Lost Wireless Connection

To help troubleshoot this problem, on the computer with the problem, go to Start > Run and type cmd then click OK. In the command prompt window that opens, type ipconfig /all then hit the enter key. Write down the output from this command or select it and save it to a txt file, then copy this output into a reply to this message.

Steve

You have several options to check with Vista and your laptop. You are N-wireless capable I think, but it is still in draft phase and you will likely have a more stable connection with the G-wireless frequency because that is what your wireless router is capable of supporting unless it's more than 10 years old, in which case you should get a new one, they're cheap. There are these things called protocols set up by windows so that there are rules to connecting wirelessly. You can access these protocols by going into the Device Manager and finding the Wireless adapter under your network adapters. You right click on it and go to properties and the little screen with the checkmarks has the protocols I am talking about. Most routers are ok with it, but some can't deal with the IPv6 (new to windows with vista) protocol. Also if you have the TrendMicro Common firewall, I would uncheck that as well unless you are familiar with configuring it. Those two are good ways to improve communication with your vista system and your wireless router. Try using no security password to test and go from there.

P.S. If it doesn't work with a password but will work without one, that is not a hardware issue.

Hi, Steve.  Thanks for your email.  Pls. see command output below:

C:\Documents and Settings\Glenda>ipconfig /all

Windows IP Configuration

 Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : Glenda-Dell
 Primary DNS Suffix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . :
 Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : Broadcast
 IP Routing Enabled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
 WINS Proxy Enabled . . . . . . . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

 Media State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  : Media disconnected
 Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : Broadcom 440x 10/100 Integrated Controller
 Physical Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  : 00-15-C5-BD-66-D5

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:

 Connection-specific DNS Suffix . . . . . . :
 Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : Dell Wireless 1390 WLAN Mini-Card
 Physical Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  : 00-16-CF-99-E4-42
 Dhcp Enabled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
 Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . . . . . .  : Yes
 IP Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  : 192.168.1.103
 Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
 Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  : 192.168.1.1
 DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
 DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : 68.238.64.12
                                                         68.238.128.12
 Lease Obtained . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : Thursday, August 21, 2008 7:22:16 PM
 Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .:  Friday, August 22, 2008 7:22:16 PM

C:\Documents and Settings\Glenda>ipconfig /all

Hi, Macadamian Bronze.  Thank you for responding.

My desktop computer is actually a Gateway computer that runs on Windows XP, not Vista.  I just did what Steve (Volcano11) said & waiting for his reply.  I appreciate any other input from you.

Yes, I (w/ the help of Linksys tech support) did all the resetting of both modems & new router.  My desktop does not have any problems with internet connection.  The same case with my Dell laptop when it is physically connected to the router.  But when I disconnect the cable from the laptop, even when the wireless status shows "connected", I still don't have internet or network connection.

On the computer that is connecting wirelessly to the router Open a command prompt Window again and type the following command:

ping dell.com

Then  hit the Enter key.

Does it time out or do you get a response?

Also try the following:

ping 143.166.83.38

Then hit the Enter key.

Do you get a timeout on that one?

Steve

The ipconfig output shows that you are making a wireless connection to the router. It may be that the new router is not making a connection to your modem.  Is your internet service cable or dsl?  When you connected to new router to the modem, did you do a reset on the modemd (turn it off for 5 minutes, turn it back on, wait a few more minutes, then turn on the router)?

Steve

ping dell.com  -  got timed out (sent: 4, rcvd: 2, lost: 2)

143.166.83.38  -  got a response (sent: 4, rcvd: 4, lost: 0)

I dealt with this same problem last week on this forum and could not solve the problem.  Let's try something though, just in case yours is different.  Open the command prompt window again and type ipconfig /flushdns then hit the Enter key.  See if that fixes it.

Steve