***********************************************
Configuring the Raspberry Pi as a WiFi repeater
***********************************************

.. include:: rpi_disclaimer.rst

Here's a quick-and-dirty test to get wifi-ethernet bridging working at the command line.

I completed this process on a RPi 3B running raspbian lite stretch. I am able to connect to the RPi AP using my MacBook Air and access the Internet with no issues. The same basic procedure may work with a 2nd interface in wifi station (client) mode, but I'll have to do more testing.

I added an Edimax adapter that I used previously as an AP as `wlan1` for this test. YMMV using other wifi adapters. The adapter to be used as your AP must support that function. Edit to substitute your own interface names as needed.

Additional work will be required to get everything to work on boot.

.. note:: This procedure will disconnect any existing network connection on the Raspberry Pi, so you need to be on the Raspberry Pi console after step 2.

#. Install ``hostapd`` and ``brutils`` with::

    sudo apt install hostapd bridge-utils

#. Temporarily clear existing IP address on ``eth0`` with::

    sudo ip addr flush dev eth0

#. Create the ``br0`` bridge interface with::

    sudo brctl add br0

#. Add the ``wlan1`` and ``eth0`` interfaces (or whatever your actual interface names are) to the bridge ``br0`` with::

    sudo brctl addif br0 eth0 wlan1

      (ignore the error - this is key)

#. Bring up the ``br0`` interface with::

    sudo ip link set dev br0 up

#. Unplug and re-plug the Ethernet cable to get a new address for ``br0`` from your dhcp server. Or::

    sudo dhclient -r
    sudo dhclient

#. Bring up ``hostapd`` with the properly configured `hostapd.conf` (see below) with::

    sudo hostapd ./hostapd.conf

Here's my ``hostapd.conf``::

    interface=wlan1
    driver=nl80211
    bridge=br0
    wmm_enabled=0
    hw_mode=g
    # Advertise capabilities
    ieee80211d=1
    channel=8
    macaddr_acl=0
    auth_algs=1
    # broadcast ssid
    ignore_broadcast_ssid=0
    ssid=YourSSID
    # wpa: 1=wpa 2=wpa2 3=both
    wpa=2
    wpa_passphrase=YourPSK
    wpa_key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
    wpa_pairwise=TKIP
    rsn_pairwise=CCMP

Again, expect far better performance using a device intended for such use. The GLi routers with external antennas work very well, as do others. A wifi repeater with little range is painful to use.

The Raspberry Pi `Forums <https://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=193770>`_ and `Blog <https://www.raspberrypi.org/documentation/configuration/wireless/access-point.md#internet-sharing>`_ are an invaluable aid for figuring out some of these steps on recent versions of raspbian.

Last edited on Aug 29, 2021. Last build on |today|.

.. include:: rpi_footer.rst