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Why won't my older notebook won't detect my new wireless router?

By ColorMeConfused ·
I have a Compaq Presario 2100 running Windows XP SP3 which is current with maintenance.
It has a Broadcom 802.11b/g WLAN network adapter with the latest driver available (4.170.25.12).
I recently installed a new NetGear WGR614v9 wireless router with the latest firmware available (v1.2.30) using WAP2 encryption.
Subsequently the Compaq will not detect the NetGear (3 feet away) but does detect other wireless signals (50-90 yards away).
Other notebooks can detect the NetGear signal and connect to it just fine.
The Compaq worked fine with my old router a Linksys 802.11b using WEP encryption.
I tried WEP on the new router but it did not help.
The wireless switch on the Compaq is set to ON (the blue light is lit).
I do not broadcast SSID but I don't see any networks without a known SSID.

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802.11b?

by TobiF In reply to Why won't my older notebo ...

It's possible that your laptop only works with the slower 802.11b standard.

If this is the case, check that the router wifi is running in mixed b/g mode, or get a separate adapter for 802.11g (if you want to use the higher speed of g-standard.)

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Will it work with encryption turned off?

by robo_dev In reply to Why won't my older notebo ...

That's the first thing to try.

Set only the SSID in the client, and see if that works.

Some of the common issues I've seen are:

- somtimes you have to lock the workstation settings to 802.11b only (or 802.11g only) as sometimes it can get confused.

- WEP settings can get confusing when connecting two different vendors gear together. For example, some use a WEP passphrase, some use a HEX key, others use an ASCII key. Also the authentication can be set to open or shared, and there are long vs short radio headers.. Everything has to match.

- Make sure 802.1X authentication is disabled in the workstation, unless you need it.

- Sometimes using Windows to manage the WLAN adapter works better, and sometimes the utility program provided with the adapter works better. For example, Cisco WLAN drivers and utilities work very well, while my experience with Belkin has been that they leave much to be desired.

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