Wi-Fi Networks list NOT automatically populate?

[Adam]

I must be missing a config thing.

It's always a config thing in Linux. :)

[Big Al]

Post by Adam
I must be missing a config thing.
It's always a config thing in Linux.  :)

I've never had any config issue with networks. Just click the wi-fi icon on the panel and it lists
them, at least if you have the wi-fi toggle switch turned on.

[Mike Easter]

Subject: Wi-Fi Networks list NOT automatically populate?

If your wifi 'isn't working' (for some reason) you won't see any SSID.

There may be a variety of reasons; doesn't have a (proper) driver,
switched off.

In mint, inxi is installed by default.

$ inxi -Nn will tell you some networking info:

A non-wifi:
$ inxi -Nn
Network: Device-1: Broadcom and subsidiaries NetXtreme BCM5761 Gigabit
Ethernet PCIe driver: tg3
IF: enp63s0 state: up speed: 1000 Mbps duplex: full mac:
(munged)

I don't have a wifi one right here handy to show you. Oh, wait; here's
an old one for a Broadcom wifi:

$ inxi -Nnxx Network:
Device-1: Broadcom BCM43228 802.11a/b/g/n driver: wl
v: kernel pcie: speed: 2.5 GT/s lanes: 1 bus-ID: 02:00.0 chip-ID:
14e4:4359

That one was during a struggle w/ various linux distro/s which did NOT
algorithmically properly install the wl driver on booting the live from
USB, such as mint and ubuntu, but MX did.

[Mike Easter]

Post by Mike Easter
There may be a variety of reasons; doesn't have a (proper) driver,
switched off.

I'm also reading that sometimes it is useful to restart the NM.

sudo systemctl restart network-manager

That would be 'useful' if inxi shows you that you have the proper driver
for your wifi and it is up.

[Paul]

Post by Adam
I must be missing a config thing.
It's always a config thing in Linux.  :)

Like dominos, "one thing leads to another".

Any step that is missing, will cause a failure.

I see my thingy in lsusb (lspci if it's something shiny).

I see my thingy in ifconfig. Huge systemd namestring.

And the Wifi things on both Mint 213 and Ubuntu, show the local geek squad of SSIDs.

[Picture]

Loading Image...

All seems working.

Paul

[Adam]

Post by Paul

Post by Adam
I must be missing a config thing.
It's always a config thing in Linux. :)

Like dominos, "one thing leads to another".
Any step that is missing, will cause a failure.
I see my thingy in lsusb (lspci if it's something shiny).
I see my thingy in ifconfig. Huge systemd namestring.
And the Wifi things on both Mint 213 and Ubuntu, show the local geek squad of SSIDs.
[Picture]
https://i.postimg.cc/52BnqyXH/RTL8188-EUS-Wifi.gif
All seems working.
Paul

I'm booting Mint Live from USB thumb drive. Connecting to public WiFi.
I have to "manually" add the network. I know there are many other
networks but they are not listed. Why?

[Paul]

Post by Paul

Post by Adam
I must be missing a config thing.
It's always a config thing in Linux.  :)

Like dominos, "one thing leads to another".
Any step that is missing, will cause a failure.
I see my thingy in lsusb (lspci if it's something shiny).
I see my thingy in ifconfig. Huge systemd namestring.
And the Wifi things on both Mint 213 and Ubuntu, show the local geek squad of SSIDs.
    [Picture]
     https://i.postimg.cc/52BnqyXH/RTL8188-EUS-Wifi.gif
All seems working.
    Paul

I'm booting Mint Live from USB thumb drive.  Connecting to public WiFi.
I have to "manually" add the network.  I know there are many other networks but they are not listed.  Why?

Do you have a second Wifi router handy ?

Can you place the second PC in your room into
hotspot mode, offering its own SSID ?

Test and see if that shows up as the second
device in the list. In other words, provide
a second known stimulus and see if it behaves
as you had hoped.

Paul

[Adam]

Post by Paul

Post by Adam

Post by Paul

Post by Adam
I must be missing a config thing.
It's always a config thing in Linux. :)

Like dominos, "one thing leads to another".
Any step that is missing, will cause a failure.
I see my thingy in lsusb (lspci if it's something shiny).
I see my thingy in ifconfig. Huge systemd namestring.
And the Wifi things on both Mint 213 and Ubuntu, show the local geek squad of SSIDs.
[Picture]
https://i.postimg.cc/52BnqyXH/RTL8188-EUS-Wifi.gif
All seems working.
Paul

I'm booting Mint Live from USB thumb drive. Connecting to public WiFi.
I have to "manually" add the network. I know there are many other networks but they are not listed. Why?

Do you have a second Wifi router handy ?
Can you place the second PC in your room into
hotspot mode, offering its own SSID ?
Test and see if that shows up as the second
device in the list. In other words, provide
a second known stimulus and see if it behaves
as you had hoped.
Paul

I live in a high rise condo complex so I know there are plenty of other
WiFi networks around but they are "not" listed.

Is there something that I need to install?

[Adam]

Post by Paul

Post by Adam

Post by Paul

Post by Adam
I must be missing a config thing.
It's always a config thing in Linux. :)

Like dominos, "one thing leads to another".
Any step that is missing, will cause a failure.
I see my thingy in lsusb (lspci if it's something shiny).
I see my thingy in ifconfig. Huge systemd namestring.
And the Wifi things on both Mint 213 and Ubuntu, show the local geek squad of SSIDs.
[Picture]
https://i.postimg.cc/52BnqyXH/RTL8188-EUS-Wifi.gif
All seems working.
Paul

I'm booting Mint Live from USB thumb drive. Connecting to public WiFi.
I have to "manually" add the network. I know there are many other
networks but they are not listed. Why?

Do you have a second Wifi router handy ?
Can you place the second PC in your room into
hotspot mode, offering its own SSID ?
Test and see if that shows up as the second
device in the list. In other words, provide
a second known stimulus and see if it behaves
as you had hoped.
Paul

I live in a high rise condo complex so I KNOW there are plenty of other
WiFi networks around but they are "not" listed.

IOW, there are so many that I often have to scroll to find my target.

Is there something that I need to install?

[Paul]

Post by Adam

Post by Paul

Post by Paul

Post by Adam
I must be missing a config thing.
It's always a config thing in Linux.  :)

Like dominos, "one thing leads to another".
Any step that is missing, will cause a failure.
I see my thingy in lsusb (lspci if it's something shiny).
I see my thingy in ifconfig. Huge systemd namestring.
And the Wifi things on both Mint 213 and Ubuntu, show the local geek
squad of SSIDs.
     [Picture]
      https://i.postimg.cc/52BnqyXH/RTL8188-EUS-Wifi.gif
All seems working.
     Paul

I'm booting Mint Live from USB thumb drive.  Connecting to public WiFi.
I have to "manually" add the network.  I know there are many other
networks but they are not listed.  Why?

Do you have a second Wifi router handy ?
Can you place the second PC in your room into
hotspot mode, offering its own SSID ?
Test and see if that shows up as the second
device in the list. In other words, provide
a second known stimulus and see if it behaves
as you had hoped.
    Paul

I live in a high rise condo complex so I KNOW there are plenty of other
WiFi networks around but they are "not" listed.

IOW, there are so many that I often have to scroll to find my target.

Is there something that I need to install?

OK, so how do Wifi routers work. When you set it to
channel 13, does it stay on channel 13, or does it listen
on 01 as well ? Maybe it's the channel number that
hasn't lassoed what you expected to see. Maybe you're only
on 5GHz and missing 2.4GHz entries.

I don't see how it could sort them in a biased way.
What productive criterion would you use, if developing
the Wifi applet ?

The signal strength might be too low. The channel
capacity could be exhausted (too many turnips on channel 13).
I don't see a particular reason to "remove all SSIDs I have
never connected to before". That would be silly and
counterproductive. The purpose of having a menu, a listing,
is to allow flexible connection to any resource in
the area.

Maybe a software could have a "blacklist" for
filtering by name. For example here, it would be a
productive usage to remove "Bell128 Bell232" as the
Bell phone company has a ton of <unknown> emitters
which serve no purpose. Half my SSIDs here, have
commercial names in them.

Paul

[Mike Easter]

I'm booting Mint Live from USB thumb drive.  Connecting to public WiFi.
I have to "manually" add the network.

How do you 'manually' add the network if you don't see the SSID?

Are you talking about 'connect to hidden' for an SSID that isn't
*supposed to be* hidden?

[Adam]

Post by Mike Easter

Post by Adam
I'm booting Mint Live from USB thumb drive. Connecting to public WiFi.
I have to "manually" add the network.

How do you 'manually' add the network if you don't see the SSID?
Are you talking about 'connect to hidden' for an SSID that isn't
*supposed to be* hidden?

Public places (coffee shop, auto shop, etc.) that provide WiFi will let
customers know what there SSID is.

[Mike Easter]

Post by Adam

Post by Mike Easter

I'm booting Mint Live from USB thumb drive.  Connecting to public WiFi.
I have to "manually" add the network.

How do you 'manually' add the network if you don't see the SSID?
Are you talking about 'connect to hidden' for an SSID that isn't
*supposed to be* hidden?

Public places (coffee shop, auto shop, etc.) that provide WiFi will let
customers know what there SSID is.

But hiding an SSID isn't a satisfactory method of securing it from such
as war drivers. My experience w/ public but not 'open' free wifi is
browser gateway requirements.

[Adam]

Post by Mike Easter

Post by Adam

Post by Mike Easter

Post by Adam
I'm booting Mint Live from USB thumb drive. Connecting to public WiFi.
I have to "manually" add the network.

How do you 'manually' add the network if you don't see the SSID?
Are you talking about 'connect to hidden' for an SSID that isn't
*supposed to be* hidden?

Public places (coffee shop, auto shop, etc.) that provide WiFi will
let customers know what there SSID is.

But hiding an SSID isn't a satisfactory method of securing it from such
as war drivers. My experience w/ public but not 'open' free wifi is
browser gateway requirements.

LONG LIVE the version that I'm using. And, I'm not telling which
version I'm using. :)