iwconfig

Configure and display wireless network interface parameters

TLDR

Show all wireless interfaces and their settings

$ iwconfig

Show a specific wireless interface

$ iwconfig [wlan0]

Set the network name (ESSID)

$ iwconfig [wlan0] essid [network_name]

Set the operating mode

$ iwconfig [wlan0] mode [Managed]

Set the channel

$ iwconfig [wlan0] channel [6]

Set the transmit power in dBm

$ iwconfig [wlan0] txpower [20]

Set the bit rate

$ iwconfig [wlan0] rate [54M]

Enable monitor mode on an interface

$ iwconfig [wlan0] mode Monitor

SYNOPSIS

iwconfig [interface] [parameter value...]

iwconfig is similar to ifconfig, but is dedicated to wireless network interfaces. It is used to set parameters specific to wireless operation such as ESSID, frequency, mode, encryption key, and power management. It can also display those parameters along with wireless statistics from /proc/net/wireless.When called without arguments, iwconfig displays the wireless parameters for all interfaces. When called with an interface name only, it displays the settings for that interface.

PARAMETERS

essid name

Set the network name (SSID). Use essid off or essid any to disable ESSID checking.

mode mode

Set operating mode: Ad-Hoc, Managed, Master, Repeater, Secondary, Monitor, or Auto.

freq frequency

Set operating frequency (e.g. 2.46G for 2.46 GHz). Append k, M, or G suffix.

channel channel

Set operating channel number. Use iwlist to see available channels.

ap address

Force association with a specific access point by MAC address. Use ap off to re-enable auto selection.

rate rate

Set the bit rate (e.g. 11M, 54M). Use rate auto for automatic selection.

txpower power

Set transmit power in dBm, or use mW suffix for milliwatts. Use txpower off to disable the radio.

sens threshold

Set sensitivity threshold for roaming decisions.

retry limit

Set maximum MAC retransmission retry limit.

rts threshold

Set the RTS/CTS handshake threshold in bytes. Use rts off to disable.

frag threshold

Set maximum fragment size in bytes. Use frag off to disable.

power mode

Set power management mode. Use power off to disable power management.

key key

Set WEP encryption key (deprecated and insecure).

CAVEATS

iwconfig is deprecated in favor of iw. WEP encryption configured via key is insecure and should not be used. For WPA/WPA2/WPA3, use wpa_supplicant instead. Only the superuser can change wireless parameters.

HISTORY

iwconfig was part of the wireless-tools package created by Jean Tourrilhes at Hewlett-Packard. It has been largely superseded by iw and wpa_supplicant for modern wireless configuration.