4. Configuration

4.1 General Configuration

• First you should put your IR devices in range. Though it is maybe possible that the IR service detects every new device automagically I only have good experience with the devices in range during the configuration process.
• Keep your IR devices together in a range below one meter and an angle of 30°. There has to be a direct connection. If this is not possible, you may use a mirror (an unused M$ CD should work quite good).
• Remove any current print jobs with ``lprm "*"''.
• Add "alias tty-ldisc-8 irtty" to /etc/conf.modules.
• Run ``depmod -a''.
• If it is not in the specs, ``setserial -g -a /dev/ttyS?'' should give you an overview about which devices may include the IrDA-Port. Probably this is one with a 16550 UART.
• Use ``setserial /dev/ttyS<0-2> irq 0xNNNN port M'' to set the values for your IR serial port (if you need it, especially when the IR port is at a separate serial line you usually don't need to change the values). For further info look into the FAQ section below.
• Run ``irattach /dev/ttyS<0-2>''. If kerneld is running this will load the proper modules.

  There are eight modules:

  • irda.o, main module controls the IR connections in general
  • irport.o, "You should not use irport.o, this is a FIR replacement for irtty.o. irport is not finished and should probably not be used by anyone yet! Dag Brattli"
  • irtty.o, I suppose this supports the IrTTP layer
  • irlan_client.o, network module (client)
  • irlan_server.o, network module (server)
  • irlpt_client.o for printer connections (client)
  • irlpt_server.o for printer connections (server)
  • irobex.o Palm III support
• If you don't use ``kerneld'' insert irda.o with ``modprobe irda.o''.
• Do ``lsmod''. It should show the irda.o module.
• Give irattach some time, e.g. seven seconds, to detect other IR devices. Then watch the output from the kernel hopefully, you get it in /var/log/messages. It should look like the following:

Apr  5 06:42:12 ZAPPEL kernel: Linux IrDA v0.1 Sat Dec 13 14:54:04 1997 (Dag Brattli) 
Apr  5 06:42:12 ZAPPEL kernel: IrLPT, $Revision: 1.20 $/$Date: 1998/03/08 15:52:10 $ (Thomas Davis) 
Apr  5 06:42:12 ZAPPEL syslog: Serial connection established. 
Apr  5 06:42:19 ZAPPEL kernel: IrDA Discovered: HP LaserJet 6P 
Apr  5 06:42:19 ZAPPEL kernel:     Services: PnP Compatible Printer <7>Informing LPT service user 

4.2 Printer Connection Setup

• If you don't use ``kerneld'' do a ``modprobe irtty.o''.

• Do a ``modprobe irlpt_client.o''.

• Check the modules with ``lsmod''. This should show: irda.o, irtty.o and irlpt_client.o

• ``cat /proc/misc''. Gives you the "minor device-number" . It is the first number in the line with irlpt0.

• ``su'' to root, and do ``mknod /dev/irlpt0 c 10 <minor device-number>''. Note: Something like ``./MAKEDEV irlpt0'' is not possible yet.

• Try to write a small file to /dev/irlpt0 by ``cat FILE >/dev/irlpt0'' (do not wonder about a bad format this is just a first check). For me this doesn't not always work, but I couldn't find out why not.

• The better way is to change your /etc/printcap to use /dev/irlpt0 in addition or instead of /dev/lp0. See Printing-HOWTO for detailed information.

• For easy printer setup you may use such a printing software like APSFILTER, MagicFilter EZ-Magic (with RedHat there should also be a GUI for this purpose). Make a copy of /etc/printcap before.

• Example for APSFILTER with a HP 6P (non-postscript, HP 6MP is with postscript). The two relevant questions are:

  "Do you have a (s)serial or a (p)arallel printer interface?" answer "p".

  "What's the device name for your parallel printer interface?" answer with /dev/irlpt0.

• Restart the print daemon with ``kill -HUP <PID of lpd>. If you use another print daemon choose the according command.

• Watch wether the connection indicator of your printer shows activity, e.g. the green light above the IR port of a HP 6P/MP comes on (lower left hand corner, near the paper tray).

• I couldn't get to manage printjobs larger than approximately 10 pages yet. But maybe this depends on the memory size of my hardware, which is 16MB. There seems to be a problem with the software too, Thomas Davis wrote: I will "... limiting the irlpt, so it won't eat memory when you send a large print file.".

4.3 LAN Connection Setup

• The following I couldn't test yet because I don't have a HP-NetBeam or something like that. If you can make suggestions please let me know.

• Dag Brattli wrote: "If you want to use IrLAN you must ``modprobe irlan_client'' before ``ifup irlan0''. I had to remove the request_module() stuff since that needed a process context which I don't have in the kernel. "

• Run ``ifconfig irlan0 up <ip_address> netmask <ip_netmask>'' to configure it with IP-address and other parameters. If the protocol is still running you may start communicating. It is possible to use RedHat's netcfg to do this, since it makes it very easy. Next time you only need to do ``/sbin/ifup irlan0''.

• Test the network device by pinging to it. For detailed information about further setup see the NET3-HOWTO.

• Do not forget to add a route, e.g. ``route add default gw <ip_gateway>'' or ``route add -host irlan0''.

• Ping to another IP now.

• For testing reasons I recommend only to use one laptop and one IR ethernet device in the same room. If there are problems look which different modes for the IR ethernet device are possible. Try them.

4.4 Dongle Connection Setup

The only supported dongle (serial motherboard adapter) now is the Extended Systems Inc. ESI JetEye. For the Tekram IRmate dongle, technical information is strongly needed. Make sure you have the define ESI_DONGLE uncommented in the Makefile. This couldn't be tested yet, because I don't have an ESI JetEye. So please send me your experiences.

4.5 Palm III Connection Setup

• Palm III -> Linux

  1) Terminal 1> ``irattach /dev/ttyS<x>''

  2) Terminal 2> ``load_misc irobex''

  3) Terminal 3> Start ``irobex_app'' in the irobex directory.

  4) Beam something from your Palm III.

  5) If everything is successful, you can take a look at a new file that has been created in the directory you started irobex_app. This file will be named after the object you just transfered.

• Linux -> Palm III

  This should be also possible.

• Linux < -- > Linux

  Dag Brattli wrote: "The awakened reader may wonder what prevents the beaming of files from Linux to Linux? Well, nothing!! (but I haven't tried that yet). This means that we now have a "simple" way of beaming files between Linux laptops. I think that this may be the "killer app" we all have been waiting for!"

  Try to "``load_misc irobex'' in both ends, and then try ``iroabex_app get'' on one of the machines and ``irobex put <file>'' on the other.".

4.6 Window$95 and Linux/IR

Why this? Unfortenately Linux users are not always supported with necessary hardware information. Sometimes it is possible to look at this informations in Window$95.

Where to get? At http://www.microsoft.com/windows95/info/irda.htm you will find a support pack "Infrared Transfer 2.0". It is a self-extracting archive ``W95IR.EXE'' with 331KB.

With some machines e.g. a HP Omnibook 800 it is neccessary to use a vendor specific version of this package (e.g. for the HP Omnibook 800 you may find it at the recovery CD).

Especially the ..\windows\inf\*.inf files and the device manager are of interest to look for configuration details.

There are also some non M$ products available. Note: Some of them use proprietary IR protocols:

• CounterPoint: QuickBeam 1.15
• LapLink 7.5
• CarbonCopy 32 4.0
• pc ANYWHERE 7.5
• Puma Technology: TRANXIT pro 4.0

Connection between Linux/IR and Window$95 IrDA

For the moment it should only be possible to get a network connection between to PC's (e.g. no ``getty''). If you have setup Infrared Transfer 2.0, you will find an IrDA network device in the <Network Device Section>. But I couldn't get a working connection yet. Maybe it is also possible to use the IrOBEX protocol. But I guess the necessary software is only provided with a Palm III.

Takahide Higuchi <thiguchi@pluto.dti.ne.jp> provided an experimental patch for IrCOMM support. It is available for download from http://www.pluto.dti.ne.jp/ thiguchi/irda/ With this patch you can send or receive short messages between a linux box and a terminal program on a win95 laptop! But he thinks that some programs (like pppd) would fail because many ioctls are not implemented at this time.

4.7 Fast InfraRed (FIR)

The IrDA™ standard knows three kinds of speeds:

- SIR = Standard up to 115kbps IrDA,

- MIR = Medium Speed IrDA,

- FIR = Fast IrDA (4mbps)

Up to 115.200bps usually the IrDA controller works like a serial port. Up to 4Mbps it works in "FIR mode". But note: "SIR is used to negotiate the session. No SIR, no session. " (Thomas Davis).

Linux/IR doesn't officially support FIR yet. Thomas Davis wrote: "The irport module is currently used for FIR support; the only chipsets to be supported at this time are SMC and TI. SMC is currently in CVS; TI is not. ".

For latest improvements see Linux/IR homepage http://www.cs.uit.no/~dagb/irda/irda.html , the Linux/IR mailing list archiv at http://bolowsky.ita.chalmers.se/linux-ir/ and in my hardware overview http:/userpage.fu-berlin.de/~r2d2c3po/ir_misc.cgi.

4.8 Miscellaneous Devices

IrDA™ capable devices you may not only find in the above mentioned machines, but in digital cameras, phones, PDA's and others too. The support by Linux/IR is still under development. You may see the latest status at the Linux/IR homepage http://www.cs.uit.no/~dagb/irda/irda.html , in the Linux/IR mailing list archive at http://bolowsky.ita.chalmers.se/linux-ir/ and in my hardware overview http:/userpage.fu-berlin.de/~r2d2c3po/ir_misc.cgi.

4.9 Configuration Tool

If you like you may use my configuration tool for these steps:

• General Configuration
• Printer Connection Setup
• LAN Connection Setup
• Dongle Connection Setup, not yet ready
• Palm III Configuration, not yet ready

How to use the configuration tool:

• Download the text file irconfig from http://userpage.fu-berlin.de/~r2d2c3po/irconfig.
• Put it in the same directory as all the other Linux/IR programms.
• Do a ``chmod a+x irconfig''.
• Maybe you have to edit the first line #!/bin/sh according to your system.
• You have to be "root" to use the script.
• Start the script with ``./irconfig''.
• You may edit the first part of the script if necessary.
• You have also this options ``./irconfig [ start|stop|test <tty> <port> <irq> ]''.