GNOME Bugzilla – Bug 550610
No static addressing for wireless connections
Last modified: 2009-11-24 06:30:28 UTC
The present NetworkManager (0.7.0) provided with Fedora 9 honors configuration files that specify static addresses for wired connections, but not for wireless connections. One problem is how to associate a wireless connection with a particular configuration file. I suggest an association based on either ESSID or interface. Wireless configurations could specify one of several ESSIDs, and that would trigger the desired configuration. Another way would be to specify an interface in the configuration file, and that would do the same. The first seems preferable, because it offers more flexibility. This feature would allow all-wireless networks to have static addressing, essential for peer-to-peer communications. Even ad-hoc connections could be statically addressed. Thanks for considering this feature.
Which SVN version are you running on your machine? I'm pretty sure static addressing _is_ supported for wireless via ifcfg files. Can you paste your ifcfg file in here?
> Which SVN version are you running on your machine? 0.7.0-0.9.4.svn3675 > I'm pretty sure static addressing _is_ supported for wireless via ifcfg files. Okay, that's good news. > Can you paste your ifcfg file in here? Here's an example (file is named "ifcfg-wlan0"): DEVICE=wlan0 ONBOOT=no BOOTPROTO=none HWADDR= NETMASK=255.255.255.0 GATEWAY=192.168.0.36 DHCP_HOSTNAME= IPADDR=192.168.0.1 DOMAIN= TYPE=Wireless ESSID=pl-wireless-b CHANNEL=1 MODE=Managed RATE=Auto USERCTL=yes IPV6INIT=no PEERDNS=yes DNS1=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx DNS2=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx DNS3=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx NM_CONTROLLED=yes For a connection to a WAP named "pl-wireless-b" using interface wlan0, no static addressing. If I knew how NetworkManager associates a particular wireless connection with a particular configuration file, I might discover I'm doing something wrong. Oh, by the way, I'm running Fedora 9.
Can you try latest Fedora 9 updates (svn4027 and later)? Pretty sure this has been fixed.
I have revisited this issue, and it seems that NetworkManager (0.7.0-0.11.svn4229) is still not using the information in the ifcfg- files to establish a static IP address (e.g. it always uses DHCP) for wireless connections. But again, documentation is sketchy, and it is not obvious how to associate a particular configuration with a particular wireless connection -- I could be proceeding in a way that cannot produce the result I expect. I have tried a few variations on the configuration content posted earlier, such as specifying "BOOTPROTO=static", renaming the configuration file to match the wireless EDID, things like that, but to no effect. I want to emphasize I am not sure this is an issue with NetworkManager as opposed to an issue with the user.
Could you try the updates at: https://admin.fedoraproject.org/updates/NetworkManager-0.7.0-0.12.svn4326.fc9,NetworkManager-vpnc-0.7.0-0.11.svn4326.fc9,NetworkManager-openvpn-0.7.0-16.svn4326.fc9,NetworkManager-pptp-0.7.0-0.12.svn4326.fc9 which will soon be pushed to the F-9 testing repos? They contain some fixes for various wired drivers which may help your problem. Can you also _re_-confirm that none of your ifcfg files contain NM_CONTROLLED=no?
I'm sorry, but I've just installed Fedora 10 and I don't want to upset the applecart by reverting to some of the Fedora 9 Gnome libraries required to support the GUI applet's operation. (who knows where that might lead?) About the NM_CONTROLLED value in the ifcfg-* files, it is always "yes" for my tests, although I've tried it both ways, not wishing to leave any stone unturned. I guess I'll have to wait to see what transpires in Fedora 10. Sorry about this.
This shouldn't be a problem any more with Fedora 10 + updates; can you confirm? You may need to use the builds in updates-testing. It seems to work for me. Note that WPA isn't supported yet by ifcfg files in general, which is why NM doesn't support WPA from ifcfg files yet.
Pretty sure this is long fixed. Please file a bug in RH bugzilla if it's not. Thanks! (NM has supported WPA in ifcfg files for a while now)