WEP howto ????

[nunopedrosilva]

hi all, I've used to use wireless without any encryption, only mac filter... Now I put WEP security, but I don't know how to configure it...
anyone can help?

[anello]

http://gentoo-wiki.com/HOWTO_Wireless_Configuration_and_Startup
_________________
Antonino Catinello | http://catinello.eu

[n3bul4]

Hello,

lets assume your wireless device is eth1 (look at the output of iwconfig)
and the ssid with WEP you want to connect has the name TEST

open up /etc/conf.d/wireless with your favourite editor.
If the file does not exist create it...

Write this into the file:
essid_eth1="TEST"
key_TEST="1D:2F:3C:4D:5E enc open" #for a hex key
key_TEST="s:password enc open" #for a plaintext key

for further configuration issues look at /etc/conf.d/wireless.example

if you don't have the /etc/init.d/net.eth1 startscript you have to create a symlink
ln -s /etc/init.d/net.lo /etc/init.d/net.eth1
than you can start/stop/restart the device....
The name of the file must have the same ending as the name of your device so change accordingly.
If f.e. your device is wlan0 than is would look like this: ln -s /etc/init.d/net.lo /etc/init.d/net.wlan0

hope that helps....

[nunopedrosilva]

well I got that. but there's one thing I don't know...
my essid should be... hell's gate
how do I write that??

[n3bul4]

OK I see....
Look at /etc/conf.d/wireless.example
ESSIDS with special characters like space have to be
escaped....I think with \

greetz

[nunopedrosilva]

Well I got this in my wireless file...


essid_eth1="Hell"
key_Hell="my key here enc open" #for a hex key


I tried putting : for every pair of letter, like mac address, but it keeps trying to get ip...

something must not be right... I emerged wpa_supplicant, but I didn't even knew what it was for, so I removed it... I gess wpa != wep right?

[n3bul4]

WEP != WPA that is right....
WPA is a better encryption schema than WEP.

It depends on your AP what you have to use. This can be configured at the AP management system.....
When the AP is configured to use a WPA key you have to install wpa_supplicant....
If your AP is configured with WEP than you don't have to use WPA and can savely unmerge the wpa_supplicant package....
Notice that WEP is a very unsecure encryption schema and can be cracked within 10-15 minutes (asuming a 64bit key)
or about 1-3 hours when using a 128bit key so eigther you use a 256bit key or you change your encryption to WPA.
WPA would be recommended......

How do you mean it keeps trying to get an ip?

There are to ways to connect to an AP:

.) dhcp (automatic asignment of the ip)
.) manual configuration by giving the exact ip to use


for dhcp a line in /etc/conf.d/wireless would be enought...like this (because dhcp is the default method):

[n3bul4]

You could also do the whole thing manually with iwconfig:

if you don't have the command iwconfig than emerge net-wireless/wireless-tools


Otherwise do something like this:
Let's asume that /dev/eth1 is your wireless card...

[nunopedrosilva]

I did this last one, before you post
I created a script to do that whenever I want wireless. Thanks a lot...

Is it possible to create a init script to put at boot time?

[n3bul4]

Hello,

cool that you got it to work.....
If you want a script to start your wireless automatically do the following:

[zagman76]

ok - i have a dumb question:

i have eth0 (LAN) symbolically linked to net.lo already - can I add eth1 as described above? Will that mess up my LAN connection?

[n3bul4]

Sure you can....you could add hundred of links to net.lo
Thats the way you create a startscript for a new device.....


greetz