CELLmicrocosmos.org forum

Configure your Alice/O2 WLAN connection

Here some special topic for those who want to connect to Alice WLAN by using a typicel modem like the Siemens SL2- 141-I. Thie topic sounds quite easy, and the solution is also quite easy, but the way there was not. I read now many forum entries to find this solution.

The way is very easy, you do not have be a Linux expert to do the following steps! After this thread you will find the way how to do it in the future when starting your computer again, a work of less than a minute!

Preparations

First, I am using Mint 12, which is quite similar to Ubuntu 10.04 which I use in parallel on other computers.

So the usual DSL connection seems to be no problem in the forums, but the WLAN connection is indeed a problem.

Anyway, for the next steps make sure that 1) your WLAN card is activated and 2) your LAN port is empty - you should not be connected to the modem via LAN cable!


1. Connect to your router

First connect to your router by simply clicking the entry in the menu on the right top of your desktop as shown in the image. Don't become confused: The default name for "Who_the_X_is?" is - guess what - "ALICE_DSL". So you will usually click on "ALICE-DSL" and you are asked for the WEP key to connect to your router. Usually you find this key on the bottom of your modem, if you did not change it. (This is NOT your password used in combination with your user name). On my modem it is a 13 digit combination of numbers and letters.
Now you should be connected and your Wireless menu entry should look like the screenshot above.


2. Create the PPP connection

Now there is a nice tool which is standard in my Ubuntu and Mint distributions: pppoeconf. This tool we will use now to configure the Point-to-Point-Protocol (PPP) connection.

Open the console (yeah, you have to, there is no GUI for this step, sorry!).

Now type in:
Type your user-password, now you have administrator access to your Linux, so please do not play around Start the process:
Now a nice process is invoked and you just follow the instructions. This tool will configure the protocol now for you. It first scans the network connections and it will find your active WLAN connection from Step 1.
(Note the name of the file dsl-provider. This will be used later for the commands pon or poff.)

Now always just confirm the steps of this tool, until you come to the stage where you have to state your user name and your password. This is now the data you once got from Alice/O2 together with you modem.

My user name is like:
012301230123@alice-dsl.de
My password is like:
XXXXXXXX

So enter this data. At one of the final stages pppoeconf asks you, if you want to start up the service at boot time. I selected "No" (because I think this will not work, because the usual connection from Step 1. might not be triggered during the booting process). Everything else I confirmed.

Now you configured PPP, here a short info how to start PPP in the console without going through the whole process again in the future:

This switches the connection on:
This switches the connection off:
This shows the actual state of the connection:

3. The Final Workaround

So far it was easy. This step took me some time. For the solution you will need the last mentioned command: plog

The output in my console looks like this:
If you use now your browser like Firefox and you want to crawl the Internet, you will see - nothing (if you wait long enough: an error message). It will not work, because the browser does not find the correct route.

Do the following: delete the default route by typing:
And now, use the data from plog find your local IP address. This address will change each time you connect to the Internet! And now do the following:
Now go again to your browser and re-check your web page. It's magic!


My major sources:

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1561579

http://www.kubuntuforums.net/showthread ... SL-problem

Hint: Network (WLAN or LAN) unmanaged? Often occurs on Ubuntu/Mint. Look here:

http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?f=150&t=59010

Start your Alice/O2 WLAN connection

Now the short way you will connect in the future to Alice:


1. Connect to your router

Connect to your Alice modem. Usually this is done automatically in the future, because Mint/Ubuntu saved the connection. Otherwise go to the menu on the right top of your desktop and choose "ALICE-DSL" or however your name looks like.


2. Create the PPP connection

Open a console, type in:

3. The Final Workaround

Delete the default route by typing:
Again, in your console:
Locate your local IP address in the output, like this:
Use it in the final command:
Done!


Protocol for your daily use