Foo - Using A Droid As A Wireless Net Connection

I can't seem to Google any plain English answers to this question that don't require you to be a hacker and/or have a degree in computer engineering. I'm trying to get my PS3 connected to the internet in the sleeper berth of an 18-wheeler. I recently bought a Droid "Global 2" smartphone that's awful nice, and I bought the additional data service that will supposedly let me do this, but so far no dice. I don't know what the devil a WEP key is and I don't want to "hack" or reprogram my phone, I just want it to do what I bought it to do.

Is it asking you for a WEP key that exists or is it telling you to create one?

I believe the correct googling phrase would be "using droid as wifi hotspot". Something about some "WiFi Tether App" keeps popping up.

Is it asking you for a WEP key that exists or is it telling you to create one?

WPA key, actually, and it's asking for one. Seems to accept a max of nine digits. (???)

^^^ It sounds as if your phone has found a WiFi network and is trying to connect to it. So I am guessing that you are trying to connect to a WiFi network that has WPA security enabled. Unless you know the WPA key, and enter in the nine digit number, you will not be able to connect to that network.

^^^ It sounds as if your phone has found a WiFi network and is trying to connect to it. So I am guessing that you are trying to connect to a WiFi network that has WPA security enabled. Unless you know the WPA key, and enter in the nine digit number, you will not be able to connect to that network.

No, my phone is connected to Verizon and is a mobile Wifi hotspot in and of itself, it's my Playstation 3 that is having connectivity issues with it, even though it works just fine with my wireless router at home. It scans and recognizes the Droid, but then it asks for this WPA thing. I don't know what that even is and certainly don't know where to find it.

I can't seem to Google any plain English answers to this question that don't require you to be a hacker and/or have a degree in computer engineering. I'm trying to get my PS3 connected to the internet in the sleeper berth of an 18-wheeler. I recently bought a Droid "Global 2" smartphone that's awful nice, and I bought the additional data service that will supposedly let me do this, but so far no dice. I don't know what the devil a WEP key is and I don't want to "hack" or reprogram my phone, I just want it to do what I bought it to do.


From a search it seems you can't do it without using a PC.
So you tether your laptop to the droid and then bridge the PS3 to the laptop.

I would assume this is a limitation of the OS on PS3. It probably has no native support for this.

A WEP key is a hexadecimal key, usually a phone number, 10 digit.

A WPA key well, this explains it


WPA
It is an interim solution that is used now until 802.11i comes out.

It still using RC4, but the Key was changed to TKIP.

TKIP basically works by generating a sequence of WEP keys based on a master key, and re-keying periodically before enough volume of info. could be captured to allow recovery of the WEP key. TKIP changes the Key every 10,000 packets, which is quick enough to combat statistical methods to analyze the cipher.

TKIP also adds into the picture the Message Integrity Code (MIC). The transmission’s CRC, and ICV (Integrity Check Value) is checked. If the packet was tampered with. WPA will stop using the current keys and re-keys.

This site may help, somewhat
http://manuals.playstation.net/document/en/ps3/current/settings/connectadvance.html

From a search it seems you can't do it without using a PC.
So you tether your laptop to the droid and then bridge the PS3 to the laptop.

I would assume this is a limitation of the OS on PS3. It probably has no native support for this.I don't have a laptop.

Somebody claims that http://www.mobile-stream.com/easytether/android.html works. There is a free demo.

Does anyone know how I can get my Droid's WPA key? I assume the engineers thought of a method for retrieving it in this "user friendly" age of ours?

A LOT more info

http://www.mobile-stream.com/easytether/android_faq.html

Somebody claims that http://www.mobile-stream.com/easytether/android.html works. There is a free demo.

See, that's the thing, I'm not taking the PC with me on the truck, (space is limited,) especially when I can do most rudimentary online activities from the phone, I just want it to act like a wireless router for my PS3, like it's goddamn supposed to! :mad:

A LOT more info

http://www.mobile-stream.com/easytether/android_faq.html

Only if you understand computer language. I don't. That's why I asked for the translation into Klingon.

See, that's the thing, I'm not taking the PC with me on the truck, (space is limited,) especially when I can do most rudimentary online activities from the phone, I just want it to act like a wireless router for my PS3, like it's goddamn supposed to! :mad:

Well I'm guessing you're SOL. I don't think havig the WPA/WEP key is going to help you because the experts are saying that the PS3 can pick up the network. It's just prevented from connecting to ad-hoc networks.

See, that's the thing, I'm not taking the PC with me on the truck, (space is limited,) especially when I can do most rudimentary online activities from the phone, I just want it to act like a wireless router for my PS3, like it's goddamn supposed to! :mad:

Course you could also go with a netbook possibly. Just make sure you know what is needed to "bridge" them and make sure the netbook has it.

KP, as near as I can tell, you are going to have to have some skills to do this. You need root access to your phone, and can trash your OS if you do it wrong.


Method 1: Tether Android with Apps that Need Root (Free, heavy configuration)

The Android Wi-Fi Tether (http://code.google.com/p/android-wifi-tether/) application turns your phone into a Wi-Fi hotspot--essentially a MiFi (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MiFi)--in one tap. The catch? You have to gain root access to your phone, a multi-step process that uses an unofficial Android add-on which can brick your phone if applied incorrectly. Rooting Android is doable for geeks and hackers with experience soft-modding hardware, but it's not something most users could (or should!) do. http://smarterware.org/4575/how-to-tether-your-android-phone



I really don't recommend this, though unless you are very comfortable working in root.

What a freaking hassle. Can anyone tell me how to find my WPA key just in case?

At least the phone has Tetris.

KP, as near as I can tell, you are going to have to have some skills to do this. You need root access to your phone, and can trash your OS if you do it wrong.



I really don't recommend this, though unless you are very comfortable working in root.

I'm not sure that will help in this situation - because the PS3 is limited (by firmware) from connecting to ad-hoc networks.
Somebody had to go back and find old hardware , throw a PS3 linux port on and then they got theirs to connect.

http://i606.photobucket.com/albums/tt142/Excess2itall/fuuuuuuuuu.jpg

:roflmao:
Appropriate response. :p

WPA and WEP are security protocols

in simple terms you set up your wifi router and give it the password, and it will allow computers to connect to it that know the same password.

In your specific case the phone contains the wifi router, the WPA key is the password, and the PS3 is the device that is trying to connect to it. In the case of a router, sometimes routers provided by internet providers will have the key already built into them. If you go to BestBuy and buy a router, it probably doesn't have a key in it and you give it the key that you want it to have.

Hopefully this explains it so you can understand the terminology better. If I was in your case I would find forums that deal with your specific phone and ask the question there. Or I would go back to the store where I bought the phone and ask them for help.

The forums are saying it can't be done without a pc. :p And the people at the store probably know even less. I'm sorry. Most people selling those phonese are lucky if they can recite the specs for a phone. Heaven forbid you ask them a remotely vague tech question.

I understand KP's frustration now. His android IS a hotspot. As a hotspot, it must have a key of some sort. Every client (PS3 in KP's case) needs the key in order to connect. Easy right?

WRONG!

I googled for quite some time and it seems the internetz doesn't know. It should be easy like "settings->wan->security->wep key" or something like it. But every page I googled was some kind of android developer mumbo-jumbo.

I guess if I had one in my hand I could look on the usual places and *might* find the bloody key. But yeah, clear instructions are elusive to find.

I'll say, call your cellphone company customer support... i hate to say it but it seems to be the only way.

Good for you on not smoking. It's tough, but it's worth it.

I haven't paid for the hotspot service but mine has a checkbox for '3G mobile hotspot' under settings; I check that and it tells me I haven't paid for it but it checks anyway. then I go to the next menu item down (under settings) which is '3g mobile hotspot settings'. It lets me enter 'router name', 'security' (which is the type of encryption, its default is wpa2) and then password (8-63 ascii characters). That is the WPA key you want. You can reset it from the phone.

If you don't have the same interface as me, the above won't help as much.

And it sounds like, from TexasGuy, you're doomed anyway because the PS3 needs a computer not a phone to talk to.

Good luck figuring it all out.

it may not be the same, but here's what I would do for my t-mobile G2 (no modifications, android 2.2):

Settings->Wireless and Networks->Tethering & portable hotspot
Check the Portable Wi-Fi hotspot box
Click Portable Wi-Fi hotspot settings
Click Configure WiFi hotspot
Change the network SSID if you wish (default is AndroidAP)
Change the security drop down box to something (options are Open and WPA2 PSK)
Enter in a password.

Then set up your PS3 with the network name (androidAP, etc) and the password you set. Maybe you can leave the password blank if you don't think other people will be hopping onto your connection.

I've only used USB tethering, it's also built-in and enabled in that first menu. Maybe that's an option for you? My phone turned on the wi-fi hotspot just fine and I don't pay any extra fees for that.

it may not be the same, but here's what I would do for my t-mobile G2 (no modifications, android 2.2):

Settings->Wireless and Networks->Tethering & portable hotspot
Check the Portable Wi-Fi hotspot box
Click Portable Wi-Fi hotspot settings
Click Configure WiFi hotspot
Change the network SSID if you wish (default is AndroidAP)
Change the security drop down box to something (options are Open and WPA2 PSK)
Enter in a password.

Then set up your PS3 with the network name (androidAP, etc) and the password you set. Maybe you can leave the password blank if you don't think other people will be hopping onto your connection.

I've only used USB tethering, it's also built-in and enabled in that first menu. Maybe that's an option for you? My phone turned on the wi-fi hotspot just fine and I don't pay any extra fees for that.

This sounds, for all intents and purposes, exactly like what I was going to suggest.

If that doesn't solve it, head over to the android.net forums and ask there. :)

or, gee, call your cell phone company that you have your contract with, and have them set it up for you. You pay for this service, right?

:roflmao:

or, gee, call your cell phone company that you have your contract with, and have them set it up for you. You pay for this service, right?

So this actually turnedout to be the best advice. My PS3 is working now, (although I did have to spend some extra dough per month.)

:D :innocent:

:D :innocent:

:thumb:

Okay, I'll admit it: I have NO CLUE when it comes to this stuff. I do, however, get to be on a 1st name basis with all those tech support people with the answers!

it may not be the same, but here's what I would do for my t-mobile G2 (no modifications, android 2.2):

Settings->Wireless and Networks->Tethering & portable hotspot
Check the Portable Wi-Fi hotspot box
Click Portable Wi-Fi hotspot settings
Click Configure WiFi hotspot
Change the network SSID if you wish (default is AndroidAP)
Change the security drop down box to something (options are Open and WPA2 PSK)
Enter in a password.

Then set up your PS3 with the network name (androidAP, etc) and the password you set. Maybe you can leave the password blank if you don't think other people will be hopping onto your connection.

I've only used USB tethering, it's also built-in and enabled in that first menu. Maybe that's an option for you? My phone turned on the wi-fi hotspot just fine and I don't pay any extra fees for that.

This is essentially the right answer and probably what the tech support told him. Not sure which forums everyone was looking at that said you couldn't do this.

The Droids can be a mobile hotspot... that is, a wireless router for any device that connects to one. It's not an ad hoc network, it's an actual router.

Verizon wants you to pay $20/month for this access, though it's easily gained, even without root (superuser) access.

Glad you finally figured it out, kris.

This is essentially the right answer and probably what the tech support told him. Not sure which forums everyone was looking at that said you couldn't do this.

The Droids can be a mobile hotspot... that is, a wireless router for any device that connects to one. It's not an ad hoc network, it's an actual router.

Verizon wants you to pay $20/month for this access, though it's easily gained, even without root (superuser) access.

Glad you finally figured it out, kris.
From what I understand that was the crux. They're charging 20 bucks a month extra to let you use your device.
Because yeah, that wa the problem PS3 can't connect to ad-hoc networks, and the device apparently advertises it's wifi as an "ad-hoc"
Kind of amusing they find that to be 20 bucks worth, since as far as I know the PS3 is about the only device with that type of limitation on who can connect .

But I guess it's not called robbing if you're giving away your money willingly. :p

This is essentially the right answer and probably what the tech support told him. Not sure which forums everyone was looking at that said you couldn't do this.

The Droids can be a mobile hotspot... that is, a wireless router for any device that connects to one. It's not an ad hoc network, it's an actual router.

Verizon wants you to pay $20/month for this access, though it's easily gained, even without root (superuser) access.

Glad you finally figured it out, kris.

And , HI. :p

Trust me, it doesn't identify itself as as-hoc; it's a full up router when you enable the hotspot.

Verizon charges an extra $20/month for the supposed extra bandwidth you'll use with your computer tied to their 3G network. Since I pay for unlimited data on my phone, I'm not quite OK with the logic of this, but who knows; maybe it does cost extra? Besides, I could run up to 5 devices on my hotspot, so it could consume a lot of bandwidth I guess.

But no problem hooking up any wifi device to the hotspot regardless of how you get it activated. There are many posts on the android forums about this topic and various solutions.

On my HTC G2, you just go to settings > wireless & networks > tethering & portable hotspot > then check the box that says portable Wi-Fi hotspot. And then I'm ready to go, no need for a WEP key. I don't even pay extra for the the wifi hotspot, nor have I modified my phone at all.

But if you do that, are you opening up your hotspot to anyone who wants to sign on?

And if you're running an unsecured hotspot, you're giving anyone in range access to your phone and any devices connected to it. I used my phone on an unsecured wifi a couple of months ago and within a few days, someone from Pakistan was sending out spam from my gmail account. They grabbed the session cookie which was valid until I logged off, so had access to the account while I stayed logged in. Had I been on a secure connection, they wouldn't have been able to get that cookie.

Paying extra for the hotspot is a Verizon thing, not the phone's.

Ah I see, my girlfriend has a Droid Eris on Verizon but it's running a custom ROM because they don't support it with updates anymore so I didn't realize that. Also even with no security when something tries to connect to my G2 I get a notification on the phone that I have to accept. It's super easy to turn on security though, I'm just too lazy.

I used my phone on an unsecured wifi a couple of months ago and within a few days, someone from Pakistan was sending out spam from my gmail account. They grabbed the session cookie which was valid until I logged off, so had access to the account while I stayed logged in. Had I been on a secure connection, they wouldn't have been able to get that cookie.
yikes. do you know how they get access like that? are they grabbing information that is sent over the air interface or actually connecting to your phone and downloading it? Does it matter how the phone connects to the email server, via the built-in client or through the web browser?

If I understand it correctly, they intercept your session cookie. That contains the cookie for the current session which gives the ability to do things like send email, but doesn't give access to change the password, since you typically have to enter the current password to change to a new one. The cookies are transmitted unencrypted, even on a secure connection. So if you're on an unsecure wifi connection, anyone can pick them right out of the air. If you're on a a secure (WEP, WPA, WPA2; though WEP is easy to crack, too), the info is encrypted from the router to your device so can't be intercepted by someone not on the network.

I guess that in theory, if you're in a hotel, for example, that uses a secure network, anyone with the password could grab your stuff, too. But that's a lot fewer people than anyone with a receiver and some simple software, right?

I suppose if you're working on an unsecured network, it's no different that if you have a computer on a network and they could gain access somehow, but I haven't heard of that happening yet, short of you installing some app that opens a back door to your phone.


Also even with no security when something tries to connect to my G2 I get a notification on the phone that I have to accept. It's super easy to turn on security though, I'm just too lazy.

That may be, but on an unsecured network, they don't have to connect to your phone... they can just read the data going between the phone and the router to get what they need. That's the issue, not whether they can connect to your hotspot!

I have a friend who got his gmail account nabbed in that similar fashion. And he has absolutely no idea how it happened because he's extremely security conscious.

However, what I don't buy about the stealing the session cookie: Gmail is supposed to SSL encrypt all to that stuff. Are they able to do a MITM sniff through an SSL cert if they observed the SSL connection initiated?

I have a friend who got his gmail account nabbed in that similar fashion. And he has absolutely no idea how it happened because he's extremely security conscious.

However, what I don't buy about the stealing the session cookie: Gmail is supposed to SSL encrypt all to that stuff. Are they able to do a MITM sniff through an SSL cert if they observed the SSL connection initiated?

http://www.tgdaily.com/security-features/33207-point-and-click-gmail-hacking-at-black-hat

But that doesn't make sense...................
That is a 3 year old post and talking about a behavior that has, I think been LONG nixed. The default behavior, and as far as I know has been for a long time to always redirect you to an SSL encrypted page.

And an SSL Encrypted page should be just that.

But that doesn't make sense...................
That is a 3 year old post and talking about a behavior that has, I think been LONG nixed. The default behavior, and as far as I know has been for a long time to always redirect you to an SSL encrypted page.

And an SSL Encrypted page should be just that.

I know... but it's the only thing I can think of for how someone was able to send mail from my gmail account.

Maybe using a mobile browser, it's not all SSL or something, I don't know. I just know it happened. And only once, a few hours after I was playing with my phone at the airport and tried their open wifi connection. I won't make that mistake again.

But saying a page is encrypted apparently doesn't mean that all data is. Here's a couple of other articles to peruse:

http://devcentral.f5.com/weblogs/macvittie/archive/2010/01/15/google-gmail-ssl-cookie-encryption.aspx
http://blogs.computerworld.com/17254/i_hijacked_a_facebook_account_with_firesheep

Kris, what game(s) are you playing?

Kris, what game(s) are you playing?Mass Effect 2.