Knoppix Documentation Wiki - User contributions [en]

User talk:Eadz

2008-09-29T06:34:19Z

Rosuav: New section: Request for admin action

Could you write you mail-adress here? I would like to edit your php-script to convert phpwiki to mediawiki - thx samikira

== Request for admin action ==

Hi! Came along from Google and began footling about... You're the most active Sysop and also the Bureaucrat, so I guess you're probably the person to ask. The page [[W/index.php]] is definite spam, and the title's deliberately confusing. I've blanked it, removing the spam links, but it could probably do with being removed completely - at the moment, the history (which is all crawlable) still contains all the links, so Google PageRank is still going to be affected by it.

Thanks!

Chris Angelico, aka [[User:Rosuav|Rosuav]] 07:34, 29 September 2008 (BST)

Wireless Networking

2008-09-29T06:24:03Z

Rosuav: Reverting to last good version

==== General Information On Wireless Card Setup Under Knoppix ====

This is a stub for this section, to be added shortly
NdisWrapper: This seems to be a way many people are useing windows drivers to run their wireless equipment. This is done to allow Linux to talk through a wrapper that emulates windows calls to the windows driver. It asks for the driver X.inf and maby X.sys Then 2 other things ...id and wep key.

If instructions of what to enter into these fileds and where to find it and what version of knoppix the GUI interface being used is found and maby a genaric BA shell interface for doing this.

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Short and sweet (but incomplete)

ndiswrapper -l (lists all the present drivers)

ndiswrapper -e (do for each driver)

modprobe -r ndiswrapper (unload old module)

nsidwrapper -i mywindowswirelessdriver.inf

ndiswrapper -l (my.. is there only one there? :)

modprobe ndiswrapper

dmesg | grep ndis

iwconfig (Gottcha!!! wlan0)

ifconfig wlan0 etcetc

iwconfig wlan0 etcetc

dhclient wlan0

ping google.com

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My two bits of information added here could be edited for readability but
I definitely believe it will help people (it helped me!)...

Here's one example of how to use ndiswrapper (http://ndiswrapper.sourceforge.net[http://ndiswrapper.sourceforge.net])
READ the Install directions (at least twice) until all the commands and the REASON
you're typing these things in makes sense because you may have to modify it for your
particular situation (as I had to do) AND read Troubleshooting if you have troubles.

Note: My wireless usb hardware was listed under List of cards known to work, this may
make redundant the section below.

Copy the whole folder (you definitely need the .inf and the .sys file but
maybe .cat or .dll helps too) with the windows drivers (e.g. DRIVERS containing
DELLNIC.inf and PRISMA02.sys)

UHHH... check that, you actually first need the drivers for the Motherboard
USB Controller (ah Knoppix how could you let me down? :)
in this case: Silicon Integrated Systems Winxp/2k drivers for usb 2.0

Go into root shell (not just terminal console)

Type 'lspci' at the prompt to see a listing of USB bridges (the way usb devices
get to the motherboard). Look for your USB controller
(e.g. 00:03.0 USB Controller: Silicon Integrated Systems [SiS] uSB 1.0 Controller (rev 0f) etc.

type: ndiswrapper -i filename.inf

Hint you might have to type

ndiswrapper -i /home/knoppix/tmp/DRIVER/DELLNIC.inf

or first I learned I had to install

ndiswrapper -i /home/knoppix/tmp/SiS/SISUSB2X.INF

and

ndiswrapper -i /home/knoppix/tmp/SiS/USB2X.INF

I then tested it:

ndiswrapper -l

which showed me 'driver invalid' (But the USB was finally ok) so I had to remove the old one
(which also included browsing with root privileges to /etc/ndiswrapper and deleting the dellnic
folder)

ndiswrapper -r /home/knoppix/tmp/DRIVER/DELLNIC.inf

then again type (actually for insurance I rename DELLNIC.INF to dellnic.inf):

ndiswrapper -i /home/knoppix/tmp/DRIVER/dellnic.inf

then finally:

ndiswrapper -l

showed me
dellnic: driver installed
device (413C:8104) present

I tested it and

modprobe ndiswrapper

came up without any response (before it gave me some crappy error)
but futher investigation

dmesg | grep ndis

gives me ndiswrapper version 1.32 loaded...
ndiswrapper: driver dellnic (...) loaded
usbcore: registered new interface driver ndiswrapper

Now that we've installed the hardware we've got to get the software working...

iwconfig

shows me wlan0 is already setup!
Notice the interface name is wlan0, so you should issue the following command to associate to your

nearest (unprotected, unencrypted) access point:

dhclient wlan0

BUT in my case I need to start WPA Supplicant (necessary to use WirelessEncryptionProtocol)?
At least Knoppix button -> KNOPPIX menu -> Network/Internet -> Wireless LAN
Kwlan does a lot of the work but is incomplete - it doesn't have a quick gui to configure the WEP and everything so...

iwconfig

shows me how my wireless is working (IEEE, ESSID, Mode, Freq, AccessPoint, etc.)
but it doesn't configure anything by itself... instead:

wlcardconfig

starts a set of gui prompts which will configure my wireless:
ESSID (network name/id) type in name
NWID (cell identifier?) left blank
Mode left blank (defaults to Managed)
channel number left blank (defaults to auto)
frequency left blank
encryption key . . . . . .

additional paramaters?
iwspy
iwpriv

Which is close - but now I need an IP (since my AccessPoint does DHCP),

pump -i wlan0

gives me an ip address! All finished.

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'''The below sections are specific information on specific make and models of Wireless Networking Adapters and information we currently have on if they are supported in Knoppix or not. Please add your results with your card to the list, and please try to keep the list in alphabetical order. Please do not post questions about wireless adapters here, those should be submitted in the Networking Forum.'''

==== Belkin ====

===== Belkin 802.11b 11Mbps PCMCIA card F5D6020 =====

This 802.11b pcmcia card (pc card) was detected by Knoppix 3.7 (maybe by prior versions too), but I could not get it to operate properly. Starting with Knoppix 3.8.1 it was detected and worked perfectly. ndiswrapper is not needed. My card is marked ver. 2101 on the box. If your card is not ver. 2101 it may or may not use a different chip set.

==== D-Link ====

Here is a link to a D-link page that claims to tell you which D-link cards have "open source" drivers and which do not.

http://support.dlink.com/faq/view.asp?prod_id=357&question=General%20Wireless

However, it is worth mentioning that in most or all of these cases the drivers are not really "open source", they are precompiled modules that the source code is not available for. And in some cases they are insanely bloated, the "driver" for my card is about 2 megs in size just for a driver! Note that not all of these cards are supported by Knoppix and it is extremely unlikely that even if the license permits it that a sepcific card driver will ever be included in Knoppix if it is several megs in size.

===== D-Link DWL-650 =====

This is a very common and inexpensive 801.11b pcmcai card offered by D-link. Unfortunately, D-Link has actually released a number of different versions of this card that use completely different chipsets from different intigrated circuit manufacturers all under the same model number. The D-Link website can be used to identify which version you have, but the version number may not be marked on the outside of the box when you buy this card, so it may be a problem to find one that works under Knoppix.

There are reports that some versions of this card are detected and work under Knoppix. See this thread in the forums: http://www.knoppix.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=19759&highlight=dwl650
However, I have two DWL-650 cards and so far they have not been detected by Knoppix.

===== D-Link DWL-G650 =====

This section detais how to get this card working with WPA-PSK enabled. All you need to do is follow three easy steps.

1. Configure wpa_supplicant by creating a configuration file. The configuration file should like something like this

network={
ssid="qshot"
scan_ssid=0
proto=WPA
key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
psk=20d57f08127c079f599df23a13513c8708028b73d49860c9b3b7d00b3a8c1a96
}

The psk variable value is obtained by running the command:

wpa_passphrase <ssid> <passphrase>

2. Next start wpa_supplicant by invoking the following command:

wpa_supplicant -D madwifi -c wpa_supplicant.conf -i ath0

By runnning this command you are able to authenticate with your wireless router.

3. After you have authenticated the final step is to obtain an IP address via DHCP. The command to use is:

pump -i ath0

At this point you can type ''ifconfig'' to verify your IP address assignment.

==== Orinoco Gold ====

This was one of the first and best supported wireless 802.11b pcmcia cards under Linux.
It is still one of the best cards for compatability, not just with Linux, but with several networking programs that work under Linux like NETstumbler and airsnort. Unfortunately, it tends to be very overpriced and can usually not be found at major retailers, but must be obtained mail order, if available at all.

==== Linksys ====

===== Linksys WPC55AG =====

Here is a link to a forum discussion about this card:
http://www.knoppix.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12351

==== Netgear ====

===== Netgear WG111 =====

<b>Configuring the WG111 to use WPA-PSK on a wireless network</b>

This card works very well in Knoppix 3.9 using ndiswrapper, but is as of yet untested in other versions of Knoppix (to my knowledge).

*'''Commands:
Assuming that the drivers are on the cd in /dev/cdrom, then
mount /dev/cdrom/ /mnt/cdrom/

Find '''ndiswrapper configuration''' under Knoppix->Network/Internet and select '''netwg111.inf''' from '''/mnt/cdrom'''. After that finishes, create the configuration file that you will need shortly using the following command:
wpa_passphrase MySSIDHere MyPassphraseHere > /home/knoppix/wpa_supplicant.conf
Now, use your favorite text editor (if you don't have one, try Kate under the menu item '''Editors''') and edit the
'''/home/knoppix/wpa_supplicant.conf''' you just created (see sample below).

With that completed, run the following command. '''Warning:''' As it is, the command will monopolize your current command window with potentially useful debugging output, including your encryption key; add '''-B''' if you would rather run it in the background (useful when you know it works already), remove '''-K''' to hide your key.
sudo wpa_supplicant -ddKt -i wlan0 -c /home/knoppix/wpa_supplicant.conf -Dndiswrapper

The following grabs an IP address if you use DHCP from your router.
sudo pump -i wlan0

And finally, tell Knoppix where to go to find the internet.
sudo route add default gw ''<Gateway/Router IP address here>''

*'''wpa_supplicant.conf
Note: the bold lines were added in the editing steps for my Linksys WRT54G Router to accept the card. See the Useful Links at the end for a full explanation of all options that can be put in here.
'''ctrl_interface=/home/knoppix/wpa_supplicant
'''eapol_version=1
'''ap_scan=1
network={
ssid="MySSIDHere"
'''scan_ssid=1
#psk="MyPassphraseHere"
psk=''hex representation of the passphrase
'''proto=WPA
'''key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
'''pairwise=TKIP
'''group=TKIP
}

*'''Useful Links:

[http://www.knoppix.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12351 Wireless card success story (where I located the ''pump'' command)]

[http://hostap.epitest.fi/cgi-bin/viewcvs.cgi/*checkout*/hostap/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf?rev=HEAD&content-type=text/plain Example wpa_supplicant.conf with full explanations and various configurations]

-bobeltomate

tiscali broadband and networking home business uk only
unlimited 8mb from £6.49 per month. Earn money from promoting tiscali.

http://www.tiscali-network.com/fastbroadband

uk sites only please to test your service out....to see if i get any referrals directly from your postings

thank you.

User:Rosuav

2008-09-29T06:18:08Z

Rosuav: New page: I'm a copyeditor. Most of what I do is spelling and formatting, with occasional forays into content. I love Wiki software, because it lets me put in the thirty seconds (or less) to fix a p...

I'm a copyeditor. Most of what I do is spelling and formatting, with occasional forays into content. I love Wiki software, because it lets me put in the thirty seconds (or less) to fix a problem, and then forever afterwards it's fixed :)

My wiki accounts tend to get made and then ignored until I next see something to fix, so in the unlikely event that you need to contact me, use the email user function.

Chris Angelico, aka Rosuav
(The REAL Rosuav. Accept no substitutes, Phoebe.)

Bittorrent

2008-09-29T06:15:20Z

Rosuav: cp - spelling error (receive/recieve)

'''Bittorrent''' is a swarming downloading method which allows for large files to be distributed far quicker and more bandwidth efficiently than simply many users downloading from one server. When you use a torrent to download a file, you are also contributing to the files distribution. And you are able to download from many soures providing the file download, not just one mirror. As you receive sections of the file (which are individually verified) you will also start to send those sections of the file to other users who need them, similarly you will be receving the file from numerous other users. The more people who are attempting to download a file, the quicker it will spread.

What does all of this have to do with Knoppix? Well Knoppix is large download (about 700MB for the CD version and over 3 Gig for the DVD version) and can have extremely large numbers of people looking to download it in a short space of time (when a major new version is released). Due to the load this places on the server hosting the download, Knoppix can be slow to get around onto the network of mirrors.

Knoppix 3.4 was different, in fact it was released first via Bittorrent at http://torrent.unix-ag.uni-kl.de/ . Things weren't completely smooth sailing at first as the demand was staggering but since then the setup has been refined and seems to have no problems coping with the loads thrown at it. Recent versions of Knoppix released on BitTorrent feeds have been seen to download much faster than available from the mirrors, often at speeds as high as the user's download pipe will permit.

To top it all off, you will often see mention of people having problems with Knoppix where ultimately it comes down to a broken download. If you don't have the bandwidth to not care about having to redownload a copy of Knoppix if something goes funny (and if you do can you give some to the rest of us please), then Bittorrent is the answer. If Bittorrent is happy, you can be sure the file you have is identical to the original, for modem users who may have to reconnect many times to finish the download, this is a godsend (one crash could destroy the past 30 hours downloading by http/ftp, but bittorrent will fix the download without having to duplicate any significant amount of downloading).

Now for the downside, in certain circumstances you just won't be able to use Bittorrent. If you are behind a firewall you do not control you will either not be able to use Bittorrent at all or your download speeds will be appalling (for example, downloading at the office). If you can control the firewall (for example, it is part of your home DSL/cable router), then you should be able to open Bittorrent traffic to your computer and get maximimum download speeds. It is very important to open these ports in your firewall, otherwise you will stll be able to download but will not get good download speeds.

The [http://www.bittorrent.com/ official Bittorrent Client] is available from http://bittorrent.com/download.html though personally I prefer [http://bittornado.com/ Bit Tornado] (primarily as it has a nice pause button for when you need to do something else quickly). While this was a valid concern for versions 3.x of BitTorrent, version 4.x releases now have both a handy pause button and a very nice adjustable slide control to adjust the maximum bandwidth that you are willing to allow BitTorrent to use. This can be a very handy feature as it allows [http://www.bittorrent.com/ BitTorrent] to still share what you have downloaded with other users but not swamp your upload capacity (which could affect your other Internet use and in some cases even slow your download speed by not letting you send download requests fast enough). Setting this control just a few K bytes less than you maximum upload speed gives great results.

If you have broadband and want to "give something back" to the community, leave your BitTorrent client up and running afer your download has finished. You will be using available bandwidth that would otherwise go to waste to help others get their copy of Knoppix. You can even shut the client down and restart it later (such as when you go to bed) and it will still seed the files that you have downloaded. BitTorrent also allows for resuming a download, so if you have to stop downloading for any reason you can restart you client later and it will pick up where it left off and complete your download for you while it continues to seed what you aleady have.

BitTorrent is now the most widely used proptcol on the Internet (behind only TCP/IP itself). If you are going to be downloading CD and DVD size files like Knoppix, it will be extremely important to you to take a couple of minutes and learn to use BitTorrent. And once you have done it, a couple of minutes is all it takes (Personal experience shows it can be set installed complete with port forwarding in less than one minute).

If you are using the CD-based Knoppix right now, the Java-based [http://azureus.sourceforge.net/ Azureus] client can be installed to a hard disk or USB key and it will work properly.

Because the bittorrent clients do not offer a search function, many web sites with torrent search engines arised. [http://throughput.de/torrent-search_en.html Throughput.de] is one of those.

'''Some tips on using BitTorrent:'''

'''If You plan on downloading the DVD version of Knoppix, be sure to upgrade to a current version of BitTorrent. Some old versions have problems with files over 2 gig in size.'''

Make sure that you have the Knoppix ports 6881-6899 forwarded to your BitTorrent system in your router. Most current routers will recognize activity on a "trigger port" and automatically forward a range of ports to which ever local IP address they see activity of the trigger port coming from. This can be a handy way to forward ports to the computer that you use for BitTorrent. You can configure a router so that BitTorrent can be used on more than one system at the same time, but this involves more detailed port settings and is not useful for most home users. Also be sure that any software filewall passes this port range for BitTorrent. If you fail to do these steps BitTorrent may still seem to work, but will likely run extremely slow.

You can shut down BitTorrent and stll restart it later to help share the bandwidth that you are paying for anyway to redistribute Knoppix. BitTorrent will check your file and then make it available to other users. May users "seed" the Knoppix files after downloading them, often when they go to sleep or leave the house. Restarting does take some time to recheck the files; current versions of BitTorrent have a handy "pause" button that will let you halt sharing if you need your computer or connection for other things. You can then restart without needing to do another check (which does take some time on DVD sized files) by turning off pause. Current BitTorrent versions also have a handy slider to control upload bandwidth. If you need to use you connection for other high demand things, it is often better to lower the bandwidth BitTorrent will use to upload files with the slider than to completely shut it down or to pause it.

[[Category: Open Source Applications]]