Intel Pro Wireless 3945 ABG no probs connecting, but dead line

Hello,

i just bought myself a MSI S262, equipped with a brand new Intel Pro
Wirless 3945 ABG adapter. Works out fine at my university with maximum
speed (54 Mbit/s but as soon as i reach for home logging into my
home network (provided by some old Tekram Access Point and stuff) the
line is dead.

The Intel ProSet-Software shows the availability of the wireless
connection and i can even connect to it but by the time i try to
recieve data from the internet it got stuck. I can't neither ping my
access point nor my router.

The funnny thing is: As soon as i plug in my old Tekram USB WLAN dongle
there are no problems connecting and sending data through the line
using the tekram dongle.

I configured my router and ap to static IPs.

I just installed the newest Intel drivers and upgraded the AP's
firmware (although it seems as Tekram has given up support for their
wlan devices) but it changes nothing.

So any ideas?

Thanks in Advance,
Carsten

"Carsten" <(E-Mail Removed)> hath wroth:

>The Intel ProSet-Software shows the availability of the wireless
>connection and i can even connect to it but by the time i try to
>recieve data from the internet it got stuck. I can't neither ping my
>access point nor my router.

If the Tekram AP is ancient, it probably only supports WEP. If you're
using WEP, pleae use the Hex encryption key, not the ASCII. There are
problems converting from ASCII to Hex. Otherwise, try the Tekram with
with encryption temporarily turned off. That should work.

Incidentally, Microsoft displays "connected" when your client radio
associates with an SSID. There's no status indication for encryption
key exchange failure. Proset 10.x has some built in diagnostics that
will show at what point of the negotiation the connection is failing.

--
Jeff Liebermann (E-Mail Removed)
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

> If the Tekram AP is ancient, it probably only supports WEP. If you're
> using WEP, pleae use the Hex encryption key, not the ASCII. There are
> problems converting from ASCII to Hex. Otherwise, try the Tekram with
> with encryption temporarily turned off. That should work.
>
> Incidentally, Microsoft displays "connected" when your client radio
> associates with an SSID. There's no status indication for encryption
> key exchange failure. Proset 10.x has some built in diagnostics that
> will show at what point of the negotiation the connection is failing.

WEP is already turned off and it's Intel's Proset that says, that the
connection is established.

"Carsten" <(E-Mail Removed)> hath wroth:

>
>> If the Tekram AP is ancient, it probably only supports WEP. If you're
>> using WEP, pleae use the Hex encryption key, not the ASCII. There are
>> problems converting from ASCII to Hex. Otherwise, try the Tekram with
>> with encryption temporarily turned off. That should work.
>>
>> Incidentally, Microsoft displays "connected" when your client radio
>> associates with an SSID. There's no status indication for encryption
>> key exchange failure. Proset 10.x has some built in diagnostics that
>> will show at what point of the negotiation the connection is failing.
>
>WEP is already turned off and it's Intel's Proset that says, that the
>connection is established.

OK let's play Q&A.
1. Did DHCP deliver an IP address to your laptop from the Tekram?
Use:
Start -> Run -> cmd <enter>
ipconfig
Is the IP address 169.254.xxx.xxx ??? If so, then DHCP failed. If
it's something like 192.168.xxx.xxx, then it worked. If you set the
IP address on the laptop manually, you cheated. You may need to kick
start the DHCP client with:
ipconfig /release
wait a few seconds
ipconfig /renew
Then run:
ipconfig
to check what was delivered by DHCP.

2. If you have a valid IP address such as 192.168.xxx.xxx, use
IPCONFIG to determine the gateway address. That should be the IP
address of the Tekram. Try to ping it with:
ping 192.168.1.1 (or whatever you have for a gateway IP).

3. If that works, then keep going. Ping the ISP's gateway IP
address. You can get that IP address from the status page in the
Tekram. If it's blank or all zeros, the Tekram router didn't
correctly connect to your ISP.

4. If you can ping the ISP's gateway by IP address, then try to ping
something by the domain name. Something like:
ping www.google.com
If that does NOT work, you have a DNS problem somewhere. Lots of
possibilities but check your DNS servers with:
ipconfig /all | more
Look for the lines starting with DNS.

--
Jeff Liebermann (E-Mail Removed)
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

Sorry to jump in on this one, but you described exactly the same problem i'm
having. I've got a cheapy Dell with the intel proset wireless, and it seems
to be a DHCP not assigning an IP address (getting "automatic private
address" of 169.xxx). I'm using a netcomm adsl router/wireless, my other
laptop can login fine, i can connect using ethernet, but not wireless. I'll
try turning encryption off but thanks for a different line of thought.

Shaun
"Jeff Liebermann" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> "Carsten" <(E-Mail Removed)> hath wroth:
>
>>
>>> If the Tekram AP is ancient, it probably only supports WEP. If you're
>>> using WEP, pleae use the Hex encryption key, not the ASCII. There are
>>> problems converting from ASCII to Hex. Otherwise, try the Tekram with
>>> with encryption temporarily turned off. That should work.
>>>
>>> Incidentally, Microsoft displays "connected" when your client radio
>>> associates with an SSID. There's no status indication for encryption
>>> key exchange failure. Proset 10.x has some built in diagnostics that
>>> will show at what point of the negotiation the connection is failing.
>>
>>WEP is already turned off and it's Intel's Proset that says, that the
>>connection is established.
>
> OK let's play Q&A.
> 1. Did DHCP deliver an IP address to your laptop from the Tekram?
> Use:
> Start -> Run -> cmd <enter>
> ipconfig
> Is the IP address 169.254.xxx.xxx ??? If so, then DHCP failed. If
> it's something like 192.168.xxx.xxx, then it worked. If you set the
> IP address on the laptop manually, you cheated. You may need to kick
> start the DHCP client with:
> ipconfig /release
> wait a few seconds
> ipconfig /renew
> Then run:
> ipconfig
> to check what was delivered by DHCP.
>
> 2. If you have a valid IP address such as 192.168.xxx.xxx, use
> IPCONFIG to determine the gateway address. That should be the IP
> address of the Tekram. Try to ping it with:
> ping 192.168.1.1 (or whatever you have for a gateway IP).
>
> 3. If that works, then keep going. Ping the ISP's gateway IP
> address. You can get that IP address from the status page in the
> Tekram. If it's blank or all zeros, the Tekram router didn't
> correctly connect to your ISP.
>
> 4. If you can ping the ISP's gateway by IP address, then try to ping
> something by the domain name. Something like:
> ping www.google.com
> If that does NOT work, you have a DNS problem somewhere. Lots of
> possibilities but check your DNS servers with:
> ipconfig /all | more
> Look for the lines starting with DNS.
>
> --
> Jeff Liebermann (E-Mail Removed)
> 150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
> Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
> Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

> OK let's play Q&A.
> 1. Did DHCP deliver an IP address to your laptop from the Tekram?

Ehm... sorry for asking stupid questions, but when using static IPs i
suppose the DHCP server is supposed to be turned off?!

The laptop has his fixed 192.168.1.x IP and that's what he shows when
typing the ipconfig command.

When I try

ipconfig /release

he tells me something about that the adapter is not in a suitable
condition for that.

"Carsten" <(E-Mail Removed)> hath wroth:

>> OK let's play Q&A.
>> 1. Did DHCP deliver an IP address to your laptop from the Tekram?
>
>Ehm... sorry for asking stupid questions, but when using static IPs i
>suppose the DHCP server is supposed to be turned off?!

Sorry. I just assumed that if you used the laptop in the university
environment, then you have it set for DCHP. Yes, the DHCP server
might be disabled, but can be left on as long as the static IP's and
DHCP scope do not overlap. I would leave it on for the laptop.

I usually use delivery of a DHCP assigned IP as an indication that the
system has found the correct SSID and that any encryption key exchange
was successful. This is more difficult to do determine when using
static IP's. The problem is that Windoze declares that you're
"connected" before the encryption is negotiated. The only subsequent
indication that the encryption key exchange was successful is a
successful DHCP assignment, which you've disabled by assigning a
static IP. If you have WEP encryption running, make sure you're using
the hex key, not the ascii key. You might also try running with
encryption disabled for testing.

One gotcha is the way you have the laptop setup. My guess is that the
university is using DHCP for their system. You apparently setup the
laptop for a static IP and turned off the DHCP server in your router.
Unless you switch IP address configurations between the DHCP
university system and the home static system, each configuration
cannot work at the other location. How do you have the IP's on the
laptop configured so that it works at both the university and the home
configuration?

I'm beginning to suspect you did something wrong with your static IP
layout. Please supply the exact:
ip address netmask gateway
for the:
router laptop
Also, any changes in the laptop config between the university and the
home system.

>The laptop has his fixed 192.168.1.x IP and that's what he shows when
>typing the ipconfig command.

That's normal for when a static IP is assigned.

There is no security issue involved in disclosing private LAN IP
addresses. I'm beginning to suspect an IP address conflict and I
think it necessary that you supply the full IP addresses used instead
of ending them in "x".

>When I try
>ipconfig /release
>
>he tells me something about that the adapter is not in a suitable
>condition for that.

Also normal. When you setup a static IP address, the DHCP client is
disabled. That's what it means by the:
Windows 2000 IP Configuration
Error: No adapters bound to TCP/IP are enabled for DHCP
message.

My suggestion would be to setup the laptop for DHCP and to turn the
DHCP server back on in the router. If you want to use static IP's,
that's fine for the rest of your LAN, but your laptop probably is
going to be happier with DHCP. Just make sure that your static IP
address assignments have no duplication or overlap with the DHCP
assigned scope.


--
Jeff Liebermann (E-Mail Removed)
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

> My suggestion would be to setup the laptop for DHCP and to turn the
> DHCP server back on in the router.

Okay, i turned on the DHCP server on the router. There he asked me to
give a start IP for the DHCP adress range. So i set it to 192.168.1.33
and tried again

According to Intel's Proset the router first assigned my laptop an IP
of something like 192.254.4.243, then switched to 192.168.1.33. But
that changed nothing, i can neither ping the router nor the AP nor
anything else.

The IPs with DHCP on are set like this:

Laptop 192.168.1.34 (255.255.255.0) gateway 192.168.1.1
AP 192.168.1.33
Router 192.168.1.1

"Carsten" <(E-Mail Removed)> hath wroth:

>> My suggestion would be to setup the laptop for DHCP and to turn the
>> DHCP server back on in the router.

>Okay, i turned on the DHCP server on the router. There he asked me to
>give a start IP for the DHCP adress range. So i set it to 192.168.1.33
>and tried again
>
>According to Intel's Proset the router first assigned my laptop an IP
>of something like 192.254.4.243,

That was probably the IP address from the university. Windoze will
try that before it asks for a new IP. If it appears again, run:
Start -> run -> cmd <enter>
ipconfig /release
wait about 10 seconds
ipconfig /renew
and it should clear the old IP address and get a new one from the
router.

>then switched to 192.168.1.33.

That's the new client IP address from the router. It's working. What
this proves is that you have wireless connectivity to your Tekram
access point. Since it's an access point, I presume you also have a
router. It would nice to know the model numbers of both.

>But
>that changed nothing, i can neither ping the router nor the AP nor
>anything else.

Well, the DHCP IP address didn't come from thin air so it's a fair
assumption that the router's DHCP server and your wireless access
point are working. You should be able to ping the AP and the router.

Failure to ping comes with several different error messages, which
denote several types of ping failures. Could I trouble you to supply
the error message? Something like:
"error code 65"
"xxxx unreachable"
"request timed out"
etc
Each one implies a different type of failure. Some suggest firewall
configuration problems on the client. What error are you getting?

>The IPs with DHCP on are set like this:
>
>Laptop 192.168.1.34 (255.255.255.0) gateway 192.168.1.1
>AP 192.168.1.33
>Router 192.168.1.1

This contradicts what you said above. I thought you said that the
client was 192.168.1.33. Now you have it as the IP of the Tekram
access point.

I need some clarification. Please fill in the blanks from the various
status pages and from the IPCONFIG output:

Router IP address:
Router DHCP IP range:
Router LAN netmask:

AP IP address:
AP Netmask:
AP Gateway IP:

Client IP address:
Client Netmask:
Client Gateway IP:

--
Jeff Liebermann (E-Mail Removed)
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

Hey Jeff !

> That's the new client IP address from the router. It's working. What
> this proves is that you have wireless connectivity to your Tekram
> access point. Since it's an access point, I presume you also have a
> router. It would nice to know the model numbers of both.

The AP is a Tekram AP 104
The router is a Teledat/Zyxel DSL Router Komfort

> Well, the DHCP IP address didn't come from thin air so it's a fair
> assumption that the router's DHCP server and your wireless access
> point are working. You should be able to ping the AP and the router.
>
> Failure to ping comes with several different error messages, which
> denote several types of ping failures. Could I trouble you to supply
> the error message? Something like:
> "error code 65"
> "xxxx unreachable"
> "request timed out"
> etc
> Each one implies a different type of failure. Some suggest firewall
> configuration problems on the client. What error are you getting?

It's both times request timed out

> I need some clarification. Please fill in the blanks from the various
> status pages and from the IPCONFIG output:
>
> Router IP address: 192.168.1.1
> Router DHCP IP range: 6 IPs starting from 192.168.1.33
> Router LAN netmask: 255.255.255.0
>
> AP IP address: 192.168.1.33
> AP Netmask: When DHCP is activated it shows 0.0.0.0 at the AP's configuration
> AP Gateway IP: same here
>
> Client IP address: 192.168.1.35
> Client Netmask: 255.255.255.0
> Client Gateway IP: 192.168.1.1

Hope this helps!

Thanks so far, Jeff!!!