NetworkManager

NetworkManager is a network management software for Ethernet, Wifi, DSL, dialup, VPN and mobile broadband network connections.

Networking on Linux can be painful, especially in comparison to other operating systems. You should never need to use the command line or configuration files to manage your network (unless you want to!); everything should "Just Work" as automatically as possible and never stop you from doing what you want to do. NetworkManager attempts to make networking as invisible as you want it to be. Whether at home, work, or on the move, NetworkManager automatically connects to the last network you told it to connect to. From wired to wireless to mobile broadband to Bluetooth, NetworkManager has you covered.

Kernel
You need to activate the following kernel options:

For Wifi devices enable also the following options:

Software
Portage knows the global USE flag networkmanager for enabling support for NetworkManager in other packages. Enabling this USE flag will pull in automatically:

The USE flags of networkmanager are:

After setting this you want to update your system so the changes take effect:

Also install a frontend:
 * for GNOME
 * for KDE
 * for the command line

There are also some extensions:
 * - VPN connection to a OpenVPN server
 * - VPN connection to a PPTP server
 * - VPN connection to a Cisco VPN concentrator

Configuration
You can now start NetworkManager:

To start NetworkManager at boot time, add it your default runlevel:

Reload D-Bus so that the NetworkManager changes take effect:

Using NetworkManager
To be able to get nm-applet started when starting your light X session or light Desktop Environment, just put the following line in your `~/.xinitrc' file.

For support, add the following lines before the previous line. This will ease passwods management for GnuPG, ssh and Wifi.

Additionaly, you will need the following file.