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WiFi Usage

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

  • Connecting to a WiFi Network

When the board connects to a WiFi network, it typically obtains an IP address automatically through the router's DHCP service.

  • Setting Up a WiFi Hotspot

When the board is set up as a WiFi hotspot (AP mode), the system usually starts a DHCP service automatically to assign IP addresses to connected devices. If you need to customize network parameters, you can manually configure the DHCP service as needed.

Connecting to a WiFi Network​

We'll use the nmcli command-line tool to connect to a WiFi network.

tip

nmcli (NetworkManager Command Line Interface) is a command-line tool for NetworkManager, used to configure and manage network connections on Linux systems.

Enabling WiFi​

radxa@device$
sudo nmcli radio wifi on

Scanning for WiFi Networks​

If WiFi is enabled but no networks are found, you may need to restart the system.

radxa@device$
sudo nmcli device wifi list

Connecting to a WiFi Network​

radxa@device$
sudo nmcli device wifi connect <SSID> password <PASSWORD>
# Example
sudo nmcli device wifi connect wifi-demo password 12345678

Upon successful connection, the terminal will display output similar to:

Device 'wlan0' successfully activated with 'xxxxxx'.

Viewing Network Connection Details​

radxa@device$
ip a

The terminal will display output similar to the following, where 192.168.31.53 is the IP address assigned by the router:

1: lo: <LOOPBACK,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 65536 qdisc noqueue state UNKNOWN group default qlen 1000
    link/loopback 00:00:00:00:00:00 brd 00:00:00:00:00:00
    inet 127.0.0.1/8 scope host lo
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
    inet6 ::1/128 scope host
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
2: sit0@NONE: <NOARP> mtu 1480 qdisc noop state DOWN group default qlen 1000
    link/sit 0.0.0.0 brd 0.0.0.0
3: eth0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc mq state UP group default qlen 1000
    link/ether 00:e8:ec:f4:6f:8b brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
    inet 192.168.2.186/24 brd 192.168.2.255 scope global dynamic noprefixroute eth0
       valid_lft 3432sec preferred_lft 3432sec
    inet6 240e:3b7:3246:1e0::b09/128 scope global dynamic noprefixroute
       valid_lft 3383sec preferred_lft 3383sec
    inet6 fdaa::b09/128 scope global dynamic noprefixroute
       valid_lft 3383sec preferred_lft 3383sec
    inet6 fdaa::7ebe:84a2:306f:4271/64 scope global noprefixroute
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
    inet6 240e:3b7:3246:1e0:e07d:77fb:4aa5:ace/64 scope global dynamic noprefixroute
       valid_lft 201116sec preferred_lft 114716sec
    inet6 fe80::f69d:bf6f:3d68:cef1/64 scope link noprefixroute
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
4: wlan0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc mq state UP group default qlen 1000
    link/ether 2c:c6:82:85:8d:fe brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
    inet 192.168.31.104/24 brd 192.168.31.255 scope global dynamic noprefixroute wlan0
       valid_lft 1978sec preferred_lft 1978sec
    inet6 240e:3b7:3246:1e2::b09/128 scope global dynamic noprefixroute
       valid_lft 1978sec preferred_lft 1978sec
    inet6 fdaa:0:0:30::b09/128 scope global dynamic noprefixroute
       valid_lft 1978sec preferred_lft 1978sec
    inet6 fdaa::30:ca7:7952:73cf:aa06/64 scope global noprefixroute
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
    inet6 240e:3b7:3246:1e2:7498:9c5:1d2a:f90e/64 scope global dynamic noprefixroute
       valid_lft 201117sec preferred_lft 114717sec
    inet6 fe80::3dfc:b4f1:ffe4:6c50/64 scope link noprefixroute
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
tip

Additional Commands:

  • sudo nmcli radio wifi off: Disable WiFi
  • sudo nmcli connection delete <SSID>: Remove a specific WiFi network

Setting Up a WiFi Hotspot​

We'll use the nmcli command-line tool to set up a WiFi hotspot.

Checking WiFi Adapter​

Use the ip a command to check the wireless network interface name.

radxa@device$
ip a

The terminal will display output similar to the following, where wlan0 is the wireless network interface name:

1: lo: <LOOPBACK,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 65536 qdisc noqueue state UNKNOWN group default qlen 1000
    link/loopback 00:00:00:00:00:00 brd 00:00:00:00:00:00
    inet 127.0.0.1/8 scope host lo
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
    inet6 ::1/128 scope host
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
2: sit0@NONE: <NOARP> mtu 1480 qdisc noop state DOWN group default qlen 1000
    link/sit 0.0.0.0 brd 0.0.0.0
3: eth0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc mq state UP group default qlen 1000
    link/ether 00:e8:ec:f4:6f:8b brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
    inet 192.168.2.186/24 brd 192.168.2.255 scope global dynamic noprefixroute eth0
       valid_lft 3432sec preferred_lft 3432sec
    inet6 240e:3b7:3246:1e0::b09/128 scope global dynamic noprefixroute
       valid_lft 3383sec preferred_lft 3383sec
    inet6 fdaa::b09/128 scope global dynamic noprefixroute
       valid_lft 3383sec preferred_lft 3383sec
    inet6 fdaa::7ebe:84a2:306f:4271/64 scope global noprefixroute
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
    inet6 240e:3b7:3246:1e0:e07d:77fb:4aa5:ace/64 scope global dynamic noprefixroute
       valid_lft 201116sec preferred_lft 114716sec
    inet6 fe80::f69d:bf6f:3d68:cef1/64 scope link noprefixroute
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
4: wlan0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc mq state UP group default qlen 1000
    link/ether 2c:c6:82:85:8d:fe brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
    inet 192.168.31.104/24 brd 192.168.31.255 scope global dynamic noprefixroute wlan0
       valid_lft 1978sec preferred_lft 1978sec
    inet6 240e:3b7:3246:1e2::b09/128 scope global dynamic noprefixroute
       valid_lft 1978sec preferred_lft 1978sec
    inet6 fdaa:0:0:30::b09/128 scope global dynamic noprefixroute
       valid_lft 1978sec preferred_lft 1978sec
    inet6 fdaa::30:ca7:7952:73cf:aa06/64 scope global noprefixroute
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
    inet6 240e:3b7:3246:1e2:7498:9c5:1d2a:f90e/64 scope global dynamic noprefixroute
       valid_lft 201117sec preferred_lft 114717sec
    inet6 fe80::3dfc:b4f1:ffe4:6c50/64 scope link noprefixroute
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever

Configuring 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 password "12345678" using the wireless interface wlan0. The connection is saved as "My-Hotspot" for future management.

Parameters:

  • ifname: Specifies the wireless interface for the hotspot (use ip a to find the interface name)
  • con-name: Specifies the connection name for managing the hotspot (start, stop, delete)
  • ssid: The name of the hotspot (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 'xxxxxx'.
Hint: "nmcli dev wifi show-password" shows the Wi-Fi name and password.

Disabling the WiFi Hotspot​

radxa@device$
sudo nmcli connection down My-Hotspot

Enabling the WiFi Hotspot​

radxa@device$
sudo nmcli connection up My-Hotspot

Removing the WiFi Hotspot​

radxa@device$
sudo nmcli connection delete My-Hotspot

Testing Network Bandwidth Performance​

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

Prerequisites​

  • Hardware Requirements

You will need two devices:

  • Server: A PC or server device

  • Client: The device to be tested (e.g., Cubie A7A)

  • Network Requirements

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

Installing iperf​

Install iperf on both the server and client devices.

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

Testing Procedure​

Server (PC)​

Open a terminal on the server device and start the iperf server with the following command:

Linux@host$
iperf -s

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

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

Client (Board)​

  1. Upload Test

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

radxa@device$
iperf -c <server_ip> -t <time>
# 示例
iperf -c 192.168.2.186 -t 60

Parameters:

  • <server_ip>: The IP address of the server
  • <time>: Test duration in seconds
  1. Download Test

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

radxa@device$
iperf -c <server_ip> -t <time> -R
# 示例
iperf -c 192.168.2.186 -t 60 -R

Parameters:

  • <server_ip>: The IP address of the server
  • <time>: Test duration in seconds
  • -R: Reverse test (client receives, server sends)