Connecting to Wi‑Fi Using WPA Supplicant

A simple, CLI-only guide for connecting to WPA/WPA2 Wi‑Fi on Linux using wpa_supplicant and runit—ideal for minimal installs without NetworkManager.

1. Create a WPA Passphrase Configuration

Generate the necessary WPA credentials and append them to /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf:

sudo wpa_passphrase "YOUR_SSID" "YOUR_WIFI_PASSWORD" \
  | sudo tee -a /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf

This ensures your SSID and password are securely hashed in the config.

2. Identify Your Wi‑Fi Interface

Use ip link to find the wireless interface name (e.g. wlan0, wlp3s0, etc.):

ip link

3. Launch wpa_supplicant

Replace wlan0 with your detected interface name and run:

sudo wpa_supplicant -B -i wlan0 -c /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf

• -B runs it in the background.
• -i specifies the interface.
• -c points to your configuration file.

4. Enable The Service Through runit

Make the Wi‑Fi configuration automatic on startup by linking the service into runit directory:

sudo ln -s /etc/sv/wpa_supplicant /var/service/

5. Test The Connection

Check connectivity by pinging a reliable host:

ping noxz.tech

If packets succeed, you’re online!

6. Optional: Auto-Start On Login (Per-User)

To avoid manually starting wpa_supplicant each session, add this line to your shell profile:

wpa_supplicant -B -i wlan0 -c /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf

• Add to ~/.profile or ~/.bashrc.
• For graphical logins via ~/.xinitrc, append the command with an & (background) at the end.