Connected to wireless router, but can't connect to internet or email

snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com hath wroth:

As I read this, only this one laptop cannot browse the internet and probably cannot see the configuration page on the WGR614v6. Is this correct?

Have you tried to connect to the WGR614v6 with a CAT5 ethernet cable? It's difficult to tell from your subject line. That should work. If it doesn't, then something is really screwed up on your Sony laptop. My guess is some software firewall such as Norton Internet Security.

If a direct cable does work, but wireless still refuses to connect, then it's something in the wireless configuration. I'll assume the wireless can "see" your SSID using "view available networks" or you would have mentioned it.

Are you using WEP encryption? If so, use the Hex key and not the ASCII key. The conversion from ASCII to Hex is NOT standardized and subject to creative interpretation by various manufactories.

If it's NOT the WEP key, try turning off encryption temporarily and see if that helps. If that works, then try again with the WEP key, this time without typo errors. Incidentally, WEP is not terribly secure and I suggest to you switch to WPA-PSK.

Hopefully, you did *NOT* save your settings as a file from the previous firmware version and restore this file to the current version of the firmware. This is generally a lousy idea as such backups and restores and NOT guaranteed to work across different firmware versions. If this is what you did, punch the reset button on the router, and setup the router from scratch (again).

I can see why. I had to read your description of the problem several times to decode exactly what works and what doesn't. Your subject line is also somewhat ambiguous in that the word "connect" does not describe how you connect (wired or wireless). I have no clue what operating system you're using, or what wireless device is inside the Sony laptop. I can't tell if you're using the Sony supplied wireless driver, the driver supplied by the wireless device manufactory, or just Windoze Wireless Zero Config. However, your problem description is better than most, so I probably shouldn't complain.

Thanks for your reply Jeff. I'll try to answer some of your questions...

Yes, the connection problem is only with this one computer, the Sony Vaio.

I CAN connect to the wireless router with an ethernet cable, and connection to the internet works this way. The problem is only with connecting WIRELESSLY to the wireless router.

I'm using WinXP (sp2) and whatever the internal wireless card is that comes with the Vaio. I wish I could give you more info on which wireless driver I'm using. I just used what came with the laptop.

I am using WEP encryption, and will try your suggestion.

One other piece of information... for my Wireless Network Connection, I have to manually put in an IP address for the ethernet cable connection to work. If I say "Obtain an IP address automatically," I just get "Limited or No Connectivity" with the ethernet cable. (Again, I can't get any kind of connection without the cable.)

Jeff Liebermann wrote:

OK!! I turned off WEP and it worked, and then I entered the key again and everthing seems to be working now. (I can't believe it was something that simple.) I'm using WEP for now but plan on switching to WPA-PSK per your advice.

Thank you SO much! Someone should give you a raise!

snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com wrote:

snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com hath wroth:

Cool. WEP problems are all too common. First there's the ASCII to Hex problem. Then, if the user tries to type in the Hex key, it's rather difficult to inscribe 26 characters of gibberish, without seeing what one is typing. If one manages to do it correctly, Microsoft stupidly insists that you do it twice (for no good reason). WEP is rough. If possible, I strongly suggest you switch to WPA-PSK instead of WEP.

Don't kick yourself for the simple fix. It's NOT commonly known. It's not on any of the support knowledgebase sites. If you ask support from any of the organizations you called about ASCII versus Hex for WEP, they will not find anything because it's only a problem with mixed vendor systems and support doesn't answer questions about mixed vendor systems. Microsloth doesn't make it easy because of the lack of connection progress diagnostics. Searching Google by keyword is almost impossible because the failure mode description tends to be vague and too broad. It's in the FAQ, but good luck finding it with a search key that doesn't also include the answer:

Thanks. I get a karma recharge from being helpful, which balances the decadent lifestyle and debauchery to which I have become accustomed.