rfkill - tool for enabling and disabling wireless devices
Contents
Availability
The rfkill command is part of the util-linux package which can be downloaded from Linux Kernel Archive
<https://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/utils/util-linux/>.
util-linux 2.41 2025-02-26 RFKILL(8)
Commands
help
Display help text and exit.
event
Listen for rfkill events and display them on stdout.
list [id|type ...]
List the current state of all available devices. The command output format is deprecated, see the
DESCRIPTION section. It is a good idea to check with list command id or type scope is appropriate
before setting block or unblock. Special all type string will match everything. Use of multiple ID or
type arguments is supported. Possible types are all, {wlan | wifi}, bluetooth, {uwb | ultrawideband},
wimax, wwan, gps, fm, nfc.
blockid|type [...]
Disable the corresponding device.
unblockid|type [...]
Enable the corresponding device. If the device is hard-blocked, for example via a hardware switch, it
will remain unavailable though it is now soft-unblocked.
toggleid|type [...]
Enable or disable the corresponding device.
Description
rfkill lists, enabling and disabling wireless devices.
The command "list" output format is deprecated and maintained for backward compatibility only. The new
output format is the default when no command is specified or when the option --output is used.
The default output is subject to change. So whenever possible, you should avoid using default outputs in
your scripts. Always explicitly define expected columns by using the --output option together with a
columns list in environments where a stable output is required.
Example
rfkill --output ID,TYPE
rfkill block all
rfkill unblock wlan
rfkill block bluetooth uwb wimax wwan gps fm nfc
Name
rfkill - tool for enabling and disabling wireless devices
Options
-J, --json
Use JSON output format.
-n, --noheadings
Do not print a header line.
-o, --output
Specify which output columns to print. Use --help to get a list of available columns.
--output-all
Output all available columns.
-r, --raw
Use the raw output format.
-h, --help
Display help text and exit.
-V, --version
Display version and exit.
Reporting Bugs
For bug reports, use the issue tracker <https://github.com/util-linux/util-linux/issues>.
See Also
powertop(8), systemd-rfkill(8), Linux kernel documentation <https://docs.kernel.org/driver-api/rfkill.html>
Synopsis
rfkill [options] [command] [ID|type ...]
