T1B

Trying to add another wireless computer to my home network.

The router is less than 2 feet away through a wood frame/ drywall. The signal is excellent, the computer sees the network out there and it is prioritized as an automatic connect, I put in the WEP key and hit connect, it attempts to connect but does not, with no error message. Also, when I go into to view the device hardware, that device is listed as working properlywith current drivers, but in the network wizard it says one or more parts are disconnected. The green lights are lit on the back of the wireless card ( Its a linksys 55AB wireless PCI card. ) I have uninstalled and reinstalled the hardware. Can't think of anything else to do.

My only conclusion I can come up with is the card is bad. I have two other computers currently on the network and they are running well. Both are wireless, too.

Am I missing a setting, or would you all conclude that the only thing wrong is with the card itself?

I'm having trouble understanding how it could be the card or it's driver if it's seeing the network.

Have you tried turning off the security on your router and seeing if it will connect ?

Is your router configured to filter MAC addresses ?

Now I do know I've hosed something up before with the installation of a card, so bad in fact, I could never get it installed again. In this case, I just used a completely different wireless card.

That being said, don't throw out that card. My hunch is if it isn't something in the router, then it's something you did while installing and un-installing the card.

Actualy I've come across problems like this at times. One question is, are you sure the password is correct? Most of the time this will happen if the password isn't correct. A quick way to test it is to set it to what you think it is on the router and see if that fixes the problem.

The other problem I've noticed is with the Linksys and every other manufacturer. I've noticed this a number of times now and have never come up with a suitable solution. I'd have a Linksys router and a D-link card and some other mis matches do that. Anyway, if you try everything and you can't connect your laptop to your network but then you go driving and it connects just fine to your neighbor's wireless then I'd say that is the problem.

The best solution that I could think of would be to uninstall the driver and make sure you download the very latest driver for the card and update the router to the latest software.

ElTaco wrote:Actualy I've come across problems like this at times. One question is, are you sure the password is correct? Most of the time this will happen if the password isn't correct. A quick way to test it is to set it to what you think it is on the router and see if that fixes the problem.

The other problem I've noticed is with the Linksys and every other manufacturer. I've noticed this a number of times now and have never come up with a suitable solution. I'd have a Linksys router and a D-link card and some other mis matches do that. Anyway, if you try everything and you can't connect your laptop to your network but then you go driving and it connects just fine to your neighbor's wireless then I'd say that is the problem.

The best solution that I could think of would be to uninstall the driver and make sure you download the very latest driver for the card and update the router to the latest software.

I did download the latest driver, and I double checked the password. I also ran a network cable direct from the router to the box and voila! it worked first time.

Then I disconnected the cable, and tried to connect to the network (linksys) router through the wireless card (which is also a linksys product). It could see the network and showed there was a strong signal, but it would not connect to the network.

I can't see any other conclusion than the card is bad. That sucks because it's the second linksys wireless product to take a dump on me in the last year. My laptop card died last fall, but I'm using a PDA USB link up for that now, so I never bought another one. I think I might be done with Linksys for a while.

So I just have to drill a hole in the wall to make the wires disappear instead of them trailing in the hall and thru the door. That will help keep my network connections strong with the wife. :)

I've never been a huge fan of Linksys but...

Have you tried a different machine? Does that log in fine without any problem and use the wireless? Testing with the Cable doesn't prove anything except that the router functionality works on the router and the ethernet stack on your windows works and your NIC works. It doesn't really trouble shoot the wireless part of the router or the wireless part of your computer. To trouble shoot the router, you would want to make sure that you have another laptop or PC with a wireless card connect and use it. Then if you have a 2nd laptop and you think its your pcmcia card, put that linksys card into that laptop and test it with that. If it works then the card and driver and router works and your main laptop is the one that is screwed up. My guess would be that the driver is corrupted for that card so I would remove all traces of that card and try again. I've never seen a PCMCIA card go bad but that doesn't mean it couldn't in theory happen. I'd say there is more chance of your laptop's PCMCIA slot going bad before the card went bad unless you just broke it.

Quick question. Can you assign a static IP to your wireless and without connecting to anything, ping it with your computer? If it works that is some indication that your internal driver should work and the card should work. Also have you tried connecting to another wireless network? Maybe take an hour at lunch and go to a Panera Bread. They have free wireless, see if it works there.