KioskNet Wireless Configuration

This document presents an overview of the wireless configuration of KioskNet nodes and its implementation details. I will outline the wireless configuration of the following KioskNet agents: gateway, bus, kiosk controller, and mobile devices.

Throughout the document I assume all nodes, except the mobile user, are using Atheros 802.11abg with the MadWifi driver in Linux (or an equivalent Unix-like OS)

Gateway

Every KioskNet gateway is configured as an access point and has the same IP address as all other gateways and kiosks in the region. We suggest using 10.0.1.0 but you can use any other address range as long as you are consistent. The "serverIP" parameter specified in the OCMP configuration file (See Client Parameters (http://blizzard.cs.uwaterloo.ca/tetherless/index.php/Guide_to_OCMP2#Client_Parameters)) must be set to this IP address. This is equivalent to the "master" mode in the MadWifi driver. To configure the gateway wireless interface run the following commands as root:

wlanconfig ath create wlandev wifi0 wlanmode ap

iwconfig ath0 essid "KioskNet"

iwconfig ath0 rate auto

iwconfig ath0 channel <wireless channel>

ifconfig aht0 <gatewayIP> netmask <netmask> up

To make this configuration effective upon every reboot add the following lines to "/etc/network/interfaces"

auto ath0

iface ath0 inet static

pre-up wlanconfig ath0 create wlandev wifi0 wlanmode ap

post-down wlanconfig ath0 destroy

address <gatewayIP>

netmask <netmask>

broadcast <broadcastIP>

wireless_mode master

wireless_rate auto

wireless_essid KioskNet

wireless_channel <channel>

In a normal installation, through the installation KioskNet DVD, the above configuration file is created by the installation program.

Kiosk controller

Every kiosk controller is an access point. As a result, all the computers in the village can see an open access point named KioskNet that they can connect to. Every Kiosk has the same IP address as all other gateways and kiosks in the region. We suggest using 10.0.1.0 but you can use any as long as you remain consistent. The "serverIP" parameter specified in the OCMP configuration file (See Client Parameters (http://blizzard.cs.uwaterloo.ca/tetherless/index.php/Guide_to_OCMP2#Client_Parameters)) must be set to this IP address.

wlanconfig ath create wlandev wifi0 wlanmode ap

iwconfig ath0 essid "KioskNet"

iwconfig ath0 rate auto

iwconfig ath0 channel <wireless channel>

ifconfig aht0 <KC_IP> netmask <netmask> up

To make this configuration effective upon every reboot add the following lines to "/etc/network/interfaces"

auto ath0

iface ath0 inet static

pre-up wlanconfig ath0 create wlandev wifi0 wlanmode ap

post-down wlanconfig ath0 destroy

address <KC_IP>

netmask <netmask>

broadcast <broadcastIP>

wireless_mode master

wireless_rate auto

wireless_essid KioskNet

wireless_channel <channel>

In a normal installation, through the KioskNet installation DVD, the above configuration file is created by the installation program.

Bus

The ferry nodes of KioskNet are configured as wifi clients (managed mode). Run the following commands to get this configuration. The ferry can have any IP address in the same sub-net as the gateways and the kiosks. Follow exactly the same order, otherwise you will get errors:

wlanconfig ath create wlandev wifi0 wlanmode adhoc

wlanconfig ath create wlandev wifi0 wlanmode sta nosbeacon

iwconfig ath1 essid "KioskNet"

iwconfig ath1 rate auto

iwconfig ath1 channel <wireless channel>

iwconfig ath0 essid "KioskNet-adhoc"

iwconfig ath0 rate auto

ifconfig ath1 <bus_IP> netmask <netmask> up

ifconfig ath0 <bus_adhoc_IP> netmask <netmask> up

To make this configuration effective upon every reboot add the following lines to "/etc/network/interfaces"

auto ath0

iface ath0 inet static

pre-up wlanconfig ath0 create wlandev wifi0 wlanmode adhoc

post-down wlanconfig ath0 destroy

address <bus_adhoc_IP>

netmask <netmask>

broadcast <broadcastIP>

wireless_mode adhoc

wireless_rate auto

wireless_essid KioskNet-adhoc

wireless_channel <channel>

auto ath1

iface ath1 inet static

pre-up wlanconfig ath0 create wlandev wifi0 wlanmode sta

post-down wlanconfig ath1 destroy

address <bus_IP>

netmask <netmask>

broadcast <broadcastIP>

In a normal installation, through the KioskNet installation DVD, the above configuration file is created by the installation program.

Mobile devices

Mobile devices can either use the kiosk controller of the village as an access point or associate with the ferry in the adhoc mode. When using the kiosk controller they will be automatically configured by DHCP.

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