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ARCHIVED: In Windows XP, how do I troubleshoot wireless networking problems?

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Many issues can cause wireless connection problems in Windows
XP. This document outlines the most common problems and their
solutions.

Note: If you are a student, faculty member, or staff
member at Indiana University Bloomington, IUPUI, or IU East, use the IU Secure
network for wireless access. For help, see About IU Secure wireless If you
are visiting IU, instead see You do not have sufficient permission to view this document..

Unable to access IU pages and resources

If you can access web sites outside of Indiana University but cannot
access some IU pages and resources, you are probably connected to
the IU Wireless network without a VPN connection. For full, secure
access to IU services, use the IU Secure network instead of IU Wireless;
see About IU Secure wireless

Resetting TCP/IP and the Winsock Catalog

Occasionally, a computer caches network settings when switching access
points or networks. To clear these settings, reset TCP/IP
and the Winsock Catalog. For help with TCP/IP, see ARCHIVED: In Windows, how do I reinstall TCP/IP?

To reset the Winsock Catalog:

From the
Start

menu, select

Run…

.
In the “Open:” field, type cmd and then click
OK

.
At the command prompt, enter netsh winsock reset.

Driver problems

Follow these steps to troubleshoot driver problems:

From the
Start

menu or desktop, right-click

My
Computer

, and select

Manage

.
Under “Computer Management”, click
Device Manager

.
In the right pane, double-click
Other devices

if
possible. If the wireless network adapter is in this folder, the
drivers for the network adapter have not been installed.
Double-click
Network adapters

and see if a wireless
network adapter is present.
1. If the wireless network adapter is present, double-click it. Under
  the
  
  General
  
  tab, confirm that the device is working properly.
  If it is not, you will see an error code under “Device Status”. You
  can further troubleshoot the error by searching for the error code at
  the Microsoft support web
  site.
2. If the wireless network adapter is not present under either
  Network adapters
  
  or
  
  Other devices
  
  , either the
  problem is with the device or the driver may not be installed.

Configuring Windows XP with the Wireless Zero Configuration

In the Wireless Connection window, if the Wireless
Networks tab is available, the driver supports Windows XP Zero
Configuration. If the Wireless Networks tab is not available,
the network adapter driver does not fully support the Wireless Zero
Configuration Service, and you will need to skip to the instructions
below to configure Windows XP without using
Wireless Zero Configuration.

To configure Windows XP for your wireless network using the Wireless
Zero Configuration Service:

Right-click
Wireless Connection

, and select

Properties

.
Under the
Wireless Networks

tab, under “Available
Networks”, click your network, and then click

Configure

. At
IU, the

SSID

should be IU Secure, and
the WEP settings (encryption) should be set to

Disabled

.
If your network is not listed as an available network, click
Add

to manually configure settings for a network. When you
save these settings, you can use them automatically when the network
is available.

After you configure the settings, you should see the network SSID name
in the “Preferred Networks” list. If you see a blue circle, the
network has been located; if you see a red “X”, there may be a problem
with the radio signal, or the configuration may be incorrect. After
you complete the configuration steps, the wireless connection should
be correctly configured.

If you still are having problems, skip to the instructions below for troubleshooting the signal strength.

Configuring Windows XP without using Wireless
Zero Configuration

If you can view the properties for the Wireless Connection icon but
you do not see a Wireless Networks tab, the network adapter
driver does not fully support the Wireless Zero Configuration service;
you must configure Windows XP to use the connection as follows:

In the Network Connections folder, right-click
Wireless Connection

, and then select

Properties

.
Click
Configure

. From the

Advanced

tab,
configure your wireless network by using the available configuration
options. The available options and option names may vary depending on
the driver manufacturer:
- Service-Set Identifier (SSID): At IU, this should
  be set to IU Secure.
- Wireless Equivalent Protocol (WEP) or Encryption:
  Disable WEP.
- Mode or Network Type: If you have an access point
  (e.g., you are at IU trying to connect to the IU network), set this
  option to
  
  Infrastructure
  
  . If you do not have an access point,
  and you are connecting computer to computer, set this option to
  
  Ad-Hoc
  
  .
- Data Rate: Set this option to
  Auto
  
  or to
  
  11 Mbps
  
  .
- Power Save: For troubleshooting, set Power Save
  to
  
  Off
  
  or to
  
  Disabled
  
  . After the connection works
  properly, you can change this setting.
  
  After you configure these options, click OK to save the
  changes. Test to see if your connection works. If a red “X” is
  displayed over the connection icon in the Network Connections folder, or if you cannot connect:
From the
Start

menu or the desktop, right-click

My
Computer

, and select

Manage

.
Double-click
Services and Applications

, and then click

Services

.
In the details pane, right-click
Wireless Zero
Configuration

, and select

Properties

.
Under “Startup type”, select
Disabled

, and then click

OK

.
Close the Computer Management window, and then
restart the computer.

By disabling the Wireless Zero Configuration, you should be able to
connect to the wireless network.

Signal problems

If you continue to encounter issues when you try to connect to the
network, in the Network Connections folder, double-click
the Wireless Connection icon to view the connection
status. In the connection status, use the signal strength meter to
verify the strength of the signal between computers.

If you still have trouble connecting, but the signal strength is good,
a different network configuration issue may be preventing
communications. To resolve this issue, use standard TCP/IP
troubleshooting techniques; see ARCHIVED: In Windows, how do I reinstall TCP/IP?

If you still have trouble connecting, and the signal strength is not
good, or no signal is received, try the above
steps for configuring Windows XP without using Wireless Zero. If
that does not resolve the issue, consult the manufacturer to determine
if the wireless network adapter and the access point are working
properly.

Information in this document was taken from Microsoft Help and Support
article 313242.