Simplified instructions for Squeezebox Radio Wi-Fi fix (wlanpoke)

[travelfotografer]

Tried 0.8.7.1a, unfortunately it fares worse than 0.8.4.1 for me. With 0.8.7.1a, my radio will lose WiFi and the WiFi icon will stay red. Went back to 0.8.4.1 and my radio seems better at restoring WiFi connection after losing WiFi (intermittent loss of sound from a streaming radio station and sound coming back again)

[POMdev]

Tried 0.8.7.1a, unfortunately it fares worse than 0.8.4.1 for me. With 0.8.7.1a, my radio will lose WiFi and the WiFi icon will stay red. Went back to 0.8.4.1 and my radio seems better at restoring WiFi connection after losing WiFi (intermittent loss of sound from a streaming radio station and sound coming back again)

That's unexpected. Can you tell if it successfully launches? Can you open the web interface on your browser? Are there any log files or messages?

Perhaps it was not successfully launching, or immediately quitting. If you have the inclination to troubleshoot, you could try launching it directly from the ssh command prompt, keep the ssh session open and see if there are any notification or error messages, or persistent log files in /etc/log, and check its status in a web browser (see manual.txt). The advantage of launching it from an ssh shell is that if the script dies with an error, you will see a last message that will persist even if the radio loses its connection.

/etc/wlanpoke/wlanpoke.sh -d /etc/log/ -W slow &

If not running the recommended ncat or nc on your computer, add the -x option to disable messaging:
/etc/wlanpoke/wlanpoke.sh -d /etc/log/ -W slow -x &

If the new version has a different file name (e.g., 'wlanpoke871a.sh'), use that instead of 'wlanpole.sh'.

If you had copied the new file to your /etc/wlanpoke folder without overwriting the original (because you renamed it), it would not run without giving it the run permission: chmod 755 *.sh

That's all I can think of for now. Good luck! Thanks for trying.

[Tony T]

I'm seeing 0.8.4.1 04/21 (https://github.com/PomDev2/wlanpoke)
Where is 0.8.7.x?
Edit: Found it (Development Branch): https://github.com/PomDev2/wlanpoke/tree/development

[Fishy_]

Hi, just registered in order to give my sincere thanks to POMdev and roijikewl. Your combined efforts seem to have saved my three SQB radios! I was about to give up and even started to Google up Sonos One speakers. By this script all three radios have been rather stable on WIFI for about 24h for the first time since like months. When they start to drop and approach the dreaded red network icon state the script seems to push them back online with a slight delay. Hope the script enters the official firmware at some point unless something miraculous is done at the WIFI 6 end to actually address this issue. The problem of congestion is not going away and will likely grow. My issues, which were more or less equivalent to those described in the op, emerged more or less overnight in a crowded residential area, probably due to a couple of new neighbours who brought some mesh into the environment. I am on a Linksys 1900ACS for reference (separated 2.4 and 5ghz SSIDS). Tried about every possible setting in WIFI including many of those suggested in the current and other threads (different channels, only 20mhz on 2.4ghz, different combinations of b/g/n etc.). This script was the only one that partly solved or at least substantially alleviated the problem.

[travelfotografer]

That's unexpected. Can you tell if it successfully launches? Can you open the web interface on your browser? Are there any log files or messages?

Perhaps it was not successfully launching, or immediately quitting. If you have the inclination to troubleshoot, you could try launching it directly from the ssh command prompt, keep the ssh session open and see if there are any notification or error messages, or persistent log files in /etc/log, and check its status in a web browser (see manual.txt). The advantage of launching it from an ssh shell is that if the script dies with an error, you will see a last message that will persist even if the radio loses its connection.

/etc/wlanpoke/wlanpoke.sh -d /etc/log/ -W slow &

If not running the recommended ncat or nc on your computer, add the -x option to disable messaging:
/etc/wlanpoke/wlanpoke.sh -d /etc/log/ -W slow -x &

If the new version has a different file name (e.g., 'wlanpoke871a.sh'), use that instead of 'wlanpole.sh'.

If you had copied the new file to your /etc/wlanpoke folder without overwriting the original (because you renamed it), it would not run without giving it the run permission: chmod 755 *.sh

That's all I can think of for now. Good luck! Thanks for trying.

I do not mind trying again, but I will need more hand-holding. How do I open the web interface on my browser?

First, to make sure I am downloading the correct 0.8.7.1a branch:
go to https://github.com/PomDev2/wlanpoke/tree/development
click on "Code" button
select "Download ZIP" to my computer
SCP into my Radio
delete all files in /etc/wlanpoke
delete /etc/init.d/rcS.local
follow the standard installation procedure using wlanpoke-development.zip

Correct?

[POMdev]

I do not mind trying again, but I will need more hand-holding. How do I open the web interface on my browser?
..
delete all files in /etc/wlanpoke
delete /etc/init.d/rcS.local
...
Correct?

It does sound right, but I am not sure. Can anyone who has done this recently help?

Tip: you don't have to delete any files. You can just overwrite the old with the new.

The difference for troubleshooting is that you launch the script directly from the ssh session instead rebooting, and keep the ssh session running to make sure it is working, or display and record any error messages if it fails.See "Manual Launch." in manual.txt.

To open the web interface, enter http://<radio_ip_address>:<port>, where <port> is typically 8080. See the "Web Page" topic.

[POMdev]

...
Executing /etc/wlanpoke/wlanpoke.sh -d /etc/log/ -W slow -x &
2023-03-30_18:27:20 radio.192.168.50.208_0871a: 5466 at uptime: 18:27:20 up 8 min, load average: 2.73, 2.37, 1.22 ...
2023-03-30_18:30:43 radio.208_0871a: Quick.none: Resetting wlan... eth1 ...
2023-03-30_18:30:55 radio.208_0871a: Full: Stopping and restarting wlan.....
2023-03-30_18:31:12 radio.208_0871a: Full Reset # 0, step 0. Last recovery was 0, next reset in 6 + 6 trials = 12. + 12 seconds. 12 - 60. History: 12: 18: 26: 37: 53: ...
# 2023-03-30_18:36:07 radio.208_0871a: Quick.none: Resetting wlan... eth1 ...
The radio successfully moved from the bedroom mesh access point to the living room mesh access point (which is closer to the kitchen). The radio continued playing without missing a beat. Unfortunately, at this point, the SCP lost connection.

At a rate of a disconnect every 5 minutes or 12 per hour (= 2016 per week!), you are certainly getting hammered. Your scp session indicates the script was working. I didn't recognize a few entries, so concluded my testing and relaunched all radios with the new function enabled. I have connected to my worst (~50 outages per week) radio using ssh, and will wait for some outages and compare.

BTW, this concluded test run of about 8 days with the scan control function disabled had fewer outages in several cases than a shorter 3 day test with it enabled! This result illustrates how difficult it is to test here in this relatively quiet environment. By comparison, your environment is ideal for testing (but not for listening).

I don't know about using the scp command line. The lost connection aspect you reported may be related to the scp client. I prefer putty or the Windows ssh client. Putty is fairly forgiving of disrupted connections. Both clients require permissions to use the radio's older security protocols. Putty requires clicking a message. For Windows ssh, use:
ssh -o KexAlgorithms=+diffie-hellman-group1-sha1 -c aes128-cbc [email protected]

And you are using a mesh system? That may itself be implicated along with WiFi-6 as an interference source (don't know). You might experiment with turning off the mesh for a while, using the wired access point, and see if anything improves.

[slartibartfast]

Is anyone using a Virgin Media Hub 5? I am getting one soon and they are the dreaded WiFi 6. I will be using it in Modem mode so should be OK but I wonder if the Virgin Media Hot Spot will have any bad effects. If so I can disable that as well.

[Paul Webster]

I think I saw something from Virgin saying that they are ending the HotSpot service so it will soon become a non-issue (even if it is one).

[slartibartfast]

I think I saw something from Virgin saying that they are ending the HotSpot service so it will soon become a non-issue (even if it is one).

Probably part of their link with 02. It never seemed to work particularly well for me.

[Paul Webster]

Probably part of their link with 02. It never seemed to work particularly well for me.

Info

^{https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2023/03/broadband-isp-virgin-media-to-retire-uk-public-wifi-hotspots.html}

[slartibartfast]

Info

^{https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2023/03/broadband-isp-virgin-media-to-retire-uk-public-wifi-hotspots.html}

According to that my new hub should have the hotspot disabled.

[symphx]

Hi, I would love this to work. I can't seem to connect to my player with ssh enabled. I get an error "Cannot initialize SFTP protocol. Is the host running an SFTP server?" 'server sent command exit status 0"

also some warning about diffie hellman group 1 sha 1 below configured warning threshold (which I ginore) please help

My port number says 22, do I need to change this? sorry Im not a computer engineer any help is appreciated.

[staresy]

I think you need the protocol set to SCP.

[CJS]

Hi, I would love this to work. I can't seem to connect to my player with ssh enabled. I get an error "Cannot initialize SFTP protocol. Is the host running an SFTP server?" 'server sent command exit status 0"
also some warning about diffie hellman group 1 sha 1 below configured warning threshold (which I ginore) please help
My port number says 22, do I need to change this? sorry Im not a computer engineer any help is appreciated.

Carefully follow the instructions given under point 5 in post number 1. It says for file protocol choose SCP. Port number 22 should be OK.