How to Setup Raspberry Pi Zero W for Headless

[@JamesAnderson-bz4cg]

This tutorial is the difference between someone who knows how to explain things properly and those that don't. The file extension tab is a life saver. So many people forget to mention the ultra fine detail that makes all the difference. This is a superb description, thank you.

[@TheGraeme61]

As i am new to RPI Zero W ,i found this video extremely useful. It was clear ,easy to follow and not rushed like some videos i have seen wondering what do i do next. Thank you very much for taken the time to do the video.

[@issamal-azzoni319]

Excellent video. However, I had to make the following changes to make this work: 1- Use Notepad++ to save the wpa_supplicant.conf file. Use “Edit” > “EOL Conversion” > “UNIX/OSX Format”. “UNIX” is then shown in the status bar. 2- For wpa_supplicant.conf: country=us update_config=1 ctrl_interface=/var/run/wpa_supplicant network={ scan_ssid=1 ssid="MyNetworkSSID" psk="Pa55w0rd1234" } 3- For PuTTY, use raspberrypi.local in the host name box for the first connection.

[@moritzunterweger6034]

This helped me a lot! Thank u :)

[@staticfade9027]

Thank you! this worked for me.

[@chriswesley594]

Thanks. Only your method works for me.

[@marcelbruggink6655]

lets see if that one works

[@marcelbruggink6655]

yes that works perfactly

[@lindnerlars81]

I would never have thought of that in my life. Thank you very very much Issam.

[@user-ih6oe9ny3j]

haha same, this is a good solution

[@phillippi2]

Thank you for going over this. I am working on a "loop" system to control my insulin pump automatically (the computer, continuous blood sugar monitor and insulin pump). It's a system that acts like a pancreas; It tracks my blood sugars and automatically adjusts the insulin coming from the pump. This video covers the information I was missing.

[@baileybruketta9444]

that's fucking cool dude

[@churchrapture]

@@baileybruketta9444 - Please watch your language.

[@baileybruketta9444]

@@churchrapture shut the fuck up; watch your pedofile pope; abrahamism has taken millions of lives over the course of human history; religion is mental illness.

[@sicccunt1768]

Yo can i get an update on this? You posted a year ago :D

[@phillippi2]

@@sicccunt1768 I'm still in the process of getting it setup. With everything going on right now, getting the things I need is a bit tough to get

[@moldisocks1521]

Bloody Brilliant, someone who knows how to explain properly

[@guitaristmarko]

best video on youtube on how to setup your rasp pi zero w.

[@hottroddinn]

Here are somethings which I discovered while trying to setup my Raspberry pi zero W 1. Followed all steps perfectly as shown in the video and also reading comments, but it wouldn't connect to the internet 2. Eventually, connected HDMI to TV and found that the boot up was fairly slow and wasn't sure why but still decided to reflash with Raspbian Stretch(GUI) 3. Connected a USB dongle for my Microsoft Keyboard 850(mouse and keyboard combo) and rebooted this time with Raspbian stretch and it was good to see both keyboard and mouse work! 4. Remember this is designed to connect only to 2.4GHz and 5GHz is not seen by the pi. Wifi could see all the access points around me but wouldn't connect even after entering the right PSK. Disabling, rebooting multiple times didn't help either. 5. Set these things manually locale, keyboard language, timezone and internet setting for country. This helped to connect the pi to wifi. 6. Once connected, the wifi icon display is equivalent to "connecting..." seen on most devices / operating systems, but it actually means it's already connected. Realized only after about 5 minutes and pinging multiple domains. I will probably disable X on the server after I'm happy with the overall performance for few days. Hope this helps someone who might be struggling.

[@jessegomez8365]

Thank you. I don't know if I'll succeed with this yet or not, but I do know I've been pulling my hair out and it was 5g I was thinking to connect to. now I'll try 2.4

[@coderduck98]

Excellent video. I was very lost. Thank you so much!

[@WhiteSword]

Wifi can only be preconfigured before the first time device boots i.e. /boot/wpa_supplicant.conf is only read once the first time device boots up. If you have booted the device with no wpa_supplicant.conf file or invalid wpa_supplicant.conf file, then you'll need to either reflash the SD card or overwrite the /data/etc/wpa_supplicant.conf file.

[@omegamagna]

thank you :/

[@TheMegaMrMe]

Nice to know you can do that! Glad to see the plain text credentials get cleaned up

[@ziyuwang4406]

Great great video! I thought I created a file named "ssh" without txt. But actually the ".txt" is hidden!!! Thank you so much!

[@SusmithHCK]

you sound like JARVIS, good explanation. nice video.

[@bobf3598]

Created and saved the 2 files, booted up, no connection. Took card out and connected to PC, both files disappeared. BTW Hidden items is checked.

[@pubfixture]

Old comment to reply to, and you've probably already figured it out, but I find myself here a year later while trying to figure this out, so in case others see this, I'll answer. On boot, Raspberry Pi OS looks in that directory and when it sees those files it copies them elsewhere to where they are needed, and then deletes then from that boot directory. That's why they're no longer there when you connect back to PC, but they have been added to the boot process.

[@Enum_Dev]

@@pubfixture but it won't connect to the pi

[@Jarko1401]

@@Enum_Dev I had problems connecting too, but the file wpa_supplicant.conf in video is wrong. It should have this content: country= (like US, GB, FR) ctrl_interface=DIR=/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=netdev update_config=1 network={ ssid="" scan_ssid=1 psk="" (don't need this if key_mgmt=NONE) key_mgmt=WPA-PSK }

[@jered6423]

@@Jarko1401 thanks man this got mine to connect

[@jirikracik5204]

@@Jarko1401 you saved my day :)

[@pepsi-straw-dog]

Thank you very much sir, it worked greatly!

[@mrembeh1848]

I followed your steps, but the pi does not connect to my router. it does not show up in the list of connected files. (using a Mac) arp -a does also not show the π on the network.

[@Core-Electronics]

Hmm, perhaps DHCP is not working on your router. The guide is very dependent on that, and DHCP is a basic feature of modem/routers these days. As your issue is very unique, it would be best to tackle it via a platform such as stackoverflow or the like, which facilitates a better problem solving experience compared to KZbin comments.

[@coreelectronicssupportteam6775]

This is how the Pi should behave. The Pi checks the boot directory for these files, and if they exist the information is read out of them, saved in the relevant locations, and then the source files clean up. To reiterate - yes, you should expect to see wpa_supplicant.conf and ssh disappear once the Pi boots.

[@jimmymalkoun1140]

hi thanks for his awesome video the default password does not seem to match on my side (access denied), any clue ?

[@rajeeb101]

Brilliant! Thanks for the details.

[@benm1414]

Are the quotations in the supplicant necessary or were they simply to show where to type personal info and they should be removed?

[@pmacgowan]

What happens if your wifi network is using WPA2, do you just use "key_mgmt=WPA2-PSK" ???

[@craigleadley2472]

Great video thank you - very clear.

[@kolboy2028]

after changing the hostname and password and rebooting my pi is not connecting to wifi any more....no network interfaces found.help plz

[@aelidrissi3584]

Great explanation! For the the version as in june 2020: ----------------------- ctrl_interface=DIR=/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=netdev update_config=1 country=US network={ ssid="YOUR_WIFI_NAME" scan_ssid=1 psk="YOUR_WIFI_PASSWORD" key_mgmt=WPA-PSK } ----------------------- Don't forget to change the country code. If your country is the Netherlands.. it would be country=NL. Hope this helps.

[@williamej6284]

what if we move to other places with different wifi do we have to change from the beginning? change the wpa_spplicant.conf?

[@UmerFarooq-nv3zl]

I am getting the following message while entering the host name in puTTY "unable to open connection to raspberry pi Host does not exist"

[@aymanhag163]

me too

[@UmerFarooq-nv3zl]

@@aymanhag163 install bonjour from the link given below to resolve this issue support.apple.com/kb/DL999?locale=en_US

[@Altometer76]

Hello, if you edit wpa_spupplicant with Windows Notepad, Notepad adds strange Break Lines at the end of the line. So my Raspberry pi zero w woudn't connect to the Wi-Fi. After a few months i did your tutorial again but this time usinge Notepad++ and everything worked.

[@nehadwivedi3442]

you solve my all problem related to setup

[@misaalanshori]

Is it possible to have the raspberry pi zero create it's own wifi access point? And ssh by connecting to that wifi.

[@TheAussiePirate]

Nice and concise.

[@Core-Electronics]

Thanks Carl!

[@siraj3434]

@Andrea Mitchell I have encountered the same problem. I guess my raspberry pi zero w is not connecting to the router. Also, if i open the sd card on my computer after trying on the device, the ssh and wpa_supplicant.conf files disappear. Have you found a solution to this?

[@jamesbarker6373]

I have the same issue

[@PilotOdyssey]

Horrible video bright redish background that serves NO purpose, tiny windows with what we really need to see, I have a 24" monitor only using 1/3 the screen with your presentation, Fonts so small cant read, WE DONT need to see you on the screen we need to see what your doing Amateur hour give up the video creation

[@biggergez]

Same here this doesn't work im getting a mini hmdi adapter and micro USB hub and install this with gui much easier then go headless

[@kaylaandjimbryant8258]

Setting up the AP mode is a bit more difficult since wpa_supplicant is so organic, and not actually installed as a package. Using g_ether, Internet connection sharing in winblowz, and ssh, I have been able to get it to boot without wpa_supplicant running, but it still is looking at hooks for startup of wpa_supplicant (see syslog), and that is conflicting with the hostapd setup, and leaving the wifi completely unconfigured. Simply doing an ifconfig with the previously configured params for hostapd (per the Pi Zero instructions at the foundation's page for doing this) and manually starting hostapd gets it all working. I find it more useful to set it up as an AP for controller use. Still trying to find out all the stuff to move all of the wpa_supplicant stuff to a dir tree in my home dir for doing a script to switch modes from AP back to wpa_supplicant and vice versa, so that it enters AP at boot. If anyone knows all the files I need to look at for this, please respond or send a message.

[@mr.savage3684]

can multiple SSIDs be configured?

[@songokim1]

Thank you for the video. It was very helpful for me :-)

[@BumbleBeeTF]

Thank you! Easy to follow video.

[@hrnekbezucha]

Thank you, that is very useful :)

[@Ahjiiin]

if you connect through the GUI does the same file get created. If so, is this considered as secure as anyone can load the sd card as a file and read the text doc

[@tomengland9395]

can this work with raspberry pi zero with a usb wifi dongle

[@pamangani6546]

How about bluetooth pairing

[@davidagainstthewall]

Could you please make the same tutorial for connecting to volumio please? (: Is it Just the Name that has to be changed while logging in with putty?

[@sciencevetal]

Hi, I gave it up to you, but I do not have a Wi-Fi on the Raspberry. Why is that? Host does not exist

[@gamerinthenorth4757]

I'm having the same problem, did you ever find a solution?

[@kyaelectronics6106]

Use ip range - angry ip scanner for scan your ip

[@ScubaAnt72]

Do you have the 'W' version of the pi zero? The cheaper (non -'W') one does not have wifi.

[@hasnatqazi600]

@@ScubaAnt72 thanks I finally understood the problem. there was no wifi in zero XD

[@AQHackAQ]

@@hasnatqazi600 There is wifi in the Zero. There's 2 versions: the Raspberry Pi Zero, and the Raspberry Pi Zero W.

[@MadManFPV]

I hope that you see this...I need a little help. I flashed raspbian to my Pi zero w already. Can I still do what you are doing to add my wifi info? I don't have a USB keyboard and if I can, this would save me from buying one. TY

[@shaijukumar6566]

Great tutorial..... Is there any way to connect BLE devices to Pi zero

[@r1273m]

Great video. However, I have got to this state running the Pi Zero in headless mode but I cannot get the GUI Pixel to run. Typing STARTX simply does not work. If I connect a KB, mouse and monitor Pixel runs fine on boot up. A Google shows I am not the only one with this problem. A video on this would be very welcome. Bob

[@Core-Electronics]

Hi Bob, thanks for your feedback. Can you post your code (verbatim) and error on a new topic in our forum and we'll dive into this to provide a workaround for everyone. coreelec.io/forum

[@joshmnky]

If you downloaded the full version of Raspbian, would you see the Pi's Desktop interface when you use PuTTY? Would you still only see the terminal?

[@Enum_Dev]

you would see the terminal. From there you can install vnc viewer and set that up and also download it on your pc. Then connect the 2 vnc viewers together and you will see the desktop

[@magicarpetmoto]

this may be a dumb question, Im still a bit new to Pi Zero W. Is it possible to hook up a wireless monitor to Pi Zero W? Almost like chromecast, or screen mirroring if you will? If anybody knows I would appreciate any info or links to a tutorial. Also, this was a great tutorial on the headless config. Thanks!

[@adrianwood3519]

Hi, Please can someone help me as I’m new to this... My network uses WPA2. What would I need in the ‘key_mgmt’ line of the wpa_supplicant file for this to connect to my network?

[@mark46724]

Does all of the above hold as well for the 2017-09-07-raspbian-stretch-lite.img

[@newsnetworkz]

Hi, I want to connect a Raspberry Pi (headless way) to a known public WiFi which will ask me to accept the terms in a browser. Is there a way to do it so ?

[@theredstormer8078]

So if you use wired connection, you don't to do that thing for wifi, correct?

[@Ujwal5555]

Yup

[@kyaelectronics6106]

Maybe have problem when use raspberrypi in host name, I use ip range - angry IP scaner for scaner the ip. Thats work for me

[@Stonemasher]

Hi there, every time i ty to get access through Putty it says access denied. Any workarounds on this? TIA

[@jrM5492]

1. download Bonjour 2. make changes to 'config.txt', 'cmdline.txt' 3. use two microusb(one for power, one for usb), plug seperately into 2 different laptop usb ports. took me 5 hours to install, finally.

[@garjonalpha]

I'd rather minimize my involvement with closed sources, especially those from Apple.

[@youreale]

Great tutorial, thanks!!!

[@berlianacahyaniati290]

hi, do you know how to activate the raspberry pi zero gpio? i get a problem, i can't use the gpio

[@theborne]

Can I see the GUI while headless or is that only for HDMI?

[@dylanf7990]

If you want to access the GUI, you can use VNC, also make sure to flash the raspbian version with desktop, not the lite version, the lite version has no GUI, just the terminal.

[@yepyep4840]

I wrote out the supplicant like you said but it didn't work.

[@jamesschubert3481]

Very informative!! Thanks!!!!

[@Venes1995]

what do i put in "psk" if the router doesnt have any password key?

[@KingJellyfishII]

Great guide, but I installed Raspbian (with NOOBS, perhaps that is what I did wrong), and the config.txt doesn't show up

[@hemvadgama3463]

Same

[@tammamkaid2678]

Hi, I followed your steps, I tried to reconnect to my pi zero and a massage of {Unable to open connection to raspberry, Host does not exist} appears. Could anyone help please?

[@Core-Electronics]

Hi, perhaps post a question on our forum as it's a better platform for debugging these sorts of things forum.core-electronics.com.au/ Share what you have done, including what fault-finding you've already tried.

[@CCRenwick]

make sure on the .conf file you have white space in front of the information so network={ ssid="*******" psk="******" key_mgmt=WPA-PSK } that seemed to fix the issue for me anyway :)

[@tammamkaid2678]

Thanks guys Hi C Renwick The conf file fine I might erase everything And the flash new image and start again

[@To17mi03]

Do you know if there is an issue with having space in the SSID?

[@coreelectronicssupportteam6775]

For those who are having trouble connecting to their Pi's hostname, this may be an issue to do with how your router is set up to handle DHCP. You may have to retreive the IP of your Pi (Windows > CMD > arp -a) and try connecting directly to the IP of your Pi.

[@mamsongmai]

My ssh, wa_supplicant.conf disappear after booting. Wonder why?

[@ShakthiPrasadGS]

Worked great. Able to connect to internet However note default hostname was not setup to raspberry. (ssh raspberry wont work) Checking all ip connected to router and ssh pi@192.168.1.x made into login raspberry!!!!

[@marcusmcb]

Tried the same and it finally accepted the SSH connection. Side-note for anyone using Google Wi-Fi at home... Once you've done all of the set up for the Pi, open the Google Wi-Fi app, tap "devices" from the main screen, scroll down to the Raspberry Pi, tap it and then tap the "details" tab to get the Pi's address on your network.

[@basgerrit907]

I couldn't connect to the pi using the hostname, I scanned for the ip address and used that instead.

[@Gilan643]

It doesn't work for me. For my raspberry pi zero with rasbian lite is needed to specify the "wpa_supplicant.conf" as bellow: ctrl_interface=DIR=/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=netdev update_config=1 country=US network={ ssid="ssid" psk="password" key_mgmt=WPA-PSK }

[@Mr2011Sami]

Great Demo, Thank you!

[@Core-Electronics]

Cheers Sami!

[@robertc7682]

Excellent ! Really great intro, I am new to pi, this made it very simple ! Can I set up my PI zero with my phone as a hot spot and get a USB to CAT 5 adaptor set up to use it as a client so I can plug in my RF SHARK OPEN SPOT ( must be hard wired) for mobile use?

[@lodestar1380]

After writing the stretch lite disk image to my 16GB micro SD card, I get an error saying Data Error(cyclic redundancy check). The storage shrinks to 43MB from 14.6GB and is difficult to reformat. Any assistance would be appreciated.

[@speter60]

check the card with H2TESTW in windows in case it is bad

[@addressunknown8]

the following code needs to be added to the wpa_supplicant.conf for it to work on strech: ctrl_interface=DIR=/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=netdev

[@TheMegaMrMe]

thanks man

[@manuelni4766]

Thank You Very much!!!!

[@rajeeb101]

addressunknown8 what is strech?

[@chrnaf]

Added on what line? Should it look like this? network={ ssid="networkname" psk="myStrongPassword123" key_mgmt=WPA-PSK ctrl_interface=DIR=/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=netdev }

[@NinjaLifeCrisis]

Hi all, Below worked for me: country=AU ctrl_interface=DIR=/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=netdev update_config=1 network={ ssid="Your_Network" psk="Your_Password" key_mgmt=WPA-PSK } Good luck!

[@erikkunchan]

I was stuck on getting it to connect with Putty, if 'raspberry' doesn't work look for the IP address of the device

[@AlexanderKoval]

Hi, would the same steps apply for a Raspberry Pi 3 model B?

[@davidsteele957]

Yes

[@0xLoneWolf]

SOME/ALL BOARDS DO NOT CONNECT TO 5G NETWORKS. This fact would have saved me a lot of time.

[@austinl7299]

I purchased the Raspberry PI zero W with noobs. how can I getit to access WIFI im stuck.

[@josepuga381]

i am having trouble connecting to the pi login i am using the user: pi password: raspberry on the latest release of raspbian. the user is accepted but it doesnt allow me to input a password anything on this?

[@benclarke4075]

In almost all linux terminals, the password doesn't appear when you type. Just type the password and hit enter.

[@noelenetait9671]

Can we save several wifis and passwords ?

[@leec2106]

In Putty i typed in raspberrypi ssh is clicked port is 22 When I click open I get Unable to open connection to raspberrypi Host does not exist The image I downloaded is Raspbian Stretch with desktop Image with desktop based on Debian Stretch Is it still raspberrypiIf not what else changed?

[@PartyofNone]

you need to download bonjour from apple, putty doesn't work correctly without it.

[@filozof71]

Try to check on router what is it's IP address and use this address instead of name. Generally if you have no hosts defined on your system it should not know what means 'raspbberypi'

[@emily404vlog9]

you might have problem connecting to wifi, check your router encryption, it may be WPA2-AES instead of WPA-PSK. The settings will be different. coderwall.com/p/v290ta/raspberry-pi-wifi-setup-with-wpa2-psk-aes

[@filozof71]

If you're sure it is connected use IP from router.

[@jrM5492]

how to check router encryption? I'm sure mine is not connected to wifi, couldn't find it using ip scanner.

[@vikas72]

Nice Video. Would you also like to cover Hubserialixed - the project in currently on kickstarter and offers 3 USB hub and a UART.

[@jamesacurtisjr]

Anyone knows how to connect a bluetooth audio speaker via headless?

[@JValiant123]

Thank you 👌

[@irshadali19]

Is this work on raspberry pi 2

[@blueskies792]

THANK YOU!

[@spencerwilson2681]

I had trouble setting this up with my Pi zero. The following config file for wpa_supplicant.conf was what finally got mine connected: country=us ctrl_interface=DIR=/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=netdev update_config=1 network={ ssid="__________" scan_ssid=1 psk="__________" key_mgmt=WPA-PSK }

[@tamjidsongram4941]

great video

[@Demonwicked]

Had problems with the PI connecting to my network, had to use this in the wpa_supplicant file Changed to whatever country I am in, and your network ID and PASSWORD accordingly! ctrl_interface=DIR=/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=netdev update_config=1 country=US network={ ssid="ThisIsMyNetworkName" psk=“123456790” key_mgmt=WPA-PSK } Thanks for the guide, it`s very helpful! When I managed to connect, next problem, if ur not using US keyboard layout change it to that, since using something else causes it to reply with access denied,

[@kylesadler9028]

putty refuses to connect. says host does not exist.

[@quolls2]

PuTTY won't let me enter password, it freezes every time, then crashes

[@adityadeshmukh5607]

i cant log in again when name changed please help asap

[@tahakadado4260]

if you have issues connectiong to WIFI, add the following to the top of the wpa_supplicant.conf: country=US ctrl_interface=DIR=/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=netdev update_config=1

[@nehadwivedi3442]

thank you so much sir

[@harrycui6114]

will it work if I connect it through a USB hub, not directly into the PC?

[@emily404vlog9]

For those who has WPA-AES router management, your wpa_supplicant.conf file should include the following as well proto=RSN key_mgmt=WPA-PSK pairwise=CCMP group=CCMP auth_alg=OPEN details in this coderwall link: coderwall.com/p/v290ta/raspberry-pi-wifi-setup-with-wpa2-psk-aes

[@moazelsawaf2000]

Thanks ❤ Amazing ❤

[@SarveshBhatnagar1214]

Hats Off

[@reginaldcolbourne7574]

i have the same wallpaper!

[@Mystic0Dreamer]

Question: Does this need to be done using Putty and command prompt only? Or can this same procedure work with the fully GUI and Remote Desktop Connection on Windows?

[@waltmetcalf5354]

Great

[@samwork3038]

how about a no-windows version :-)

[@haxhxm841]

I wanted to ship to singapore :( cos cheapest price just the board itself

[@txzack66]

Didn't work for me.

[@joedew4183]

you can now set everything including more in the raspberry pi imager. Great video otherwise!

[@dcgreatman]

H-headless?!

[@davidbeiler6364]

password rasberry doesn't work when sshing

[@FullEntropyDMZ]

it's raspberry not rasberry :)