wiconfig(8) - NetBSD Manual Pages

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WICONFIG(8)             NetBSD System Manager's Manual             WICONFIG(8)


NAME

     wiconfig - configure WaveLAN/IEEE devices


SYNOPSIS

     wiconfig interface [-Do] [-A 1|2] [-a access point density]
              [-d max data length] [-M 0|1] [-m MAC address] [-R 1|3]
              [-r RTS threshold] [-s station name]


DESCRIPTION

     The wiconfig command controls the operation of WaveLAN/IEEE wireless net-
     working devices via the wi(4) and awi(4) drivers.  The wiconfig command
     can also be used to view the current settings of these parameters and to
     dump out the values of the card's statistics counters.

     Most of the parameters that can be changed relate to the IEEE 802.11 pro-
     tocol which the WaveLAN implements.  This includes the station name,
     whether the station is operating in ad-hoc (point to point) or BSS (ser-
     vice set) mode, and the network name of a service set to join (IBSS) if
     BSS mode is enabled.

     The interface argument given to wiconfig should be the logical interface
     name associated with the WaveLAN/IEEE device (e.g., wi0, wi1, etc.).


OPTIONS

     With no extra options, wiconfig will display the current settings of the
     specified WaveLAN/IEEE interface.

     The options are as follows:

     -A 1|2      Set the authentication type for a specified interface.  Per-
                 mitted values are 1 (Open System Authentication) or 2 (Shared
                 Key Authentication).  The default is 1.

     -a access_point_density
                 Specify the access point density for a given interface.
                 Legal values are 1 (low), 2 (medium), and 3 (high).  This
                 setting influences some of the radio modem threshold set-
                 tings.

     -D          This forces the driver to initiate one round of access point
                 scanning.  All of the access points found are displayed.

     -d max_data_length
                 Set the maximum receive and transmit frame size for a speci-
                 fied interface.  The max data length can be any number from
                 256 to 2346.  The default is 2304.

     -M 0|1      Enable or disable "microwave oven robustness" on a given
                 interface.  This should only be used if needed.

                 In cases of slow performance where there is a good quality
                 signal but also high levels of noise (i.e., the signal to
                 noise ratio is bad but the signal strength is good), and
                 there is an operating microwave oven in or near the signal
                 path, this option may be of use.

                 In bad signal-to-noise conditions, the link layer will switch
                 to lower transmit rates.  However at lower transmit rates,
                 individual frames take longer to transmit, making them more
                 vulnerable to bursty noise.  The option works by enabling
                 data fragmentation in the link layer as the transmit speed
                 lowers in an attempt to shorten the transmit time of each
                 frame so that individual frames are more likely to be trans-
                 mitted without error.

                 Note that this does not impact the visible MTU of the link.

     -m MAC address
                 Set the station address for the specified interface.  The MAC
                 address is specified as a series of six hexadecimal values
                 separated by colons, e.g., 00:60:1d:12:34:56.  This programs
                 the new address into the card and updates the interface as
                 well.

     -o          Print out the statistics counters instead of the card set-
                 tings.  Note that, however, the statistics will only be
                 updated every minute or so.

     -R 1|3      Enable or disable roaming function on a given interface.  The
                 legal values are 1 (Roaming handled by firmware) and 3 (Roam-
                 ing Disabled).  The default is 1.

     -r RTS threshold
                 Set the RTS/CTS threshold for a given interface.  This con-
                 trols the number of bytes used for the RTS/CTS handshake
                 boundary.  The RTS threshold can be any value between 0 and
                 2347.  The default is 2347, which indicates RTS/CTS mechanism
                 never to be used.

     -s station name
                 Sets the station name for the specified interface.  The
                 station name is used for diagnostic purposes.  The Lucent
                 WaveMANAGER software can poll the names of remote hosts.


SEE ALSO

     awi(4), wi(4), ifconfig(8)


HISTORY

     The wiconfig command first appeared in FreeBSD 3.0, as wicontrol.  It was
     added to NetBSD 1.5 under its present name.


AUTHORS

     The wiconfig command was written by Bill Paul <wpaul@ctr.columbia.edu>.

NetBSD 2.0                      August 25, 2004                     NetBSD 2.0