Jonathan Lalou's Blog

Posts Tagged ‘AntiX Linux’

If you’ve recently installed antiX Linux (a lightweight, fast, and stable distribution perfect for older hardware), you might run into two very common initial hurdles: failed logins and the infamous “Connected, but no internet” WiFi bug.

Here is a detailed guide on how to troubleshoot and fix these common antiX configuration issues.

Part I: Fixing Login Failures After Installation

You’ve installed antiX, set your username (e.g., hello) and password (e.g., world), but when you reboot, the system refuses to let you in.

❔ Why This Happens

This usually boils down to one of two things:

1. The Console Login: antiX often defaults to a text-based console login prompt. You might be mistyping your password because of an incorrect keyboard layout (e.g., if you are using a non-US layout).
2. User Mix-up: You may be confusing your standard user with the administrative root user.

✅ The Fix

Try logging in using these exact credentials first:

🚀 Launching the Desktop

Once you successfully log in, you will be in the terminal (command line). To start the graphical desktop environment, simply type:

startx

This will load your familiar antiX desktop.

Part II: Fixing WiFi: Connected, But No Internet

Once you’re on the desktop and connect to your WiFi network via the Connman System Tray, it shows “Connected”, but you can’t browse the internet. Your Ethernet connection works, proving the issue is specific to the WiFi configuration.

💡 Why This Happens (DNS Resolution Failure)

The most common reason for this issue in many Linux distributions, especially those using network managers like Connman, is a DNS (Domain Name System) configuration problem.

Your computer is successfully connected to the router and has an IP address (the physical connection is fine), but it doesn’t know which server to ask when you type a website name (like google.com). It can’t resolve the name into an IP address.

🛠️ The Fix: Manually Set and Lock DNS Servers

The most reliable way to fix this is to manually configure your DNS server entries and prevent the network manager from overwriting them.

Step 1: Confirm the DNS Issue

Open a terminal and run a quick test. This pings Google’s public DNS server IP address:

ping -c 4 8.8.8.8

• If you get replies (Success): The issue IS DNS. Proceed to Step 2.
• If you get 100% loss (Failure): The problem is deeper (like a driver issue). Try restarting the service: sudo service connman restart.

Step 2: Edit the DNS Configuration File

We will edit the system’s DNS configuration file, /etc/resolv.conf.

1. Open the file using a text editor (we use leafpad as it’s common in antiX):

   sudo leafpad /etc/resolv.conf

2. Replace all content in the file with two reliable, public DNS server addresses:

   nameserver 8.8.8.8   # Google Public DNS
   nameserver 1.1.1.1   # Cloudflare Public DNS

3. Save the file and close the editor.

Step 3: Prevent Overwriting (Lock the File)

By default, Connman or other network tools will overwrite this file on the next connection or reboot. We must lock it using the chattr command:

sudo chattr +i /etc/resolv.conf

The +i flag makes the file immutable, meaning no program (including Connman) can modify it.

🎉 Conclusion

After locking the file, your internet browsing should now work perfectly over WiFi!

If you ever need to change your DNS settings again, you must first unlock the file using:
sudo chattr -i /etc/resolv.conf