Template:Laptop Networking

Requirements
All laptops sold or given away by Free Geek must have a working wired internet connection and must be able to browse to a website wirelessly.

Test wired internet connection

☐ Plug in an ethernet cable from the bench.

• Watch the desktop panel, top right corner. You should see a ↑↓ symbol appear.

☐ Open a web browser (Xubuntu 12.04 uses Firefox by default) and navigate to a website, such as http://www.freegeek.org

Troubleshooting tips

• Try a different cable. The workbench ethernet cables see a lot of use. If you do find a faulty cable, please notify an instructor so they can promptly replace it.
• Check to see if the up lights are flashing on the LAN port. No lights may indicate a failed port.
• Open a terminal and run ifconfig. Have your instructor help you interpret the results.

Test wireless internet connection

☐ Test wireless

• Disconnect the ethernet cable.
  
• Click on the WiFi symbol to select the FreeGeek network.
  
• Load a website in Firefox. Pick a different site than you used for the wired networking test, such as http://wiki.freegeek.org. You should see a page asking you to accept Free Geek's terms for using our wireless network. Scroll down and click "I Agree" to load the page you were navigating to.
  

☐ If you arrive at your website successfully, continue to the next build step.
☐ If you run into issues, reference the Wireless Troubleshooting Guide (A-5) in the binder Appendix.