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diff --git a/abs/core-testing/wlan-ng26-utils-svn/tmp/trunk/FAQ b/abs/core-testing/wlan-ng26-utils-svn/tmp/trunk/FAQ deleted file mode 100644 index 83358fd..0000000 --- a/abs/core-testing/wlan-ng26-utils-svn/tmp/trunk/FAQ +++ /dev/null @@ -1,468 +0,0 @@ -********************** Linux-wlan-ng FAQ ************************** -For additions, corrections, and clarifications, send mail to -solomon@linux-wlan.com with FAQ in the subject. -******************************************************************* - -Q: When will linux-wlan-ng be merged into the mainline kernel? - - Short answer: Never. - - First, the linux-netdev people will soundly reject this driver. - I don't begrudge them for this; indeed in their position I'd do - exactly the same. It's a sound engineering decision. - - linux-wlan-ng is obselete, and effort spent fixing it is better - spent elsewhere. You can't even buy the hardware any longer. - - The original design for linux-wlan-ng was to separate the 802.11 - stack from the actual hardware driver. This added a lot of - complexity, but would greatly ease the pain of supporitng - multiple hardware types. Unfortunately, the implementation was - turned out to be somewhat flawed, and hardware manufaturers went - away from the thick-mac model, leaving linux-wlan-ng overly - complex for what it did. - - (Ironically, the linux kernel is adopting a similar - separation model, but it is a long way off from being ready) - - So why not rewrite linux-wlan-ng to be more suitable, the - enterprising reader may ask? - - The kernel already has two drivers for prism2 (cs/pci/plx) - hardware -- hostap and orinoco. linux-wlan-ng basically - has three features not present in kernel drivers: - - 1) USB support - 2) nearly complete implemettion of the 802.11 MIB/MLME - 3) Firmware-based AP support - - (3) requires an expensive license that isn't even available any - longer, as the hostap mode works far better -- and is already - supported by in-kernel drivers. - - (2) would need to be removed or completely rewritten in order to - be merged, as it does not fit within existing kernel APIs, and - it would be effectively merging new kernel APIs. - - (1) Is the only truly unique thing that linux-wlan-ng does that - is generally needed any more. - - To merge it into the kernel, we'd need to strip out (2), which - would necessitate a complete rewrite -- to the point where - writing a new driver from scratch is easier. - - Basically, it would take far less effort to add USB - support to the in-kernel drivers than it would to make - linux-wlan-ng acceptable to be merged. - - In other words, the short answer is: Never. - -Q: It doesn't work/compile/sing/dance! - - First, make sure you're using the latest linux-wlan-ng release - from http://www.linux-wlan-ng.org. New releases are infrequent, - but tthey happen for a reason. - - If you are using the latest release, you may want to obtain the - latest development sources via subversion: - - svn co svn://svn.shaftnet.org/linux-wlan-ng/trunk - - Questions and problems with the developement code should be sent - to the development mailing list, at: - - linux-wlan-devel@lists.linux-wlan.com - -Q: What devices does the linux-wlan-ng driver support? - - Currently, the linux-wlan-ng driver supports the Intersil - Prism2/2.5/3 chipsets. These chipsets are used in a wide - variety of PCMCIA, PCI, and USB products. If it has a Prism - chip in it, linux-wlan-ng should support it. - -Q: Will linux-wlan-ng support some feature or funkiness in - the <pick one> Linux distribution? - - Our development target always consists of stock kernels from - kernel.org and stock pcmcia_cs. If a given distribution - chooses to do something funky, we rely on users of that - distribution to contribute patches to deal with their - funkiness. - - The quickest way to get some action on this kind of item is to - communicate with any users of the same distribution that you - can find on the linux-wlan-[devel|user] lists about working up - a patch. If it's reasonably sane and doesn't break things for - our development environment or for other distributions, we'll - be more than happy to roll that patch into the next release. - -Q: What does "resultcode=implementation_failure" mean? - - Complicated Answer: - Each command that can be issued with wlanctl-ng returns a status - called "resultcode". Resultcode is something that we picked up - from the 802.11 MLME definition. In the standard, resultcode - is an enumeration with a fixed set of values. To be able to - report failures that a driver detects that are outside the - context of the 802.11 standard set of resultcode values, we - invented the "implementation_failure" value. - - Simple Answer: - Go look in your kernel log for more detailed error information. - -Q: I'm trying to use the HostAP/orinoco/aironet/wvlan driver and it - won't work! - - That has nothing to do with the linux-wlan-ng driver. Go ask - those responsible for those drivers. - -Q: Can I get Debian packages of linux-wlan-ng? - -A: Packages of linux-wlan-ng are now available in the Debian stable - tree. - -Q: Where do I find some RPMS for linux-wlan-ng? The ones on - the ftp are dreadfully out of date! - - http://prism2.unixguru.raleigh.nc.us/ - - (Maintained by Tim Miller) - -Q: I installed the RPMs/compiled the driver and installed it and it - won't work when I try to run 'ifup wlan0' or whatnot. - - First, ensure you're running the most up-to-date version of - the driver. Many problems have been fixed in newer releases. - - 802.11 wireless networks are much more complex than wired - ethernet networks. They require much more configuration than - an ip address. If you are using pcmcia, edit the file - /etc/pcmcia/wlan-ng.opts to set the network parameters. For - PCI, PLX, or USB adapters, you need to edit /etc/wlan.conf. - - You also need to make sure you have the correct settings in - /etc/modules.conf (alias wlan0 prism2_usb). - - Might we suggest you read the README file? - -Q: When I try to load the driver, I get a whole bunch of errors about - unresolved symbols. - - The running kernel does not match the kernel the driver was - compiled for. If you downloaded a RPM, make sure you - downloaded the correct version for your kernel. This should not - happen if you compiled the driver from source -- if it does, the - kernel configuration you compiled against does not match the - running kernel. Probably a screwed-up distro kernel. - -Q: I have a DWL-520 and it won't work! - - The DWL-520 claims to require a PCI 2.2 compliant motherboard. - Only fairly new machines support this. Yes, the box lies. :) - Check the documentation for your system and/or motherboard to see if - it is PCI 2.2 compliant. - - NOTE: We have some reports of the DWL-520 working on PCI 2.1 - motherboards; your mileage may vary. See the following URL: - - http://www.personaltelco.net/index.cgi/DlinkDwl520 - - NOTE: The Linksys WMP11 v2.7 is NOT prism-based, and - thus not supported by this driver. The Actiontec PCI board is - still known to be prism based; you may want to try that instead. - -Q: All I see is "Tx attempt prior to association, frame dropped" - - You are not associated with an access point. Double-check the - settings in /etc/wlan.conf (USB, PCI, PLX) or /etc/pcmcia/wlan-ng.opts - (for PCMCIA users). If all of these settings are correct (you - did check with your admin, right?) make sure the access point - doesn't have a MAC filter installed or has different WEP settings. - - If all of this is verified correct, and are using a PCMCIA - card, try setting the "irq_mode=0" option. See the - documentaiton in the pcmcia-cs sources. - -Q: I installed the modules, performed a 'wlanctl-ng wlan0 lnxreq_autojoin' - command, and it still won't work! - - You did read the README, didn't you? You need to perform a - "wlanctl-ng wlan0 lnxreq_ifstate ifstate=enable" in order to - torn on the radio. The pcmcia scripts and the /etc/init.d/wlan - script do this for you. - -Q: I have a XXX USB 802.11b device, will it work with this driver? - - Most 802.11b USB devices use the ATMEL AT76C503A chipset, which - is not supported by the linux-wlan-ng project. However, there - are some prism2.5-based USB adapters, most notably the Linksys - WUSB v2.5. The other versions (1.0, 2.6, 3.0) are based on - ATMEL chipsets. Another supported USB device is the Actiontec - 802UI3. - -Q: My prism2.5-based USB adapter won't work! - - An excellent guide can be found at: - - http://www.fuw.edu.pl/~pliszka/hints/prism2.html - -Q: My prism2.5-based USB adapter won't come up if it's plugged in at boot! - - Thanks to buggy firmware, it is often necessary to perform a - device reset on initialization. You can perform this by adding - "options prism2_usb prism2_doreset=1" in your /etc/modules.conf - - Intersil has released Primary firmware 1.1.2, which seems to - have resolved this problem, at least on our test machines. - -Q: My PC crashes when the USB device is plugged in! - - This is a result of the port reset necessitated by buggy firmware. - - You are probably using the 'usb-uhci' driver with an intel - chipset. Unfortunately, the crashes happen deep within the USB - core, so there's nothing the linux-wlan-ng driver can do. - - In the mean time, try using the 'uhci' host controller driver - instead ("alias usb-controller uhci" in /etc/modules.conf), or - plug the USB device into a hub. - - Linux kernel 2.4.19 is known to improve the situation somewhat, - but the right way to fix it is to turn off the port reset - (options prism2_usb prism2_doreset=0). The current firmware - from Intersil alleviates the need to perform the reset. - - UPDATE: if you're using linux-wlan-ng 0.2.1-pre6 or newer and - kernel < 2.4.22-pre, the 'uhci' driver will NOT work without a - kernel patch! See: - - http://lists.linux-wlan.com/pipermail/linux-wlan-devel/2003-May/002369.html - -Q: How come I can't transmit when in monitor mode? - - You can't. It's a fundamental "feature" of the hardware. - -Q: How come the /proc/net/wireless info isn't updated when in monitor mode? - - The definition of "signal quality" refers to the quality of the - link to the associated access point. When you're in monitor - mode, you're not associated, so this information is by defintion - irrelevant. - - And regardless, the hardware doesn't update the registers we poll to - obtain this information while in monitor mode. - -Q: What do the various monitor mode options do? - - enable=[true/false] Turn it on and off. required. - channel=[1-14] Sniff channel. required. - prismheader=[true/false] Optionally preppend a special - radio header on the packet. - Defaults to off. - keepwepflags=[true/false] If you had WEP configured correctly - the card will perform WEP decoding. - Defaults to off. - stripfcs=[true/false] When true, the 802.11 FCS is not - stripped from incoming packets. - Defaults off. - truncate=[number] Truncates the captured frame. - -Q: How come iwconfig/iwspy/[random other wireless tool] doesn't work? - - linux-wlan-ng only supports a subset of the wireless - extensions; generally read-only things. However, you won't - need any of those tools as wlan-ng comes with its own set of - tools that closely mirror the 802.11 spec. Have a look - through the documentation and supplied scripts. - - That said, if more complete (ie read/write) wireless extension - support is really important to you, you're more than welcome to - implement it and submit a patch. - - As of 0.1.16-pre1, the wireless extension plumbing has been - re-written, and further support is much easier now. And many - more bits are hooked up now than before. - -Q: How do I know exactly what prism variant is on my card? - - When you load the driver, you see a line which reads like: - - ident: nic h/w id=0x8008 1.0.0 - - 1.0.0 is the hardware revision. Below is a (partial) list of IDs. - - 0x8003, 0x8008 : Prism2 PCMCIA - - 0x800b, 0x800c : Prism2.5 PCMCIA - 0x8012, 0x8013 : Prism2.5 PCI - 0x801a, 0x801b : Prism3 PCMCIA - 0x8021, 0x8022 : Prism3 PCI - - 0x800f, 0x8010 : Prism2.5 USB (3863) - 0x801e, 0x801f : Prism2.5 USB (3861B) - 0x8025, 0x8026 : Prism3 USB - -Q: How do I know what firmware my card has? - - After the driver is loaded and brought into ifstate=enable, you - will see the following lines in the kernel log: (eg dmesg |grep ident) - - ident: pri f/w: id=0x15 0.3.0 - ident: sta f/w: id=0x1f 1.7.1 - - In this case, the card has primary firmware 0.3.0 and secondary - firmware 1.7.1. - - Or, if you are using 0.2.1-pre17 or newer: - 'cat /proc/net/p80211/wlan0/nsd' with the card running. - -Q: How can I update my firmware under Linux? - - Use the 'prism2dl' utility. While it does its utmost to ensure - you don't fry your card, use it at your own risk. Even the - Intersil-supplied tools fail occasionally. - -Q: Where can I download updated firmware for my Prism2/2.5/3-based card? - - As of linux-wlan-ng 0.2.1-pre21, the ram download firmware for - all supported card types is bundled with the driver. These - images cannot be flashed. - - A general FAQ on firmware updating is here: - http://linux.junsun.net/intersil-prism - - It includes links to some sites with firmware images. - - We strongly recommend against flashing a new image, instead one - should use the ram-download images that are loaded when the - driver starts, much like the Windows drivers do. - - See the instructions below for getting this to work. - -Q: What's this about "ram downloading"? - - This means the driver loads up a firmware images directly into - card RAM, instead of using the firmware stored in the card's - flash ROM. This lets us ensure we are using the lastest available - code without risking ruining the hardware due to a bad flashing. - - linux-wlan-ng will automatically perform a RAM download if you have - the necessary firmware images. - -Q: Okay, I have new ram download firmware images, where do I put them? - - copy the *hex files into linux-wlan-ng-XXXX/src/prism2/ - then build and install the driver per usual. - -Q: Can I use my 802.11b card as an AP under Linux? - - Yes, and in the true free software fashion, there are several - ways: - - a) linux-wlan-ng supports AP operation by using special tertiary - firmware on prism devices. This firmware is not generally - available, however. Contact Intersil for licensing terms. - - b) The Prism2 HostAP driver uses the special HostAP mode of the - prism chipsets. http://people.ssh.com/jkm/Prism2/ - -Q: I have a PCI adapter, and upon resuming from a suspend, the device is not - responsive. - - Much like you need to run some commands to bring the card to life - when the PC is first booted, you also need to perform similar - steps when the card comes out of suspend. Run '/etc/init.d/wlan start' - and all should be well. - - You'll need to be running 0.1.15-pre3 or newer for this to work - properly. - - The prism2.5/3 chipsets do not support PCI power management, so - this is the best we can realistically do. - -Q: I have a Linksys WMP11, and under moderate to heavy traffic, I get - errors like "unknown port number" and "invalid frame type" - - Make sure you're using the latest firmware avaliable from - Linksys's web site. According to the firmware release notes: - - "Changes were made to prevent erroneous data from being - transferred over the PCI bus" - - Note that this problem has also beeen confirmed on the D-Link - DWL-520. You will need firmware 1.3.5 or newer to resolve this. - -Q: I have a D-Link DWL-650/650+/520+ card, why doesn't it work with - this driver? - - The DWL-650 comes in at least three flavors; older ones have grey - antennae, with no revision number on the back. - Second-generation has a black antenna and the back reads - "H/W J3 F/W 1.x.x". Both of these will work. The third- - generation, with a grey antenna, has "H/W A1, F/W x.x", and - will NOT work; It has the same hardware as the "plus" series - of cards. - - The "plus" series of cards from D-Link use the Texas Instruments - ACX100/TNETW1100 chipset. TI has not been forthcoming with - programming information. Politely ask TI and D-Link for Linux - drivers and/or docs. - - We've been told that TI will be releasing binary-only Linux - drivers sometime in December. In the mean time, return the - card and buy one that works with Linux. - -Q: I have a Linksys WMP11 v2.7 card; why doesn't it work with this driver? - - Linksys, in their grand tradition, likes to introduce completely - new cards but re-use the model number. The WMP11 v2.7 utilizes the - Broadcomm chipset, and is not supported by linux-wlan-ng. Politely - ask Linksys and/or Broadcomm for Linux drivers and/or docs. - -Q: What other resources are there for Wireless LANs under Linux? - - http://www.fuw.edu.pl/~pliszka/hints/wireless.html - - http://www.hpl.hp.com/personal/Jean_Tourrilhes/Linux/Linux.Wireless.drivers.html - -Q: I'm using RedHat 8.x+ (or Fedora Core), and I get this error when - trying to ifup wlan0: - - Error for wireless request "Set Encode" (8B2A) : - SET failed on device wlan0 ; Function not implemented. - Error for wireless request "Set ESSID" (8B1A) : - SET failed on device wlan0 ; Function not implemented. - - - You can safely ignore this; it is there because linux-wlan-ng - does not currently use the wireless extension commands for - configuration. - -Q: When the prism2_cs module loads, I see the message "RequestIRQ: - Resource in use" and the load fails! What's going on? - - Is your card a 16-bit PCMCIA card? If it is, you may need to - recompile your kernel with ISA bus support enabled (CONFIG_ISA=y). - The PCMCIA core uses ISA bus support to help determine what IRQs - are available for the card. Without it, the PCMCIA core may not be - able to select an IRQ. - -Q: After installing linux-wlan-ng on my RedHat 9 system, pcmcia no - longer works! - - This is due to a bug in the RedHat 9 pcmcia startup scripts. - On or about line 105 in /etc/init.d/pcmcia, remove all of the - '.o' suffixes on the modprobe command lines. It should read - something like this: - - if [ -d $PC ] ; then - echo -n " modules" - /sbin/modprobe pcmcia_core $CORE_OPTS - /sbin/modprobe $PCIC $PCIC_OPTS - /sbin/modprobe ds - elif [ -d $KD ] ; then - /sbin/modprobe pcmcia_core - /sbin/modprobe $PCIC - /sbin/modprobe ds - else - |