helpdesk@montana.eduConfiguring MSU8021X on Linux

IMPORTANT: It is impractical (virtually impossible) to cover every distribution of Linux with every possible way of configuring wireless. The steps below should only be used by experienced Linux users and only if Network Manager is unable to connect. They should be viewed as guidelines or as a tutorial. They will not line up perfectly with all systems.

NOTE: The steps here were used to set up MSU8021X on Ubuntu 8.04.

See the wpa_supplicant configuration for settings to use in configuring the standard GUI. If the standard GUI does not work with MSU8021X (support WPA Enterprise), the following instructions will install and use wpa-gui.

1. Verify wireless drivers are working and the interface is up — this should show an interface such as wlan0 and some configuration information.
sudo iwconfig
sudo ifconfig wlan0 up

2. Make sure wpa-supplicant and wpa-gui are installed.
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install wpasupplicant wpagui
3. Remove NetworkManager
sudo apt-get remove network-manager
4. Create/edit your /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf file (Sample):
ctrl_interface=/var/run/wpa_supplicant

network={
ssid="MSU8021X"
scan_ssid=1
proto=WPA
key_mgmt=WPA-EAP
pairwise=TKIP
eap=PEAP
phase2="auth=MSCHAPV2"
}
5. Edit /etc/network/interfaces:
sudo nano /etc/network/interfaces sudo nano /etc/network/interfaces
6. Run wpa-supplicant and wpa-gui
sudo wpa_supplicant -Bw -Dwext -iwlan0 -c/etc/wpa_supplicant.conf sudo wpa_gui
7. The GUI should open and prompt you for an Identity (username) and then a password. It should automatically get an IP address and you should be authenticated. You may need to run the following command to get an IP address.
sudo dhclient wlan0