cfg80211_rx_mgmt(9)

📦 version 7.3.1, in nixpkgs unstable

💖 cfg80211_rx_mgmt 💖

okay so bestie, we're in the Kernel API Manual today and the main character of this page is cfg80211_rx_mgmt. yes it's a long name. yes it's iconic. let's get into it 🫶

✨ NAME ✨

cfg80211_rx_mgmt — notification of received, unprocessed management frame 💌

like, "hey, a management frame showed up and nobody in the kernel touched it." that's the whole vibe.

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

bool cfg80211_rx_mgmt (struct wireless_dev *wdev , int freq , int
sig_dbm , const u8 *buf , size_t len , u32 flags );

notice the return type is bool — we're getting a yes or a no back, no in-between, no "maybe", it's giving decisive 💅

🎀 ARGUMENTS 🎀

  • wdev — the wireless device that's receiving the frame. the one getting the message, fr fr 📨
  • freq — the frequency the frame was received on, in MHz. numbers, we love her.
  • sig_dbm — signal strength in dBm, or 0 if unknown. if you don't know, just say 0, no cap 🙈
  • buf — the management frame itself (header + body). the whole package, header and all 🎁
  • len — length of the frame data. someone's gotta say how big buf is.
  • flags — flags, as defined in enum nl80211_rxmgmt_flags. go look 'em up, they live over there 👀

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

so here's the tea: this function gets called whenever an Action frame is received for a station mode interface, but it's not processed in the kernel. like, the kernel looked at it and was like "not my job bestie, sending this upstairs." 🧚

🔥 RETURN 🔥

it returns true if a user space application has registered for this frame. and for action frames, that means user space is the one responsible for rejecting unrecognized action frames — that's their problem now, they signed up for it 👑

it returns false otherwise, and in that case, for action frames, the driver is responsible for rejecting the frame. so like, somebody's always on reject duty. know your role, periodt 💀

and that's just part 1, bestie — there's more coming 👀

🔗 SEE ALSO 🔗

okay bestie, buckle up — this is the part where the page goes "and here's literally everything else" 💅 It's a cross-reference dump straight out of the kernel docs, and no we are not skipping any of it, because every single one of these is a real page you can go read. It's giving infinite scroll energy, fr fr.

First up, the home base 🏠 — all of these live in:

  • Kernel file ./include/net/cfg80211.h

Then the intro-level stuff, aka the "start here so you're not lost" crew ✨:

Next block: actions and configuration 🎀 — the "actually doing stuff" section, all the chandef girlies live here:

Then we get into scanning and BSS list handling 🦋 — the "where is everything and who's out there" zone:

  • Scanning and BSS list handling(9)
  • struct cfg80211_ssid(9)
  • struct cfg80211_scan_info(9)
  • struct cfg80211_scan_6ghz_params(9)
  • struct cfg80211_scan_request(9)
  • struct cfg80211_match_set(9)
  • struct cfg80211_sched_scan_plan(9)
  • struct cfg80211_bss_select_adjust(9)
  • struct cfg80211_sched_scan_request(9)
  • enum cfg80211_signal_type(9)
  • struct cfg80211_inform_bss(9)
  • struct cfg80211_bss_ies(9)
  • struct cfg80211_bss(9)
  • ieee80211_bss_get_elem(9)
  • ieee80211_bss_get_ie(9)
  • struct cfg80211_auth_request(9)
  • struct cfg80211_assoc_link(9)
  • struct cfg80211_ml_reconf_req(9)
  • enum cfg80211_assoc_req_flags(9)
  • struct cfg80211_assoc_request(9)
  • struct cfg80211_deauth_request(9)
  • struct cfg80211_disassoc_request(9)
  • struct cfg80211_ibss_params(9)
  • struct cfg80211_bss_selection(9)
  • struct cfg80211_connect_params(9)
  • enum cfg80211_connect_params_changed(9)
  • enum wiphy_params_flags(9)
  • struct cfg80211_pmksa(9)
  • struct cfg80211_pkt_pattern(9)
  • struct cfg80211_wowlan_tcp(9)
  • struct cfg80211_wowlan(9)
  • struct cfg80211_coalesce_rules(9)
  • struct cfg80211_coalesce(9)
  • struct cfg80211_wowlan_nd_match(9)
  • struct cfg80211_wowlan_nd_info(9)
  • struct cfg80211_wowlan_wakeup(9)
  • struct cfg80211_gtk_rekey_data(9)
  • struct cfg80211_update_ft_ies_params(9)
  • struct cfg80211_mgmt_tx_params(9)
  • struct cfg80211_dscp_exception(9)
  • struct cfg80211_dscp_range(9)
  • struct cfg80211_qos_map(9)

Then Neighbor Awareness Networking (NAN) 🌸 — yes that's the actual name, no cap:

Then the utility functions 🧚 — the little helper besties you call when you just need one thing done:

Then data path helpers 💜 — packets go brrr:

Then regulatory enforcement infrastructure 👑 — the "the government says no" section:

And then a whole pile of scan/BSS/MLME reporting goodies 🍓:

RFkill integration 🔥 — the on/off switch vibes:

Vendor commands ✨ — for when your driver has ✨special features✨:

Test mode 🎀 — bestie do not ship this, okay, it's literally in the name:

Then the connection / roaming / notification main characters 🌈:

okay so we're at the tail end of the SEE ALSO vibes, and bestie there are so many pages in this friend group, like genuinely the whole extended crew 🫶 every single one of them is right here, no gatekeeping, no "you don't wanna know them" — take the whole list, it's yours:

like… that's the whole group chat, bestie 💅 three of them are even struct pages so you know they're the main characters of the reference section (struct cfg80211_ft_event_params(9), struct cfg80211_nan_match_params(9) and struct cfg80211_mlo_reconf_done_data(9) — we see you, kings 👑).

and that's a wrap on the whole page, fr fr 🎀 the source for all this is in ./include/net, this version is dated October 2026, and the page itself is cfg80211_rx_mgmt(9) — go read the others too, iykyk ✨ bye bestie, mwah 😭💖

📦 where this page comes from