WLAN_GCMP(4)

📦 version 15.1, in freebsd 15.1, nixpkgs unstable

💅 WLAN_GCMP — the 802.11 crypto bestie

ok so real talk, this is page WLAN_GCMP(4) from the Kernel Interfaces Manual, and it's basically the glow-up era of wifi security. let me tell you everything 🫶

✨ NAME ✨

wlan_gcmp — AES-GCMP crypto support for 802.11 devices, no cap 🔥

🎀 SYNOPSIS 🎀

device wlan_gcmp

that's it. one line. main character energy 💅

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

okay so the wlan_gcmp module is the one handling the Galois/Counter Mode Protocol cryptographic requirements of the IEEE 802.11ad and WPA2/WPA3 protocols. big job, tiny module, obsessed 😭

what it does, literally:

  • it does encapsulation and decapsulation of GCMP-encoded 802.11 frames
  • and optionally it calculates the AES-GCMP cipher ✨

the wlan_gcmp module is an 802.11 cryptographic plugin module for use by the wlan(4) module — it's giving sidekick, but like, the iconic kind 👑

the way it gets loaded: it's automatically loaded if an AES-GCMP key is configured 🌈 — typically by a WPA supplicant program such as wpa_supplicant, or a WPA authenticator program such as hostapd. so you don't even have to think about it, it just shows up when it's needed, fr fr 💖

and if the underlying network device can't do the AES-GCMP calculations in hardware? no worries bestie, the wlan_gcmp module will do the work itself. it ate 💀✨

🌸 SEE ALSO 🌸

(the whole crypto squad, iykyk 🧚)

⭐ STANDARDS ⭐

more information can be found in the IEEE 802.11, and WPA Standards 📚 — the sacred texts, honestly

👑 HISTORY 👑

the wlan_gcmp driver first appeared in FreeBSD 15.0 🎉 and honestly? slay.

k that's the whole page bestie, go forth and encrypt 💜

— from the Debian crew, dated June 13, 2025 🌸 (yes that's the version + date line, don't @ me, it's mandatory and it's cute) 🎀

📦 where this page comes from