Member Avatar for alaa sam

hey everyone

I was wondering if there is any tool that I can use to draw a Wi-FI coverage map in linux ??

Thanks in advance

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Short answer: yes — on Linux you can make a Wi‑Fi coverage (signal‑strength) map by collecting point samples (RSSI + GPS) while wardriving, then importing those points into a GIS and interpolating a raster/heatmap. Many people on this thread already suggested scanners and mobile apps; a practical, repeatable approach is to capture structured logs on Linux (Kismet or airodump-ng) and then create a heatmap from that CSV in QGIS or with GDAL. This keeps the capture and mapping steps separate and lets you control interpolation parameters. (kismetwireless.net)

Typical workflow you can apply right away:

  1. Record samples with GPS: Kismet can emit a Wigle‑format CSV while logging GPS, or use airodump‑ng to write CSV/GPS output.
  2. Transfer the CSV (lat,lon,signal,timestamp) to a workstation.
  3. Open the CSV in QGIS as a delimited text/point layer and run a Heatmap (kernel density) or IDW interpolation to produce a raster. Example capture command (adjust interface name): 
    airodump-ng wlan0 -w wardrive --output-format csv,gps

    Kismet and airodump-ng both support GPS‑tagged logs and export formats suitable for mapping. (kismetwireless.net)

For mapping and interpolation: QGIS provides Heatmap and IDW tools (good GUI control of radius, pixel size and kernel), and gdal_grid offers a CLI IDW option if you prefer scripts. If you want quick public visualization, Wigle accepts wardrive CSV uploads. Keep in mind ’s point: interpolation is an approximation — signal maps depend heavily on sampling density, antenna pattern, obstacles and multipath — so treat the result as a useful estimator, not a physics‑perfect model. (docs.qgis.org)

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Member Avatar for mmcdonald

I've never come across a coverage map but this a linux WiFi scanner:

I did just come acorss this sexy looking script though, could possible help someone: http://code.google.com/p/wifisigmap/

Edited by mmcdonald
Member Avatar for alaa sam

I will check it , Thanks a lot

Member Avatar for L7Sqr

What exactly do you mean by coverage map? Do you want a list of available access points? Do you want to measure the coverage (geometric area) of a particular access point?

Member Avatar for alaa sam

coverage map : a map which shows the signal strength at different locations

Member Avatar for rubberman

AFAIK, there is no such, unless there is something that is integrated with a computer and signal capture device that can accurately measure the signal strength at any point relative to the AP. Then, you would need to thoroughly traverse the entire 360 degree range around the AP at various distances in order to map it (both horizontally and vertically). Each type of antenna and AP will generate different profiles in this, so in theory there is no tool that can do that automatically. You might find something that can extrapolate the map from a limited number of data points, but not accurately (especially considering issues of phase-interference, interference from other RF signals in the same frequency range, etc), in my opinion. If you want a more expert opinion (I am an EE and member of the IEEE and am a senior systems engineer for a major mobile phone manufacturer), I can ask some of my colleagues in the IEEE who are consumate experts in radio propagation and antenna design, but I suspect they would agree with me. I once took a class in genetic algorithms from an engineer who designed antennas for phased-array radar systems for the US Air Force. We used to discuss these issues. The math alone is daunting!

Back to the original question, regarding whether there is a Linux tool that can draw such a map (from a myriad of sample points) - possibly. Unfortunately, I don't know what it would be.

Which brings us to the salient question - what do you need to do this for? One use I can think of is to determine where and how many access points to install in a facility. Is that what you are trying to accomplish?

Edited by rubberman
Member Avatar for alaa sam

well , I'm reading papers and researches in localization , and I saw coverage maps . The researchers used the result from wardriving and mapped it . I didn't mean that this software will take RSS readings and map them , but we can capture RSS readings and fed them as input to that software to draw the map . I think this is possible , isn't it ?

Member Avatar for tsttst

You could try 'WiFi Mapper Light' for android, it does exactly what you need:

Edited by tsttst because: wrong link
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