[pccromeo]

Now I am by no means proficient at Windows Vista, so please bear with me.

My sister bought my niece a Gateway T2330 and a D-Link Wireless-N Router, both from BestBuy. All worked well for the first several days but after that all has gone downhill, as the wireless will no longer connect to the internet. It will only establish a "local" connection (connects to the router, but not to the internet through the router). Here is what I have done to try and resolve the problem thus far...


-- Restart the modem and router - I have found that neither of these are the culprit as I am able to get my MacBook to connect to the wireless network when the Gateway will not.

-- Enable the wireless card - At first the problem was that the wireless card was not enabled in the Device Manager, but I have since turned it on with the button on the keyboard and under the Device Manager.

-- Try and connect through ethernet - Even though the Gateway will not connect wirelessly, it will connect through Ethernet and stays connected with no problems.

--Try connecting to other wireless routers - The Gateway will not connect to my AirPort Extreme either.

-- Update the drivers/software - After connecting through the ethernet, I downloaded a new driver for the wireless card through software update and SP1. This fixed the problem for about 2 days but it has since stopped functioning again.


I really am at a loss as to how to fix the problem. Any suggestions would be helpful, I don't have the computer at the moment but when my sister stops by this afternoon I will have her drop it off.

Neither wireless router has any sort of security enabled by the way.

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I would have guessed the wireless driver would fix the issue. Sounds like it did, but only for a little while.

The "local only" problem is unfortunately all too common with Windows Vista. Often a driver update resolves it. Other times a new wireless router is required. You have a modern router, and have updated your driver. We could try disabling DHCP, and configuring an IP for your notebook, but that's pretty geeky networking stuff, and probably not the way you're looking to resolve your issue.

I have a couple suggestions. First, you should always secure your wireless network. Try enabling WPA on your router and notebook, and of course setting a password. There's a chance this could help. Next, is the router within the return period? I would consider exchanging it for another model and see if that helps.

[admin]

I would have guessed the wireless driver would fix the issue. Sounds like it did, but only for a little while.

The "local only" problem is unfortunately all too common with Windows Vista. Often a driver update resolves it. Other times a new wireless router is required. You have a modern router, and have updated your driver. We could try disabling DHCP, and configuring an IP for your notebook, but that's pretty geeky networking stuff, and probably not the way you're looking to resolve your issue.

I have a couple suggestions. First, you should always secure your wireless network. Try enabling WPA on your router and notebook, and of course setting a password. There's a chance this could help. Next, is the router within the return period? I would consider exchanging it for another model and see if that helps.

[pccromeo]

Thanks for the response, admin, but the next day when I connected her computer to my AirPort Extreme it connected no problem, she must have just been doing something wrong.

I did have the security enabled on my router when I first got it but it caused many problems with various programs such as Yahoo! Messenger and Azureus so I disabled it. I live in a very rural area and my nearest neighbors aren't close enough to connect to my wireless anyway, and I doubt any of them even know there is such a thing as "wireless networking."

[admin]

Thanks for responding even though your problem was resolved.

the next day when I connected her computer to my AirPort Extreme it connected no problem

It seems you've identified the D-Link router as the most likely problem.

[John Hook]

pccromeo,

It has been my personal experience that D-Link brand routers (wireless or otherwise) are notoriously unreliable and unpredictable. While the D-Link brand products are very attractive due to their low prices, user-friendliness, flexibility and features - I would NOT, based on my own personal experience as an IT/Telecom tech, recommend D-Link products. Again - I qualify this information based on MY OWN personal experience. I'm sure there are plenty of happy D-Link users out there who might disagree with me and I respect their loyalty to this brand. I was a BIG promoter of D-Link products myself - until time and time again, I experienced random reliability issues with D-Link Products. I have addressed this issue with D-Links tech support as well as on networking/broadband support sites. I have repeatedly upgraded, reconfiguerd, rebooted, factory-reset almost EVERY D-Link router that I've installed or had to support and NONE of these things have made these routers more stable! Nobody can explain the lack of reliability with D-Link routers other than the possibility of "overheating" as the cause for their instability.

All of that said - I would recommend at the following comsumer brands: LinkSys, NetGear and Belkin. These products might be slightly more expensive than their D-Link counterparts - but I've found these brands to be more stable/reliable than D-Link products.

Hope this helps.

- John Hook