Challenges with AR5005g card under WinXP home

Now, maybe this is just Windows itself in all its glory, but I can't seem to find anyone who has similar frustrations.

Laptop is Toshiba Satellite A105-S2001 with the above mentioned wifi card built in.

At work we have a very dense wireless environment, not only because of wireless development in our office, but adjacent offices as well. I've counted up to 28 SSIDs with a tool like NetStumber.

Few problems:

#1 Windows Wireless Utility often will show only 3 or 4 SSIDs, never mind refreshing the list, it doesn't help. If I repair the connection then usually it's OK.

#2 Even worse, the card will often refuse to connect to a router that is about 5 feet away showing full signal strength - it winds up connected to some other one instead. I have manually "disconnected" from the offending SSID, following Windows' advice that it will not make a connection to this SSID automatically in the future - but it does anyway. Do the security settings make any difference? The one I was trying unsuccessfully to connect to was open.

# 3 I also have the Ekahau wireless utility installed which I use on occasion - seems to be more reliable, thus pointing at Windows itself as the culprit. I am not aware that #2 is a common problem with Win XP wireless. Is it?

#4 Even in the Ekahau utilty there does not seem to be a way to make the connection "stay" on any given SSID for the purpose of doing some range tests. What's a person to do?

#5 Certainly this is Windows - the wireless networks SSID list you get from "View Availalble Wireless Networks" shows I am connected to one SSID, but the tooltip that floats up from the task tray icon shows a different one. I presume the task tray one auto-refreshes but the other one does not, because if I refresh it manually then they do agree.

Thanks for any insight.

Larry

Reply to
Digital Larry
Loading thread data ...

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that for some time now, I cannot make a connection over 11 mbps on 11g!!!! It usedta work, honest.

I've been through the driver advanced settings but nothing jumped out at me as obviously controlling this.

Thx!

Reply to
Digital Larry

Using the Ekahau utility with no other changes allows a 54 Mbps connection. Weird eh!

I guess nobody knows anything about this stuff?

Reply to
Digital Larry

I am guessing nobody want to be challenged Or if the OP asks for hellp then who know some experted here may give a hand, but challenge? what they get to win?

Reply to
Joel

They get to win an all expenses paid trip for one to the Atheros headquarters in Santa Clara, California!

Now how's about it folks!

Actually the thing I most wonder about is whether other people have the "disappearing SSID problem" under Windows XP. Run a tool like NetStumbler and it finds them all, but Windows seems to vary, and hey come on, it's not like nobody uses wireless, folks!

Or is it safe to say that it's only me who is having these issues? OK. I can accept that

Reply to
Digital Larry

Cabling-Design.com Forums website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.