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WiFi

This guide covers how to connect to a WiFi network, set up a hotspot, and test network bandwidth.

Connecting to a WiFi Network​

① : Click on the network icon

② : Click the Connect button next to the WiFi network you want to join

③ : Enter the WiFi password and follow the prompts to complete the connection

WiFi Connection Interface

After a successful connection, select the Details option to view network connection information such as IP address, subnet mask, and gateway address.

For example, 192.168.31.53 is the IP address assigned by the router.

Network Connection Details

Setting Up a WiFi Hotspot​

Create a WiFi Hotspot​

radxa@device$
sudo nmcli device wifi hotspot ifname <ifname> con-name <name> ssid <SSID> password <password>

# Example

sudo nmcli device wifi hotspot ifname wlan0 con-name My-Hotspot ssid My-Hotspot password 12345678

This command creates a WiFi hotspot named "My-Hotspot" with the password "12345678" using the wireless network interface wlan0, and saves the connection as "My-Hotspot".

  • ifname: Specifies the wireless network interface name for the hotspot. Use ip a to check available interfaces.
  • con-name: Specifies the connection name for managing the hotspot (start, stop, or delete).
  • ssid: The name of the hotspot that will be visible to other devices.
  • password: The password for the hotspot.

After successful setup, the terminal will display output similar to:

Device 'wlan0' successfully activated with 'd73e5af7-a49c-4608-bdab-bd28a36bdbef'.
Hint: "nmcli dev wifi show-password" shows the Wi-Fi name and password.

Stop WiFi Hotspot​

radxa@device$
sudo nmcli connection down My-Hotspot

Start WiFi Hotspot​

radxa@device$
sudo nmcli connection up My-Hotspot

Delete WiFi Hotspot​

radxa@device$
sudo nmcli connection delete My-Hotspot

Testing Network Bandwidth​

Use the iperf tool to test network bandwidth (throughput) performance. It's recommended to run multiple tests and calculate the average.

Prerequisites​

  • Hardware Requirements

You'll need two devices: one as a server and one as a client.

Server: PC, server, or similar device.

Client: Radxa board.

  • Same Local Network

Both server and client must be on the same local network and able to ping each other.

Install iperf​

Both server and client need to have iperf installed.

radxa@device$ & Linux$
sudo apt update
sudo apt install iperf

Testing Procedure​

Server-Side​

Open a terminal and enter the following command to start the server:

Linux
iperf -s

After successful startup, the terminal will display output similar to:

---

## Server listening on 5201 (test #1)
tip

If the system shows iperf3: error - unable to start listener for connections: Address already in use, it means port 5201 is already in use by another iperf3 process.

Solution:

  1. Check for running iperf3 processes
Linux$
ps -ef | grep iperf3
  1. Terminate the iperf3 process: Replace <PID> with the actual process ID of iperf3.
Linux$
sudo kill <PID>

Client-Side​

  1. Upload Test

Open a terminal and enter the following command to test the client's upload bandwidth. Replace <server_ip> with the actual server IP address (you can find this using the ip a command).

radxa@device$
iperf -c <server_ip> -t <time>

# Example

iperf -c 192.168.2.186 -t 60

Parameters:

  • <server_ip>: Server IP address
  • <time>: Test duration in seconds
  1. Download Test

Open a terminal and enter the following command to test the client's download bandwidth. Replace <server_ip> with the actual server IP address (you can find this using the ip a command).

radxa@device$
iperf -c <server_ip> -t <time> -R

# Example

iperf -c 192.168.2.186 -t 60 -R

Parameters:

  • <server_ip>: Server IP address
  • <time>: Test duration in seconds
  • -R: Reverse test mode (client acts as server, server acts as client)