Automatically Connecting Raspberry Pi 3 to WiFi: A Comprehensive Guide

Introduction

The Raspberry Pi 3 is a powerful and versatile device with a built-in WiFi radio, making it ideal for a wide range of applications. One common requirement is to connect it to a WiFi network automatically without manual intervention.

How to Automatically Connect Raspberry Pi 3 to WiFi

There are multiple methods to achieve automatic WiFi connection on a Raspberry Pi 3, depending on whether you have a monitor or not.

Method 1: Using the Raspberry Pi OS Desktop

Boot your Raspberry Pi and log in. Click on the WiFi icon in the top-right corner of the screen. Select your WiFi network from the list. Enter your WiFi password when prompted and click the 'Connect' button.

From the next boot onwards, the Raspberry Pi will automatically connect to the WiFi network without requiring further user intervention.

Method 2: Editing the wpa_ File (Headless Setup)

Access the SD Card: Insert the SD card into your computer. Navigate to the boot partition of the SD card. Create a new file named wpa_ if it does not exist. Edit the wpa_ File: Open the file in a text editor and add the following configuration, replacing YOUR_SSID and YOUR_PASSWORD with your actual WiFi network name and password:

countryUSctrl_interfaceDIR/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUPnetdevupdate_config1network{    ssid"YOUR_SSID"    psk"YOUR_PASSWORD