wireless connection help

Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
edited November 2009 in Science & Tech
just recently got the asus g71gx-x2.

I'm having trouble getting the notebooks wireless setup to connect to my wireless router. It is a dlink WBR-2310.

the notebook is detecting a strong signal from the router, but cannot connect. The router is set to WEP basic.

I'm a wireless newbie and its the first time I've set something like this up. I've had the router for about 2 years and never used the wireless portion until now.

Comments

  • mtroxmtrox Minnesota
    edited November 2009
    Dilbert will it connect if you take off all encryption? Not a long term solution, just a sanity check.

    Also, is your encryption code a pass phrase or hexidecimal? Pass phrases are nice, but hexidecimal can take one step out of the process.
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited November 2009
    mtrox wrote:
    Dilbert will it connect if you take off all encryption? Not a long term solution, just a sanity check.

    Also, is your encryption code a pass phrase or hexidecimal? Pass phrases are nice, but hexidecimal can take one step out of the process.

    I tried WEP & WPA protocols, they didn't work. I think it was hexidecimal, I made up some semi-random #s and letters within its security parameters, 0-9, & A - F.

    I finally got the laptop to connect last night and now have internet access thru the wireless router. however, it is an unsecured link.

    I removed the encryption codes and went the basic unsecured - in short, no encryption. that did the trick.

    the dlink manual is rather vague, it only tells you how to set it up on windows XP. It neglects to mention that one has to start at the basic unsecured connection.

    to make this wireless link secure, I need to go back to the router and setup a more secure protocol while the laptop is still connected to the router? Also do the same for the wireless setup in win7?
  • mtroxmtrox Minnesota
    edited November 2009
    Dilbert Firestorm wrote:
    to make this wireless link secure, I need to go back to the router and setup a more secure protocol while the laptop is still connected to the router?

    No you shouldn't have to be that careful. You should just put the encrypt code in the Dlink, then put it in the XP machine. You could do it the other way around....I've done that often. If the encryptions codes match, you should be good.

    One of the things that can trip you up a bit is that once you've tried to connect to an SSID with an encryption code, sometimes you need to delete that wireless connection in the wireless settings before you change the encryption.
    Dilbert Firestorm wrote:
    Also do the same for the wireless setup in win7?

    So far I've found 7 to be easier than XP for wireless connections. Maybe you set the encryption on the Dlink, then plug it into Win 7. If that works, you know your problem is in the XP box.
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited November 2009
    mtrox wrote:
    No you shouldn't have to be that careful. You should just put the encrypt code in the Dlink, then put it in the XP machine. You could do it the other way around....I've done that often. If the encryptions codes match, you should be good.

    One of the things that can trip you up a bit is that once you've tried to connect to an SSID with an encryption code, sometimes you need to delete that wireless connection in the wireless settings before you change the encryption.



    So far I've found 7 to be easier than XP for wireless connections. Maybe you set the encryption on the Dlink, then plug it into Win 7. If that works, you know your problem is in the XP box.

    well, I know you assumed that I have an XP box. I don't. What I have is an Win98se box. really old stuff. :(
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited November 2009
    mtrox wrote:
    No you shouldn't have to be that careful. You should just put the encrypt code in the Dlink, then put it in the XP machine. You could do it the other way around....I've done that often. If the encryptions codes match, you should be good.

    One of the things that can trip you up a bit is that once you've tried to connect to an SSID with an encryption code, sometimes you need to delete that wireless connection in the wireless settings before you change the encryption.

    does the laptop's wireless card need to stay connected to upgrade the security protocol?

    Hmm.. could be why I was having problems with the connection. didn't think about putting the codes in win98se. don't know if it supports something like that.
  • mtroxmtrox Minnesota
    edited November 2009
    Dilbert Firestorm wrote:
    does the laptop's wireless card need to stay connected to upgrade the security protocol?

    No. I've set up wireless routers and mailed them across the country to someone else who then plugged the code into their laptop.
    Dilbert Firestorm wrote:
    Hmm.. could be why I was having problems with the connection. didn't think about putting the codes in win98se. don't know if it supports something like that.

    Win 98 does not support anything wireless. You have to install a wireless utility. Go to the web site of whomever made the wireless card in your Win 98....they'll have a utility you can install on Win 98 to manage wireless connections. After you install the utility, have it search for wireless connections, when it asks for the encryption code, put in the one you put in your router.
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited November 2009
    mtrox wrote:
    Win 98 does not support anything wireless. You have to install a wireless utility. Go to the web site of whomever made the wireless card in your Win 98....they'll have a utility you can install on Win 98 to manage wireless connections. After you install the utility, have it search for wireless connections, when it asks for the encryption code, put in the one you put in your router.

    as best I can tell, it appears that the card is Atheros AR928x. From what sources say, atheros do not make cards, just chipsets for these cards.
    Their website apparently do not have a support page for drivers and stuff like that. In short, I can't find a wireless utility for this card.

    one other thing tho, is a wireless lan card needed for the win98 box for something like this to work? other comments seems to suggest this.
  • mtroxmtrox Minnesota
    edited November 2009
    Dilbert Firestorm wrote:
    From what sources say, atheros do not make cards, just chipsets for these cards.

    Those are good sources. Atherhos just makes the chips that run a lot of cards. If you open up that box and look at the card, there's some brand or model number.....something printed right on the circuit board. But....if you just Google "Atheros AR928x driver", you will stumble on something that works. But it would be easier to find the real manufacturer and get their Win98 utility too. 'have to have a utility for Win98.
    Dilbert Firestorm wrote:
    one other thing tho, is a wireless lan card needed for the win98 box for something like this to work? other comments seems to suggest this.
    You mean do you need a wireless card to receive a wireless signal? Yes.
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited November 2009
    mtrox wrote:
    Those are good sources. Atherhos just makes the chips that run a lot of cards. If you open up that box and look at the card, there's some brand or model number.....something printed right on the circuit board. But....if you just Google "Atheros AR928x driver", you will stumble on something that works. But it would be easier to find the real manufacturer and get their Win98 utility too. 'have to have a utility for Win98.

    You mean do you need a wireless card to receive a wireless signal? Yes.

    ok, I only have a non-wireless lan card in the win98se box. Is that part of the problem or rather an issue?
  • ardichokeardichoke Icrontian
    edited November 2009
    .... Yes. That is the problem. No wireless card means you can't get on a wireless network. Wired network cards are not capable of transmitting or receiving the radio signals which wireless operates over.
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited November 2009
    ardichoke wrote:
    .... Yes. That is the problem. No wireless card means you can't get on a wireless network. Wired network cards are not capable of transmitting or receiving the radio signals which wireless operates over.


    I guess I will have to get one. any suggestions?

    btw, will there be problems if the box has 2 lan cards, one wired & one wireless?
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited November 2009
    forgot to mention that the wireless card was identified. it is an Azurewave AR5891.

    I took the back open to take alook and see. Unfortunately, I lost a screw in the process, ugh.
  • ardichokeardichoke Icrontian
    edited November 2009
    I... uh... I'm so freaking lost right now I don't even know where to start. You say that no it doesn't have a wireless card, now you're saying it does. Which one is it?
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited November 2009
    ardichoke wrote:
    I... uh... I'm so freaking lost right now I don't even know where to start. You say that no it doesn't have a wireless card, now you're saying it does. Which one is it?

    ok. the win98se box has the wired lan card.

    the Asus G71GX-X2 notebook has an azurewave wireless card.

    I had to open the back of the notebook to see what wireless card I had.

    clear enough?
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited November 2009
    ok heres the update on my wireless card. the wireless link is now secured under WPA2. but its running at half speed at 54mbps.
  • mtroxmtrox Minnesota
    edited November 2009
    If the wireless card is an 802.11G.....that's all you get. If you bought a card that advertised some "speed booster" thing that doubles the speed, it doesn't. It's better if the router and the card are the same brand, and are both speedbooster or whatever nonsense their marketing made up, but they still don't get you the 104 stuff they advertise.

    Oh, and at 54 mbps, it's about 5 times faster than a good cable modem.
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited November 2009
    speed boost is marketing? interesting.

    someone was telling me if my equipment had the "n" protocol, I should get a speed boost.

    however, I do note that my router, d-link WBR-2310, does have what appears to be a speed booster called Turbo G. That feature doesn't seem to be supported by my laptops azurewave AR9851 card which has all those letters
  • mtroxmtrox Minnesota
    edited November 2009
    Dilbert, bottom line, if all your wireless is doing is transmitting the Internet, a really, really crappy wireless signal is faster than a really good cablem modem.
  • Dilbert-FirestormDilbert-Firestorm Nuclear Wasteland, Gretna, LA New
    edited November 2009
    mtrox wrote:
    Dilbert, bottom line, if all your wireless is doing is transmitting the Internet, a really, really crappy wireless signal is faster than a really good cablem modem.

    forgot to mention that my router doesn't support the "n" protocol which would explain why I wasn't getting 108bps.

    now with that said, what you said about the wireless signal, I'll keep that in mind.

    thanx for your help in this.

    p.s. how about taking a look at the printer server thread. :bigggrin:
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