How do I setup a wireless network?

Will.Spencer · 11-04-2005, 03:02 AM

Lashan recently wrote How do I setup a wireless network?

I've done some editing of the article, but I think it's missing quite a few things and I can't quite put my finger on where it should be going.

What does the community here think? How could this FAQ answer be improved?

bear · 11-04-2005, 04:27 PM

I think explaining the purpose of each device in the actual article will assist people in knowing that they are buying and for what purpose.

Also, a generalised recommendation of brands and approx prices for all equipment will assist as well

cmpolis · 12-07-2005, 11:36 PM

Its a great article, however, you should talk about the diffrent frequencies (802.11a/b/g) and they are compatible (or not) with each other. Also, you should write about the diffrent speeds that correspond with the frequencies. Overall, it is a good article though.

-C

jess · 12-15-2005, 12:10 AM

How about securing the network so other people dont steal your bandwidth?
Or will that be covered in the next installment?

bxman · 08-28-2006, 02:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jess

How about securing the network so other people dont steal your bandwidth?
Or will that be covered in the next installment?

forgive my ignorance, I have learnt that I need to set the wi-fi cards in my system to the same SSID and channel no. for them to work on a peer to peer
private network that iI would like to link with my existing lan through a Linksys WAG56G ver1.2 without that being connected to the Broadband (no access)
I an using W2000. I do not have any original disc's . and I have not been able to find downloads to substitute.
Thanks one and all.

Will.Spencer · 08-28-2006, 06:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

forgive my ignorance, I have learnt that I need to set the wi-fi cards in my system to the same SSID and channel no. for them to work on a peer to peer
private network that iI would like to link with my existing lan through a Linksys WAG56G ver1.2 without that being connected to the Broadband (no access)
I an using W2000. I do not have any original disc's . and I have not been able to find downloads to substitute.

I'm a bit confused.

Why are you using a peer-to-peer achitecture if you have a Wireless Access Point (WAP)?

Drivers and firmware for your WAP can be found here:

Your wireless NIC (Network Interface Card) is called a "W2000"? Who manufactured that? I think the problem may be that you are using the wrong model for the card. What does the card say on it?

bxman · 08-29-2006, 01:55 AM

Sorry sloppy of me . OS is Win 2000
the PCMCIA is a WA4200 FCC id QDS-BRCM1006 driver - bcmwl1.sys Broadcom Corporation fitted to a T23 Thinkpad.
I have a PCI EDIMAX 802.11g Lan card driver- RT2500.sys Ralink Technology fitted asarock K7V88 1666 Mhz

Device manager reports both devices to be enabled and working properly

My Linksys WAG54g is a ver 1.2 model and connected to my Lan port,
and is detected as pluged in.
Both your links to linksys work . However unfortunatly, on the page itself
nither the driver or the firmaware downloads are available.

When I have logged into the linksys 192.168.1.1 page

I get a re-occuring " ! Can not connect to the PPPoA server." message.
I have assumed this relates to the fact that I have not used either the ASDL modem or a broadband provider to access (only a gut feeling)!

Will.Spencer · 08-29-2006, 04:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

Both your links to linksys work . However unfortunatly, on the page itself nither the driver or the firmaware downloads are available.

Ack! I see what you mean now. That makes me very disappointed in LinkSys.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

the PCMCIA is a WA4200 FCC id QDS-BRCM1006 driver - bcmwl1.sys Broadcom Corporation fitted to a T23 Thinkpad.

I do not believe that you are experiencing an issue related to driver or firmware updates, but since we're on the topic anyway...

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

I get a re-occuring " ! Can not connect to the PPPoA server." message.
I have assumed this relates to the fact that I have not used either the ASDL modem or a broadband provider to access (only a gut feeling)!

In a word, Yes.

PPPoA is PPP over ATM, or "Point to Point Protocol over Asynchronous Transfer Mode." In English, PPPoA is the definition of how your little LinkSys connects to your ISP's network.

As you are disconnected from your ISP, you won't be able to connect to the PPPoA server.

To stop this error message, just unconfigure PPPoA.

I am on the road and away from my LinkSys devices, but here's where I would look:

Log into the LinkSys web GUI at http://192.168.1.1
Go to the "Basic Setup" tab
Look for "Internet Settings"
Look for "ADSL Settings"

Your encapsulation options should be:

RFC 1483 Bridged
RFC 1483 Routed
RFC 2516
PPPoE
RFC 2364 PPPoA
Bridged Mode Only

It seems to me that "Bridged Mode Only" is most accurate in your environment, but either of the RFC 1483 options should also get rid of that error message.

bxman · 08-30-2006, 01:55 AM

solved the error message problem Thanks.
Is there a way I can check and possibly change the SSiD and can I expect to use the hardware the way I had planed ie to link the laptop to the existing LAN network through the 802.11g , and does the WAG54G need a driver.?

PS
Linksys have advised. --
"Peer to peer connection over your LAN is possible with this device but it is already beyond its configuration, it is already within the operating system of your computers. There is no setting or feature in the WAG54G we need to change for this to work so I suggest that you consult Microsoft or visit their knowledgebase to set this one up."

I am sorry as you will have noticed ....I am afraid I might be expanding this thread even more !!

Will.Spencer · 08-30-2006, 10:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

Is there a way I can check and possibly change the SSiD

Yes. You must set the SSID for your WAP and your wireless NIC's to the same value.

Set the SSID for your WAP via the web GUI at http://192.168.1.1. Set the SSID for your wireless NIC's via the Windows Control Panel.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

can I expect to use the hardware the way I had planed ie to link the laptop to the existing LAN network through the 802.11g

If I understand you correctly, yes.

You are just trying to create a stand-alone wireless LAN which is not connected to the Internet, right?

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

and does the WAG54G need a driver?

It does not, because it is not directly connected to your PC.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

Linksys have advised. --
"Peer to peer connection over your LAN is possible with this device but it is already beyond its configuration, it is already within the operating system of your computers. There is no setting or feature in the WAG54G we need to change for this to work so I suggest that you consult Microsoft or visit their knowledgebase to set this one up."

What a bunch of bozos.

It's not as if you are the first LinkSys customer ever to create a stand-alone wireless LAN.

bxman · 09-02-2006, 12:40 AM

I hope you are willing to lead the blind.

I have reset the WAG so in theory The SSID on that should be the deault (linksys)
On the Asrock I have passed through and set

control pannel/network and Dialup Connections/Local Area Connection 3/Properties/Configure/

Auto Reconect Mode Enable
CAM when AC Power disable
Country Region MMK(Channel 14)
Fragment Threshold 2346
Local Administration MAC Network Ad not set
Network Type Infrastructure
Power Saving Mode CAM (Constantly awake mode)
Radio On/Off Enable
RTS Threshold 2347
SSID linksys

presumably only one of the component services needs to be checked in the following box provided it is the same on both systems. I have( NetWare, Ms Networks, and File and printer sharing checked)

The main problem I now have is that on the thinkpad {identical OS Build No. both with Service pack 4 installed }
the same path from control panel gives me

BSS BLPC Header Auto
frag threshold 2346
IBSS 54g MMode 54g - auto
IBSS protection mode auto
IBSS Channel no 11
locale worldwide
Local admin MAC adr not present
Power output 100%
power save mode disabled
Radio enabled
Rate 11
Roaming Decision Default
RTS Threshold 2347

The linksys webbased setup feature must setup values in the WAG if as they say they are held in the computer itself which one of the 4 possible linked computers does it choose.? to my mind the values must be set through the ADSL Port.in the WAG itself.so without acesss to the internet through the WAG. my stand alone will have to use all the default values.

I have in the last 24hrs downloaded and printed the WAG54G User Guide the only value I can glean is the SSID.

bxman · 09-09-2006, 04:57 PM

Correction .
Have found that I can change values though dial-up modem so must be via LAN port if they are held in WAR.

did read in a post (that I cannot re-find how unusual ) that SSID was held in Registry. Regedit search has not worked for me to confirm this theory.

IBM made some variants of the T23 with their own Wi_Fi built in.
It is possible that the BIOS is optimised for this any ideas ?

Will.Spencer · 09-10-2006, 08:29 AM

I should begin by admitting that I am very confused.

Are either of those machines working with your WAP? Either the one on Channel 14 with the SSID, or the one on Channel 11 with no SSID?

I would dump the LinkSys setup program and use the web-based configuration GUI. It's a lot cleaner than their newer setup program.

You should just be able to set an SSID in your WAP and then set matching SSID's on each of your PC's. Then voila, it works!

Obviously, that is not happening here.

Have you configured the WAP for WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) or with any other security settings? Many of those setting may also have to be mirrored on you PC's.

Sometimes you have to set the WEP key in hexadecimal, not in the comparable ASCII representation.

But, of course, if you just did a hard reset of your WAP -- that shouldn't be an issue.

Will.Spencer · 09-10-2006, 08:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

control pannel/network and Dialup Connections/Local Area Connection 3/Properties/Configure/

This is odd. This would normally say "Wireless Network Connection", not "Local Area Connection."

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

Country Region MMK(Channel 14)

This is odd. Channel 6 is the LinkSys default. Channels 1 and 11 are also good choices. Channel 14? There is no Channel 14...

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

presumably only one of the component services needs to be checked in the following box provided it is the same on both systems. I have( NetWare, Ms Networks, and File and printer sharing checked)

I don't see this as being relevant.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

The main problem I now have is that on the thinkpad {identical OS Build No. both with Service pack 4 installed }
the same path from control panel gives me

Does this one say "Wireless Network Connection" or "Local Area Connection?"

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

BSS BLPC Header Auto
frag threshold 2346
IBSS 54g MMode 54g - auto
IBSS protection mode auto
IBSS Channel no 11
locale worldwide
Local admin MAC adr not present
Power output 100%
power save mode disabled
Radio enabled
Rate 11
Roaming Decision Default
RTS Threshold 2347

No SSID is listed?

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

The linksys webbased setup feature must setup values in the WAG if as they say they are held in the computer itself which one of the 4 possible linked computers does it choose.?

The web-based GUI has no access to any of the computers. It sets the values up only how you tell it to set them up.

The WAP does get some configuration information from your ISP via DHCP -- but you're not connected to an ISP so that isn't relevant in this case.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

to my mind the values must be set through the ADSL Port.in the WAG itself.so without acesss to the internet through the WAG. my stand alone will have to use all the default values.

You can change any default by logging into the web GUI.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bxman

I have in the last 24hrs downloaded and printed the WAG54G User Guide the only value I can glean is the SSID.

Keep at it, it's all in there. It's difficult for me to "see" from here what is going wrong with your network. Troubleshooting can be such a pain.