Re: problem getting hostapd and bridging to work

[Dave Tyson <dtyson%anduin.org.uk@localhost>]

Just to provide a heads up to others thinking of using the rpi model B
as an access point gateway: DON'T

The bottom line is that the built-in ethernet usmsc(4) on this board
does not seem to support bridging - I find this utterly mindboggling so
I think it's worth outlining what I did to come to this conclusion. 

I tried the original set up but used a Dlink DWL-6122 supported by the
rum(4) driver which does hostap. I still couldn't get the bridge to
pass packets and so I added a usb-ethernet adaptor cdce(4) to the
bridge and hooked a laptop to it. No packets were seen to pass. To
check that it wasn't duff I put the above adaptor in my amd64 desktop
system, configured a bridge and added it and the re(4) interface (which
connects to the router). Everything just worked as expected... 

I then tested the Dlink usb-wifi dongle in the desktop, adding that to
the bridge rather than to ethernet dongle and configured hostapd. It
worked OK and I could connect over wireless to the 'new' access point
with a mobile phone. 

Subsequent attempts using the Dlink wifi dongle with the rpi B produced
a load of error messages so I wonder if the usb hardware is flaky. If I
get a chance next month I will try with another rpi model B to decide
one way or the other, but for now would not recommend them...

Dave