Step 3: Configure WiFi Network and Ethernet Bridge (optional)

Setting up a wireless access point on your Raspberry Pi is only necessary if you have a wired network but don’t have a wireless network. This allows devices like iPad’s and laptops to connect wirelessly receive NMEA data for navigational apps. It also gives these devices access to the rest of your network.

Even if you have a wireless network, you might also want to do this if you want to have a dedicated wireless network for navigational purposes only.

Okay, that said, let’s get to it:

First let’s make sure we have the most up-to-date list of the available software packages..
sudo apt-get update

Now let’s install the 3 packages we need for this task
sudo apt-get install hostapd bridge-utils iw

Next we need to edit some configuration files to set things up correctly:

sudo nano /etc/default/hostapd
Uncomment and edit the following line as shown.. DAEMON_CONF=”/etc/hostapd/hostapd.conf”
Save and close the file (CTRL-X)

sudo nano /etc/hostapd/hostapd.conf
Edit the file as follows:
    interface=wlan0
    bridge=br0
    driver=rtl871xdrv
    country_code=US
    ssid=<TypeInYourWiFiNetworkNameHere>
    hw_mode=g
    channel=6 #you can pick any channel from 1 to 11
    macaddr_acl=0
    auth_algs=1
    ignore_broadcast_ssid=0
    wpa=2
    wpa_passphrase=<TypeInYourPassPhraseHere>
    wpa_key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
    wpa_pairwise=TKIP
    rsn_pairwise=CCMP
    ieee80211n=1
Save and close the file (CTRL-X)

Backup the network interfaces config file and edit it:
sudo cp /etc/network/interfaces /etc/network/interfaces.bak
sudo nano /etc/network/interfaces
Edit the file as follows:
auto lo
auto br0
iface lo inet loopback
iface br0 inet static
address (IP address you want your RaspBerry Pi device to use)
netmask 255.255.255.0
bridge_fd 1
bridge_hello 3
bridge_maxage 10
bridge_stp off
bridge_ports eth0 wlan0

auto eth0
allow-hotplug eth0
iface eth0 inet manual

auto wlan0
allow-hotplug wlan0
iface wlan0 inet manual
Save and close the file (CTRL-X)

Now we need to change to a different version of the hostapd package to support the EDIMAX WiFi USB device

Reference: http://blog.sip2serve.com/post/48420162196/howto-setup-rtl8188cus-on-rpi-as-an-access-point
Note: I used this as a starting point as well as the replacement file, but the instructions I am providing are slightly different from the referenced page. This is because I had trouble getting it all to work and had to modify a few things. The instructions I am posting are from what I actually did to make it work.

Backup the current executable file
cd /usr/sbin
sudo cp /usr/sbin/hostapd /usr/sbin/hostapd.bak

Delete the original file
sudo rm –f hostapd

Download the replacement file to support the EDIMAX WiFi
sudo wget http://dl.dropbox.com/u/1663660/hostapd/hostapd

Now set permissions on the file so it will run
sudo chown root:root hostapd
sudo chmod 755 hostapd

Now that all the files are configured and ready, let’s restart the rPi again
reboot

The network should appear on other devices now.

Next Step: Step 4: Install kPlex NMEA Multiplexer

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