Ubuntu
network-manager package

NetworkManager prompts for reconnection (with previously entered password filled in) on resume from suspend

Bug #538614 reported by aysiu on 2010-03-14

This bug affects 6 people

Affects		Status	Importance	Assigned to	Milestone
	network-manager (Ubuntu)	Confirmed	Medium	Unassigned

Bug Description

Binary package hint: network-manager

* What I expected to happen

I open my netbook lid, Ubuntu resumes from standby, wireless connects immediately

* What actually happened

I open my netbook lid, Ubuntu resumes from standby, Network Manager applet spins for a while and is about to connect to saved network connection, then prompts me for WPA2 password but the password is already filled in, so I have to click Connect to connect. If my password is stored, why can't it just connect automatically? Why make me click Connect?

* The minimal series of steps necessary to make it happen, where step 1 is "start the program"

Step 1. Make computer suspend to RAM (close lid)
Step 2. Make computer resume from suspend (open lid)
Step 3. Wait for wireless to reconnect

I'm using the latest Lucid alpha will all recommended updates installed. This just started happening in the last few days. Broadcom 4312 wireless card. Apport isn't able to connect directly to Launchpad right now, so I'm attaching the offline apport info.

Tags:

Revision history for this message

aysiu (ubuntubugzilla-psychocats) wrote on 2010-03-14:

apport.network-manager-gnome.3wFkb9.apport Edit (811.8 KiB, text/plain)

Revision history for this message

Khlood Elsayed (khlood-elsayed) wrote on 2010-10-21:

Confirmed in Lucid.

lsb_release -rd
Description: Ubuntu 10.04.1 LTS
Release: 10.04

apt-cache policy network-manager
network-manager:
  Installed: 0.8-0ubuntu3
  Candidate: 0.8-0ubuntu3
  Version table:
*** 0.8-0ubuntu3 0
        500 http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ lucid/main Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status

Changed in network-manager (Ubuntu):
status:	New → Confirmed

Revision history for this message

Schneidersoft (schneidersoft) wrote on 2011-08-16:

I have a similar problem during power outages.

The wireless AP will go down during a power outage, my laptop however will not.

NM disconnects, and when the AP comes back asks for the WPA key with the key field already filled in. Seems silly... Maybe there is a security reason for it.

Thomas Hood (jdthood) on 2012-06-23

summary:

- Network Manager prompts for already saved password upon resume (makes me
- click Connect without re-entering password)
+ NetworkManager prompts for reconnection (with previously entered
+ password revealed) on resume from suspend

Thomas Hood (jdthood) on 2012-07-18

summary:

NetworkManager prompts for reconnection (with previously entered
- password revealed) on resume from suspend
+ password filled in) on resume from suspend

Revision history for this message

Mathieu Trudel-Lapierre (cyphermox) wrote on 2012-07-18:

This is "expected" behavior: if the wireless connection fails; NM can't tell the difference between the AP being offline (power outage) and the password being wrong -- it *will* ask for the password just in case.

As for the case from the original reporter, it's basically almost the same thing. On resume, the card is probably not quite ready yet, scanning or doing other things, so the first (few) authentication attempts fail. This would be a bug in the broadcom drivers.

Those have changed a lot in the recent past. Tell me, is this still happening with 12.04?

Changed in network-manager (Ubuntu):
status:	Confirmed → Incomplete
importance:	Undecided → Medium

Revision history for this message

brorjonas (brorjonas) wrote on 2012-07-30:

I'm running 12.04 and this affects me aswell.

If I close the lid to my computer and leave it for a couple of hours. Ubuntu prompts for password again when loggin on again.
Password is already filled in and is correct.

It doesn't happen if I just close the lid and immediatly opens the lid and logs on again though.

As a work around I restart network-manager and the wifi resumes in a couple of seconds.

Revision history for this message

brorjonas (brorjonas) wrote on 2012-07-30:

Also there is several (maybe around 8 of them the last time) prompts stacked on top of each other. Not a big deal.

Thomas Hood (jdthood) on 2012-08-07

Changed in network-manager (Ubuntu):
status:	Incomplete → Confirmed
tags:	added: precise

Revision history for this message

Krellan (ubuntu-krellan) wrote on 2013-05-10:

This is the same root cause as other bugs. The problem is that NetworkManager keeps displaying the "Authentication required for wireless network" dialog box, even though there's nothing wrong with the previous password. Since there is no way on a Wi-Fi network to tell the difference between "out of range" and "wrong password", the user should be given the opportunity to make this choice, instead of NetworkManager just blindly assuming the password was wrong.

I really wish there was this checkbox:

[X] Do not show this dialog box again. Remember this password, and try reconnecting again automatically in the background whenever this connection is lost. I can always use the menu to change the password if that truly was the cause of the problem. Please do not interrupt my work every few minutes with this senseless dialog box. Thank you!

Revision history for this message

Matthew Paul Thomas (mpt) wrote on 2016-06-27:

I doubt that “there is no way on a Wi-Fi network to tell the difference between "out of range" and "wrong password"”, because other operating systems do not seem to have the same problem. Anyway, that is bug 615239. It is parenthetical to the problem reported here, that resuming results in any connection error at all.