Bug 169298

Summary:	Internet connection sharing
Product:	[Unmaintained] Network Management	Reporter:	Aurelien Grosdidier <aurelien.grosdidier>
Component:	Control Module	Assignee:	Will Stephenson <wstephenson>
Status:	RESOLVED FIXED
Severity:	wishlist	CC:	lamarque, ramiel
Priority:	NOR
Version:	0.7
Target Milestone:	---
Platform:	Ubuntu
OS:	Linux
Latest Commit:		Version Fixed In:
Sentry Crash Report:

Description Aurelien Grosdidier 2008-08-17 07:36:12 UTC

Version:            (using KDE 3.5.9)
Installed from:    Ubuntu Packages
OS:                Linux

A very convenient feature with Mac OS X is the ability to use a Mac with a working internet connection (ethernet, wifi or dialup) as a gateway for other computers which are connected to it (ethernet, wifi, firewire, etc.), see http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=Mac/10.4/en/mh336.html.

Only a few clicks are required to share the wired internet connection with other devices through wifi. The user just tells which SSID to use, then ip forwarding between wifi and ethernet is allowed and a dhcp server is started on the wifi interface with the chosen SSID. After this very short configuration, any wifi-enable device is able to acquire an IP address from the Mac, and surf the web through its internet connexion. This is very convenient to repair system with broken internet connexions, or to give wireless internet access to other devices (such as smartphones, PDA).

In this example, the ethernet wired connection is shared through Wifi. Other combinations should be possible, such as Wifi/Wifi (if this is technically possible?), Wifi/dialup, Ethernet/dialup.

Ideally, when selecting "connection sharing", the user should be asked:
- the connection to share (drop down menu)
- the connection through which other devices will be able to connect (drop down menu), and if Wifi is selected, the SSID of the network to create

Comment 1 Will Stephenson 2009-02-05 15:02:16 UTC

On the todo list already.

Comment 2 Will Stephenson 2009-02-05 15:02:16 UTC

*** This bug has been confirmed by popular vote. ***

Comment 3 Will Stephenson 2009-02-05 15:02:42 UTC

*** Bug 169478 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 4 Will Stephenson 2009-07-22 15:13:01 UTC

Implemented for KNM 0.8

Comment 5 Will Stephenson 2009-07-22 15:13:14 UTC

Implemented for KNM 0.8

Comment 6 Lamarque V. Souza 2009-08-27 01:26:12 UTC

How do I configure KNM 0.8 to share my 3G connection with my notebooks's wireless card?

Comment 7 Will Stephenson 2009-08-30 10:50:35 UTC

You need to create a new wireless connection of type Ad-hoc with IP address type "Shared", then connect to this connection with the other PC.

The UI needs improving (in progress) and there are some security problems with this setup since NetworkManager starts hacking the system firewall to implement sharing.

Comment 8 Lamarque V. Souza 2009-08-30 23:45:07 UTC

Last Friday I managed to make sharing working with wired connection going through 3G connection, but not with wireless. I can create the ad-hoc connection but no activate it, knetworkmanager does nothing when I click on the created connection. I am traying to debug networkmanager/knetworkmanager to see why is this happening but no lucky so far.

I also have a problem with 3G connection. I had to disable ID_MM_ERICSSON_MBM in /lib64/udev/rules.d/77-mm-ericsson-mbm.rules to make it work. My MD300 modem does not work with that setting. Now it sometimes work and sometimes not, I had figure out the baud rate configuration is being discarded by networkmanager and when it fires pppd it complaints about missing baud rate. The strange thing is that sometimes pppd works even if baud rate is not passed to it. As far as I have debugged networkmanager it reads the connection setting when knetworkmanager if launched, it even reads the baud rate, but some steps further networkmanager complaints about missing ipv4 setting. I think netowrkmanager is discarding parts of the connection configuration because of that. The strange thing (again) is that cnetworkmanager prints the ipv4 configuration normally :-/