[Server-devel] Host AP on XO-1.75 and XO-3

[Jerry Vonau]

Hi all:

On Wed, 2011-10-05 at 08:09 -0400, Kevin Gordon wrote:
> 
> 
> On Wed, Oct 5, 2011 at 4:25 AM, Peter Robinson <pbrobinson at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>         On Wed, Oct 5, 2011 at 8:51 AM, Sridhar Dhanapalan
>         <sridhar at laptop.org.au> wrote:
>         > Just wondering whether the XO-1.75 and XO-3 will be capable
>         of hosting
>         > a wireless network.
>         >
>         > I'm asking because we are interested in using an XO as a
>         lightweight XS server.
>         
>         
>         The XO 1.75 uses the exact same wifi module as the 1.5 so the
>         functionality is the same, and so you'll be able to on the
>         1.75,
>         there's still discussion on the OS for the 3.0 but then I'm
>         not sure
>         how usable a tablet would be as a server anyway.
> 
> If I could be so bold as to posit to the community:  I'm not sure
> whether the request as stated, and answer as given, is actually the
> case, in an out-of-the box, especially  if you have a mixed XO
> environment.  If by acting as an AP, you mean appearing on the
> neighbourhood view as an AP, and not a peer, and then providing a
> shared internet connection, in my experience, that really isn't
> provided by a vanilla install of the XO software, even on the 1.5.
> 

True, think some of the kernel modules are missing for iptables
support. 

> Once all the XO buddies (XO 1 and 1.5) atttach to a 'real' AP, all
> machines on that AP can see each other, and get out to the Internet
> through the AP's running as a router.  In the other case, in a mixed
> XO1 and XO1.5 environment where everyone attaches to a single XO 1.5
> on the ad-hoc network, without some custom routing entries, I can't
> see it providing a shared internet connection.  Not to say it cant be
> done, but I haven't found it to work that way out of the box.
> 

Sugar forces the use of link-local addresses for ad-hoc networks,
doesn't even try to use dhcp once connected to the XO based AP, but
while in gnome the network behaves normally. This is a real PITA if you
want to use a ad-hoc network with a dhcp server to handle the ip address
assignment, and thus the routing to the gateway. This should be better
with NM-9 and sugar 95.2 but I haven't tried yet. 

> So, I guess it depends on what you mean by 'using an XO as a
> lightweight XS server', and whether you will install your own O/S and
> a subset of the existing XS code on the 1.75,  pretty much like you
> would have too to on the1.5 to get it to act like a real AP and router
> and server.  Putting a wireless router an AP in the middle with a
> default route to another XO  on a separate subnet running some XS
> server code that in turn connects  out maybe the USB ethernet port to
> the WAN might work.  Without some real  router protocols active,
> hairpinning issues will also arise if you try to just hook back to the
> same subnet.
> 

That is just some routing and dns... :/

> So bottom line (unless I'm way out of the loop in ancient history -
> which sometimes happens) , is that from what Peter is saying, if you
> already have an acceptable infrastucture which is currently working on
> an XO 1.5, then there is no reason for it not to work on a 1.75.
> However it would be my prediction that if you were hoping to have a
> vanilla XO 1.75 now run as a WAP, that may still not be as simple as
> you want.  
> 

Not yet, but I have some work in progress.

Jerry