zephyr-wifi

name	zephyr-wifi
description	Expert guidance for WiFi development in Zephyr OS. Covers Station (STA) and Access Point (AP) modes, scanning, connection management, security types (WPA2-PSK, WPA3-SAE, EAP-TLS), power save modes, and Target Wake Time (TWT). Use when implementing WiFi connectivity, configuring network parameters, handling scan results, managing connections, or troubleshooting WiFi issues.

Zephyr WiFi

Quick Start

1. Enable WiFi: CONFIG_WIFI=y and driver (e.g., CONFIG_WIFI_NRF70=y) in prj.conf
2. Enable Management API: CONFIG_NET_L2_WIFI_MGMT=y
3. Choose Mode: STA (station) or AP (access point)
4. Get Interface: net_if_get_wifi_sta() or net_if_get_wifi_sap()
5. Connect/Enable AP: Use net_mgmt() with NET_REQUEST_WIFI_* commands

Core Initialization Pattern

#include <zephyr/net/net_if.h>
#include <zephyr/net/wifi_mgmt.h>
#include <zephyr/net/net_mgmt.h>

static struct net_mgmt_event_callback wifi_cb;

static void wifi_event_handler(struct net_mgmt_event_callback *cb,
                               uint32_t mgmt_event, struct net_if *iface)
{
    switch (mgmt_event) {
    case NET_EVENT_WIFI_CONNECT_RESULT:
        /* Handle connection result */
        break;
    case NET_EVENT_WIFI_DISCONNECT_RESULT:
        /* Handle disconnection */
        break;
    case NET_EVENT_WIFI_SCAN_RESULT:
        /* Handle scan result */
        break;
    case NET_EVENT_WIFI_SCAN_DONE:
        /* Scan complete */
        break;
    }
}

int main(void)
{
    struct net_if *iface = net_if_get_wifi_sta();
    if (!iface) {
        printk("WiFi interface not found\n");
        return -1;
    }

    /* Register event callbacks */
    net_mgmt_init_event_callback(&wifi_cb, wifi_event_handler,
                                 NET_EVENT_WIFI_CONNECT_RESULT |
                                 NET_EVENT_WIFI_DISCONNECT_RESULT |
                                 NET_EVENT_WIFI_SCAN_RESULT |
                                 NET_EVENT_WIFI_SCAN_DONE);
    net_mgmt_add_event_callback(&wifi_cb);

    /* Ready to scan/connect */
}

WiFi Modes

Mode	Interface Function	Description	Key Commands
Station (STA)	net_if_get_wifi_sta()	Connects to access points	NET_REQUEST_WIFI_CONNECT, NET_REQUEST_WIFI_SCAN
Access Point (AP)	net_if_get_wifi_sap()	Creates a WiFi network	NET_REQUEST_WIFI_AP_ENABLE, NET_REQUEST_WIFI_AP_DISABLE

Detailed References

• Station Mode (Scanning, Connecting): references/sta_mode.md
• Access Point Mode: references/ap_mode.md
• Power Save & TWT: references/power_save.md
• Kconfig Options: references/kconfig.md
• File Locations: references/locations.md

Common Patterns

Scan for Networks

static void scan_result_handler(struct net_mgmt_event_callback *cb,
                                uint32_t mgmt_event, struct net_if *iface)
{
    if (mgmt_event == NET_EVENT_WIFI_SCAN_RESULT) {
        const struct wifi_scan_result *entry =
            (const struct wifi_scan_result *)cb->info;
        printk("SSID: %s, RSSI: %d, Security: %d\n",
               entry->ssid, entry->rssi, entry->security);
    }
}

/* Start scan */
int ret = net_mgmt(NET_REQUEST_WIFI_SCAN, iface, NULL, 0);

Connect to Network (WPA2-PSK)

struct wifi_connect_req_params params = {
    .ssid = "MyNetwork",
    .ssid_length = strlen("MyNetwork"),
    .psk = "MyPassword",
    .psk_length = strlen("MyPassword"),
    .security = WIFI_SECURITY_TYPE_PSK,
    .channel = WIFI_CHANNEL_ANY,
    .band = WIFI_FREQ_BAND_UNKNOWN,  /* Auto-select */
};

int ret = net_mgmt(NET_REQUEST_WIFI_CONNECT, iface, &params, sizeof(params));

Disconnect

int ret = net_mgmt(NET_REQUEST_WIFI_DISCONNECT, iface, NULL, 0);

Get Interface Status

struct wifi_iface_status status = {0};
int ret = net_mgmt(NET_REQUEST_WIFI_IFACE_STATUS, iface, &status, sizeof(status));
if (ret == 0 && status.state >= WIFI_STATE_ASSOCIATED) {
    printk("Connected to: %s\n", status.ssid);
    printk("RSSI: %d dBm\n", status.rssi);
}

Security Types

Type	Enum Value	Description
Open	WIFI_SECURITY_TYPE_NONE	No security
WPA2-PSK	WIFI_SECURITY_TYPE_PSK	Pre-shared key (most common)
WPA2-PSK-SHA256	WIFI_SECURITY_TYPE_PSK_SHA256	Enhanced PSK
WPA3-SAE	WIFI_SECURITY_TYPE_SAE	Simultaneous Auth of Equals
WPA3-SAE-H2E	WIFI_SECURITY_TYPE_SAE_H2E	Hash-to-Element SAE
EAP-TLS	WIFI_SECURITY_TYPE_EAP_TLS	Enterprise with certificates
WPA2/WPA3 Mixed	WIFI_SECURITY_TYPE_WPA_AUTO_PERSONAL	Auto-select personal

Minimum Kconfig for Station Mode

CONFIG_WIFI=y
CONFIG_WIFI_NRF70=y                    # Or your driver
CONFIG_NET_L2_WIFI_MGMT=y
CONFIG_NET_L2_ETHERNET=y
CONFIG_NETWORKING=y
CONFIG_NET_IPV4=y
CONFIG_NET_DHCPV4=y

Minimum Kconfig for AP Mode

CONFIG_WIFI=y
CONFIG_WIFI_NRF70=y
CONFIG_NET_L2_WIFI_MGMT=y
CONFIG_WIFI_NM_WPA_SUPPLICANT=y        # Required for AP
CONFIG_WIFI_NM_WPA_SUPPLICANT_AP=y
CONFIG_NET_CONFIG_MY_IPV4_ADDR="192.168.1.1"
CONFIG_NET_CONFIG_MY_IPV4_NETMASK="255.255.255.0"

Key Events

Event	Description
NET_EVENT_WIFI_SCAN_RESULT	Single scan result (called per AP found)
NET_EVENT_WIFI_SCAN_DONE	Scan complete
NET_EVENT_WIFI_CONNECT_RESULT	Connection attempt result
NET_EVENT_WIFI_DISCONNECT_RESULT	Disconnection notification
NET_EVENT_WIFI_AP_ENABLE_RESULT	AP mode enabled
NET_EVENT_WIFI_AP_DISABLE_RESULT	AP mode disabled
NET_EVENT_WIFI_AP_STA_CONNECTED	Client connected to AP
NET_EVENT_WIFI_AP_STA_DISCONNECTED	Client disconnected from AP
NET_EVENT_WIFI_TWT	TWT event (setup/teardown)

Power Save

Enable power save after connection:

struct wifi_ps_params ps_params = {
    .enabled = WIFI_PS_ENABLED,
    .mode = WIFI_PS_MODE_WMM,  /* or WIFI_PS_MODE_LEGACY */
};

net_mgmt(NET_REQUEST_WIFI_PS, iface, &ps_params, sizeof(ps_params));

Related Skills

• zephyr-kconfig: Configure CONFIG_WIFI_* and CONFIG_NET_* options
• zephyr-devicetree: WiFi driver device tree bindings
• zephyr-shell-commands: WiFi shell for debugging (CONFIG_NET_SHELL=y, CONFIG_WIFI_SHELL=y)