How Do I Find Wirless Card STUDIO 540?

More than likely you will see an antenna on the back of the computer if you have the card installed.  You can also check in Device Manager for the Dell Wireless 1505 Wireless Adapter to verify if it is present.

Hi Larry

First of all many thanks for your very quick response..IMPRESSED!

I have looked at the rear of the computer and there is no antenna. Also can not find the card in device manager. Yet my order confirmation clearly states that I purchased a wireless card.

BTW I am in the UK. Also I seem to have only 3GB of RAM instead of the 4GB I ordered. However i have been in contact with DELL e-mail support with that query.

My order confirmation (I have made BOLD the important lines):

210-24487 Studio Desktop 540MT : Intel Core 2 Quad-Core Q9400 (2.66GHz,1333MHz,6MB) 1 S
200-56843 D125406 1 S
235-13527 Santa Sku 1 S
239-12914 Money Off - 170 £ Inc Vat 1 S
340-15616 Ship Accessory : English Docs with UK/Irish Power Cord 1 S
340-15629 Resource DVD : Studio Desktop 540MT Diagnostics and Drivers 1 S
370-13221 Memory Dual Channel 4GB (4x1024MB) 800Mhz DDR2 1 S
400-14420 Hard Drive 750GB Serial ATA non Raid (7200 Rpm) 1 S
429-13201 Optical Drive : 16X DVD+/-RW Drive 1 S
429-13026 ROXIO Software for Vista - Creator / MYDVD 10.2 1 S
480-14777 Display : Not Included 1 S
490-10912 Graphics : 512MB nVidia GeForce 9800GT 1 S
510-10195 Audio Integrated HDA 7.1 Dolby Digital capability 1 S
520-10598 Speakers Not Included 1 S
530-11671 Modem Not Included 1 S
555-11385 Wireless Network Card 1505 PCIe 802.11n 1 S
570-10398 Dell Black 2 Button USB Scroll Optical Mouse 1 S
580-13746 Keyboard : UK/Irish (QWERTY) Dell Multimedia USB Black 1 S
619-12775 Operating System : English Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (32Bit OS) with Recovery DVD 1 S
630-11566 English Microsoft Works 9.0 (Word Processor, Spreadsheet, Outlook Express, Powerpoint Viewer) (With Recovery CD) 1 S
640-10579 UK Internet Service Provider - Tiscali (w/CD) 1 S
640-10593 Dell Support Center 2.0 1 S
650-11064 English McAfee 9.0 Security Centre 30 Day Trial Version (No Recovery CD) 1 S
722-10021 Logitech QuickCam Communicate Deluxe (free headset included) 1 S
754-10000 1Yr Limited Warranty - Collect & Return 1 S
754-10002 3Yr In-Home Warranty Support, including evenings and S

Many thanks again for your help and advise.

Adrian

The memory question is easy: the computer is only going to be able to address 4GB of memory if you are running a 32bit operating system (as opposed to a 64bit OS, which can address more than 4GB of memory).  Because of this, you will have (usually) between 3.0 and 3.5 GB of available memory because the remainder is 'hidden' (the addresses are being used by the system to address the hardware that makes up the computer, the exact amount depending on what hardware is installed in your computer).

The short answer on memory: its all there, but a 32bit OS (three lines below the wireless entry) can't use it all due to addressing limitations.

I looked up the network options for hte 540 and found the card.  I was wrong about the antenna.  The Dell Wireless 1505 PCIe card is a 1x card with a long external antenna connection that you'll have to connect before use.  It is possible that the card was not installed at the factory, but was instead shipped separately (although I would find that unlikely).

The card itself has a plain metalic plate with a green LED, the antenna connection (very similar to a USB port) and then an antenna icon (looks like overlapping letters Y and T).  The antenna connector has the same icon on it.

My guess is the antenna cable was separate in the box with the computer, but the card is already installed.  I'm not sure why it isn't showing up in Device Manager, however.  What entries do you have listed in the Network Adapters section of Device Manager now?

Many thanks indeed. You are the most helpful support person I have ever encountered. I think i understand about the 3GB's. Just one question on that. Was it worth me paying the extra money for 4GB instead of 3GB? It was perhaps a bit naughty of Dell to offer me this option if it was not going to be of any help. It was a 32bit O/S I purchased. My BIOS screen shows: Installed Memory:                           3072MB Useable Memory:                           3072MB Memory Speed:                               800MHz Memory Channel Mode:                Duel Channel Memory Technology:                     DDR2

For most computers, you would not be able to get dual channel memory if you had only purchased 3GB of memory since it normally needs a matched pair of memory sticks.  There are some systems have have asynchronous dual channel memory, which allows it to work with a 1GB + a 2GB DIMM, but I don't think that model uses it.  If dual channel isn't something that would benefit the work you will be doing on the computer, and you don't require the little 'extra' memory above 3GB that is available, then you probably would have been fine getting just 3GB on the system.  This kind of thing all depends on what the computer will be used for.

In device manager in Network Adaptors, the only one that is showing is: Realtek Family PCI Card I will have to do some dismantling to to right to the back of my computer, but there is a green light at the rear top of the machine. My set up look similar to the photos on the following URL: http://www1.euro.dell.com/content/products/superview.aspx?c=uk&cs=ukdhs1&l=en&pageoverride=media_view1&s=dhs&xdb=Z2xvYmFsOnByb2R1Y3RzOmRlc2t0b3Bfc3R1ZGlvOmZsYXNoOmRlc2t0b3Bfc3R1ZGlvX21pbmkjcmVnaW9u Can you please advise the URL of where you found out about my "possible" installed card?

I looked at the internal training information for the Studio 540 to find it, after I confirmed the wireless option on Dell.com (I'm not as familiar with the newer models as I'd like to be since I'm no longer part of tech support).

Looking at the page you list, if you spin the system around to look at the back, the wireless card would be visible in one of the slots below the audio ports.  Probably the second one down (or third up from the bottom, depending on how you want to look at it) since the first is most likely for a PCIe video card if you added one.

Many thanks larry!

I shall dismantle my furniture and investigate further.

Thank you again.....Really helpful

Many thanks indeed. You are the most helpful support person I have ever encountered.

I think i understand about the 3GB's. Just one question on that. Was it worth me paying the extra money for 4GB instead of 3GB? It was perhaps a bit naughty of Dell to offer me this option if it was not going to be of any help. It was a 32bit O/S I purchased.

My BIOS screen shows:

Installed Memory:                           3072MB

Useable Memory:                           3072MB

Memory Speed:                               800MHz

Memory Channel Mode:                Duel Channel

Memory Technology:                     DDR2

In device manager in Network Adaptors, the only one that is showing is:

Realtek Family PCI Card

I will have to do some dismantling to to right to the back of my computer, but there is a green light at the rear top of the machine. My set up look similar to the photos on the following URL:

http://www1.euro.dell.com/content/products/superview.aspx?c=uk&cs=ukdhs1&l=en&pageoverride=media_view1&s=dhs&xdb=Z2xvYmFsOnByb2R1Y3RzOmRlc2t0b3Bfc3R1ZGlvOmZsYXNoOmRlc2t0b3Bfc3R1ZGlvX21pbmkjcmVnaW9u

Can you please advise the URL of where you found out about my "possible" installed card?

Many thanks again!!

Adrian

I have a question about Studio Slim 540..... I can't access the internet on the 540... it tells me I have an internal error. I opened the box and can't see any NIC card to replace...??  Do you have any idea what and where the problem is. I've tried every fix I know to create a connection....  but its toast... what part do I need to fix this thing...??