Malke asked me to repost this - sorry for second post

[Frank Parmelee]

We have four computers One desktop and three notebooks. The desktop and two
notebooks use XP Home Service Pack 3, the other notebook is two weeks old
and has Vista Home Basic installed SP1.

The desktop has a NIC and is connected to a Linksys WRT54GS wireless router
connected to a Speed Stream 4100 DSL modem.

All three XP machines have no networking problems - only the Acer Aspire
5515 with Vista Home basic which has an Atheros AR5007EG wireless network
adapter.

The problems are 1)does not connect to the internet [local only], on
powering up and 2)coming out of sleep mode or 3)drops the internet
connection randomly.

I tried unchecking the QoS Packet Scheduler, the Internet Protocol Version
6, and both Link Layer Topology choices. OK, restart.

Also tried CMD prompt: netsh Winsock reset

Neither of those seemed to solve the problem and the QoS Packet Scheduler,
the Internet Protocol Version 6, and both Link Layer Topology check boxes
are checked and back as they were.

The only thing that seems to help is turning off the modem and router
waiting a minute and power them both back up

I am very new to Vista and growing very frustrated, can someone help me out
here?

 

[Frank Parmelee]

By resetting the modem and router or doing a repair there is a connection to
the internet. So if I get lucky enough to get connected its a crap shoot how
long until the connection is lost [randomly] and I have "local only" again;
i.e. all three problems do not happen at the same time. And so it goes.

--
Make a Great Day
Frank Parmelee
USA

The problems are 1)does not connect to the internet [local only], on
powering up and 2)coming out of sleep mode or 3)drops the internet
connection randomly.

Please clarify... if it "does not connect to the internet", but "drops the
internet connection randomly", how is this?

-Frank

 

[Malke]

We have four computers One desktop and three notebooks. The desktop and
two notebooks use XP Home Service Pack 3, the other notebook is two weeks
old and has Vista Home Basic installed SP1.

The desktop has a NIC and is connected to a Linksys WRT54GS wireless
router connected to a Speed Stream 4100 DSL modem.

All three XP machines have no networking problems - only the Acer Aspire
5515 with Vista Home basic which has an Atheros AR5007EG wireless network
adapter.

The problems are 1)does not connect to the internet [local only], on
powering up and 2)coming out of sleep mode or 3)drops the internet
connection randomly.

I tried unchecking the QoS Packet Scheduler, the Internet Protocol Version
6, and both Link Layer Topology choices. OK, restart.

Also tried CMD prompt: netsh Winsock reset

Neither of those seemed to solve the problem and the QoS Packet Scheduler,
the Internet Protocol Version 6, and both Link Layer Topology check boxes
are checked and back as they were.

The only thing that seems to help is turning off the modem and router
waiting a minute and power them both back up

A. Software:

1. What antivirus/security program do you have installed on the laptop? If
it is Norton, McAfee, AVG 8.0, or Panda, uninstall it completely. In
addition to removing those programs in Control Panel>Programs & Features,
use the McAfee or Norton removal tools too if applicable. Test. Is all well
now? If yes, there you go. Replace the program with a better antivirus such
as NOD32 (commercial) or Avast (free) and use the built-in Windows
Firewall.

B. Hardware(ish) if A. above didn't work/wasn't applicable:

1. See if there is a firmware update for the Linksys. You would get this
from Linksys' website. The instructions for applying the firmware update
are also there (easy). If there is, then apply the update and test. If your
issue is solved, great. If not, see #2 below.

2. Take your new computer to a friend's house and connect to their wireless
network. Does the same behavior happen or is all well? If the same behavior
happens, you know it's your machine. If the same behavior doesn't happen,
you know it's your router. If the latter and applying the firmware update
didn't work, consider replacing the router. They don't last forever and
this is a relatively cheap (~$60) fix. See #3 for if the same behavior
happens at your friend's house.

3. Go to Acer's website and download/install the latest drivers for your
wireless adapter. Test. If the same problem exists after updating the
drivers AND having the wireless fail at another location (and Item A wasn't
applicable/didn't work), return the new computer because there is probably
a hardware issue and you can't fix this yourself.

Please report back with the results.

Malke

 

[Frank Parmelee]

Responses below

--
Make a Great Day
Frank Parmelee
USA

We have four computers One desktop and three notebooks. The desktop and
two notebooks use XP Home Service Pack 3, the other notebook is two weeks
old and has Vista Home Basic installed SP1.

The desktop has a NIC and is connected to a Linksys WRT54GS wireless
router connected to a Speed Stream 4100 DSL modem.

All three XP machines have no networking problems - only the Acer Aspire
5515 with Vista Home basic which has an Atheros AR5007EG wireless network
adapter.

The problems are 1)does not connect to the internet [local only], on
powering up and 2)coming out of sleep mode or 3)drops the internet
connection randomly.

I tried unchecking the QoS Packet Scheduler, the Internet Protocol
Version
6, and both Link Layer Topology choices. OK, restart.

Also tried CMD prompt: netsh Winsock reset

Neither of those seemed to solve the problem and the QoS Packet
Scheduler,
the Internet Protocol Version 6, and both Link Layer Topology check boxes
are checked and back as they were.

The only thing that seems to help is turning off the modem and router
waiting a minute and power them both back up

A. Software:

All our computers use Trend Micro Internet Security
No difference with or without AV program installed.

1. What antivirus/security program do you have installed on the laptop? If
it is Norton, McAfee, AVG 8.0, or Panda, uninstall it completely. In
addition to removing those programs in Control Panel>Programs & Features,
use the McAfee or Norton removal tools too if applicable. Test. Is all
well
now? If yes, there you go. Replace the program with a better antivirus
such
as NOD32 (commercial) or Avast (free) and use the built-in Windows
Firewall.

B. Hardware(ish) if A. above didn't work/wasn't applicable:

There is no newer firmware than the one installed - up to date.

1. See if there is a firmware update for the Linksys. You would get this
from Linksys' website. The instructions for applying the firmware update
are also there (easy). If there is, then apply the update and test. If
your
issue is solved, great. If not, see #2 below.

Taking the computer to the library and the vendor's store made no
difference.

2. Take your new computer to a friend's house and connect to their
wireless
network. Does the same behavior happen or is all well? If the same
behavior
happens, you know it's your machine. If the same behavior doesn't happen,
you know it's your router. If the latter and applying the firmware update
didn't work, consider replacing the router. They don't last forever and
this is a relatively cheap (~$60) fix. See #3 for if the same behavior
happens at your friend's house.

While at the vendor's store all drivers involved were doubled checked latest
versions - all up to date.
The vendor tested both the wired and wireless connections, as I did at home
and the library, while teh machine was in the shop. In addition to what I
did on my own and what the vendor did; I had a tech person come to our house
to verify our network setup. On my own I read and tried all the fixes found
on this newsgroup and spent hours serching and reading MS's Knowledge base.
This is the most baffling set of problems ever encountered in my experience
with computers going all teh way back to the 70's and my first VIC 20. With
a couple of exceptions, I have built every desktop computer I have ever
used. Three of the four machines used here are running XP and all is solid
with them. Based on the experts I have consulted and what I have read
online; everything points back to the OS. Since you can't read the posts
here, you will have to take my word about all the posts here all having the
same problems as I. I thank you for your help and advice, you are spot on
with your investigative process, one that was methodically done by three
other as I stated here.

 

[Gordon]

LOADS of stuff about AR5007 network cards and problems associated with it
here:
http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=Atheros+AR5007EG++not+connecting&meta=

maybe something there will help?

 

[Malke]

Responses below

(weird quoting below the signature delimiter fixed)

====
While at the vendor's store all drivers involved were doubled checked latest
versions - all up to date.
The vendor tested both the wired and wireless connections, as I did at home
and the library, while teh machine was in the shop. In addition to what I
did on my own and what the vendor did; I had a tech person come to our house
to verify our network setup. On my own I read and tried all the fixes found
on this newsgroup and spent hours serching and reading MS's Knowledge base.
This is the most baffling set of problems ever encountered in my experience
with computers going all teh way back to the 70's and my first VIC 20. With
a couple of exceptions, I have built every desktop computer I have ever
used. Three of the four machines used here are running XP and all is solid
with them. Based on the experts I have consulted and what I have read
online; everything points back to the OS. Since you can't read the posts
here, you will have to take my word about all the posts here all having the
same problems as I. I thank you for your help and advice, you are spot on
with your investigative process, one that was methodically done by three
other as I stated here.
====

It would have been useful if you'd included that information in your first
post. However, you forgot to tell us what the results of the vendor's
testing were. Did the wireless/wired connections work in the vendor's shop
or not? I thought the issues were only with the wireless?

If they worked, then do as I suggested with your router. If updating the
firmware doesn't work, then try a different router. If the machine doesn't
work with a different router, then the hardware is faulty.

I'm sorry, but as I said I've got loads of clients running Vista and
connecting wirelessly with no issues at all. So it is either something with
your router or your computer.

Or you could back up your data and restore the computer to factory
condition. If the computer still exhibits the same symptoms from a fresh
factory install, you know for sure you should return the computer for
replacement.

Malke

 

[Frank Parmelee]

Hey thanks for the heads-up, I appreciate it.

 

[Frank Parmelee]

I had posted all this before, it is too bad one posting isn't enough and I
guess I got tired of all the repetition. It has always amazed me that when
something doesn't work, especially with Microsoft, it is never the OS and
vice versa. I had the option of XP or Vista and decided to go with Vista
thinking maybe down the road I might want to switch to Windows 7; the jury
is still out on that. With a lot of hard work, phone calls and help from
outside sources I have managed to get this machine livable. Still not the
best, but livable.

My concerns are still the scores of people before and after me that are not
getting the proper help and advice they need. My first post here was 7 days
ago and I was in a long line of people having the same problems as I.

Thank you for all your help and assistance, my hope now is that all the
others get the same kind of help and solutions.

 

[Malke]

I had posted all this before, it is too bad one posting isn't enough and I
guess I got tired of all the repetition. It has always amazed me that when
something doesn't work, especially with Microsoft, it is never the OS and
vice versa. I had the option of XP or Vista and decided to go with Vista
thinking maybe down the road I might want to switch to Windows 7; the jury
is still out on that. With a lot of hard work, phone calls and help from
outside sources I have managed to get this machine livable. Still not the
best, but livable.

My concerns are still the scores of people before and after me that are
not getting the proper help and advice they need. My first post here was 7
days ago and I was in a long line of people having the same problems as I.

Thank you for all your help and assistance, my hope now is that all the
others get the same kind of help and solutions.

You have to understand - this is a public newsgroup hosted on Microsoft
servers offering *free* peer-to-peer tech support. This means that while
some MS employees occasionally post here, the majority of helpers (like me)
are volunteers who do not work for the company. This means that sometimes
you have to wait for help and sometimes you don't get it. The alternative
of getting *paid* support - either from Microsoft, the computer mftr., or a
local tech - is always available. I'm not saying this to be harsh to you;
just pointing out that "scores of people" do have alternatives to free
support on Usenet newsgroups and forums. Whether they want to pay for it is
another story.

Malke

 

[Frank Parmelee]

Thanks to reading a lot of posts here, the MS Knowledgebase, and the MVP's
who watch this newsgroup, and a lot of dedicated hard work; I am now able to
stay connected and only need to do an occasional Detect and Repair. Not bad
for and old timer like me.