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Functional Linux 802.11G Centrino Driver Released
sixstring355 writes "Intel has released the first functional version of its Centrino/IPW2200 chipset driver. for Linux (kernel 2.6.4+). Posts to the ipw2100/2200 developer mailing list report connection speeds of 450KB/s. See the feature list for more details."
Unfortunately, without WEP it won't be much good for everyday use.
WEP isn't much good for everyday use. WEP creates complexity because you need to deploy keys everywhere, reduces performance -- sometimes by as much as half -- and is very easy to break, so the security it provides is mostly illusion. I'm somewhat of a security expert (as in, it's my day job, and they haven't fired me yet), and I run my home network unencrypted, but with the wireless part firewalled off, with the AP configured to do MAC address filtering and not to broadcast the SSID. That's just about as secure as WEP, is much easier to manage and doesn't slow down my data transfers.
That said, the driver in question uses the HostAP infrastructure, which includes a WPA supplicant, so when the security is all hooked up, it should not only have WEP, but it will also support WPA and WPA2, along with either PSK or any of the zillion EAP authentication methods, for centrally-manageable, strong security.
IMO, the driver's security is perfectly acceptable for home use now, and when they get it all hooked up, it'll be just fine for enterprise use as well. Good stuff!
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> The firmware that runs on the card itself is still a closed source binary.
Talk about failure to pick your battles. A bit of real-world info: every single WiFi card on the planet has closed-source firmware. No exceptions. The difference is that the Intel 2x00 cards save money on manufacturing (and thus make the cards cheaper for YOU) by not storing the firmware on an extra flash chip on the board itself.
Take a look at the board of MOST WiFi cards. You will see either 3 or 4 chips (though some new non-PC-compatible "chipsets" manage to totally integrate this into a single chip). Chip #1 is the baseband (MAC). Chip #2 (if not integrated into the MAC, which is a very recent thing) is the radio section (upconverter/downconverter). Chip #3 is the SRAM needed to store in-flight packets. Chip #4 is the flash chip containing the closed-source firmware. The Intel 2x00 cards save money by letting the host processor and infrastructure do what they're really good at: storing and moving data. Instead of loading firmware out of flash, the card waits for the host to load the firmware as the driver boots up.
No as for the desirability of open-source firmware... If you plan on telling me that you intend to take this open-source firmware and modify it so your card can do different things with its radio, pay me no mind while I laugh in your face.
I'm developing firmware for a hardware product right now, and can tell you that there is not the slightest chance that anyone outside the designers of the hardware can make firmware do anything other than what it was designed to do.
First of all you have the hardware itself, which even the software will be useless for as far as getting the slightest clue what's really going on. Second, firmware for such devices, *especially* high-speed devices like WiFi cards, is more timing-critical than you can even begin to imagine. The slightest change will make it cease to work in ways even the original author most likely will not understand (speaking from daily experience here).
Sorry, but if you want open-source firmware, you're going to have to design your own chip.
(Not-Disclaimer: I have no relationship with Intel, their product, or this driver project, except that I plan on buying a 2x00 at some point to replace the driverless/worthless BCM4306 card that came with my laptop)
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Ran out of mod points right before modding this down so I'll just respond instead...
read the feature list listed in the article. It mentions that it only connects in 802.11b mode, 802.11g support is still in the todo section...
They're bothering with WEP because a lot of people use it and because WEP can be quite useful in many situations, as long as you know its limitations. WEP offers an appropriate level of security for many users.
Security, even wireless security, isn't black and white. It comes in shades of gray (not to mention mauve and chartreuse), and all of them are appropriate for some situation or other.
Parent is very informative. As extra detail, FCC regulations prohibit open source firmware in 802.11. They require than non-FCC-licensed radio operators (wi-fi users) be unable to modify the device to create interference. This means that because of the FCC regulations, they can't open source the part of the code that controls the radio's power output and frequency. The atheros guys solved this by creating open source code, and then a binary-only hardware abstraction layer. Supposedly there is some under the table work on replacing the HAL with some open source code. Of course, that would be illegal in the US *wink*.
There are many Linux installation reports for Centrino based laptops and notebooks available. The older manuals cover the Centrinos with Banias CPU. But some of the new cover the current Centrino generation with Dothan CPU already.