[starbear]

I am trying to install a wireless router Netgear DG834GT and as per instructions am attempting to set up initially via an ethernet cable connection. Despite repeating basic instructional steps several times and resetting router defaults as well several reboots of PC and router there is still no sign of the router in"My Petwork Places" and my device manager picks up an unknown network adapter but can offer no further help.

Have enabled popups and disabled firewall all to no avail.

Consequently I can't even get online to ping the router for final setup.

Where am I going wrong please?

My PC is using XP oh and I tried to do set up on laptop as well with same (non) reults. That also uses XP.

[thenotch]

starbear, on Aug 6 2006, 01:45 PM, said:

there is still no sign of the router in"My Petwork Places"

Your router won't show up there. You will need to open a browser to see the settings which requires you to be in the same IP subnet as the router which most likely is 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1.

Quote

and my device manager picks up an unknown network adapter but can offer no further help.

This is most likely your problem. If you system is not picking up your network interface card (NIC) then you won't be accessing your router anytime soon. Get the NIC to properly show up in your device manager and then set it up statically (you assign it an IP address) and then try accessinig the router. Once you access it and if you decide you can set the router up to provide DHCP and then set the settings of your NIC back to "assign IP address automatically".

Check that NIC and get it working. THat is where your problem most likely is at.

[starbear]

Thanks for that thenotch and I have got a step or two further but still cannot connect to the internet via the router. I have spoken with bot Netgear and AOL (my ISP) but still cannot sort it.

Basic problem seems to be that router is not getting an automaic IP address from AOL. I have attached the following information from the Router Status selection of the Netgear wizard. Hopefully it might give you abetter understanding of what I am trying to say. Many thanks.


Router Status

Account Name
Firmware Version V1.02.04

ADSL Port
MAC Address 00:14:6C:AB:D5:73
IP Address ---
Network Type PPPoA
IP Subnet Mask ---
Gateway IP Address ---
Domain Name Server ---

LAN Port
MAC Address 00:14:6C:AB:D5:72
IP Address 192.168.0.1
DHCP On
IP Subnet Mask 255.255.255.0

Modem
ADSL Firmware Version A2pB018e.d16f
Modem Status Connecting
DownStream Connection Speed 0 kbps
UpStream Connection Speed 0 kbps
VPI 0
VCI 38

Wireless Port
Name (SSID) NETGEAR
Region Europe
Channel 11
Wireless AP Disabled
Broadcast Name Enabled

[thenotch]

starbear, on Aug 8 2006, 10:41 AM, said:

Basic problem seems to be that router is not getting an automaic IP address from AOL.

OK, does AOL permit a PPPoE connection? If so, is your username and password entered in your router so that AOL knows who is connecting to it?

Is your internet connection through them dial up? If so, while you can connect under other circumstances, you will need to make sure that your router is set to dial up AOL and NOT your PC, because your PC will pull the IP and not your router. If your router does not support this then you will need to follow another route.

Also, being that I do not know a lot about AOL, do they require that they have your MAC address for the device you are connecting with?

[Neil Jones]

starbear, on Aug 8 2006, 04:41 PM, said:

Modem
ADSL Firmware Version A2pB018e.d16f
Modem Status Connecting
DownStream Connection Speed 0 kbps
UpStream Connection Speed 0 kbps
VPI 0
VCI 38

This is having trouble talking to AOL as the modem is trying to connect but not getting anywhere.

Usually caused by a missing or faulty filter on a telephone socket somewhere (a filter is needed on every telephone socket that has a phone plugged into it and this includes all extensions, Sky boxes with their own sockets and cordless telephone bases).

Either that or the line hasn't been activated for broadband yet, or there's been a service outage at your exchange.

[starbear]

Hello again thenotch and Neil, thank you for your inputs. I've been away for a few days with work.

Now to try and answer your points but I maybe should also say that AOL online HELP said they did not specifically support my Netgear DG834GT router although they do list it as compatible. (My son has succesfully installed the same router as me with AOL but has selfishly gone off to China for a few weeks!)

Neil first of all (because the answer is easier) I do have ASDL filters connected to my phone line and have successful broadband connection via this and a modem. Today, just to be sure, I changed the ASDL filter back from the netgear supplied one to the AOL supplied one and ran the AOL network wizard again and for the first time as well as confirming the router setup was correct it stated the router was now successfully connected to the intenet and all I needed to do now was re-activate my firewire. Sadly this was patently not true because the router line to the telephone line ASDL filter was disconnected at that time! I still gamely tried to connect to the internet after reconnecting the line with the expected results ..... failure. I really appreciate your thoughts, so please continue if you can think of anything else.

thenotch

OK, does AOL permit a PPPoE connection? If so, is your username and password entered in your router so that AOL knows who is connecting to it?

me:
AOL recommends PPPoA which I have set but I don't know if it supports PPPoE

thenotch:
Is your internet connection through them dial up? If so, while you can connect under other circumstances, you will need to make sure that your router is set to dial up AOL and NOT your PC, because your PC will pull the IP and not your router. If your router does not support this then you will need to follow another route.

me:
I have broadband which connects through a telephone line so does that still quallify as dial up in this context? Could you please expand on where in the router setup I should check/change this if required.

thenotch
Also, being that I do not know a lot about AOL, do they require that they have your MAC address for the device you are connecting with?

me:
I'm sorry I don't know the answer to this. As you may be guessing by now I am borderline dumb about this stuff and can't even crack how to quotes on here in a sensible fashion! The following is quoted from an AOL network set up guide:

Required Details:

Connection Protocol: PPPoA
VPI: 0
VCI: 38
Note that sometimes you will be asked for both figures together (VPI/VCI). In that instance, you enter them separated by a comma: 0,38
Username: yourscreenname@aol.com
Password: youraolpassword


Please read these important guidelines about Screen Names and passwords used to configure a router to sign on to AOL.




Wireless Settings:
When configuring a wireless router, you may also be prompted for the following:

SSID: This is the 'name' of the router that you are using and is used by wireless adapters when they attempt to establish a connection.

WEP Key: The WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) key is the equivalent of a password on your router. Depending on your setup, it may be necessary to define one of these and ensure that any wireless adapters that connect to the router have the same key in their settings.

Network Type: There are a number of possible choices available here, but, if the option is available, you should choose Base Station.

MTU Setting: MTU (Maximum Transfer Unit) defines the largest data packet size you can transmit in one go across a network. The AOL network runs at an MTU of 1400. Many routers have inbuilt auto-configurations where the hardware identifies that the AOL traffic has an MTU of 1400 and dynamically adjusts. Alternatively you may have to manually change the MTU setting on the modem router. If the router hardware does not have this facility, the MTU setting can manually be changed on the computer to 1400.

You can change the MTU setting on your computer by using DrTCP. This is a free software utility that is a shortcut to editing your registry. This is available at: http://www.broadbandreports.com/drtcp.
MRU Setting: MRU (Maximum Routing Unit) is required by some modem routers and should be set to the same value as the MTU of 1400.

MSS Setting: MSS (Maximum Segment Size) is required by some modem routers and dynamically adjusts the packet size to fit the MTU. It should be set to 1360.