Getting Started

Getting Started

[Neshama Parhoti]

Hi all,

I'm about to write a new driver for mac80211.

Alas I'm not familiar with wireless basic concepts.

I have read everything in http://www.linuxwireless.org/
but I don't think that's enough.

Can you please point me to known good knowledge
references/overviews/tutorials on the subject ?

Thank You !!
Neshama

Re: Getting Started

[Johannes Berg]

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Hi,

> Can you please point me to known good knowledge
> references/overviews/tutorials on the subject ?

The best can currently offer is
 (a) checking http://johannes.sipsolutions.net/files/mac80211/
 (b) reading include/net/mac80211.h
 (c) comparing to an existing driver, for example b43's main.c
 (d) asking questions here

johannes

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Re: Getting Started

[Johannes Berg]

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>  (a) checking http://johannes.sipsolutions.net/files/mac80211/

Mind you, that is outdated because of recent work in mac80211, there are
no more hw modes and BSS config was introduced.

johannes

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Re: Getting Started

[Neshama Parhoti]

Hi Johannes,

On Feb 7, 2008 3:26 PM, Johannes Berg <johannes@sipsolutions.net> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> > Can you please point me to known good knowledge
> > references/overviews/tutorials on the subject ?
>
> The best can currently offer is
>  (a) checking http://johannes.sipsolutions.net/files/mac80211/
>  (b) reading include/net/mac80211.h
>  (c) comparing to an existing driver, for example b43's main.c
>  (d) asking questions here

Those are great, thanks !!

Any idea where I can find an updated, general, panoramic introduction for
the wireless subject and terms (without having to delve into the specs
themselves..) ?
I guess I ought to understand basic concepts before delving into the actual
code and interfaces.

Again thank you for the help, it is much appreciated.

Neshama.
>
> johannes
>

Re: Getting Started

[Holger Schurig]

> Can you please point me to known good knowledge
> references/overviews/tutorials on the subject ?

Get a linux kernel via git. Look at the drivers in 
drivers/net/wireless. Some of them use mac80211, you can find 
out which one by looking at Kconfig there, e.g. when they have a 
line "depends on MAC80211" there.

Those existing drivers should be a great inspiration to you :-)


It also helps when you share more about your incentives. E.g. 
writing 

> I'm about to write a new driver for mac80211.

doesn't give a great deal of insight into what you're up to. 
Maybe someone else already begin to write a driver for your 
hardware ?!?!  No one can tell you this right now, so you can't 
possibly save work on your side.

For example, the openmoko people are writing a mac80211 driver 
for ar6k. Not every driver is already in the wireless-2.6 git 
tree.

Re: Getting Started

[Johannes Berg]

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> Any idea where I can find an updated, general, panoramic introduction for
> the wireless subject and terms (without having to delve into the specs
> themselves..) ?

Not really. Some stuff is on linuxwireless.org but you said you read
that already :) I'm sure there are books like "An introduction to
802.11" or so but I never read any so I can't recommend anything.

> I guess I ought to understand basic concepts before delving into the actual
> code and interfaces.

That is probably a good idea, yes.

johannes

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Re: Getting Started

[Neshama Parhoti]

Hi Holger,

On Feb 7, 2008 3:35 PM, Holger Schurig <hs4233@mail.mn-solutions.de> wrote:
> > Can you please point me to known good knowledge
> > references/overviews/tutorials on the subject ?
>
> Get a linux kernel via git. Look at the drivers in
> drivers/net/wireless. Some of them use mac80211, you can find
> out which one by looking at Kconfig there, e.g. when they have a
> line "depends on MAC80211" there.

Ok, thanks.

> It also helps when you share more about your incentives.

Currently I'm only studying the subject, so no specific hardware,
I will probably write preliminary driver just for education, so I don't
care if someone is working on it now.

Re: Getting Started

[Neshama Parhoti]

On Feb 7, 2008 3:35 PM, Johannes Berg <johannes@sipsolutions.net> wrote:
>
> > Any idea where I can find an updated, general, panoramic introduction for
> > the wireless subject and terms (without having to delve into the specs
> > themselves..) ?
>
> Not really. Some stuff is on linuxwireless.org but you said you read
> that already :) I'm sure there are books like "An introduction to
> 802.11" or so but I never read any so I can't recommend anything.

No time either to order and read a book. I was really looking for whitepapars,
HOWTOs, tutorials and such. But all I can find is very outdated stuff,
from years back..

>
> > I guess I ought to understand basic concepts before delving into the actual
> > code and interfaces.
>
> That is probably a good idea, yes.
>
> johannes
>

Re: Getting Started

[Holger Schurig]

> Currently I'm only studying the subject, so no specific
> hardware, I will probably write preliminary driver just for
> education, so I don't care if someone is working on it now.

In that case you can fill the (documentation) gap. Maybe it would 
even be fun to, e.g., write a "How I mastered to write a 
mac80211 driver" blog and post that.

Re: Getting Started

[Nick Kossifidis]

> For example, the openmoko people are writing a mac80211 driver
> for ar6k. Not every driver is already in the wireless-2.6 git
> tree.

[OT]

As far as i know Atheros released a GPLed driver along with their SDIO stack.
http://sourceforge.net/projects/sdio-linux/

Do you have a plan to include this in kernel ? What's the status ?

-- 
GPG ID: 0xD21DB2DB
As you read this post global entropy rises. Have Fun ;-)
Nick

Re: Getting Started

[Dan Williams]

On Thu, 2008-02-07 at 17:04 +0200, Nick Kossifidis wrote:
> > For example, the openmoko people are writing a mac80211 driver
> > for ar6k. Not every driver is already in the wireless-2.6 git
> > tree.
> 
> [OT]
> 
> As far as i know Atheros released a GPLed driver along with their SDIO stack.
> http://sourceforge.net/projects/sdio-linux/
> 
> Do you have a plan to include this in kernel ? What's the status ?

2.6.24 already has an SDIO stack; hence the Atheros one is redundant.
The openmoko people already have a port of their ar6k driver to the
in-kernel SDIO stack.

Dan

Re: Getting Started

[Dan Williams]

On Thu, 2008-02-07 at 11:09 -0500, Dan Williams wrote:
> On Thu, 2008-02-07 at 17:04 +0200, Nick Kossifidis wrote:
> > > For example, the openmoko people are writing a mac80211 driver
> > > for ar6k. Not every driver is already in the wireless-2.6 git
> > > tree.
> > 
> > [OT]
> > 
> > As far as i know Atheros released a GPLed driver along with their SDIO stack.
> > http://sourceforge.net/projects/sdio-linux/
> > 
> > Do you have a plan to include this in kernel ? What's the status ?
> 
> 2.6.24 already has an SDIO stack; hence the Atheros one is redundant.
> The openmoko people already have a port of their ar6k driver to the
> in-kernel SDIO stack.

Which of course means that one big barrier to including the ar6k driver
is already removed.  You can browse the ar6k openmoko code at:

http://svn.openmoko.org/developers/sameo/patches/ar6k-ng/

Dan

Re: Getting Started

[Nick Kossifidis]

2008/2/7, Dan Williams <dcbw@redhat.com>:
> On Thu, 2008-02-07 at 11:09 -0500, Dan Williams wrote:
> > On Thu, 2008-02-07 at 17:04 +0200, Nick Kossifidis wrote:
> > > > For example, the openmoko people are writing a mac80211 driver
> > > > for ar6k. Not every driver is already in the wireless-2.6 git
> > > > tree.
> > >
> > > [OT]
> > >
> > > As far as i know Atheros released a GPLed driver along with their SDIO stack.
> > > http://sourceforge.net/projects/sdio-linux/
> > >
> > > Do you have a plan to include this in kernel ? What's the status ?
> >
> > 2.6.24 already has an SDIO stack; hence the Atheros one is redundant.
> > The openmoko people already have a port of their ar6k driver to the
> > in-kernel SDIO stack.
>
> Which of course means that one big barrier to including the ar6k driver
> is already removed.  You can browse the ar6k openmoko code at:
>
> http://svn.openmoko.org/developers/sameo/patches/ar6k-ng/
>
> Dan
>
>

Great news !

Thnx for the info ;-)

-- 
GPG ID: 0xD21DB2DB
As you read this post global entropy rises. Have Fun ;-)
Nick