Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

Howdy all
Not sure if this helps,
But i was having issues connecting with FW Ver1.7.1 Ver 1.6.1 No problem..... so after 3 weeks of up/down grading... spoke to customer service today.....  no luck. so i delved into the DHCP settings on the modem and found the MAC address was still listed even if chumby wasnt connected.... I set up the Chumby IP manually with the IP listed in the router, DNS (I Use OpenDNS) and it worked.. so not sure whats happening with the router IP and chumby but start looking here.

Oh my setup
Netcomm NB5plusW (DHCP from here)
Apple airport extreme (set to bridged)


Cheers
Mike
www.newcastlescan.com
www.facebook.com/djmickyp (go on add me)

Yes im a geek, wife hates it, but in laws LOVE it

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

I know very little about the chumby internals, so may not be able to provide much details yet... but learning quickly smile

I am seeing something similar -

Client - Chumby One, just out of the box. Completed the first firmware download, not sure which that is or how to tell yet.

Wireless Router - Linksys 54GL w/ latest Tomato firmware.  Configured with ASCII WPA/WPA2 keys, dynamic DNS and published SSID.

I have the chumby sitting within 10 ft of the router.  Each and every time I power down/power up the Chumby it prompts for which network connection to use.  Most of the time, when I select the existing network 'bklinksys' it will not connect.  But if I delete and create a new configuration it will then connect and work for that session.

Rebooting the router/wifi between attempts didn't seam to make any difference.

When I configure the network initially, I do see two networks available.  Mine (encrypted) and one that is open.

I changed my router to not have encyrption.  It still did the same thing.

I selected my neighbors SSID, connected, rebooted, and it worked every time!

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

hi bkchumby,

Can you check to make sure your Linksys is not competing for the same channel as your neighbor's access point, or any other access points in your area? You can use a computer with wireless networking running something like NetStumbler to scan for access points in your area to help you pick a channel that is farthest from those currently in use, for configuring your AP. FYI, some access points have automatic channel setting enabled out of the box, thus your neighbor's AP(s) may switch their operating frequency from time to time as well.

After attempting to reconnect using an existing network connection, did you try hitting the BACK button on the "Network connection failed" screen and then OK to try again?

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

I am on "1" they are on "6" per the Tomato firmware built in wireless survey.

Yes, I tried BACK and OK several times with no success.  But if I said "create new session" (can't recall exact words and the item is hidden now because it is a birthday present smile ) and then entered the passphrase it would connect.

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

Hi Sam,

Your connection initiation failure may be related to a timing issue, where perhaps given your wireless environment the the wireless interface does not have enough time to properly complete a connection. First copy the existing read-only start_network to the psp partition:

cp /usr/chumby/scripts/start_network /psp

Edit /psp/start_network as follows to increase the timeout for connection initiation during bootup:

change the 30 second timeout to a higher value like 45 seconds in this line 176:

  if( checkForConnection( $iface, 30, unescapeXML( $config->{'ssid'} ), $config->{'auth'} ) )

Increase the sleep on line 178 from 3 to 10 seconds before a DHCP lease is initiated.

Now we need to modify rcS to use this modified start_network script at boot up and bypass the original one in /usr/chumby/scripts. Since cramfs is read-only we can do the following to run a custom rcS:

mkdir /psp/rfs1
cp /etc/init.d/rcS /psp/rfs1/

Then edit this rcS as follows:
comment out or delete these lines (37-40):

if [ -x /psp/rfs1/rcS ]; then           
    /psp/rfs1/rcS                       
    exit                                
fi  

Edit line 204 to reflect the new start_network to be used:

#/usr/chumby/scripts/start_network
/psp/start_network

Let me know if this improves your initial bootup network connectivity.

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

I purchased a new WiFi adapter... connected to the same router as before on one of the WAN ports.  I have the wireless on the router disabled.  The chumby will connect every time.  This doesn't seam like the DHCP (since my config is still using the same DHCP server), but something with the connection negotiation.

57 (edited by ymelord 2009-12-19 20:49:40)

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

bkchumby wrote:

...
I have the chumby sitting within 10 ft of the router.  Each and every time I power down/power up the Chumby it prompts for which network connection to use.  Most of the time, when I select the existing network 'bklinksys' it will not connect.  But if I delete and create a new configuration it will then connect and work for that session.

Rebooting the router/wifi between attempts didn't seam to make any difference.

I'm having the same problem. The only difference is there are no other AP's in the area (extremely rural).
In addition, when it gets to the point where it is prompting for the AP to connect to, I can ping it and also ssh into the device. The C1 is running firmware build 1.0.2430. The AP is a Belkin N+ v2110, about 8 ft away. The only way I can get it to "think" it's connected is to clear the current AP, rescan the network and try to reconnect again, sometime several times...

Thinking about it a bit more, is there anyway to disable IPV6?

Looking at dmesg, it appears to be a timeout problem:

   28.600000] ADDRCONF(NETDEV_UP): wlan0: link is not ready
[   30.800000] wlan0: deauthenticating from c3fc502c by local choice (reason=3)
[   30.820000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3fc502c (try 1)
[   31.020000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3fc502c (try 2)
[   31.220000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3fc502c (try 3)
[   31.420000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3fc502c timed out
[   42.670000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3fc502c (try 1)
[   42.870000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3fc502c (try 2)
[   43.070000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3fc502c (try 3)
[   43.270000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3fc502c timed out
[   48.580000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3fc5a2c (try 1)
[   48.780000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3fc5a2c (try 2)
[   48.980000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3fc5a2c (try 3)
[   49.180000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3fc5a2c timed out
[   84.560000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3f2392c (try 1)
[   84.760000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3f2392c (try 2)
[   84.960000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3f2392c (try 3)
[   85.160000] wlan0: direct probe to AP c3f2392c timed out

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

ymelord wrote:

I'm having the same problem.

I installed the latest Update by USB and that seems to have fixed it.
Odd, it did a network update when I first setup the thing a few days ago, but it certainly wasn't 37MB...

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

IM a new Chumby user with the new Chumby one and I experience the same thing here with a belkin pre-n router. Wireless is not new to me and I have multiple devices that use wireless here with no problems, but the Chumby when reboots always gives me the screen to create or use existing connection. Not sure why it's doing this but I sure hope it gets fixed soon!

Signal strength here is not the issue as when I finally can get connected with the Chumby I see 4 bars and again ALL my other devices work flawlessly and believe me I have a ton of them here. ---)))

Even when first setting my Chumby up I had to try many times before Finally connecting and once I did all was ok, Until I unplugged it to bring in another room and then the same connecting problem occurrs. This is so repeatable. I see many here reporting this and wonder how many newbies have no idea and just keep retrying until they get it connected?--))


Anyways just wanted you guys at Chumby to know IM another that sees this issue as a pain in the duppa problem!--)))

Otherwise I love this little guy--)))

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

I replaced my wireless access point w/ a different brand.  I am still experiencing the same problem with two new chumby one boxes.

Takes 10-15 back/ok retries to get it to connect.

This is about 5 ft from the access point.  Scanning shows no other activity on that channel (chan 1).

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

My WiFi (802.11b/g/n) is on channel 4 and the connection to my Chumby One has been very solid.  Maybe you should try changing the channel on the wifi and trying again.  Perhaps there's an issue with a network conflict or a sensitivity problem with the lowest channel.

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

We believe this is not a timeout issue but a RT73 driver issue.

In one of my earlier posts I have posted driver errors that occur when the Chumby ends up in this situation. The main culprit is this error:

RT73-OOPS!!! RTMPCheckRxDescriptor().2989: CipherErr 1 (len = 60, Mcast=1, Cipher=wep128, KeyId=0)

once this error occurs the Chumby gives-up on the wifi connect and asks the user to pick one.

Our workaround is to place a "wait for network" script in the startup (say userhook2) and if we don't see the network within a certain period we call the "start network" script. That seems to solve the issue every time. Of course this means you have to have a userhook2 on a USB stick plugged into your Chumby at all times.

Here is the code:

 my $wd = 0;
    my $rc = 1;
    while ( $rc != 0 ) {
        if ( $wd > 3 ) {
            logit( "warn", "Re-starting chumby netowrk" );
            system( "/usr/chumby/scripts/start_network" );
            system( "/bin/sleep 20" );
        }
        $rc = system( "ntpdate pool.ntp.org" );
        if ( $rc != 0 ) {
            logit( "warn", "Waiting for ntp time wd $wd" );
            system( "/bin/sleep 10" );
            ++$wd;
        }
    }

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

Hi Sam,

Thank you for your response. Did you try my suggestion for increasing the timeout from the post above? http://forum.chumby.com/viewtopic.php?pid=24443#p24443

You can also use this method to avoid having to rely on a USB flash drive to implement your workaround in rcS.

Please let us know if this works for you. thanks.
- Levy

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

Levy,

Increasing timeouts did not help. We don't need to use a USB drive as we modify the kernel/file system...
but others will need too.

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

I forgot to mention that you need to call stop_control_panel and start_control_panel if you are in that situation and had to call start network otherwise it will be stuck in the select a wifi ap screen.

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

Sam,

Regarding the latest details that you sent us for your wireless test where you gathered signal info with a multitude of chumby classics:

  • I am assuming that these chumbys you are testing with are stock out of the box, with no other modifications aside from your userhook script mentioned above in response 62

  • Are there other wireless devices besides the chumbys in test that are connected or attempting to connect to this Linksys?

  • Are the units experiencing low signal and connection problems always the same? Meaning, if you power all of the chumbys down and back up, are the same chumbys still exhibiting a low signal?

  • What happens if you power down all of the chumbys that do not exhibit the poor signal reception? After a minute or so, do you see the link quality and signal levels improve for the chumbys that were exhibiting poor signal levels?

  • How are you obtaining the signal levels? Your data shows values range from 180 to 216, signal level is reported as a negative value usually ranging from high -40s dBm (excellent signal) to the -80s dBm (poor to no signal). Are you inverting them into positive integers?

  • You mentioned when a chumby experiences a connection loss due to lack of signal, rebooting the chumby resolves this problem. Is this problem localized to particular units? Do those chumbys continue to loose signal connectivity after the reboot? Please note, the Control Panel continuously checks for signal loss and will rmmod/insmod the rt73 wifi driver and then issue a /usr/chumby/scripts/start_network after about 10 minutes of network loss to attempt to recover the connection. Thereafter, the CP will continue to repeat the driver reload and start_network issue about every minute.

- Levy

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

  • I am assuming that these chumbys you are testing with are stock out of the box, with no other modifications aside from your userhook script mentioned above in response 62

    ----
    The excel I sent you all is from Chumbys that have a modified kernel and file system to run our stuff so we don't have to use userhooks, however, we see the same exact behavior from stock Chumbys.

    .

  • Are there other wireless devices besides the chumbys in test that are connected or attempting to connect to this Linksys?

    ----
    There are probably one or two laptops connected to that same AP.

    .

  • Are the units experiencing low signal and connection problems always the same? Meaning, if you power all of the chumbys down and back up, are the same chumbys still exhibiting a low signal?

    ----
    Yes always the same units


    .

  • What happens if you power down all of the chumbys that do not exhibit the poor signal reception? After a minute or so, do you see the link quality and signal levels improve for the chumbys that were exhibiting poor signal levels?

    ----
    We have not tired that.

    .

  • How are you obtaining the signal levels? Your data shows values range from 180 to 216, signal level is reported as a negative value usually ranging from high -40s dBm (excellent signal) to the -80s dBm (poor to no signal). Are you inverting them into positive integers?


    ----
    We get the numbers out of the driver with icotl call. The reason you see the numbers in the wrong range is because in this particular case we did not call the proper transformation routines that you see in iwlib.c iw_get_stats. If you take the numbers we have and apply the right transform you will get the right range. In other words these are the raw numbers from the driver.


    .

  • You mentioned when a chumby experiences a connection loss due to lack of signal, rebooting the chumby resolves this problem. Is this problem localized to particular units? Do those chumbys continue to loose signal connectivity after the reboot? Please note, the Control Panel continuously checks for signal loss and will rmmod/insmod the rt73 wifi driver and then issue a /usr/chumby/scripts/start_network after about 10 minutes of network loss to attempt to recover the connection. Thereafter, the CP will continue to repeat the driver reload and start_network issue about every minute.

    ----
    The really bad ones... wifi quality < 50 will eventully loose contact with the AP and sometimes reconnect and sometimes wont. In some ceases they will report being deactivated all of a sudden (when in fact they are not).

    .

Levy -- I believe you should be able to easily reproduce this on your end. Take 10 Chymbys power them all up and plot their wifi over time... you will see the same pattern. 65% have decent signal and 35% have bad signal. In some cases simply twisting the unit can make the signal slightly better but not significantly better.

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

On reboot neither of my Chumbys automatically reestablishes a network connection.  One SSID is presented on the screen and a couple of clicks later the connection is established and behavior is normal.  I gathered this information but don't see anything funny.  Perhaps you do?

AP is Linksys WRT54G, Firmware Version v4.20.7, Aug. 18, 2005
SSID is "vapor" on channel 10, but SSID not published
IP address is by DHCP

Chumby versions:
  original Chumby:  HW 3.7, SW 1.7.1, FW 1830 
  Chumby "guts":    HW 3.8, SW 1.7.1, FW 1830

----------------------------------------------------------------

chumby:~# cat /proc/chumby-wifi/link-status 
1: STATUS=0 NETWORK=INFRA SSID=<vapor> AUTH=UNKNOWN ENCRYPT=WEP KEY=wep128[xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx]

----------------------------------------------------------------

chumby:~# cat /proc/chumby-wifi/mlme-aux
BssType=1 Bssid=[00:0f:66:0c:05:a2] Ssid=<vapor> AutoReconnectSsid=<vapor>
Alg=1 ScanType=19 Channel=10 Aid=3 CapInfo=0x411
BeaconPeriod=100 BssIdx=0 RoamIdx=0 CurrReqIsFromNdis=0

----------------------------------------------------------------

chumby:~# ifconfig
lo        Link encap:Local Loopback  
          inet addr:127.0.0.1  Mask:255.0.0.0
          UP LOOPBACK RUNNING  MTU:16436  Metric:1
          RX packets:238 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
          TX packets:238 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:0 
          RX bytes:21570 (21.0 KiB)  TX bytes:21570 (21.0 KiB)

rausb0    Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:25:86:F0:73:E6  
          inet addr:192.168.1.108  Bcast:192.168.1.255  Mask:255.255.255.0
          UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
          RX packets:122917 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
          TX packets:20790 errors:0 dropped:1 overruns:0 carrier:0
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:1000 
          RX bytes:11156072 (10.6 MiB)  TX bytes:1622658 (1.5 MiB)

----------------------------------------------------------------

chumby:~# iwconfig
lo        no wireless extensions.

rausb0    RT73 WLAN  ESSID:"vapor"  
          Mode:Managed  Frequency=2.457 GHz  Access Point: 00:0F:66:0C:05:A2   
          Bit Rate=9 Mb/s   
          RTS thr:off   Fragment thr:off
          Encryption key:A6A5-9D28-6CC6-79B2-9D86-FA8C-5C
          Link Quality=50/100  Signal level:-68 dBm  Noise level:-99 dBm
          Rx invalid nwid:0  Rx invalid crypt:0  Rx invalid frag:0
          Tx excessive retries:0  Invalid misc:0   Missed beacon:0

----------------------------------------------------------------

chumby:~# iwlist rausb0 accesspoints
rausb0    Peers/Access-Points in range:
    00:0F:66:0C:05:A2 : Quality:73/100  Signal level:-66 dBm  Noise level:-99 dBm

----------------------------------------------------------------

chumby:~# network_status.sh
<network>
    <interface if="rausb0" up="true" link="true" ip="192.168.1.108" broadcast="192.168.1.255" netmask="255.255.255.0" gateway="192.168.1.1" nameserver1="68.87.69.150" nameserver2="68.87.85.102">
        <stats rx_bytes="11226127" rx_packets="123776" rx_errs="0" rx_drop="0" rx_fifo="0" rx_frame="0" rx_compressed="0" rx_multicast="2562" tx_bytes="1637922" tx_packets="20960" tx_errs="0" tx_drop="1" tx_fifo="0" tx_colls="0" tx_carrier="0" tx_compressed="0" wifi_link="52." wifi_level="188" wifi_noise="157" />
    </interface>
<configuration gateway="" ip="" nameserver1="" encryption="WEP" key="XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX" hwaddr="00:0F:66:0C:05:A2" nameserver2="" auth="WEPAUTO" netmask="" type="wlan" ssid="vapor" allocation="dhcp" encoding="hex" />
</network>

----------------------------------------------------------------

chumby:~# cat /psp/network_config
<configuration gateway="" ip="" nameserver1="" encryption="WEP" key="XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX" hwaddr="00:0F:66:0C:05:A2" nameserver2="" auth="WEPAUTO" netmask="" type="wlan" ssid="vapor" allocation="dhcp" encoding="hex" />

----------------------------------------------------------------

chumby:~# cat /psp/network_configs
<configurations><configuration allocation="dhcp" key="XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX" encoding="hex" encryption="WEP" auth="WEPAUTO" hwaddr="00:0F:66:0C:05:A2" ssid="vapor" type="wlan" /></configurations>

----------------------------------------------------------------

chumby:~# iwlist rausb0 scan
rausb0    Scan completed :
          Cell 01 - Address: 00:0F:66:0C:05:A2
                    ESSID:"vapor"
                    Mode:Managed
                    Channel:10
                    Encryption key:on
                    Bit Rates:1 Mb/s; 6 Mb/s; 9 Mb/s; 12 Mb/s; 48 Mb/s
                              2 Mb/s; 5.5 Mb/s; 11 Mb/s; 18 Mb/s; 24 Mb/s
                              36 Mb/s; 54 Mb/s
                    Quality:73/100  Signal level:-66 dBm  Noise level:-99 dBm

----------------------------------------------------------------

chumby:~# ap_scan
<aps>
 <ap mode="Managed" encryption="WEP" channel="10" hwaddr="00:0F:66:0C:05:A2" auth="WEPAUTO" linkquality="-66" signalstrength="73" ssid="vapor" noiselevel="-99" />
</aps>

----------------------------------------------------------------

chumby:~# cat /proc/chumby-wifi/link-status
2: STATUS=0 NETWORK=INFRA SSID=<vapor> AUTH=UNKNOWN ENCRYPT=WEP KEY=wep128[xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx]
1: STATUS=0 NETWORK=INFRA SSID=<vapor> AUTH=UNKNOWN ENCRYPT=WEP KEY=wep128[xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx]

----------------------------------------------------------------

chumby:~# cat /proc/chumby-wifi/mlme-aux
BssType=1 Bssid=[00:0f:66:0c:05:a2] Ssid=<vapor> AutoReconnectSsid=<vapor>
Alg=1 ScanType=18 Channel=10 Aid=3 CapInfo=0x411
BeaconPeriod=100 BssIdx=0 RoamIdx=0 CurrReqIsFromNdis=0
 

Any suggestions?

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

I'm seeing the same thing.  I have to hard boot my new Chumby on pretty much a daily basis as the control panel button becomes unresponsive.  When it boots, I have to select my previously configured connection for it to continue.  There's only one to choose from, and it has no problem connecting once I select it, but I have to specifiy that AP when it boots.

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

I don't have to reboot mine often, but when I do, I get to go through the "choose your wireless network connection" process 100% of the time.  The only AP shown in the list is the one I configured (WEP, non-broadcast SSID).  I know I have neighbors with their own APs, but I don't have issues with any other wireless devices.  This happened for both sets of stock Chumby guts (no mods), at least, before I inadvertently bricked (probably) the second one.

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

Was there any resolution to this issue?  My Chumby has recently started to do this, i.e., refusing to connect to the last used Wi-Fi.  I do have two different WiFi connections configured (out of range of each other), but it always correctly re-connected to the last used one after a hard restart until the past several days.

72 (edited by PaperClippy 2014-03-08 20:23:41)

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

Apologies for digging up this old thread - but I may have found a fix!

My problem:

I had a wireless network configured to automatically connect, but this would not happen on start-up. Chumby would ask me to setup a new connection or use an existing connection. My connection was in the existing list, and clicking ok a few times allowed me to connect.

My solution:

in the files /psp/network* remove any blank entries. So:

<configuration gateway="" ip="" nameserver1="" encryption="AES" key="key" hwaddr="xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx" nameserver2="" auth="WPA2PSK" netmask="" type="wlan" ssid="ssid" allocation="dhcp" encoding="ascii" />

...becomes:

<configuration encryption="AES" key="key" hwaddr="xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx" auth="WPA2PSK" type="wlan" ssid="ssid" allocation="dhcp" encoding="ascii" />

Notes:

Standard disclaimers apply. This worked for me but your mileage may vary. Please backup your files.

Re: Not automatically connecting to a previously configed wifi connection

PaperClippy wrote:

Apologies for digging up this old thread - but I may have found a fix!
.

hey, best reason to dig up an old thread wink

Cleaning up any loose bits and bytes.