Ifraaz Joseph

How to Check and Enable Wake-on-LAN on Fedora

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Wake-on-LAN (WOL) allows you to power on a Fedora computer remotely by sending a specially formatted “magic packet” over the network. It is useful for remotely accessing a home server, desktop, or media center without leaving the machine running continuously.

This guide explains how to check whether your network adapter supports WOL, enable it, make the setting persistent, and test that it works.

Check the Network Interface

First, identify your wired network interface:

ip link

In this example, the interface is named enp3s0.

Run ethtool to inspect its capabilities:

ethtool enp3s0

If you see an error such as:

netlink error: Operation not permitted

run the command with sudo:

sudo ethtool enp3s0

The interface should also report an active network connection:

Link detected: yes

This confirms that the Ethernet connection itself is working.

Check Wake-on-LAN Support

Look for these two lines in the output:

Supports Wake-on: pumbg
Wake-on: d

The Supports Wake-on line shows which wake-up methods the network adapter supports. The letter g represents wake-up using a magic packet.

The Wake-on line shows the current configuration:

  • Wake-on: g — magic-packet WOL is enabled
  • Wake-on: d — WOL is disabled
  • Supports Wake-on: ...g... — the adapter supports magic-packet WOL

In this example, the adapter supports WOL, but it is currently disabled.

Enable Wake-on-LAN Temporarily

Enable magic-packet wake-up with:

sudo ethtool -s enp3s0 wol g

Verify the setting:

sudo ethtool enp3s0 | grep -i wake

The expected output is:

Supports Wake-on: pumbg
Wake-on: g

This setting may be lost after reboot or when the network connection is restarted, so configure it persistently if you plan to use WOL regularly.

Make the Setting Persistent

Fedora commonly manages network connections through NetworkManager. List the available connections:

nmcli connection show

Identify the wired connection associated with enp3s0. Then configure it to use magic-packet Wake-on-LAN:

sudo nmcli connection modify "CONNECTION_NAME" 802-3-ethernet.wake-on-lan magic

Replace CONNECTION_NAME with the actual connection name shown by nmcli.

For example:

sudo nmcli connection modify "Wired connection 1" 802-3-ethernet.wake-on-lan magic

Reactivate the connection:

sudo nmcli connection up "CONNECTION_NAME"

Finally, verify the configuration:

sudo ethtool enp3s0 | grep -i wake

You should see:

Wake-on: g

Find the Computer’s MAC Address

A Wake-on-LAN packet must be sent to the computer’s network adapter MAC address. Display it with:

ip link show enp3s0

Look for a line similar to:

link/ether 00:11:22:33:44:55

The value after link/ether is the MAC address you will use when sending the magic packet.

Test Wake-on-LAN

Before testing, shut down the Fedora computer:

systemctl poweroff

From another computer or mobile device on the same local network, send a Wake-on-LAN magic packet to the Fedora machine’s MAC address.

If the computer powers on, Wake-on-LAN is working correctly.

The sending device may require:

  • The target MAC address
  • The local broadcast address, often something like 192.168.1.255
  • UDP port 9 or 7

The exact procedure depends on the operating system or WOL application you use.

Troubleshooting

If the computer does not wake, check the following:

  1. Confirm WOL is enabled before shutdown: sudo ethtool enp3s0 | grep -i wakeThe output should include: Wake-on: g
  2. Enable WOL in the BIOS or UEFI.
    Look for settings named:
    • Wake on LAN
    • Power On by PCI-E
    • Resume by LAN
    • PCIe Device Power On
  3. Use a wired Ethernet connection.
    Wake-on-LAN is generally more reliable over Ethernet than Wi-Fi.
  4. Keep the Ethernet cable connected.
    The network adapter must remain powered while the computer is off.
  5. Check power-saving settings.
    Options such as ErP, Deep Sleep, or EuP may remove power from the network adapter during shutdown. Disable them if necessary.
  6. Make sure the packet is sent from the same network.
    Basic WOL testing is easiest when both devices are connected to the same LAN.

Summary

To check and enable Wake-on-LAN on Fedora:

sudo ethtool enp3s0
sudo ethtool -s enp3s0 wol g
sudo ethtool enp3s0 | grep -i wake

A successful configuration reports:

Supports Wake-on: pumbg
Wake-on: g

The adapter in this example supports Wake-on-LAN, and enabling wol g activates magic-packet wake-up. For reliable use after reboots, configure the setting through NetworkManager and verify that WOL is also enabled in the system’s BIOS or UEFI.

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