I have a Thoshiba laptop at home, I was running “Dapper Drake” (Ubuntu Linux 6.06) But one of the important things about it was its inability to connect to WPA-encrypted Wifi access points.In my home i have a WPA Enabled Wireless router so i need to connect to my wireless network using WPA.I am giving the procedure that worked for me to enable wpa in my toshiba laptop.
Procedure to enable WPA Wireless in Ubuntu
To update the source list run the following command
sudo apt-get
sudo apt-get install wpasupplicant
sudo apt-get install network-manager-gnome network-manager
sudo gedit /etc/network/interfaces
Comment out everything other than “lo” entries in that file and save the file
Create a file called /etc/default/wpasupplicant, add entry ENABLED=0 and save the file
sudo touch /etc/default/wpasupplicant
Reboot your system or use the following command
sudo /etc/init.d/dbus restart
Once you login back in to your machine you need to left-click the network manager icon in Gnome and select your wireless network It should prompts for password, type, etc and It will ask you to choose a password for your new “keyring”.
After enterring all the details my wireless network was connected and working fine you can see in the follwoing screen
My wireless network also detected available wireless access point around my home you can see this in the following screen
If you want to connect an existing wireless point you can see the following popup box asking for details of wireless network
If you want to create a new wireless network you can see the following screen with the available options and after entering all the details you need to click on connect
Possible Error and Solution
If you see the following error
The NetworkManager applet could not find some required resources. It cannot continue.
Solution
sudo gtk-update-icon-cache -f /usr/share/icons/hicolor/
This worked really well, but then I lost my wired connection. Any way to have both? (I’m new obviously). Curious as to why it’s not in the distro in the first place… Thanks again
I am very new to Linux. If u don’t mind can u please tell me how to create the /etc/default/wpasupplicant file
open your terminal or command prompt run the follolwing command
touch /etc/default/wpasupplicant
I have created the wpasupplicant file. But when i am editing it, it is telling i don’t have permissions. But with the same user name, i am doing every thing.(Wireless in Ubuntu 6.10)
WPA is still not working. There is a log or a way to connect via command line to get some feedback? Right now the net is found, I put the wpa key and after a few seconds the nmapplet says “no network connection”.
It works fine for my Ubuntu 6.06/T60. Thank you very much!
Thanks for the post.
—
Interestingly (very expectedly), I’m experiencing the same issues as a couple of persons here.
1: I’ve never been able to get this card to successfully authenticate to my wireless network, with WPA enabled, using Ubuntu.
2: I’ve read and tested the scores of other tutorials and directions out there, to no avail.
3: I’ve tried this card in several different machines running Ubuntu, from Breezy up to Eft… no luck.
4. This (appears to be) is the closest I’ve come so far to seeing this card, recognized properly/ fully by Ubuntu (I’m currently running: Edgy Eft, on a Sony Vaio PCG-GR370.
Currently, the Network Manager shows as expected, I enter my wireless network details, connection attempt is made, but no go, it apparently just times out.
Of note: something that may also be causing my problems is the fact that I’m using two Airport base stations: an Airport Express and an Airport Extreme, coupled in WDS mode.
But I’m pretty sure on previous tries, disabling those features and just using one or the other of the base stations, didn’t yeild any better results.
Any one with any suggestions, feel free to let me know.
Cheers.
WONDERFUL! I have been trying to get my wireless card to work on Ubuntu for a good two weeks. I followed the directions and now have a working wireless card on linux 🙂
I thank you, and my laptop thanks you.
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
Hi,
I have been trying configure wireless on my laptop using Ubuntu Edgy for the past one week but just couldn’t get it working. I did not install Ubuntu on my laptop as its running out of space, so I am running the Live CD. Wonder how can I get it the wireless working ? Thanks for your advice.
I install network manager and this icon is no where to be found at all. I have full connection to my wireless internet with full bars but it just says “network not configured” and I can’t access anything. So annoying – I’m about to dump linux and go back to windows. I have had linux for 6 months, one day had to connect to a specific network, so I typed in its name and password. Then I was done with the network so I erased that and went back to my dorm room and now all my old internet connections no longer work. And no one replies to any help request about it anymore. So frustrating
Excellent! Brilliant! Superb! Yet I use dapper, this tutorial was a lifesaver after hours of f**king around other distros.
Ben, I’m having the same problem (but I’m not giving up on Linux…)
I installed Network Manager and have rebooted multiple times, but I am not seeing the bars icon like is shown on this site. I am running Edgy Eft, is that the problem? Any help would be appreciated…
Actually, I found out my problem. If you have a wired connection, the network manager icon looks like the standard two computer monitors, pretty much just like the other network icon. I was able to click it, choose my wireless network, and continue from there.
Good morning folks;
I have tried everthing on the recommendations and I still do not have my wirless connecting.
Here is my set up.
Asus laptop with bulit in Intel Wireless Pro 2200BG.
Linksys WRT54G with WPA-TKIP enabled
Ubuntu 6.10 (Edgy Eft).
The OS see the device via LSHW and it is on logical eth1
I can not get the Network Manager to even allow me to select WPA. The options I get are Hex and Plain Ascii.
I have got all the latest WPA packages. I have created a WPASupplicant file.conf file with the recommended entries.
I have of course hardwire access but would like to be unchained from that.
Anyone got any more recomendations besides goin gback to XP?
Regards,
Michael
I tried this and it worked great! That is, until it came time to connect to the network. I cannot connect! it asks for the passkey, and it will only let me use the WEP 128 bit Passkey encryption. How do i use WPA-Personal? i have a linksys WPC45g card, it detects the network. But it cant connect. all help is appreciated.
I’m a totally newbie, so, for everyone overthere, thinks I had to learn before:
To comment out something you need to add this sign “#” in front of the line you want to comment. Example:
# This line I want to comment.
Other thing I learned was to find the NetworkManager, in order to launch the NetworkManager you have to open a terminal and write this down: nm-applet
You will see a little computer in the top of the right corner of the menu. You will also need to add this command “nm-applet” in System> Preferences> Sessions> Startup Program in order to launch the NetworkManager on the Startup.
What I didn’t figure it out yet is how to start my computer and connect to my wireless network automatically without having to enter my password everytime I log in.
This is working great for me. The only minor annoyance is that it takes longer to boot up because it has to time out trying to connect at boot-up time (before I log in and enter my keyring password). Is there any way to make it give up faster trying to connect via dhcp at start-up time (it is obviously going to fail until after I log in and enter my keyring password)?
Thanks again for the great instructions.
CTRL+C
This is the first instruction that works!! I’ve looked for that over six month and I tried different other instructions. But this one is great!! In about 10 minutes my IBM T23 was wlan-online! Thank you for this information.
Die erste Beschreibung, die wirklich problemlos funktioniert! Habe lange danach gesucht und vieles ausprobiert. Mit dieser hier war ich innerhalb von 10 Minuten im Netz.
My router wasn’t broadcasting its SSID and it wasn’t able to connect, but once I started broadcasting again it worked fine.
Thank You very much Admin!!
I now have wireless working using an intel 3945ABG card on a dell inspiron 6400 with edgy. Seems like without all those entries in the interfaces file and wpasupplicant files for eth0 eth1 etc it allows network manager to do its thing.
Previously I tried following the wiki ubuntu edgy starter guide and it mentions other networks and the keyring with network manager, but it didnt include the details you had, and it didnt work.
This solution needs to be made more widely known.
It will save a lot of people a lot of trouble.
Regards
Nick
Admin, uou are the balls! As a Linux newbie, I was getting frustrated with the difficulty in trying to get WPA recognized – this worked like a charm the first time. Like others have commented, other methods have not worked. I’m running a Toshiba M105-S3004 with Intel 3945ABG card (this is a very common card) and Ubuntu 6.10.
Thank you very much, this is the ideal solution and it worked like a charm on my girlfriends Toshiba laptop.
Thanks again!
Thanks for the outstanding information. It worked like a charm. Is there a way to set it up so that I don’t have to enter to wpa key each time?
wonder if this will work with WPA and WPA2 and with TKIP and AES encryption.
What about wifi networks that require you a certificate (such as campus networks)?
i have kubuntu 6.10 and cannot connect using wifi open access. i used the wifi assistant.i m newbie in gnu/linux
I’m struggling!
I am running edgy on an ibm x24 thinkpad and trying to connect with a RaLink RT2500 card. I have followed the guide on a fresh install but it still won’t let me select WPA under the security tab though it detects the network.
Could someone please help?
what exactly should be in the /etc/network/interfaces file?
do I need to manually set up a wpa_supplicant.conf file?
Regards
This all seems to work, except I am unable to click on the connect button, I see the connections I clcik on them I put in my wpa details, but the connect button, is unclickable!!!!!! Whats going on? No one else here seems to have had this problem, is it something simple. I have the same problem with KWiFimanager, I can see them but I am unable to connect to them, and in wifi-radar sama again, I can see but I cant touch (in wifi-radar it pretends to connect, but doesnt. I dont understand and I cant find any infomation any where to help me out
Does anyone know how to modify the options that get called for wpa_supplicant? Using the nm-applet calls it with -dd -g [global_interface]. The problem is that this interface uses (I think) ipw2200. When I try to connect to the wireless network at school, it fails. So I disable wireless in the nm-applet, then manually do sudo wpa_supplicant -D wext -i eth1 -c /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf. The key difference is that I can only get a connection here using wext. Anybody got a clue how to fix this?
I am on a dell inspiron 8600 with an internal network card, and this tutorial seemed to be what I needed to get wpa working right. But I can’t even get to the network manager, once it’s installed. Any help? Fresh install of Ubuntu Edgy, by the way.
Thank you – thanks to these clear instructions I didn’t have to waste any time at all.
My netnwork manager is telling me “Please contact your system administrator to resolve the following problem:
SIOCGIFFLAGS error: No such device”
Nevermind… I’m just an idiot. You’re awesome… this worked like a charm!!
As with many of the other comments… I lost so much time trying to set this up, and now it works… THANKS A LOT!
Thanks for the wonderful instructions! I was able to get to a point where I can ping google with DLINK DWL-G510 with WPA (Ubuntu 6.10). However, firefox still cannot connect to the internet. I went to the Networking tool that came with Ubuntu 6.10 and re-activated my network there and I briefly got the internet via firefox, but then it stopped working gradually (slower.. slower… then none). Any idea what’s going on (seems like there’s some sort of conflict)?
Thanks!
Network Manager doesn’t want me to connect to any wireless networks. I’m running Dapper on a Toshiba TE2100, with a D-Link DWL-G650+. Using the native Network setting tools, I can connect to my home network, whether I use WEP ascii, hex, passkey, or no security (haven’t bothered trying WPA yet). When I switch to Network Manager (with all the appropriate settings), it recognises the network, and I can try to connect, but it won’t get there. With no security, it stalls on “Atempting to join the wireless network ‘xyz'”. With WEP enabled, I get a “Waiting for the Network Key for the wireless network ‘xyz'”, and not much more. If at any time I switch back to the original network settings setup, all is fine and usable.
Anyone had any luck with this scenario, or have any possible suggestions?
Hi,
Two days ago I installed Linux Ubuntu on my Dell Laptop.
Everything is going all right except the Wireless connection.
I can see the wireless card I activate it but it cannot detect any network.
I just read your comment and I thank you for it.
As I just start with Linux (I start from scratch !), could you explain me how do I have to do to start to update the source list run as you mention here ?
Does it also work with the last version of Linux Ubuntu ?
Thanks A Lot
Hey,
Thanks for this- I installed Edgy on Wednesday – had WEP working out of the box, but WPA was a hassle!! Searched EVERYWHERE for answers, and ended up screwing the system so much that the wireless card disappeared.
I found your instructions this morning, and reinstalled Edgy. You should definitely forward these to Ubuntu, somehow.
I was up and running with WPA in minutes!!!
Thanks again!
Hey.
I run Ubuntu 6.10 (Edgy Eft) exclusively on a Dell Inspiron 5100 laptop. I discovered that my hardware (USB Wireless Adapter) (http://www.flashcards.co.nz/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=66&products_id=296), which apparently supports WPA, but after using parts of the info you’ve provided I am happily up and running using WEP. Perhaps I was using the wrong driver… Anywho, network-manager-gnome & network-manager were not required in the end. Thanks for the info you provided. It was most helpful. Cheers.
I have only one problem with this. On my desktop computer I have Canyon USB stick with zd1211 chip. First time I installed it with wep encription and everything worked well. But now suddenly my wireless device changed name into eth1 (before wlan0) and network manager don’t recognize wireless network adapter. I need it because I use WAP-AES protection on router. Thank you very much for any reply.
Many thx. Now it works with WPA2 (before only WPA)
Intel Pro Wireless Lan 2100 3B mini pci adapter and kubuntu 6.10
But how can I safe my key?
Great you got WPA working. I followed your instruction to the letter but I seem to have a very stupid problem: I can’t find the “network-manager icon”. Where should this icon be located?
icon located next to time display in system panel
I did follow step by step this and i was able to get my wireless manager working. It did actually find my home netrwork but i wasn’t able to create WEB key between my laptop and basestation.
So I did playing around and trying to get my WEB key working. I change settings and tryed different setup from UI. I also bootup system couple times and after this my wireless network didn’t work anymore at all. I found out that reason behind this was that some module in this ubuntu 6.10 is rewriting /etc/internet/interfaces file and added there extra lines for eth1 (wlan in mycase) after removing that line and leaving only lo setup there + restarting my comp everything seem to be working well with my T43.
Many thanks for creator for this how to!
Hi
I use two notebooks at home both of which I connect to the internet via a Linksys wireless router. Upon booting, neither notebook connects but the icon (the blue bar graph) shows that I’m connected. To connect, I must disconnect then reconnect by clicking on Network Manager and selecting my wireless network. After this I connect without a problem. I’m using edgyd with gnome network manager.
Why does it not connect upon booting and what must I do to enable this? Is there a way to connect without having to use a password each time?
Thanks
orian
Thanks
orian
WOW!!! I hafta do all of this incomprehensible stuff to get on my home wireless network? Oh, well, back to Windows.
Someday, Linux may be ready for the real world.
This worked without a hitch. I’ve spent hours looking for something this simple. Ubuntu now replaces what was one a Window XP installation and with this wireless fix i’m well on my way to now having to buy Vista. Thanks.
Followed this how-to. My Sony VAIO VGN-FS630/W now works on my Linksys speedbooster router….FINALLY.
Hello. I used this to scan for available networks for my USB Wifi stick:
“iwlist rausb0 scan”
Thanks for the great guide! 🙂
My gratitude cannot be understated! This is the most user-friendly, simple and straightforward guide to setting up WPA2 wireless access that I’ve come across! Furthermore, it not only got me connected but pointing me to network-manager makes switching networks extremely easy. I think I’m about as excited at this moment as I would be if the Redskins were to (finally) make it to the Super Bowl.