Can't access public WiFi auth page

[matchgirl42]

Hello all,

I'm currently inpatient at a hospital with public wi-fi. I have a brand new Dell Inspiron 15 that, after getting one look at Windows 10, I decided to install Linux Mint (Cinnamon) on. I've used the laptop with Linux on my home network just fine for the day before having to be hospitalized The problem is when I try to log in/authorize use of the hospital's public wi-fi.

It allows me to connect to the network just fine. But when I try to load the authorization page in Firefox, (vers 64.0), I get a mostly white screen with the message "Log in to network: You must log in to this network before you can access the internet." Below this message are two boxes. On the left is a blue box that says "Open Network Login Page" and on the right is a white button that says "advanced."

When I click the blue button, it reloads the same exact page, over and over again. When I click the white button, an empty dialogue box shows with another white box below it that reads "Add Exception." Clicking this second white box does nothing.

I talked to the hospital's support desk, they are stumped and have no idea how to fix it.

And the only browser I have right now is Firefox, and can't download Chrome to try it there because I can't get to the internet on the laptop. I'm posting this using my Android smartphone, but I'm on a cheap plan without hotspot capability so I can't do an end-run around the issue that way either.

Anyone have any ideas?

 

[COLGeek]

Are you using any adblocker apps or plug-ins with FF? If so, disable and try again.

 

[bill001g]

Be nice if people that develop apps did not try to be lazy and use features not supported on all browsers. Do you have enough memory on your phone to download chrome and then transfer it with a usb cable. You should be able to get your phone on the hospital network so you don't burn your data cap.

 

[matchgirl42]

Unfortunately, this isn't going to work. Trying to get the Chrome .deb file on my phone just directs me to the Google Play store to install, not download, the Android version. I was able to get the offline chrome installer from another page on Google, but it's an .exe, and I don't have WINE on this laptop yet.

I tried getting it, I have the wine-4.0-2-x86_64.pkg.trz on my laptop now, but it has no .Deb file in it after extraction, and I tried going through linux's software manager but it wants me to download a new file - which I can't do on the laptop.

I was able to use this method to get and install Opera, but it won't let me even get to the auth page. I just get the offline/unable to reach page method, even after typing in the direct ip address of the auth page (which the help desk gave me yesterday).

I've deleted the network info and reaquired it countless times, I've tried all possible firewall permutations including off, nothing.

 

[matchgirl42]

I literally just installed Linux on this laptop this past Thursday. And then went to the emergency room early Friday morning and was admitted. So there's nothing added to Firefox, only what it comes loaded with. I never got the chance to install any add-ons, I didn't even make it through all of the initial setup process for the OS. Just got it installed, and the most important steps like the firewall.

 

[bill001g]

Expensive but could you hotspot the phone on mobile broadband and use it to load chrome. Sad thing would be if it is a window dependence rather than browser after spending money to download

I really wish I knew what they were doing. It is likely some script or something firefox doesn't like. Lucky the last hospital I visits someone in just had a open system with a firewall filtering content.

Does the hospital IT guy have a way to manually whitelist your IP/mac. Most those systems are not really designed for security they are to keep people who live near by from using the newtwork rather than buy their own internet. You should see the number of people on this forum asking how to extend the range of their router so they can use "free" networks in their house

 

[matchgirl42]

Unfortunately no hotspot for me. We chose the cheaper plan and now it's coming back to bite me. And I'm pretty sure the help desk guy whitelisted my laptop/Mac address while I was on the phone with him yesterday, didn't help. There's like 10 other networks I'm getting signals for, but of course they're all secured.

Earlier the nurses said something about the hospital letting it's security certificate expire/not renewing it to save $, that might have something to do with this issue. And apparently I'm not the only patient complaining. We can all get the internet on our phones, but those of us with laptops can't authorize the internet access on them

Family is supposed to be visiting later, if one of them has hotspot capability I'll see if I can get Chrome that way.

 

[matchgirl42]

Well I'm back home. Never got the hospital wi-fi to authorize on my laptop. First thing tomorrow I will definitely install Chrome and WINE onto the laptop. Thanks for trying everyone.

 

[COLGeek]

Hope you are feeling better. Good luck and best wishes.