Wireless connection suddenly started dropping

I recently moved my wireless router (BT Voyager 2091) nearer to my PC
and the signal improved to excellent (one less wall to go through). The
other computer is connected by ethernet.
Wireless adapter is BT Voyager 1065. Connection uses the BT Voyager
wireless adapter utility to manage itself, not windows
WPA-PSK encryption with a 63 character password.
There is one other network visible in my neighbourhood - much weaker signal.
My adapter is configured to only connect to my own router.

In the last couple of days I have found that the wireless connection is
dropping sporadically and then sometimes I get the windows default IP -
is it 269.** or something? - sometimes it can sort itself out again,
sometimes I have to log off and on again.

Yesterday I had a fault on my phone line (voice fault only - line went
dead) although the 2MB ADSL remained up. Fixed this morning by engineer
at the exchange (no alterations at my house).

Speed results on the line are normal. 1893 kilobits per sec

The wireless has been stable for months - any specific things I should
check?

Win XP Home, IE7, Mozilla Firefox, Zone Alarm free, NAV 2005.
--
Rev Robert M Jones, Wimborne Baptist Church, UK
http://www.wimborne-baptist.org.uk
Free trial of Mailwasher Pro - effective email spam filter - (commission
goes to our partners in Bulgaria)
http://fta.firetrust.com/index.cgi?id=420

Sounds like a security setting to me. Are you broadcasting your SSID?
Windows really doesn't like it when the SSID is not enabled. You might try
changing from WPA-PSK to WEP for bit and see if that changes anything. Is
the other network on the same channel as your network? If so you might try
moving your network as far away from the other network as possible.

--
David Hettel

Please post any reply as a follow-up message in the news group for everyone
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"Robert M Jones" <robert53newsgroups-(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>I recently moved my wireless router (BT Voyager 2091) nearer to my PC and
>the signal improved to excellent (one less wall to go through). The other
>computer is connected by ethernet.
> Wireless adapter is BT Voyager 1065. Connection uses the BT Voyager
> wireless adapter utility to manage itself, not windows
> WPA-PSK encryption with a 63 character password.
> There is one other network visible in my neighbourhood - much weaker
> signal.
> My adapter is configured to only connect to my own router.
>
> In the last couple of days I have found that the wireless connection is
> dropping sporadically and then sometimes I get the windows default IP - is
> it 269.** or something? - sometimes it can sort itself out again,
> sometimes I have to log off and on again.
>
> Yesterday I had a fault on my phone line (voice fault only - line went
> dead) although the 2MB ADSL remained up. Fixed this morning by engineer at
> the exchange (no alterations at my house).
>
> Speed results on the line are normal. 1893 kilobits per sec
>
> The wireless has been stable for months - any specific things I should
> check?
>
> Win XP Home, IE7, Mozilla Firefox, Zone Alarm free, NAV 2005.
> --
> Rev Robert M Jones, Wimborne Baptist Church, UK
> http://www.wimborne-baptist.org.uk
> Free trial of Mailwasher Pro - effective email spam filter - (commission
> goes to our partners in Bulgaria)
> http://fta.firetrust.com/index.cgi?id=420

David Hettel wrote:
> Sounds like a security setting to me. Are you broadcasting your SSID?
> Windows really doesn't like it when the SSID is not enabled. You might try
> changing from WPA-PSK to WEP for bit and see if that changes anything. Is
> the other network on the same channel as your network? If so you might try
> moving your network as far away from the other network as possible.
>

Thanks for the reply
SSID is enabled
I'd rather not use WEP even briefly.
I'm not sure what channel the other network is on - how would I find
that out?
Moving the router or the adapter is not really feasible.

--
Rev Robert M Jones, Wimborne Baptist Church, UK
http://www.wimborne-baptist.org.uk
Free trial of Mailwasher Pro - effective email spam filter - (commission
goes to our partners in Bulgaria)
http://fta.firetrust.com/index.cgi?id=420

Robert M Jones wrote:
> David Hettel wrote:
>> Sounds like a security setting to me. Are you broadcasting your SSID?
>> Windows really doesn't like it when the SSID is not enabled. You might
>> try changing from WPA-PSK to WEP for bit and see if that changes
>> anything. Is the other network on the same channel as your network? If
>> so you might try moving your network as far away from the other
>> network as possible.
>>
>
> Thanks for the reply
> SSID is enabled
> I'd rather not use WEP even briefly.
> I'm not sure what channel the other network is on - how would I find
> that out?
> Moving the router or the adapter is not really feasible.
>
I think David meant moving the channel you use far away from the channel
the other network uses.

Many SOHO routers are set by default to use channel 6. Check your
router. If it is set to use channel 6, change it to channel 1 or
channel 11. If you are already at 1 or 11, set it to the opposite end.
You don't have to make any changes in the configuration of the
adapters in your PCs.

You may also know that wireless G shares the same radio frequency band
(2.4 GHz) with many cordless telephones, baby monitors, microwave ovens,
etc. If you have something like this near your computer and/or router,
that may be what's causing you problems.

--
Lem MS MVP -- Networking

To the moon and back with 64 Kbits of RAM and 512 Kbits of ROM.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Guidance_Computer

Hi

If what was suggested above would not help you have to start from basic in
order to rule out faulty Hardware, or incompatible settings.

You should try the to put the Wireless Client near the Wireless Source and
run it without the security. If it works, you start to configure the system
one-step at the time.

If you are concern about not being secure, switch Off the DHCP and assign
Static IP to the Wireless Client (without DHCP other cannot log
automatically to your system and obtain an IP).

Jack (MVP-Networking).

P.S. Before WPA, many businesses that are very concern about security used
WEP and the world did not "sunk into chaos". The Hype as though every WEP
connection can be broken in few minutes is very exaggerated.



"Robert M Jones" <robert53newsgroups-(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>I recently moved my wireless router (BT Voyager 2091) nearer to my PC and
>the signal improved to excellent (one less wall to go through). The other
>computer is connected by ethernet.
> Wireless adapter is BT Voyager 1065. Connection uses the BT Voyager
> wireless adapter utility to manage itself, not windows
> WPA-PSK encryption with a 63 character password.
> There is one other network visible in my neighbourhood - much weaker
> signal.
> My adapter is configured to only connect to my own router.
>
> In the last couple of days I have found that the wireless connection is
> dropping sporadically and then sometimes I get the windows default IP - is
> it 269.** or something? - sometimes it can sort itself out again,
> sometimes I have to log off and on again.
>
> Yesterday I had a fault on my phone line (voice fault only - line went
> dead) although the 2MB ADSL remained up. Fixed this morning by engineer at
> the exchange (no alterations at my house).
>
> Speed results on the line are normal. 1893 kilobits per sec
>
> The wireless has been stable for months - any specific things I should
> check?
>
> Win XP Home, IE7, Mozilla Firefox, Zone Alarm free, NAV 2005.
> --
> Rev Robert M Jones, Wimborne Baptist Church, UK
> http://www.wimborne-baptist.org.uk
> Free trial of Mailwasher Pro - effective email spam filter - (commission
> goes to our partners in Bulgaria)
> http://fta.firetrust.com/index.cgi?id=420

Lem wrote:
> Robert M Jones wrote:
>> David Hettel wrote:
>>> Sounds like a security setting to me. Are you broadcasting your SSID?
>>> Windows really doesn't like it when the SSID is not enabled. You
>>> might try changing from WPA-PSK to WEP for bit and see if that
>>> changes anything. Is the other network on the same channel as your
>>> network? If so you might try moving your network as far away from the
>>> other network as possible.
>>>
>>
>> Thanks for the reply
>> SSID is enabled
>> I'd rather not use WEP even briefly.
>> I'm not sure what channel the other network is on - how would I find
>> that out?
>> Moving the router or the adapter is not really feasible.
>>
> I think David meant moving the channel you use far away from the channel
> the other network uses.
>
> Many SOHO routers are set by default to use channel 6. Check your
> router. If it is set to use channel 6, change it to channel 1 or
> channel 11. If you are already at 1 or 11, set it to the opposite end.
> You don't have to make any changes in the configuration of the adapters
> in your PCs.
>
> You may also know that wireless G shares the same radio frequency band
> (2.4 GHz) with many cordless telephones, baby monitors, microwave ovens,
> etc. If you have something like this near your computer and/or router,
> that may be what's causing you problems.
>

Thanks - mine uses 11. if the problem continues I'll consider changing to 1.

Nothing has changed with regard to equipment in the house - merely the
move of the router (so that it is always now giving an Excellent result
for my signal strength on my adapter).

If the ADSL dropped for a moment to the router upstairs might that
result in a loss of wireless connection to my desktop downstairs? My
answer would be no but am I correct?

Hasn't happened so far today.
--
Rev Robert M Jones, Wimborne Baptist Church, UK
http://www.wimborne-baptist.org.uk
Free trial of Mailwasher Pro - effective email spam filter - (commission
goes to our partners in Bulgaria)
http://fta.firetrust.com/index.cgi?id=420