Linux Shell Scripting Cookbook - Third Edition

How it works...

The ifconfig, iwconfig, and route commands must be run as root. Hence, a check for the root user is performed before performing any actions in the scripts.

Wireless LAN requires parameters such as essid, key, and frequency to connect to the network. essid is the name of the wireless network to connect to. Some networks use a WEP key for authentication, which is usually a five- or ten-letter hex passphrase. The frequency assigned to the network is required by the iwconfig command to attach the wireless card with the proper wireless network.

The iwlist utility will scan and list the available wireless networks:

# iwlist scan 
wlan0     Scan completed : 
          Cell 01 - Address: 00:12:17:7B:1C:65 
                    Channel:11 
 Frequency:2.462 GHz (Channel ...