yosarian_espo wrote:
>The office manager had successfully set up a Linksys system in his house and wanted to roll it out in the office to go with their new ADSL line. I advised him that I had positive experiences with Netgear, but he "likes" Linksys, so that's what they are going to get. So we discussed what they would need and he went out and bought a Linksys AP (#WAP11) and several "G" PCI cards and a few "B" USB network adapters (They have a mixed bag of desktops most are running
>Win98SE, including ones I used to use when I was interning there 10 years ago.) They went with an AP since their DSL provider gave them a ADSL modem/router.
>
He insisted on the LinkSys and then insists for a reason as to why it
doesn't work?! MicroSoft has dropped all support for Windows 98se. So
you're working with an operating system that is no longer supported.
Plus, it never was meant for networking and certainly not for office
stuff. Win 2k pro would be the best alternative, but probably won't work
on most of, if not all those machines. Especially the 10 year jobbies.
(Wouldn't upgrades be a write off, regardless of non-profit?)
LinkSys' WAP11 is strictly a B router. The 'G' cards have problems with
just 'B', I don't care what the sales brochure says. Was there a reason
they bought 'G' cards?
What brand / model ADSL modem / router? What brands / model wireless cards?
>Finally I bring them back to disabled to see if that worked. Yup, no problems...except for the accountants machine. Ok...I then changed the WEP to 64bit and everyone's machine works just fine, excepting accounting.
>
>
Can you take down all the machines and try the newest, cleanest machine
you can find and make it work in 128 bit mode, with the others off? If
you get it to work, then add another, then another, etc?
>And when I was going from Wep Disabled to WEP 128, I created a new profile for 128bit, in addition to the "default" that is set up when the card is installed. When I went to go change it from 128 back to disabled, I saw that there were 2 Defaults in there. I tried uninstalling the software, and then deleteing the card from Device manager and rebooting, having the machine detect the card and then install the needed drivers and software. Same problems, but now the card won't connect at WEP disabled (when before it did) and now there were 3 "default profiles" in the system.
>
>
Normally on an old machine like this I'd first run Norton Utilities Win
Doctor and fix any registry entry problems. First I'd strip the machine
of any programs that might be spyware, or addware and remove anything
3rd party related like games, or other software not office related. I'd
try to reduce the number of TSR's to the absolute minimum required. Then
run Win Doctor from the CD disk. Make damn sure you back up her data
files first and check to make sure it's a good backup before doing any
of this. I'd go to dell.com and lookup that computer model. Usually they
have a list of bugs / fixes available. Anything to do with networking
I'd update. Then after reading about updating Windows 98se, I'd go to
the Microsoft website and update Windows, IF it's still available. (Not
sure if you can or not.)
I'd go through the Dell's bios settings and streamline them. Make sure
it's set for a plug and play operating system and mark down any changes
you make, so you can go back and restore them later if need be. Then I'd
physically remove the PCI card with the machine off and start in safe
mode. (Pressing F8 and selecting Safe Mode from the menu.) Then go to
add / remove software and remove LinkSys' WLAN monitor. That usually
removes the drivers attached to the card. Then reboot once, let it fully
boot without the card in it. Then run Win Doctor again. Then shut down
the machine and try installing the card, adding the software and
selecting what you want for settings.
>The office manager wants this thing running at 128bit. He is "ok" for now with it at 64bit, but I can tell by his being antsy that he wants a valid reason why it doesn't work at what it should work at for when his boss will ask. And his being antsy will make him whine when he gets my invoice for the work. (I am doing it at cut rates since they are a non-profit.) A flippant answer why it doesn't work as it should is not going to cut it.
>
>
A couple more important points. WEP 128 bit can be hacked. The closer to
a school, the more likely it will happen. It is better than 64 bit, but
still doable. If I were right next to a school, I'd go for the Symantec
router just to be sure, but I digress. The new VPN AP / Router from
LinkSys is a better choice for your office manager's limited budget,
except that it's new and with LinkSys we all know what that means. It
does have WAP and that would be a good thing for your wife's office. You
can have a router hooked to a AP / Router DSL modem. I know because I've
done it. What you can't do is have them both hooked together trying to
provide WEP, or DHCP, etc. working at the same time. Knowing the models
of everything would help further help you.
>So my two big questions are:
>1) Why won't this set-up allow connections to the internet when WEP is
>at 128bit, but it will when it is set at 64bit or disabled? Has anyone
>else had this problem?
>
>
All too often. Do one machine and get it to work, with the others off.
Go through each setting and make sure they're happy. Try updating the
firmware on the WAP11 to the latest version. Usually that will fix
things like the 128 bit problem.
>2) Where are the "default" properties for the PCI card stored in the PC? Are they buried in the registry?
>
I don't have a 98se setup on my stuff, so I can't help you there.
Probably someone else can help with this. If not, try "chat" at the
linksys website and ask there. I've had better luck with those kinds of
questions with the live chat, rather than a live tech support person
over the phone. Keep your question(s) short and use small words. <G>
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