iwconfig is dedicated to the wireless interfaces. It is used to set the parameters of the network interface which are specific to the wireless operation.
Check WIFI setting, including current signal strength setting:
[root@linux ~]# iwconfig
Example:
[root@linux ~]# iwconfig wlan0 wlan0 IEEE 802.11g ESSID:"OSU_PUB" Mode:Managed Frequency:2.427 GHz Access Point: 00:0D:9D:C6:38:2D Bit Rate=48 Mb/s Tx-Power=20 dBm Sensitivity=8/0 Retry limit:7 RTS thr:off Fragment thr:off Power Management:off Link Quality=91/100 Signal level=-39 dBm Noise level=-87 dBm Rx invalid nwid:0 Rx invalid crypt:860 Rx invalid frag:0 Tx excessive retries:0 Invalid misc:39 Missed beacon:8
To enagle WLAN interface:
[root@linux ~]# ifconfig wlan0 up
To change WIFI card transmitter power:
[root@linux ~]# iwconfig wlan0 txpower <value in mW>
Note: In most countries 100mW is maximum permitted transmission power for WIFI cards.
If you can’t increase power due to current country set in properties you can change country code to les restrictive one (for example Bolivia “BO”)
[root@linux ~]# iw reg est BO