Wireless tools для linux

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Beyond Linux From Scratch. Version 2011-12-30
Назад	14. Основные сетевые программы	Вперед

Пакет Wireless Tools-28

Знакомимся с пакетом Wireless Tools

Wireless Extension (WE) является универсальным API, реализованным в ядре Linux и позволяющим драйверу отображать в пользовательском пространстве конфигурацию и конкретные особенности обычных беспроводных сетей. Если в драйвере поддерживается использование технологии Wireless Extensions, то с помощью одного комплекта инструментальных средств можно поддерживать всевозможные варианты беспроводных сетей, независимо от их типа. Параметры WE можно менять на лету без перезагрузки драйвера (или Linux).

Пакет Wireless Tools (WT) представляет собой набор инструментальных средств, позволяющих использовать Wireless Extensions. Для поддержки всех возможностей Wireless Extension используется текстовый интерфейс.

Информация о пакете

• Загрузка (HTTP): http://www.hpl.hp.com/personal/Jean_Tourrilhes/Linux/wireless_tools.28.tar.gz
• Контрольная сумма MD5: 599c94497f9c9073c7b052d3dcb7cd16
• Размер загружаемого пакета: 249 KB
• Оценочный размер требуемого дискового пространства: 1,7 MB
• Оценочное время сборки: менее 0,1 SBU

Конфигурирование ядра

Чтобы можно было воспользоваться пакетом Wireless Tools, в ядре должны присутствовать драйвера и другая поддержка. Также должна быть доступна соответствующая шина. Для многих ноутбуков следует собрать шину PCMCIA (CONFIG_PCCARD). В некоторых случаях для этой шины также необходимо собрать поддержку встроенных беспроводных карт. Также должен быть собран соответствующий мост. Для многих современных ноутбуков будет необходим мост типа CardBus host (CONFIG_YENTA).

Кроме шины также должен быть доступен конкретный драйвер для определенной беспроводной карты. Есть много беспроводных карт, которые вообще не работают с Linux. Начинать поиск поддержки карты надо в ядре. Драйверы расположены в Device Drivers → Network Device Support → Wireless LAN (non-hamradio). Для некоторых очень распространенных карт есть также внешние драйверы. Чтобы получить дополнительную информацию, смотрите замечания для пользователей.

После того, как будут загружены правильные драйверы, в директории /proc/net/wireless должен появиться интерфейс.

Установка пакета Wireless Tools

Установите пакет Wireless Tool с помощью следующих команд:

В этом пакете набор тестов отсутствует.

Теперь в роли пользователя root выполните:

Описание пакета

Установленные программы: ifrename, iwconfig, iwevent, iwgetid, iwlist, iwpriv и iwspy

Установленные библиотеки: libiw.so

Установленные директории: Нет

переименовывает сетевые интерфейсы в соответствие с различными статическими критериями

конфигурирует беспроводный сетевой интерфейс

отображает события беспроводной сети, вызванные работой драйверов и изменением настроек

отображает параметры ESSID и NWID или адрес AP/Cell беспроводных сетей

получает от беспроводного интерфейса информацию о беспроводной сети

конфигурирует необязательные (приватные) параметры сетевого беспроводного интерфейса

получает от конкретного узла статистические данные о беспроводной сети

содержит функции, необходимые программам, работающим с беспроводными сетями, и предоставляет API для других программ.

Перевод сделан с варианта оригинала, датированного 2007-04-04 19:42:53 +0000

Источник

Wireless Tools for Linux

Presentation

The Wireless Extension (WE) is a generic API allowing a driver to expose to the user space configuration and statistics specific to common Wireless LANs. The beauty of it is that a single set of tool can support all the variations of Wireless LANs, regardless of their type (as long as the driver support Wireless Extension). Another advantage is these parameters may be changed on the fly without restarting the driver (or Linux).

The Wireless Tools (WT) is a set of tools allowing to manipulate the Wireless Extensions. They use a textual interface and are rather crude, but aim to support the full Wireless Extension. There are many other tools you can use with Wireless Extensions, however Wireless Tools is the reference implementation.

• iwconfig manipulate the basic wireless parameters
• iwlist allow to initiate scanning and list frequencies, bit-rates, encryption keys.
• iwspy allow to get per node link quality
• iwpriv allow to manipulate the Wireless Extensions specific to a driver (private)
• ifrename allow to name interfaces based on various static criteria

Most Linux distributions also have integrated Wireless Extensions support in their networking initialisation scripts, for easier boot-time configuration of wireless interfaces. They also include Wireless Tools as part of their standard packages.

Wireless configuration can also be done using the Hotplug or uDev scripts and distribution specific support, this enable the proper support of any removable wireless interface (Pcmcia, CardBus, USB. ).

Any versions of the Pcmcia package offer the possibility to do wireless configuration of Pcmcia and Cardbus card through thefile wireless.opts. This allow to fully integrate wireless settings in the Pcmcia scheme mechansism. However, this method is now deprecated in favor of distribution specific methods.

Please note that the Wireless Tools (starting with version 19) supports fully IEEE 802.11 parameters and devices, support older style of devices and most proprietary protocols, and are prepared to handle HiperLan as well. More recent versions of course adds more 802.11 support .
But, unfortunately not all drivers support all these features.

Documentation & errata

The Wireless Tools package also includes two text documents on the usage of Wireless Tools to configure wireless cards automatically :

• DISTRIBUTIONS.txt describes how various Linux distributions implement Wireless Extensions in their specific configuration scripts . Please read this, as most distributions no longer use wireless.opts . I need your help making this document better.
• HOTPLUG-UDEV.txt describes how to manage wireless interfaces using the HotPlug subsystem and the distribution specific support for wireless, and includes some more advanced material. This is a complement to DISTRIBUTIONS.txt.
• PCMCIA.txt describes the use of Pcmcia schemes and wireless.opts (i.e. configuration with the default Pcmcia scripts). This method is deprecated, but still work and has some advantages.

Some driver documentations (man page, web, README) describe what the driver support in term of Wireless Extension and how the various Wireless Extension parameters map to the capability of the card.

The Linux Wireless LAN Howto contains a section about the Wireless Extensions, but it’s a bit out of date for the details.

I have also the following errata and comments :

• In the rare cases where your kernel isn’t compiled with Wireless Extensions (/proc/net/wireless non-existent), you need to recompile it with Wireless Extensions ( CONFIG_NET_RADIO enabled).
• After recompiling a kernel with Wireless Extension, you have to recompile your driver or the Pcmcia package as well (and restart it).
• All versions of Wireless Tools up to version 26 need to be compiled for the precise version of Wireless Extension present on the system. Starting with Wireless Tools 27 , Wireless Tools can handle multiple versions of Wireless Extension without recompile.
• The Wireless Extensions and Wireless Tools version numbers will not match with each other. The Wireless Tools and the Wireless Extensions (the underlying API) evolve independantly of each other. The command iwconfig —version gives you the detail of your setup.
• Compilation of the Wireless Tools used to be tricky, especially in the header area. I believe this has been fixed for good.
• For kernels before 2.2.14/2.3.30 , use Wireless Tools version 19 .
• For kernel after 2.2.14/2.3.30 use Wireless Tools version 20 or greater.
• For kernel after 2.6.13 use Wireless Tools version 27 or greater.
• The tools and the wireless library are GPL .
• In the old time, you could upgrade Wireless Extensions by just changing wireless.h . Starting with Wireless Extensions v12 , this is no longer true, you need to apply the full patch to the kernel. See below for the patches.
• Further down, you will find a FAQ about common problems .

Wireless Tools latest versions

You can download Wireless Tools on this server :

• Download the latest wireless tools package

For historical purpose, you can get earlier version here : version 19, version 20, version 21, version 22, version 23, version 24, version 25, version 26, version 27, version 28 and version 29. There is no point in using an old version, as the latest version can support all versions of Wireless Extensions.

no beta version pending. This mean that I’ve processed all my bug report and all my feature list. —> The main features of the latest beta is support for non-ASCII ESSIDs (such as localised ESSID), support for displaying Scanning Capabilities, slightly bigger scan buffer, fixing minor bug iwconfig parser and minor enhancement to ifrename :

• Wireless Tools version 30-pre9 (beta)

Experimental version of Wireless Tools (at your own risk) :

• Wireless Tools 28 with Wireless-RtNetlink support (WE-20) (alpha)

The detailed changelog of the Wireless Tools is in the package, what follows is a human readable version of it ;-).

Version 29 adds :

• Support for long/short retry (WE-21).
• Support power saving level, modulation (WE-21 — not in kernel).
• Scanning options.
• Better WPA support.
• Enhanced command line parser in iwconfig.
• sysfs symlinks and udev integration in ifrename.
• More footprint reduction tricks.
• Support for 32 bit Wireless Tools on 64 bits kernels.
• Change dBm range to support positive dBm.

Version 28 adds :

• Add preliminary display-only WPA support (WE-18).
• Display AP-Address as ‘Not-Associated’ instead of a number.
• Add sysfs selector to ifrename.
• Make mac selector of ifrename accept any length MAC addresses, such as Firewire addresses.
• Longer scanning timeout for driver having slow scanning, such as MadWifi.
• Add iwmulticall and stripping option to reduce footprint of the tools for memory starved systems.
• Use glibc header instead of kernel header to ease iwlib use.
• Better integrity check of scan results.
• Forward compatibility to WE-21 (essid length)

Version 27 adds :

• Ability to run with multiple version of Wireless Extensions . It means that all WE version mismatch are gone, and you don’t need to recompile when changing between kernels with different WE version. The tool redirector is obsolete and removed.
• Make libiw really usable by third party tools. This include the removal of the WE version dependancy, the stabilisation of the API and the addition of the easy Scanning API.
• Add ifrename , to rename network interfaces based on various static criteria, and associated documentation
• Add advanced documentation about network Hotplug and related stuff in HOTPLUG.txt
• Support auto/fixed frequencies and relative tx-power (WE-17)
• Support very large scan results and private definition lists (WE-17)
• Optionally disable individual quality statistics (WE-17)
• Support event capability in iwlist event (WE-17)
• Display channel alongside frequencies in iwlist and iwevent
• Display updated quality statistics with ‘=’ instead of ‘(updated)’
• Implement iwconfig XXX txpower on and fixed
• Fix redirection of iwevent output to file/pipe
• Add raw display and channel support in iwgetid
• Various bugfixes, optimisations and cleanup

Version 26 adds :

• Fix bugs in parsing encryption keys and setting encryption on in iwconfig .
• Update distribitions specific documentation in DISTRIBUTIONS.txt
• Really allow compile without maths library for embeeded platforms
• Support new iwspy features (setthr and related event) (WE-16)
• Add tool redirector for people having multiple kernels with different Wireless Extension versions (WE-16)
• Various trivial bugfixes and cleanup
• Various Makefile and and iwlib improvements

Version 25 adds :

• Start document distribitions specific wireless configuration scripts in DISTRIBUTIONS.txt
• Enumerate *all* network interfaces (fix problem with NWN drivers)
• Improve private extension support : new types, sub-ioctls, iwpriv -a , handle more than 16 extensions. (WE-15)
• Fix infinite loop with unknown Wireless Events (bad bug)
• Add new Wireless Events : IWEVCUSTOM , IWEVREGISTERED and IWEVEXPIRED (WE-15)
• Show current settings in iwlist for freq , rate and txpower
• New iwgetid options : mode , freq , protocol
• Implement —version to show tools and WE versions
• Improve version warning messages to be hopefully less confusing
• Allow compile without maths library for embeeded platforms
• Makefile fixes, various other cleanups

Version 24 adds :

• Fix a bug that prevents disabling encryption and setting authentication (introduced in version 23)
• Change the way tools enumerate wireless interfaces. Tools no longer lists interfaces not supporting /proc/net/wireless , but lists interfaces which are down.
• Wireless Event support (WE-14)
• Scanning support (WE-14 — replaces now obsolete iwlist aplist )
• Support iwconfig ethX ap auto/any/off
• Man pages for iwevent and iwgetid
• Improved system header definitions, more complete libiw , cleanups.

Version 23 adds :

• Fix a problem when trying to use iwspy before the interface is configured
• Add missing commands in the iwlist man page
• Fix «make install» and install man pages
• Automatic glibc/kernel header configuration
• Nicer iwconfig error messages
• Add iwconfig ethX commit (WE-13)

Version 22 adds :

• Fix minor bugs in parsing command line
• Most basic functions of the tools available as a library ( libiw )
• Add a few extra wireless statistics (WE-12)

Version 21 adds :

• Improved power management support (WE-10)
• Transmit Power parameter (WE-10)
• Document wireless.opts and Pcmcia scheme usage (multi cards, multi setups)
• Better Makefile, header options can be set there
• Support for GLibc2.2
• Check Wireless Extension version mismatch (WE-11)
• Retry settings (WE-11)
• Split iwspy into iwspy and iwlist

Version 20 was already adding :

• Operation mode support (managed/ad-hoc) (WE-9)
• Power saving support (WE-9)
• New encryption support (WE-9)

However, the version 20 and later don’t work for older kernels (prior to 2.2.14 and 2.3.30 ), for those kernel I recommend to use version 19 , which is also very stable (but with less features). Note that most 802.11b drivers require Wireless Extension v9 or later, so won’t work with those ancient kernels.

Debugging Wireless Extensions (common problems)

Wireless Tools oldest version

The oldest version of wireless tools that was made is v10, its release date is 08 december 1996. Obviously it does not have Copyright notice, Makefile, README or any kind of instructions.

• Wireless Tools v10

Prior to that date, iwconfig was bundled with my version of the wavelan driver. The oldest version on my hard drive is v6, from 05 september 1996, and was not publically distributed (it is clearly not finished).

• iwconfig v6

ifscheme for Debian users

For automatic management, please check for various tools in the later section.

Wireless Extensions patches (for kernel and drivers)

The Wireless Extensions support come as 3 parts :

1. The Wireless Extension (the core API), part of the Linux kernel (mostly defined in wireless.h ).
2. Driver support, implementing some of those extensions for the specific hardware.
3. Wireless Tools and other wireless applications, that the users manipulate.

Wireless Extension versions :

Version	Kernel	Features
WE-9	2.2.14, 2.3.30	Basic 802.11b support
WE-10	2.2.19, 2.4.0	Add TxPower setting
WE-11	2.4.4	Driver version check, retry setting
WE-12	2.4.13	Additional statistics
WE-13	2.4.19, 2.5.3	New driver API
WE-14	2.4.20, 2.5.7	Wireless Scanning, Wireless Events
WE-15	2.4.21, 2.5.37	Enhanced iwpriv support
WE-16	2.4.23, 2.5.70	802.11a/802.11g fixes, Enhanced iwspy support
WE-17	2.6.10	Event capability, large scan results
WE-18	2.6.13	WPA/WPA2/802.11i support
WE-19	2.6.14	Improved dBm reporting
WE-20	2.6.17	RtNetlink Wireless Extensions (dropped in 2.6.20)
WE-21	2.6.19	(partial WE-21) Full ESSID support, not just string
WE-22	2.6.21	Fix information leak on 64 bits

The core API is strongly versioned, so that application can detect changes in the API. The version number of Wireless Extensions specify which feature are available through the API, and is completely independant of the version of the tool using it, for example, each version of the Wireless Tools can support a wide range Wireless Extension versions. You can use iwconfig —version to get all the details on your current setup.

One common issue is that Wireless Extensions offers only source level backward/forward compatibility, not binary compatibility. Therefore, every time the core API is updated or changed on the system (kernel upgrade), both drivers and tools need to be recompiled . Version 27 and later of Wireless Tools can support multiple versions of Wireless Extensions without the need of a recompile.

Some wireless drivers require a minimum level of Wireless Extensions, and most often newer version of Wireless Extensions enable additional features in the driver. Usually, the simplest way to upgrade the Wireless Extensions is to upgrade your kernel (see table above). Most driver support the newer Wireless Extension only in their most recent version, so most often to get the benefit of the additional features you might need to upgrade your driver .

Alternatively, you can use the patches below. Those patches may not always apply properly to your kernel, they may crash or eat your hard drive, use at your own risks and don’t expect much help, because I would rather have you upgrading your kernel. When upgrading from over version of Wireless Extensions to another, you need to apply all the patches for the versions in between in the proper order, otherwise the patches will reject. After patching the kernel, don’t forget to recompile and reinstall the kernel itself, the kernel modules, the Pcmcia package modules and the various external driver modules.

• Kernel 2.2.X patches
  • Wireless Extensions v15 for kernel 2.2.25 : cummulative patch to upgrade directly from WE-10 to WE-15. Wireless Event is not available, the rest seems to work.

• Kernel 2.4.X patches
  • Wireless Extensions v11 for kernel 2.4.2, including various wireless drivers. Adds driver version check, retry setting. [Already in 2.4.3]
  • Wireless Extensions v12 for kernel 2.4.12. Adds more statistics, move iwpriv ioctls to a private space. [Already in 2.4.13]
  • Wireless Extensions v13 for kernel 2.4.18. Add the new driver API based on iw-handlers (to replace ioctl handler). [Already in 2.4.19-pre5]
  • Wireless Extensions v14 + WE-13 ESSID bug fix for kernel 2.4.19. Add a Wireless Event dispatcher through rtnetlink (driver and set events) and support for Wireless Scanning ( iwlist ethX scan ). Also fix a stupid bug in WE-13 patch above (of by one). [Already in 2.4.20-pre2]
  • Wireless Extensions v15 for kernel 2.4.20. Fix and enhance private extensions support, mostly for HostAP driver. Define additional Wireless Events. Get strict on buffer size for GET requests (this may break old applications using Wireless Extensions). [Already in 2.4.21-pre2]
  • Wireless Extensions v16 for kernel 2.4.21. Rework iwspy support : simplify driver side iwspy support and add iwspy Wireless Event. Also increase the number of bit-rates in iwrange for complete 802.11a/802.11g support. [Already in 2.4.23]
  • Wireless Extensions v16 for kernel 2.4.19 and earlier. Same as patch above, but apply to kernel 2.4.19 and earlier. Not a cumulative patch, you will need to apply after the v15 patch (and previous patches as needed). [Already in 2.4.23]
  • Wireless Extensions v17 for kernel 2.4.29. Export driver event capacities, allow large scan requests and various minor fixes.
  • Wireless Extensions v18 for kernel 2.4.30. WPA support, from Jouni Malinen. You will need WT-27-pre25 or later.

• Kernel 2.5.X patches
  • Wireless Extensions v13 for kernel 2.5.2. Add the new driver API based on iw-handlers (to replace ioctl handler). [Already in 2.5.3-pre3]
  • Wireless Extensions v14 for kernel 2.5.6. Add a Wireless Event dispatcher through rtnetlink (driver and set events) and support for Wireless Scanning ( iwlist ethX scan ). [Already in 2.5.7-pre1]
  • WE-13 ESSID bug fix for 2.5.15, fix a stupid bug in WE-13 patch above (of by one). [Already in 2.5.16]
  • Wireless Extensions v15 for kernel 2.5.32. Fix and enhance private extensions support, mostly for HostAP driver. Define additional Wireless Events. Get strict on buffer size for GET requests (this may break old applications using Wireless Extensions). [Already in 2.5.37]
  • Wireless Extensions v16 for kernel 2.5.64. Rework iwspy support : simplify driver side iwspy support and add iwspy Wireless Event. Also increase the number of bit-rates in iwrange for complete 802.11a/802.11g support. [Already in 2.5.70]

• Kernel 2.6.X patches
  • Wireless Extensions v17 for kernel 2.6.9. Export driver event capacities, allow large scan requests and various minor fixes. [Already in 2.6.10-rc2]
  • Wireless Extensions v18 for kernel 2.6.11. WPA support, from Jouni Malinen. You will need WT-27-pre25 or later. [Already in 2.6.13-rc1]
  • Wireless Extensions v19 for kernel 2.6.13. Misc updates and cleanups. You will need WT-27-pre25 or later. [Already in 2.6.14-rc1]
  • Wireless Extensions v20 for kernel 2.6.16. Wireless-RtNetlink support : Allow to Set/Get Wireless Extensions through the RtNetlink socket. Final version, feature tested and complete.
  • Wireless Extensions v21 for kernel 2.6.17-rc1. Add modulation, generic power saving, short/long retries. This is experimental and require both drivers and userspace modification (WT-28-pre14), especially around ESSID.

• Aironet driver patches
  • The Aironet driver has already been converted to the new driver API (WE-13) and has scanning and event support (WE-14). [Already in 2.5.20 ; 2.4.20-pre1 and CVS]
  • Use new iwspy support (WE-16) in the Aironet driver. [Already in 2.6.0-test2 and CVS]
  • WE-17 support for the Aironet and old Wavelan drivers. For kernel 2.6.8. [Already in 2.6.10-rc1]
  • iwstats cleanups (WE-19) in the Aironet driver.
  • WE-19 support for the Aironet driver. For kernel 2.6.13. [Already in 2.6.14-rc1]
  • Aironet WE-21 minimal support : fix ESSID size, use short/long retry. For kernel 2.6.17-rc1.

• HostAP driver patches
  • The Prism2 HostAP driver has already been converted to the new driver API (WE-13), has scanning and event support (WE-14) and take advantage of the improved iwpriv support (WE-15). [Already in 2002-09-12]
  • Add support for «iwlist scan» in master mode in the HostAP driver. [Already in v0.0.1]
  • Add new iwspy support (WE-16) in the HostAP driver. [Already in v0.0.2]
  • HostAP WE-17 support : allow large scan requests, export event capability. For hostap-driver-0.2.3. [Already in v0.3.0]
  • HostAP WE-19 support : better statistics. For hostap-driver-0.3.9. [Already in v0.4.5]
  • HostAP WE-21 support : use short/long retry. For kernel 2.6.17-rc1.

• Orinoco driver patches
  • Conversion of the Orinoco driver version 0.9b to the new driver API (WE-13).
  • Add some Wireless Events and Scanning (WE-14) to the Orinoco driver version 0.9b.
  • Moustafa A. Youssef has updated my patches to the Orinoco driver v0.11b (both WE-13 and WE-14 support : convert to new API and add Wireless Events and Scanning).
  • Orinoco v0.13a patch : convert the Orinoco to the new API (WE-13), and add Wireless Events and Scanning (WE-14). Contributed by Jim Carter, based on the patch from Moustafa (see above). I didn’t yet test that patch.
  • Orinoco v0.13d patch : convert the Orinoco to the new API (WE-13), and add Wireless Events and Scanning (WE-14). Contributed by Pavel Roskin, based on the patch from Moustafa (see above). Also include scanning support for Symbol firmwares (from Jesus Molina). [Already in v0.15rc1 and kernel 2.6.13-rc1]
  • Orinoco WE-16 & WE-17 support : use the new iwspy support, export event capability. For orinoco-0.15rc1.
  • Orinoco WE-16 & WE-17 support : use the new iwspy support, export event capability. For kernel 2.6.13.
  • Orinoco WE-21 minimal support : fix ESSID size, use short/long retry. For kernel 2.6.17-rc1.

• Other current driver patches (Prism54, IPW. )
  • Prism54 WE-17 support : allow large scan requests, export event capability. For kernel 2.6.8. [Already in 2.6.10-rc1]
  • Prism54 WE-17 support (missing bit from above). For kernel 2.6.13. [Already in 2.6.14-rc1]
  • WE-17 support for the Atmel driver. For kernel 2.6.13. [Already in 2.6.14-rc1]
  • WE-17 support for the wl3501 driver. For kernel 2.6.13. [Already in 2.6.14-rc1]
  • Prism54 Bitrate in Scan support. For kernel 2.6.17-rc1.
  • Prism54 WE-21 minimal support : fix ESSID size, use short/long retry. For kernel 2.6.17-rc1.
  • Atmel WE-21 minimal support : fix ESSID size, use short/long retry. For kernel 2.6.17-rc1.
  • wl3501 WE-21 minimal support : fix ESSID size, use short/long retry. For kernel 2.6.17-rc1.
  • ipw2100 WE-21 minimal support : fix ESSID size, use short/long retry. For kernel 2.6.17-rc1.
  • ipw2200 WE-21 minimal support : fix ESSID size, use short/long retry. For kernel 2.6.17-rc1.
  • ipw2200 WE-21 additional support : modulation, generic power saving. For kernel 2.6.17-rc1.

• Obsolete wireless driver patches (wavelan, wavelan_cs, netwave_cs, ray_cs. )
  • Update wavelan_cs to v23 : backport Pcmcia package fixes in the kernel. [Already in 2.5.3-pre2]
  • Shell script and Patch to move old wireless drivers : move wavelan.c , wavelan_cs.c and netwave_cs.c to driver/net/wireless . [Already in 2.5.3-pre3]
  • Additional fixed for wavelan_cs : fix trigraph warnings. [Already in 2.5.3-pre6]
  • Update wavelan_cs to v23 + extra : backport Pcmcia package fixes in the kernel, fix trigraph warnings and fix watchdog message. [Already in 2.4.20-pre2]
  • Conversion of the old Wavelan driver version 23 to the new driver API (WE-13). [Already in 2.5.6-pre1]
  • Conversion of the old Wavelan_cs driver version 23 to the new driver API (WE-13). [Already in 2.5.6-pre1]
  • Conversion of the Netwave_cs to the new driver API (WE-13). [Already in 2.5.6-pre1]
  • The No Wires Needed driver has already been converted to the new driver API (WE-13) and has scanning support (WE-14).
  • Trivial fix in wavelan : fix the watchdog message in the wavelan (ISA) driver. [Already in 2.4.20-pre2 and 2.5.37]
  • Use new iwspy support (WE-16) in the old Wavelan ISA driver. [Already in 2.5.70]
  • Use new iwspy support (WE-16) in the old Wavelan Pcmcia driver, plus cleanup backward compatibility stuff (which didn’t work anyway). [Already in 2.5.70]
  • WE-17 support for the Netwave driver. For kernel 2.6.13. [Already in 2.6.14-rc1]
  • WE-13/WE-17 support for the Raylink driver. For kernel 2.6.13. [Already in 2.6.14-rc1]
  • Raylink WE-21 minimal support : fix ESSID size. For kernel 2.6.17-rc1.

Driver support

If you are developping Wireless Extension support in your wireless driver, those few drivers are worth a look at :

• The Wavelan driver is the reference implementation of Wireless Extensions for pre-802.11 devices. It supports NWID, Channel, Sensitivity, Encryption key, stats and spy.
• The HostAP driver is the reference implementation of Wireless Extensions for 802.11b devices, and is the reference implementation for iwpriv functionality.
• The Aironet driver (version 1.4 and later from Ben) is an alternate reference implementation of Wireless Extensions for 802.11b devices. It implements fully WE-14 (Wireless Scanning and Wireless Events), and is different than HostAP.
• The Orinoco MPL/GPL driver version v0.14 or later is also an alternate reference implementation of Wireless Extensions for 802.11b devices. On the other hand, version v0.13 and earlier found in most places only support WE-12 (so no scanning and no events). The Orinoco driver tend to be easier to study than both the HostAP and the Aironet drivers.

Wireless Applications for Linux

The folowoing sections are applications that make use of Wireless Extensions :

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