PeasyWiFi - a reliable WiFi connection manager

[fredx181]

build by dog fredx181

dog fredx181 ??
Oh, well, ok then: Bark Bark !!

[johnywhy]

Thx for peasy-wifi. Really great tool!

Question: Is there a command to run only the "Scan to connect to open networks", without first loading the main window? In task manager, i see `sh -c SCAN &`, but that does nothing on a command-line.

Issue: On DebianDog, i had to delete my stored connection, because it always failed to connect-- i could only connect by restarting my wifi extender. However, when i instead connected only using the 'scan open networks' tool, it connected every time no prob.

But that's not the main reason i want to bypass the main window. It's just simpler usage that way.

THX

[rcrsn51]

Connecting via a saved profile should be exactly the same as connecting on-the-fly via "Connect to open networks", except that the latter may have "woke up" your network by doing an initial scan. Or it may have something to do with how your range extender works.

There is no way to jump directly to that screen, just to save one mouse click.

[Edit] You could try building a profile that uses the range extender's BSSID instead of the access points's SSID.

Click the Show all Cells box to see the bssids. In the profile, use:

Code: Select all

bssid=01:23:45:67:89:ab

[johnywhy]

may have something to do with how your range extender works.

could be! in any case, i can't use saved profiles on my home connection with PeasyWifi. I don't have this prob with Frisbee, but i'd rather use Peasy

There is no way to jump directly to that screen, just to save one mouse click.

it's not just about saving a mouse click. I'm making a distro to share with non-geek friends and my mom. I'm trying to simplify everything. Your config screen will just confuse them, and they will never need it. Your scan-window has all they need. They can always get to the config screen from the menu, if needed. Showing an entire config interface, when you're just trying to connect, is TMI.

[Edit] You could try building a profile that uses the range extender's BSSID instead of the access points's SSID.

i think i am. I connect to the extender, not to the router. Is that what you mean? Would that suggestion apply if it connects successfully on first connect? cuz it does.

Click the Show all Cells box to see the bssids.

hrm, tried that. I don't see anything different.

Now testing on a different Stretch. I'll report back.

THX!

[rcrsn51]

I don't understand. Are you talking about the Config button at the bottom left?

[johnywhy]

I don't understand. Are you talking about the Config button at the bottom left?

to save RAM on a low-ram machine, i don't run your system tray icon. It's a nice-to-have eye-candy, but not essential. I also removed the ram-heavy notification area.

so now, to connect with Peasy, i run peasy-wifi connection manager. That brings up the config screen.

Btw, on an OS i made with mklive-stretch, your auto-connect is working. Maybe was a temporary glitch on my extender, router, or maybe a prob with the other OS.

For me, saving clicks matters. Don't want to get clickitis

[rcrsn51]

That brings up the config screen.

Do you mean the main screen under the Connect tab?

The objective of PWF is to build a collection of profiles that give you one-click connection to your regular access points - home network, library, coffee-shop, wireless printer, etc.

I don't understand how hiding that screen makes the program less confusing or easier to use.

Other connection tools will show you all the available APs, all the time. PWF does not.

[johnywhy]

I don't understand how hiding that screen makes the program less confusing or easier to use.

Your multiple tabs and many buttons and controls and tabs will bewilder and intimidate a non-geek. Almost none of it is needed for day-to-day computing.

The objective of PWF is to build a collection of profiles that give you one-click connection to your regular access points

That's awesome, but i thought the point is no-clicks, not one-click. If the profile is saved and set to auto, then it connects on boot automatically without any clicking. Awesome!

If it's not already saved, then your scan-for-open-hotspots window is all that's needed to find and connect to a new hotspot. Awesome. No need to look at the config screen.



But, would be more awesome if, in addition to the "Save" button, had a checkbox "Auto-connect on boot". Then non-geek users never need to see your intimidating config screen.

There is no way to jump directly to that screen, just to save one mouse click.

I noticed that, once the scan window opens, i can 'quit' the config screen, and the scanner window keeps running. So they're clearly separate processes.

Other connection tools will show you all the available APs, all the time. PWF does not.

If i open your scanner dropdown, then there too i will see all the available APs.

Network Manager, for example, gives a popup which directly displays all available hotspots. You can connect to one by clicking it. Config stuff is hidden away (where you can get to it if needed). Less noise, fewer clicks. I don't have to go thru multiple windows to get to the hotspots. I don't mind seeing the list of all AP's all the time-- that's handy! I do mind seeing all the config stuff all the time.



THX

[rcrsn51]

You don't give other people enough credit for being able to learn a different user interface.

[johnywhy]

You don't give other people enough credit for being able to learn a different user interface.

My 85 year old mom doesn't need or want to "learn a different user interface", and I'm not going to expect her to. She just wants to quickly and easily connect to wifi, with a minimum of effort and distraction, and check her gmail. A quick-connect scan window is all she needs.

But i understand if you don't have the time or interest in making your tool non-geek friendly. It's still awesome. I know it takes a lot of work to make this stuff. Respect and gratitude

THX

[wiak]

I'm short of time and don't know if there are instructions for using WEP in this long thread. My partner is currently on international business trip and can't get PeasyWIFI to connect - works fine using WPA2 at home so I'm thinking maybe the hotel in Thailand she is at is using WEP. Trouble is neither she nor I know how to connect via WEP using PeasyWIFI.

I read that OTC doesn't work. She knows the wifi SSID and also the passphrase (alphanumeric). Does she need to build a new Profile. I guess so. This is going to be very hard to explain to her how...

Also does WEP passphrase have to be changed to hexadecimal or is the alphanumeric passphrase the hotel gives out the one to use without needing any conversion?

Any help much appreciated. We have been trying but getting No Connection all the time (her Android phone connects fine, just not the BionicDog laptop she needs to use).

wiak

EDIT: I don't have WEP configured router but in experiments I've deduced that with WEP I should put double-quotes round the entered Passphrase under Profiles tab (or convert to hex?). Fact is though, the hotel she is in may not actually be using WEP on its router (I don't know) - perhaps something to do with access needing to go through hotels servers in some way I know nothing about (i.e. not a direct connection to router?).

[greengeek]

Any chance of a pic of the login data given to her by the hotel? Was it on a slip of paper given to her on the day she checked in or is it shown on a website or other possibly outdated media?

Also - often hotels use open networks and the login data given to the traveller is a username and passphrase intended to be input through browser - not actually a wifi password.

[wiak]

Any chance of a pic of the login data given to her by the hotel? Was it on a slip of paper given to her on the day she checked in or is it shown on a website or other possibly outdated media?

Also - often hotels use open networks and the login data given to the traveller is a username and passphrase intended to be input through browser - not actually a wifi password.

Yes, I tried to get more information from her, but she isn't particularly technical so fact is I don't have more details. She has moved on from there now, but this is a recurring problem; she was on similar trip a few months ago and same thing happened. Alas, Windows OS always managed login but Linux one only in some hotels. It is frustrating because if I was there I would surely track issue down, but going blind just leaves me guessing too.

I don't think it was an open connection though, but she is so busy she didn't have time to follow the requests for info I gave her. I believe her Android phone was connecting fine so she should have been able to check on that if it was using Security or not and whether WPA etc or not.

Anyway, I'm feed back later if similar happens again (as it surely will) and if solution ever found.

wiak

[rcrsn51]

I can't imagine that any hotel would still be using WEP. But if they were, it would require building a WEP profile. You wouldn't need to include quotes - PWF puts all passphrases in quotes so you can include spaces.

If a hotel gives you a username and password, they might be using PEAP. You would need to build that type of profile.

Although, greengeek has the more likely explanation.

[wiak]

If a hotel gives you a username and password, they might be using PEAP. You would need to build that type of profile.

I think my partner tried open network connection (I'm not sure because it is difficult working out what a non-technical user is actually doing...). So there was no connection to use the browser login/password kind of situation, which I am also familiar with (not sure if she is though).

Thanks for the comment about PEAP - that's sounds very possible. I guess, since Android mobile connected successfully, if she had opened Android settings and clicked on the active wifi connection she could have read what "Security" model was being used and that would have indicated if it was WPA2 with PEAP or whatever. Alas, I never received a reply when I made that request. Oh well, hopefully next time the situation crops up I can manage to correctly identify the problem cause and use appropriate fix.

wiak

[wiak]

I can't imagine that any hotel would still be using WEP. But if they were, it would require building a WEP profile. You wouldn't need to include quotes - PWF puts all passphrases in quotes so you can include spaces.

Though I also doubt now that the hotel was using WEP, I should mention that I'm using PeasyWIFI ver 4.6 on BionicDog and with that version if you put the passphrase in without quotes it ends up without quotes in the profile. If using WPA2 on the otherhand, if you don't put quotes, the quotes are auto-inserted anyway. So for WEP I needed to use quotes, and for WPA2 I needed not to use quotes so I guess a bit of relevant code (for adding quotes) has been omitted from the WEP function, at least in that version of PeasyWIFI.

Code: Select all

ssid="new_ssid"
key_mgmt=NONE
wep_key0=new_psk

Should I think be:

Code: Select all

wep_key0="new_psk"

wiak

[rcrsn51]

wep_key0=new_psk

You're right. I probably wrote it that way so you could enter the passkey in hex without quotes or as an ascii string where you included quotes.

[Semme]

Say Bill, if I wanted to use a custom MTU value (Bionic64), in which script would it go?

[rcrsn51]

Probably in /etc/pwf/rc.network, around line 20.

[Semme]

Thanks.

Getting to your suggestion, yes, it would appear to be the correct location.

These are lines 17 thru 33, line 20 the fourth down:

Code: Select all

for IFACE in $ETH0 $ETH1; do
	if [ -f $ETHPROFILEPATH/$IFACE.dhcp ]; then
		for TRY in 1 2; do
			ifconfig $IFACE mtu 1528 up
			udhcpc -s /etc/pwf/udhcpc/default.script -n -t 5 -T 5 -x hostname:$(hostname) -i $IFACE
			[ $? -eq 0 ] && break
			sleep 5
		done
	elif [ -f $ETHPROFILEPATH/$IFACE.static ]; then
		. $ETHPROFILEPATH/$IFACE.static
		SUBNET=${IP%.*}
		ifconfig $IFACE up
		ifconfig $IFACE $IP broadcast ${SUBNET}.255 netmask $NETMASK
		[ -n "$GATEWAY" ] && route add default gw $GATEWAY $IFACE
		[ -f /etc/resolv.conf.tail ] && cp /etc/resolv.conf.tail /etc/resolv.conf
	fi
done

This doesn't work. I suspect because I forgot to mention having a *wifi* connection.

This appears to be for ethernet unless I don't fully understand all the syntax.

==

If I leave Peasy connected and take the interface down and reload with the desired MTU value, netmon_wce doesn't change. I also can't reach any sites. It's not until I reconnect with Peasy can I again reach the Internet.

I'm guessing if you had known wifi beforehand, your suggestion may have been different.

Thoughts?