card won't do the job--they tell 
you that it won't do the job.

I'm sorry you are having so much trouble, but I'm pretty much out of 
suggestions.  I don't use my Orinoco card much, but it's given me no 
trouble when I have.  There's something different about our hardware or 
there's something different about our configuration.  It's not the kernel 
or NM if you are running stock, updated FC6.  I'm not doing anything 
different from what's described here: 
http://www.ces.clemson.edu/linux/nm.shtml.  In fact, I've done 
considerably less configuring than is described there.  It's for FC5 and 
it's a bit out of date, but there's some good info there.
> I spent this afternoon trying to use NM with two different
> remote WiFi devices, a PCI Agere/Orinoco device and a Linksys WRT54GL.
> I had zero success with both.
> According to /var/log/messages the connection failed in both cases
> because it ran out of time.
>
> Incidentally one of the devices had WEP encryption
> but NM never asked me about this
> so I don't see how it could possibly have worked.

It obviously didn't.  Mine shows my WAP in the pulldown scan menu and it 
connects and prompts me for a key.  I'm running WPA on my router, so I 
can't connect.  But when I was running WEP, I connected just fine.

My IPW2200 works a treat in most situations.
> There appeared to be no place for any kind of configuration,
> and the sole documentation provided with NM
> appeared to be a short README.
>
> I googed for an NM tutorial or FAQ but had no joy.

I'm pretty sure there is something out there, though I don't know hwo 
helpful it might be.  Can you search the NM mailing list archives?
> What is really disturbing is that Windows XP has no problem
> accessing either of these WiFi devices
> (both running on Linux machines!).
>
> WiFi under Fedora really is dreadful.
> The only thing I can say for it
> is that SuSE was even worse.
>
> Why do none of the WiFi programs
> tell you what they have found,
> eg "Connected to remote machine but encryption key required",
> which it is clear they have learned from /var/log/messages ?

NM does exactly that, but it obviously seems to have trouble making the 
connection for some reason.  You will probably get the best help there is 
from the NM list. (Not much consolation, I suppose, if you tried them 
before and couldn't get it working.)
> I should add that I have WiFi working perfectly,
> by editing /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0 .

You could try playing with the profile feature of system-config-network. 
It's not NM, but it would at least save you editing those scripts every 
time you changed networks.

[Aaron Konstam]

> > NM is more than just a connection profile manager (system-config-network
> > can do that part, more or less).  It also wants to support seamless
> > roaming and other features to make dynamic connections transparent. Browse
> > the NM mailing list to see discussions about complexities of getting
> > reliable, dynamic connectivity over wireless.  Timing and signal quality
> > issues abound and support for the scanning NM needs to do is highly
> > variable across cards and drivers.
>
> Yes, it seems to me it is trying to do far too much,
> and not doing anything very well.
> If as you say it is difficult to cover all cards and drivers
> maybe it is not a good idea to try.
>
> I spent this afternoon trying to use NM with two different 
> remote WiFi devices, a PCI Agere/Orinoco device and a Linksys WRT54GL.
> I had zero success with both.
> According to /var/log/messages the connection failed in both cases
> because it ran out of time.
>
> Incidentally one of the devices had WEP encryption
> but NM never asked me about this
> so I don't see how it could possibly have worked.
>
> There appeared to be no place for any kind of configuration,
> and the sole documentation provided with NM
> appeared to be a short README.

Configuration is done through nm-applet which on FC6 runs automatically
at boot to produce an icon in the right side of the upper panel. Did you
try to use that? I use it on my WEP encrypted access points and it works
fairly well. The latest version also does LEAP authentication.
> I googed for an NM tutorial or FAQ but had no joy.

The faq is at:
http://live.gnome.org/DarrenAlbers/NetworkManagerFAQ
> What is really disturbing is that Windows XP has no problem
> accessing either of these WiFi devices
> (both running on Linux machines!).
>
> WiFi under Fedora really is dreadful.
> The only thing I can say for it
> is that SuSE was even worse.
>
> Why do none of the WiFi programs
> tell you what they have found,
> eg "Connected to remote machine but encryption key required",
> which it is clear they have learned from /var/log/messages ?
>
> I should add that I have WiFi working perfectly,
> by editing /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0 .
>
> -- 
> Timothy Murphy  
> e-mail (<80k only): tim /at/ birdsnest.maths.tcd.ie
> tel: [phone]
> s-mail: School of Mathematics, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland

--
=======================================================================
Judges, as a class, display, in the matter of arranging alimony, that
reckless generosity which is found only in men who are giving away
someone else's cash. -- P.G. Wodehouse, "Louder and Funnier"
=======================================================================
Aaron Konstam telephone: [phone] e-mail: [e-mail]

[Timothy Murphy]

Aaron Konstam wrote:
> Configuration is done through nm-applet which on FC6 runs automatically
> at boot to produce an icon in the right side of the upper panel. Did you
> try to use that? I use it on my WEP encrypted access points and it works
> fairly well. The latest version also does LEAP authentication.

No nm-applet icon appeared in my panel.
I do have a program /usr/bin/nm-applet
which came with the NetworkManager-gnome.
When I ran nm-applet a space appeared in my panel,
as though something was trying to show itself,
but nothing actually appeared.
I'm running KDE - maybe NM only runs under Gnome?
> > I googed for an NM tutorial or FAQ but had no joy.
>
> The faq is at:
> http://live.gnome.org/DarrenAlbers/NetworkManagerFAQ

Thanks, I'll have a look at that.

[Matthew Saltzman]

On Mon, 4 Dec 2006, Timothy Murphy wrote:
> Aaron Konstam wrote:
> > Configuration is done through nm-applet which on FC6 runs automatically
> > at boot to produce an icon in the right side of the upper panel. Did you
> > try to use that? I use it on my WEP encrypted access points and it works
> > fairly well. The latest version also does LEAP authentication.
>
> No nm-applet icon appeared in my panel.
> I do have a program /usr/bin/nm-applet
> which came with the NetworkManager-gnome.
> When I ran nm-applet a space appeared in my panel,
> as though something was trying to show itself,
> but nothing actually appeared.
> I'm running KDE - maybe NM only runs under Gnome?

No.

Did you "chkconfig NetworkManager on" (so it starts at boot) and 
"chkconfig netowrk off" (so NM manages the network) and "service network 
stop" and "service NetworkManager start"?

nm-applet should start automatically when the NM daemon starts or when you 
log in, whichever is later.  You should have nm-applet (which should run 
in KDE) or the corresponding KDE applet configured to start at login.
> > > I googed for an NM tutorial or FAQ but had no joy.
> >
> > The faq is at:
> > http://live.gnome.org/DarrenAlbers/NetworkManagerFAQ
>
> Thanks, I'll have a look at that.

[Timothy Murphy]

Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> Did you "chkconfig NetworkManager on" (so it starts at boot) and
> "chkconfig netowrk off" (so NM manages the network) and "service network
> stop" and "service NetworkManager start"?

I didn't chkconfig NM on, I just ran "service NetworkManager restart".
Does it really have to start at boot-time?
Also I didn't stop the network service,
since it does not say one should do that in what little documentation
accompanies NM in Fedora.

I'll try both.
Thanks.

[Aaron Konstam]

On Tue, 2006-12-05 at 11:47 +0000, Timothy Murphy wrote:
> Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > Did you "chkconfig NetworkManager on" (so it starts at boot) and
> > "chkconfig netowrk off" (so NM manages the network) and "service network
> > stop" and "service NetworkManager start"?
>
> I didn't chkconfig NM on, I just ran "service NetworkManager restart".
> Does it really have to start at boot-time?
> Also I didn't stop the network service,
> since it does not say one should do that in what little documentation
> accompanies NM in Fedora.
>
> I'll try both.
> Thanks.

NetworkManager and NetworkManagerDispatcher should be running at boot
time and network should not be running. From From what  you say I assume
you don't have NeworkManagerDispatcher running. That
must be running. 
NM FAQ:
 http://live.gnome.org/DarrenAlbers/NetworkManagerFAQ

--
Aaron Konstam

[Matthew Saltzman]

On Tue, 5 Dec 2006, Timothy Murphy wrote:
> Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > Did you "chkconfig NetworkManager on" (so it starts at boot) and
> > "chkconfig netowrk off" (so NM manages the network) and "service network
> > stop" and "service NetworkManager start"?
>
> I didn't chkconfig NM on, I just ran "service NetworkManager restart".
> Does it really have to start at boot-time?

It doesn't really, but IMO the most useful operational mode (for a laptop, 
at least) is to have it start at boot so it can connect on login.  (There 
was some discussion of supporting a mode that would connect on startup 
without logging in.  Not sure what the status of that feature is.)
> Also I didn't stop the network service,
> since it does not say one should do that in what little documentation
> accompanies NM in Fedora.
>
> I'll try both.

It may no longer be necessary, but it couldn't hurt to not run the regular 
network service when running NM.  You can probably start the network 
service, but you should set the interfaces to not start at boot.  Having 
them up will almost surely confuse NM.
> Thanks.

[Timothy Murphy]

On Tuesday 05 December 2006 15:56, Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > > Did you "chkconfig NetworkManager on" (so it starts at boot) and
> > > "chkconfig netowrk off" (so NM manages the network) and "service network
> > > stop" and "service NetworkManager start"?
> >
> > I didn't chkconfig NM on, I just ran "service NetworkManager restart".
> > Does it really have to start at boot-time?
>
> It doesn't really, but IMO the most useful operational mode (for a laptop,
> at least) is to have it start at boot so it can connect on login.  (There
> was some discussion of supporting a mode that would connect on startup
> without logging in.  Not sure what the status of that feature is.)
> > Also I didn't stop the network service,
> > since it does not say one should do that in what little documentation
> > accompanies NM in Fedora.
> >
> > I'll try both.
>
> It may no longer be necessary, but it couldn't hurt to not run the regular
> network service when running NM.  You can probably start the network
> service, but you should set the interfaces to not start at boot.  Having
> them up will almost surely confuse NM.

I must report that I now have NM working perfectly.
Thanks very much for the advice I was given.

I'm not sure precisely what got it working -
I have NetworkManager and NetworkManagerDispatcher chkconfig-ed in,
and network chkconfig-ed out.

A couple of things about the system puzzle me slightly,
but these are not very important.

1. If in fact one has to run NM and NMDispatcher,
why are they not combined in one service?

2. I did not find that nm-applet appeared automatically.
For a while I had to start it with "nm-applet &",
but now autostart seems to remember that it must be started.

3. nm-applet usually (about 2/3 of the time) links automatically
to my access point,
but sometimes it sees it, but I have to left click on the icon
and choose it.
I've no idea why I sometimes have to do this.

Thanks again for the help and support.

[Matthew Saltzman]

On Wed, 13 Dec 2006, Timothy Murphy wrote:
> On Tuesday 05 December 2006 15:56, Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > > > Did you "chkconfig NetworkManager on" (so it starts at boot) and
> > > > "chkconfig netowrk off" (so NM manages the network) and "service network
> > > > stop" and "service NetworkManager start"?
> > >
> > > I didn't chkconfig NM on, I just ran "service NetworkManager restart".
> > > Does it really have to start at boot-time?
> >
> > It doesn't really, but IMO the most useful operational mode (for a laptop,
> > at least) is to have it start at boot so it can connect on login.  (There
> > was some discussion of supporting a mode that would connect on startup
> > without logging in.  Not sure what the status of that feature is.)
> > > Also I didn't stop the network service,
> > > since it does not say one should do that in what little documentation
> > > accompanies NM in Fedora.
> > >
> > > I'll try both.
> >
> > It may no longer be necessary, but it couldn't hurt to not run the regular
> > network service when running NM.  You can probably start the network
> > service, but you should set the interfaces to not start at boot.  Having
> > them up will almost surely confuse NM.
>
> I must report that I now have NM working perfectly.
> Thanks very much for the advice I was given.

Good to hear of your success!
> I'm not sure precisely what got it working -
> I have NetworkManager and NetworkManagerDispatcher chkconfig-ed in,
> and network chkconfig-ed out.
>
> A couple of things about the system puzzle me slightly,
> but these are not very important.
> If in fact one has to run NM and NMDispatcher,
>
> why are they not combined in one service?

Not everyone needs the dispatcher.  For example, I don't have it 
installed at all.

The dispatcher is for services that need to start after the network is up 
and stop before the network goes down.  They can't be initscripts because 
your network isn't started at boot anymore.  NTP used to be such a 
service, but it seems to have been fixed recently (FC5 or 6).
> I did not find that nm-applet appeared automatically.
>
> For a while I had to start it with "nm-applet &",
> but now autostart seems to remember that it must be started.

Interesting.  You should see it in menu Preferences -> More Preferences -> 
Sessions -> Startup Programs.
> nm-applet usually (about 2/3 of the time) links automatically
>
> to my access point,
> but sometimes it sees it, but I have to left click on the icon
> and choose it.
> I've no idea why I sometimes have to do this.

Linux wireless still exhibits unexplained quirkiness.  But this Q is best 
raised on the NetworkManager list at gnome.org.
> Thanks again for the help and support.

[Timothy Murphy]

Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > I did not find that nm-applet appeared automatically.
> >
> > For a while I had to start it with "nm-applet &",
> > but now autostart seems to remember that it must be started.
>
> Interesting.  You should see it in menu Preferences -> More Preferences ->
> Sessions -> Startup Programs.

I don't have a Preferences item in my Start/f menu;
do most people?
(I'm running KDE, if that is relevant.)

[Matthew Saltzman]

On Wed, 13 Dec 2006, Timothy Murphy wrote:
> Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > > I did not find that nm-applet appeared automatically.
> > >
> > > For a while I had to start it with "nm-applet &",
> > > but now autostart seems to remember that it must be started.
> >
> > Interesting.  You should see it in menu Preferences -> More Preferences ->
> > Sessions -> Startup Programs.
>
> I don't have a Preferences item in my Start/f menu;
> do most people?
> (I'm running KDE, if that is relevant.)

Ah, sorry.  I'm running GNOME.  But you should have a way to start tasks 
on login under the menus someplace.  You might also look at 
knetworkmanager.  It's an nm-applet workalike designed for KDE, and it's 
packaged in Extras.

[Timothy Murphy]

On Thursday 14 December 2006 01:21, Matthew Saltzman wrote:
> > I don't have a Preferences item in my Start/f menu;
> > do most people?
> > (I'm running KDE, if that is relevant.)
>
> Ah, sorry.  I'm running GNOME.  But you should have a way to start tasks
> on login under the menus someplace.  You might also look at
> knetworkmanager.  It's an nm-applet workalike designed for KDE, and it's
> packaged in Extras.

Thanks, I found that (under Start=>System).
Clicking it creates an icon in my panel
almost but not quite identical to the icon created by nm-applet .
I'll see if I can replace one by the other.
(It's not obvious how,
as there seems no way to remove the nm-applet icon once it is there.)

I'm sure there is a way under KDE to start tasks on login,
but I haven't found it yet!