Wi-Fi
Join, forget or inspect Wi-Fi networks; switch the radio
palupdated 2026-10-27SystemComes with pal
Comes with pal, so a new install already has it; the button finds it in pal again if you removed it. This page can't see what your pal has installed.





What it does
The current network, the saved ones and what is in range: join, forget, copy the password, turn Wi-Fi off.
- Current, Known and Available sections, with signal, channel, security and IP for the network you are on;
cmd+ishows a network as a page enterjoins a network, asking for the password in the search bar when it needs onecmd+shift+ccopies a saved network's password (macOS asks for your keychain)ctrl+xforgets a network after a confirm;cmd+ccopies the name or IP- Turn Wi-Fi off or on, and scan for networks on macOS
- On macOS network names need Location access; it asks once, only when you open the list
Palettes 1
-
Wi-Fi
wifiliveCurrent, known and available networks with their signal.
- ↵Join, scan, or turn the radio off or on
- ⌘CCopy the IP or the network's name
- ⌘⇧CCopy the password
- ⌃XForget
Actions
- JoinA saved or open network joins at once; a secured new one takes its password in the bar, or asks in a form.↵
- Copy passwordThe saved password; the macOS keychain prompts.⌘⇧C
- Copy IPOn the current row.⌘C
- Copy nameOn a known or available row.⌘C
- ForgetRemoves the saved network, after a confirm; several marked networks at once.⌃X
- ScanOn the Scan for Networks row: a fresh scan, then the list again.↵
- Turn off / Turn onOn the Wi-Fi row: the radio.↵
- Open System SettingsOn the Location row (macOS, access refused): the Location Services pane.↵
Settings
No settings. It works out of the box.
The README
Everything Wi-Fi does, key by key, from the extension's own README.md
Wi-Fi
The network the machine is on, the saved ones and what is in range, over the core's wifi capability, in sections Current, Known and Available, plus a Wi-Fi row that turns the radio off or on. The palette is live: read again on every show.
One palette, Wi-Fi (wifi).
Rows
| section | row | subtitle | right side |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current | the network you are on | the IP, channel and security (192.168.1.42 · channel 44 · WPA3 Personal) |
the signal (▂▄▆█ 92%) and a connected tag |
| Known | every saved network, in the OS's preference order | the security and channel when a scan sees it, else Saved |
its signal and an in range tag when a scan sees it |
| Available | what the last scan found that is not saved | the security (Open for none) and the channel |
the signal |
| Available | Scan for Networks (macOS, or when names are hidden) | how old the last scan is, and how many nearby networks have their names hidden | |
| Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi names need Location access (macOS, access refused) | where the switch is | |
| Wi-Fi | Turn Wi-Fi Off / Turn Wi-Fi On | the interface (en0) |
A secured network in range has a lock as its icon, an open one the Wi-Fi glyph. With the radio off only the Wi-Fi row is listed. Without a Wi-Fi interface, or with no backend, the one row says so.
Keyboard
| keys | action | on |
|---|---|---|
enter |
Join: a saved or open network at once; a secured network that is not saved has a masked Password field in the search bar (Tab into it, type, Enter), asks for it in a form when the field is left empty, and a refused join shows the form with the tool's message | a known or available row |
cmd+shift+c |
Copy password: the saved password onto the clipboard | the current row and known rows |
cmd+c |
Copy IP: the interface's IPv4 address | the current row |
cmd+c |
Copy name: the network's name | a known or available row |
ctrl+x |
Forget: removes the saved network, after a confirm ("Forget, and delete the saved password too?"); over marked networks too, each forgotten | the current row and known rows |
enter |
Scan: a fresh scan, then the list again | the Scan row |
enter |
Turn off / Turn on: the radio | the Wi-Fi row |
enter |
Open System Settings: the Location Services pane | the Location row |
Forget and the power toggle keep the palette open and list again; a join that succeeds hides pal with "Joined X" in the HUD.
Setup
Nothing to configure and nothing to install.
- macOS: CoreWLAN in-process for the interface, the radio, the
current link (name, signal, channel, security) and a scan;
networksetupfor the preferred list, join, forget and the radio switch;ipconfig getsummaryfor the IP;security find-generic-password -wa <ssid>for a password (the keychain prompts, and that dialog is yours to answer). A scan takes several seconds, so Available shows the last one (kept for a minute) and the Scan for Networks row runs a fresh one. - Linux: NetworkManager over
nmcli -t(device wifi list, which answers from NetworkManager's own scan cache, so Available lists at once;connection showfor the saved ones;device wifi connect;connection delete;radio wifi;-s -g 802-11-wireless-security.pskfor a password).
Location Services on macOS. macOS 15 and later show network names
only to an app with Location Services, so the first time the palette
lists with the names withheld it asks, once (the system prompt; nothing
asks at first run). Say yes and the next listing has the names. Until
then the current row reads "Connected network" with its IP and channel
and says the name is hidden, and the Scan row counts the nearby networks
whose names are hidden instead of listing them. A refusal is a row,
Wi-Fi names need Location access, whose enter opens Privacy &
Security > Location Services; Settings > General > Permissions has the
same button.
No settings.
What it does not do
- No hidden-SSID join: a network that does not broadcast its name is not in the scan, and the palette has no "other network" form.
- No enterprise credentials: an
802.1Xnetwork that needs a username as well as a password joins only when the OS already has its profile. - No password for a network the OS keeps outside the keychain or NetworkManager's store.
- No signal history or channel graph: the signal is the number at the time of the last scan.
- No
wdutilfallback for a withheld name on macOS: it needs sudo, and the host has no way to ask for a password; Location access is the way.
Platforms
macOS and Linux. The Scan row exists on macOS always (a scan is slow there) and on Linux only when the OS reports hidden names, which NetworkManager does not; on Linux Available comes from NetworkManager's cache at once.


