Network - Bazzite Network Configuration

Overview

Bazzite network configuration including alternative WiFi backends, Wake-on-LAN for remote power control, and Tailscale for VPN/mesh networking.

Quick Reference

WiFi Backend

Toggle iwd

# Switch between iwd and wpa_supplicant
ujust toggle-iwd

iwd (Intel Wireless Daemon):

• Faster connection times
• Lower resource usage
• Better power efficiency
• Modern replacement for wpa_supplicant

wpa_supplicant:

• Default on most systems
• Broader compatibility
• Required for some enterprise networks

After switching: Reconnect to WiFi networks.

Wake-on-LAN

Toggle WOL

# Interactive WOL toggle
ujust toggle-wol

# Non-interactive
ujust toggle-wol enable
ujust toggle-wol disable
ujust toggle-wol force-enable

Options:

• enable - Enable WOL
• disable - Disable WOL
• force-enable - Force enable (overrides power settings)

Using WOL

On target machine:

# Get MAC address
ip link show | grep ether

From remote machine:

# Wake the target
wakeonlan <MAC_ADDRESS>
# or
wol <MAC_ADDRESS>

Requirements:

• Wired Ethernet connection
• BIOS WOL support enabled
• Both machines on same network (or port forwarding)

Tailscale VPN

Enable Tailscale

# Enable Tailscale service
ujust enable-tailscale

After enabling:

# Authenticate
tailscale up

# Check status
tailscale status

# Get IP
tailscale ip

Features:

• Zero-config VPN
• Mesh networking
• Access machines anywhere
• MagicDNS for hostnames

Tailscale Usage

# Connect to Tailscale network
tailscale up

# Exit node (route all traffic)
tailscale up --exit-node=<node>

# Disconnect
tailscale down

# Status
tailscale status

Common Workflows

Remote Access Setup

# Enable Tailscale
ujust enable-tailscale
tailscale up

# Enable Wake-on-LAN for remote power
ujust toggle-wol enable

# Enable SSH (via bazzite-ai)
ujust configure sshd enable

Better WiFi Performance

# Switch to iwd
ujust toggle-iwd

# Reconnect to WiFi
nmcli device wifi list
nmcli device wifi connect "<SSID>" password "<password>"

Home Server Access

# On server: Enable Tailscale
ujust enable-tailscale
tailscale up

# On client: Connect
tailscale up

# Access server via Tailscale IP or MagicDNS name
ssh user@<server-tailscale-ip>
ssh user@<server-name>  # with MagicDNS

Network Troubleshooting

Check Network Status

# NetworkManager status
nmcli general status

# List connections
nmcli connection show

# Current IP
ip addr show

# WiFi networks
nmcli device wifi list

WiFi Issues

Reconnect:

nmcli device wifi connect "<SSID>" password "<password>"

Forget and reconnect:

nmcli connection delete "<SSID>"
nmcli device wifi connect "<SSID>" password "<password>"

Tailscale Issues

Check service:

systemctl status tailscaled

Re-authenticate:

tailscale logout
tailscale up

Check connectivity:

tailscale netcheck
tailscale ping <node>

WOL Not Working

Check BIOS:

• Enable "Wake on LAN" in BIOS/UEFI

Check interface:

# Verify WOL enabled
ethtool <interface> | grep Wake-on
# Should show: Wake-on: g

Enable manually:

sudo ethtool -s <interface> wol g

Cross-References

• bazzite-ai:configure - SSH server configuration
• bazzite:security - VPN security considerations
• bazzite:system - Network diagnostics

When to Use This Skill

Use when the user asks about:

• "iwd", "wpa_supplicant", "WiFi backend", "faster WiFi"
• "Wake on LAN", "WOL", "remote power on", "wake computer"
• "Tailscale", "VPN", "mesh network", "remote access"
• "WiFi not connecting", "network issues"

For SSH configuration, use: /bazzite-ai:configure