Wireless problem

[FredZ]

Hello All

Been an avid user for years, but still a pleb.

I recently decided to put Stretch on a dissused laptop to test as a server.

The install completed via the wireless connection. but after reboot no wireless.

So I did an install with gnome and wireless is working.

As I don't require a GUI I went back to a headless install, and blow me down, no wireless after reboot.

I've tried for 2 days to get it working and have given up on it completely. I simply don't have the knowledge. And frankly I can't be bothered. It shouldn't be that hard.

But I thought I would express my situation. And ask this question.

Why does wireless work when GUI installed but not on a headless install?

Regards

Fred

[Head_on_a_Stick]

no wireless after reboot

What exactly does "no wireless" mean?

Please post the output of

Code: Select all

lspci -knn | grep -iA2 net
ip link
ip route

A comparison with the GNOME desktop may prove illuminating.

frankly I can't be bothered

That being the case, why should we?

[stevepusser]

If you were counting on network-manager-gnome for your connection with GNOME, I believe it won't work from the terminal-only environment. Some other possibilities are the nm-cli interface, wicd-cli or wicd-curses, or ceni from third-party repos. Ceni is really lightweight, too, and works great in my experience:

https://repology.org/metapackage/ceni/versions

Huh--repology doesn't include the Siduction repos? And where's antiX's stretch version..oh yeah: http://antix.daveserver.info/stretch/pool/main/c/ceni/

[FredZ]

Hello

My comparison was headless versus Gnome for the wireless. Wireless functions within Gnome after install. Wireless does not function from headless after install. This I cannot understand. One would expect that if you hace setup the install via wireless then it would functionfrom after install in both configurations.

I can see the wireless adaptor "lspci"

I am using this information to configure the wireless after a headless install. https://wiki.debian.org/WiFi/HowToUse, WPA-PSK and WPA2-PSK

As I don't know any other way to test the wireless after configuration I am simply running su, then apt-get update.

If you want to know specific information you will need to be very clear about what I should be doing (commands to run) and what information you are requiring me to post.

The only reason I am wanting to use the wireless as opossed to the Ethernet connection is that the laptop screen is bright and if I shut it it suspends the machine and nothing runs. And I don't have an Ethernet connection in my garage. All this just so that I can have my media server on a better machine (its currently running on a PI3 and it isn't powerfull enough to transcode on the fly).

Regards

Fred

[Wheelerof4te]

This is because when you install GNOME GUI, it installs networ-manager-gnome. Network manager does not use interfaces listed in

Code: Select all

/etc/network/interfaces

by default. You have to enable those. See
https://wiki.debian.org/NetworkManager# ... _Unmanaged

In CLI, Debian uses ifupdown for it's network management, which is defined in /etc/network/interfaces file. I had my fair share of headaches with this, too

[FredZ]

Hello

I may have stumbled across something by accident.

I thought I would download everything (netinst.img) and start over. But when I attempted this the install reported that I needed non-freee firmware. So I downloaded firmware-9.3.0-amd64-netinst and I am performing my install from that.

Given that I have ti use this image for my install, is there something specific that I should be doing after the headless install to ensure I can get wireless to function?

Regards

Fred

[stevepusser]

As stated above, use a command-line connection manager.

[FredZ]

As stated above, use a command-line connection manager.

I've cairly missed something here. I've read the post and I don't see what you are refering to.

Regards

Fred

[Wheelerof4te]

Configure your network interfaces as detailed in that wiki page I linked you and restart the system. Command line connects to the Internet by using ifupdown, it has no dedicated network manager. That's why you get internet in GNOME, but not in headless.
EDIT: Before stevepusser chews me out for saying CLi has no dedicated network managers, it has. But it's not installed by default. Anyway, you have everything you need on that wiki page to get your network working in both GUI and headless.

[FredZ]

I have managed to resolve the issue by simply installing with a GUI. Something that I shouldn't have had to do, but nothing I did worked.

I feel that something should be done with the installer. If I can configure the wireless to function during install then why can't this information be written to the appropiate files during the install so that it functions after reboot. Something fior the developers to concider.

Regards

Fred

[bw123]

I have managed to resolve the issue by simply installing with a GUI. Something that I shouldn't have had to do, but nothing I did worked.

I feel that something should be done with the installer. If I can configure the wireless to function during install then why can't this information be written to the appropiate files during the install so that it functions after reboot. Something fior the developers to concider.

Regards

Fred

I disagree. The installer did what you told it to do. It installed without a default network gui, while providing at least one method for you to set it up yourself after first boot.

I understand the need to have things done for you, but this shouldn't be forced on everyone. It's about choices, we don;t need default setups for everything. Especially wifi, which has several methods, and also has security considerations.

[stevepusser]

Please read my first post for several connection manager suggestions that don't need a GUI.