![\"Raspberry](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/randomnerdtutorials.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Raspberry-Pi-Pico-Wi-Fi.jpg?resize=1200%2C675&quality=100&strip=all&ssl=1\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nNew to the Raspberry Pi Pico? Get started here: Get started with the Raspberry Pi Pico here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Table of Contents: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n To follow this tutorial you need MicroPython firmware installed in your Raspberry Pi Pico board. You also need an IDE to write and upload the code to your board.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The recommended MicroPython IDE for the Raspberry Pi Pico is Thonny IDE. Follow the next tutorial to learn how to install Thonny IDE, flash MicroPython firmware, and upload code to the board.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Raspberry Pi Pico can act as a Wi-Fi station, or as a Wi-Fi access point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When the Pico is set as a Wi-Fi station, it can connect to other networks (like your router\u2014local network). In this scenario, the router assigns a unique IP address to your board. You can communicate with the Raspberry Pi Pico using other devices (stations) that are also connected to the same network by referring to the Raspberry Pi Pico’s local IP address.<\/p>\n\n\n Since the router is also connected to the internet, we can request information from the internet<\/a> using our board, like data from APIs (weather data, for example), publish data to online platforms, use icons and images from the internet in our web server pages or include JavaScript libraries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, in some cases, we may not have a router nearby to connect the Raspberry Pi Pico. In this scenario, you can set your board as an access point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When your Pico is set up as an Access Point (AP), other devices (such as your smartphone, tablet, or computer) can connect to it without the need for a router; the Pico creates its own Wi-Fi network. Unlike a router, an Access Point doesn\u2019t connect further to a wired network or the Internet, so you can\u2019t access external libraries, publish sensor readings to the cloud, or use services like mail.<\/p>\n\n\n There is a MicroPython module called network<\/span> that is used to configure and handle everything Wi-Fi-related. There are two Wi-Fi interfaces, one for the station and another for the access point. The following example creates a station interface and an access point interface and checks if they are active.<\/p>\n\n\n View raw code<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n After running this example, you should get something as follows.<\/p>\n\n\n At the moment, you don\u2019t have any active interface.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To scan for nearby Wi-Fi networks, we must start a Wi-Fi interface station network first. For example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then we can use wlan.scan()<\/span> to scan for nearby networks. This command returns a list of named tuples that include SSDI, BSSID, RSSI, Wi-Fi channel, and other details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then, we can go through all the returned networks and print their info. The complete code can be found below.<\/p>\n\n\n View raw code<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Run the previous code on your Raspberry Pi Pico. It should return a list of nearby Wi\u2011Fi networks and corresponding info. The network information is separated by commas and is in the following order: SSDI, BSSID, RSSI, channel.<\/p>\n\n\n The RSSI is the received signal strength indicator and it shows how strong is the Wi\u2011Fi signal. The lower the value, the worse the signal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As for the last two numbers, at the moment, the documentation is not clear what those numbers exactly mean. Supposedly they represent the auth mode and if the network is hidden or not. Unfortunately, the values we get don\u2019t match the range in the documentation. So, they either represent something different, or there is some sort of bug.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Connecting your Pico board to your Wi-Fi network is very straightforward thanks to the network<\/span> MicroPython module. To connect to your network, you need to know the SSID (the name of your Wi-Fi network) and password.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When a device connects to a network, the router assigns an IP address to that device. All devices connected to a network, have a unique IP address. So, when you connect the Raspberry Pi Pico to your router, it will assign it a unique IP address on your network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The following example connects the Raspberry Pi Pico to your network and prints the IP address assigned to the Pico on your network.<\/p>\n\n\n View raw code<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Let\u2019s take a quick look at how this previous code works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n First, you need to import the network<\/span> module.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The network<\/span> module provides several methods to create and handle the Wi-Fi interfaces and connections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the following two variables, you must insert your network SSID and password.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Create a station network interface and then activate it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then, use that interface to connect to your home network using the SSID and password you defined earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then, we\u2019ll check the connection status and print the IP address when we successfully connect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The code first checks the connection status, and if it\u2019s wlan.status() >= 3<\/span> (this means it has even connected to the network or failed to connect), the loop exits. It waits for a maximum of 10 seconds (10 attempts defined in the connection_timeout<\/span> variable).<\/p>\n\n\n\n The method wlan.status()<\/span>, as the name suggests, checks the status of the Wi-Fi connection of the Raspberry Pi. This method returns an integer with the following meaning:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then, we check if it\u2019s connected or not (we know that status = 3 means it\u2019s connected). If wlan.status()<\/span> is different than 3, we know it failed to establish a connection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Otherwise, it means we succeed. In case we succeed, we can get the network information using the ifconfig()<\/span> method. This method returns a tuple with the following information:<\/p>\n\n\n\n We just need the IP address, so we just get the first element of the array (network_info[0]<\/span>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n The <\/strong>isconnected() method<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Instead of checking the connection status, the wlan<\/span> object supports a method called isconnected()<\/span> that returns True<\/span> if the board is connected to the network or False<\/span> otherwise.You can use that approach instead of checking wlan.status()<\/span>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n Run the previous code. Don\u2019t forget to replace the ssid and password variables with your network details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After a few attempts, it should connect to your network and display the IP address.<\/p>\n\n\n If you\u2019re Raspberry Pi Pico is not connecting to your network:<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the case of my network, even if I restart the Raspberry Pi Pico several times, my router will always assign it the same IP address. However, that\u2019s not the case for some other networks. In that scenario, it\u2019s nice to have a way to set a static IP address to your board, so that it doesn\u2019t change every time it resets. Additionally, it might also be useful for projects that are not connected to your computer or don\u2019t have a way to display the IP address.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You can use the ifconfig<\/span> method of the network.WLAN<\/span> object to set a static IP address.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We can easily modify the previous example with just a few lines to set a static IP address.<\/p>\n\n\n View raw code<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Replace the values in the static_ip<\/span>, subnet_mask<\/span>, gateway_ip<\/span>, and dns_server<\/span> variables with the appropriate values for your network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are different ways to get information about the subnet mask and the gateway IP. The easiest way is to open a Terminal window on your computer and run the following command:<\/p>\n\n\n\n On Windows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n On MacOS or Linux: <\/p>\n\n\n\n It will return the information you\u2019re looking for: the gateway IP (the IP address of your router) and the subnet mask.<\/p>\n\n\n In my case, the subnet mask is 255.255.255.0<\/strong> and the gateway IP address is 192.168.1.254<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the DNS server, you can always use 8.8.8.8<\/strong>, which is Google\u2019s public DNS server.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When choosing the static IP address for your Raspberry Pi Pico, make sure that the address is not already being used by another device. To do that, you can use a software like Angry IP Scanner<\/em> (compatible with Windows and Mac OS). Or you can login into your router dashboard and check which IP addresses are already assigned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After assigning the proper values for the configuration variables, we can simply use the ifconfig()<\/span> method and pass as arguments the static IP, the subnet mask, the gateway IP, and the DNS server, in this order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After inserting your network credentials and desired IP address settings, you can run the code on your Raspberry Pi Pico.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Notice that it will have the IP address you defined on the code assigned to it. In our case, 192.168.1.100<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n This tutorial was a quick getting started guide for Wi-Fi on the Raspberry Pi Pico programmed with MicroPython. We hope you find it useful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You may also like other Wi-Fi-related tutorials with the Raspberry Pi Pico:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Learn more about the Raspberry Pi Pico with our resources:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thanks for reading.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Raspberry Pi Pico W comes with the Infineon CYW43439 chip that contains a 2.4 GHz radio providing 802.11n Wi-Fi. This tutorial is an introduction to Wi-Fi on the Raspberry … <\/p>\n\n
Prerequisites – MicroPython Firmware<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
Wi-Fi Station and Wi-Fi Access Point<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Wi-Fi Station<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Raspberry](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/randomnerdtutorials.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Wi-Fi-Station-Rpi-Pico.png?resize=750%2C442&quality=100&strip=all&ssl=1\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nAccess Point (AP)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Raspberry](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/randomnerdtutorials.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Wi-Fi-Access-Point-Pico.png?resize=750%2C529&quality=100&strip=all&ssl=1\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nStation and Access Point Interfaces<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
# Rui Santos & Sara Santos - Random Nerd Tutorials\r\n# Complete project details at https:\/\/RandomNerdTutorials.com\/raspberry-pi-pico-w-wi-fi-micropython\/\r\n\r\nimport network\r\n\r\nsta_if = network.WLAN(network.STA_IF)\r\nprint(sta_if.active())\r\n\r\nap_if = network.WLAN(network.AP_IF)\r\nprint(ap_if.active())<\/code><\/pre>\n\t![\"Rpi](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/randomnerdtutorials.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/checking-station-access-point-interfaces.png?resize=602%2C265&quality=100&strip=all&ssl=1\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nScanning Nearby Wi-Fi Networks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
# Init Wi-Fi interface\nwlan = network.WLAN(network.STA_IF)\nwlan.active(True)<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n# Scan for available Wi-Fi networks\nnetworks = wlan.scan()<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n# Rui Santos & Sara Santos - Random Nerd Tutorials\r\n# Complete project details at https:\/\/RandomNerdTutorials.com\/raspberry-pi-pico-w-wi-fi-micropython\/\r\n\r\nimport network\r\n\r\n# Init Wi-Fi interface\r\nwlan = network.WLAN(network.STA_IF)\r\nwlan.active(True)\r\n\r\n# Scan for Wi-Fi networks\r\nnetworks = wlan.scan()\r\n\r\n# Print Wi-Fi networks\r\nprint("Available WiFi Networks:")\r\nfor network_info in networks:\r\n print(network_info)<\/code><\/pre>\n\t![\"RPi](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/randomnerdtutorials.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/scan-wi-fi-networks.png?resize=705%2C335&quality=100&strip=all&ssl=1\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nConnecting the Raspberry Pi Pico to a Wi-Fi Network<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
# Rui Santos & Sara Santos - Random Nerd Tutorials\r\n# Complete project details at https:\/\/RandomNerdTutorials.com\/raspberry-pi-pico-w-wi-fi-micropython\/\r\n\r\nimport network\r\nfrom time import sleep\r\n# Wi-Fi credentials\r\nssid = 'REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_SSID'\r\npassword = 'REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_PASSWORD'\r\n\r\n# Init Wi-Fi Interface\r\nwlan = network.WLAN(network.STA_IF)\r\nwlan.active(True)\r\n\r\n# Connect to your network\r\nwlan.connect(ssid, password)\r\n\r\n# Wait for Wi-Fi connection\r\nconnection_timeout = 10\r\nwhile connection_timeout > 0:\r\n if wlan.status() >= 3:\r\n break\r\n connection_timeout -= 1\r\n print('Waiting for Wi-Fi connection...')\r\n sleep(1)\r\n\r\n# Check if connection is successful\r\nif wlan.status() != 3:\r\n raise RuntimeError('Failed to establish a network connection')\r\nelse:\r\n print('Connection successful!')\r\n network_info = wlan.ifconfig()\r\n print('IP address:', network_info[0])<\/code><\/pre>\n\tHow the Code Works<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Importing the network module<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
import network<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\nInserting your Wi-Fi Credentials<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
# Wi-Fi credentials\nssid = 'REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_SSID'\npassword = 'REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_PASSWORD'<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\nConnecting to the Internet<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
# Init Wi-Fi Interface\nwlan = network.WLAN(network.STA_IF)\nwlan.active(True)<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n# Connect to your network\nwlan.connect(ssid, password)<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\nChecking the Connection Status and Printing the IP Address<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
# Wait for Wi-Fi connection\nconnection_timeout = 10\nwhile connection_timeout > 0:\n if wlan.status() >= 3:\n break\n connection_timeout -= 1\n print('Waiting for Wi-Fi connection...')\n sleep(1)\n\n# Check if connection is successful\nif wlan.status() != 3:\n raise RuntimeError('Failed to establish a network connection')\nelse:\n print('Connection successful!')\n network_info = wlan.ifconfig()\n print('IP address:', network_info[0])<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n\n
if wlan.status() != 3:\n raise RuntimeError('Failed to establish a network connection')<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n\n
else:\n print('Connection successful!')\n network_info = wlan.ifconfig()\n print('IP address:', network_info[0])<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\nTesting the Code<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
# Wi-Fi credentials\nssid = 'REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_SSID'\npassword = 'REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_PASSWORD'<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n![\"Raspberry](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/randomnerdtutorials.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/pico-connect-network-get-ip-address.png?resize=705%2C289&quality=100&strip=all&ssl=1\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nTroubleshooting<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n\n\n\nSetting a Static IP Address to the Raspberry Pi Pico<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
# Rui Santos & Sara Santos - Random Nerd Tutorials\r\n# Complete project details at https:\/\/RandomNerdTutorials.com\/raspberry-pi-pico-w-wi-fi-micropython\/\r\n\r\nimport network\r\nimport time\r\n\r\n# Wi-Fi credentials\r\nssid = 'REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_SSID'\r\npassword = 'REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_PASSWORD'\r\n\r\n# Static IP configuration\r\nstatic_ip = '192.168.1.100' # Replace with your desired static IP\r\nsubnet_mask = '255.255.255.0'\r\ngateway_ip = '192.168.1.254'\r\ndns_server = '8.8.8.8'\r\n\r\n# Init Wi-Fi Interface\r\nwlan = network.WLAN(network.STA_IF)\r\nwlan.active(True)\r\n\r\n# Connect to your network\r\nwlan.connect(ssid, password)\r\n\r\n# Wait for Wi-Fi connection\r\nconnection_timeout = 10\r\nwhile connection_timeout > 0:\r\n if wlan.status() >= 3:\r\n break\r\n connection_timeout -= 1\r\n print('Waiting for Wi-Fi connection...')\r\n time.sleep(1)\r\n\r\n# Set static IP address\r\nwlan.ifconfig((static_ip, subnet_mask, gateway_ip, dns_server))\r\n\r\n# Check if connection is successful\r\nif wlan.status() != 3:\r\n raise RuntimeError('Failed to establish a network connection')\r\nelse:\r\n print('Connection successful!')\r\n network_info = wlan.ifconfig()\r\n print('IP address:', network_info[0])<\/code><\/pre>\n\tStatic IP Configuration<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
# Static IP configuration\nstatic_ip = '192.168.1.100' # Replace with your desired static IP\nsubnet_mask = '255.255.255.0'\ngateway_ip = '192.168.1.254'\ndns_server = '8.8.8.8'<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\nHow to find those values?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
ipconfig<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\nifconfig<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n![\"ipconfig](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/randomnerdtutorials.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/running-ip-config.png?resize=781%2C115&quality=100&strip=all&ssl=1\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n![\"ipconfig](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/randomnerdtutorials.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/WLAN-Details.png?resize=781%2C324&quality=100&strip=all&ssl=1\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nSetting a Static IP Address<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
wlan.ifconfig((static_ip, subnet_mask, gateway_ip, dns_server))<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\nTesting the Code<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Raspberry](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/randomnerdtutorials.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/rpi-pico-set-static-ip-address.png?resize=705%2C269&quality=100&strip=all&ssl=1\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nWrapping Up<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n