Help with wireless please!
 

Hi

At the moment I'm using a Linksys wireless router, which is wired to my PC. I have just installed a Wireless network card into my PC, as I want to connect to the router wirelessly instead of through a wired connection. Installation of the card went fine, and the light is on, a wireless connection has been found, yet I cannot connect to it? I've unplugged from the wired NIC and assumed the router would communicate with the wireless NIC with no problems, but it doesn't seem to want to connect. I'm sure it's something simple that I'm not doing..? :dunce:

Any help appreciated.
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Doh. Right I've disabled all security and it has connected now... hmm..

Re: Help with wireless please!
 

I use a linksys router. I used to use wireless mode but you lose some security. When I worked from home, we were not allowed to run our network via wireless so I had the hardwire put in. Linksys should have some troubleshooting software that came with the box to assist. make sure you also run the software for the modem.

Re: Help with wireless please!
 

Yep you may need to add the IP of the new card to your security software, or zonealrams trusted zone, etc.

Re: Help with wireless please!
 

Make sure that the wireless connection on the PC is set to use DNS and that the router is acting as a DNS server. Also, to help improve security, make sure you register the PC's mac address in the router and restrict other mac addresses from using your wireless connection.

The power it all off, power on the router and when it's settled power on the PC.

Re: Help with wireless please!
 

Why?

An ethernet connection will give you a much more stable connection, so why go wireless?

Just for the sake of it? :shrug:

Re: Help with wireless please!
 

Have you actually been into the router config to set up the wireless connection parameters and done the same with the wireless adapter card?

On the Linksys the config page is found by entering http://192.168.1.1/ in your browser.

Choose a unique SSID
Choose a channel (best not use the default channel 11)
Set Encryption on, i.e. WPA-PSK/TKIP mode, and choose a passkey
Ignore everything else for the time being & save those settings.

For the PCs wireless card, open up its wireless utility and input the same info as above (also you should choose "infrastructure mode" not "ad-hoc mode") save save as the default wireless connection.

In your control panel/network settings, look at the properties for the "TCP>your wireless adapter". In the IP address TAB Make sure "obtain IP automatically" is checked.

Reboot.

If all is working now, you can then further improve security by going into the linksys router config again and diabling SSID broacast and you can use the MAC address filter to only allow MAC addresses of wireless network adapters that you want to allow. The MAC address can be found either on a label on the adapter card or by using "ipconfig/all" at the command prompt (windows xp start/run, "CMD") or in Windows98/ME use "winipcfg" in the Start menu/run box and look for the correct adapter's MAC ("adapter address").

Re: Help with wireless please!
 

Wireless connections are pretty straight forward. If you access your wireless utility and click on site survey. You should be able to locate your SSID which is the name of your access point. If your wireless is set in a way that you dont need a WEP key you should be able to connect without any problem. If by any chance protected your wireless, you will need to enter the passcode (WEP key) to connect.

Re: Help with wireless please!
 

Just one side comment on that, better to use WPA security rather than WEP if you get the chance, it's just better (and somewhat less pedantic in what you can use as a password).

Re: Help with wireless please!
 

I agree with you Chris. I was trying to figure out why he was not able to connect. Beside any issues with the hardware. The software configuration is pretty straight forward. I work for an ISP and we do offer wireless modem. So I pretty much know how to deal with those devices. Thanks for your input.