Wireless problem

[Ken K]

WinXP, SP2 IE 6

I am having difficulty getting online in a wireless hotspot where others
do not seem to have a problem. I have no problem at other hotspots.

I am assigned an IP address but I am unable to browse online with IE6
(or Firefox, for that matter). I have set my security and privacy
settings to medium and I have even tried going bare without a firewall.

How do I begin to troubleshoot this issue? If it were not for the fact
that the next closest hotspot is 1/2 hour away, I wouldn't bother.

Thanks
Ken K

 

[Ben M. Schorr - MVP]

Aloha Ken,

Are you also assigned a default gateway and DNS server address(es)? Can
you successfully ping the default gateway?

-Ben-
Ben M. Schorr, MVP
Roland Schorr & Tower
http://www.rolandschorr.com
Microsoft OneNote FAQ: http://www.factplace.com/onenote.html

 

[Chuck]

WinXP, SP2 IE 6

I am having difficulty getting online in a wireless hotspot where others
do not seem to have a problem. I have no problem at other hotspots.

I am assigned an IP address but I am unable to browse online with IE6
(or Firefox, for that matter). I have set my security and privacy
settings to medium and I have even tried going bare without a firewall.

How do I begin to troubleshoot this issue? If it were not for the fact
that the next closest hotspot is 1/2 hour away, I wouldn't bother.

Thanks
Ken K

Ken,

If you have connectivity to the hotspot (and verifying that is best left to the
modern equivalent of Job), you have 2 possible problems.
# DNS.
# MTU.

Diagnose the problem first.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/troubleshooting-internet-service.html#AskingForHelp>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/troubleshooting-internet-service.html#AskingForHelp
# From a command window:
1. Ping www.yahoo.com.
2. Ping 66.94.230.33.
3. Report success / exact text of error messages.
# From your browser:
1. Browse www.yahoo.com.
2. Browse 66.94.230.33.
3. Report success / exact text of error messages.

If you can ping and browse by IP address, but not by name, then we will have to
check DNS. If you have a personal firewall on your computer, then you'll most
likely have to set the firewall to trust the DNS server.

If the problem is NOT DNS, then check for the MTU issue. Read my article, and
the linked articles.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/internet-connectivity-problems-caused.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/internet-connectivity-problems-caused.html

 

[Ken K]

I will cruise by there tonight and give that a try. I only have checked
for an assigned IP address, which I am assigned (192.168.0.103). I will
get back to you tomorrow.

Ken

 

[Ken K]

Thanks. I will stop by the place tonight and get back to you tomorrow.

Ken K

 

[Ken K]

Sorry about the repeat post. I did not see that is had been posted--I
kept watching but never saw it. Meanwhile, I was receiving requests
from my mail client for my password and thought there was a problem.

Anyway, I have deleted that message.

Sorry,
Ken K

 

[Ken K]

Ken,

If you have connectivity to the hotspot (and verifying that is best left to the
modern equivalent of Job), you have 2 possible problems.
# DNS.
# MTU.

Diagnose the problem first.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/troubleshooting-internet-service.html#AskingForHelp>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/troubleshooting-internet-service.html#AskingForHelp
# From a command window:
1. Ping www.yahoo.com.
2. Ping 66.94.230.33.
3. Report success / exact text of error messages.
# From your browser:
1. Browse www.yahoo.com.
2. Browse 66.94.230.33.
3. Report success / exact text of error messages.

If you can ping and browse by IP address, but not by name, then we will have to
check DNS. If you have a personal firewall on your computer, then you'll most
likely have to set the firewall to trust the DNS server.

If the problem is NOT DNS, then check for the MTU issue. Read my article, and
the linked articles.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/internet-connectivity-problems-caused.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/internet-connectivity-problems-caused.html

Here is as far as I got: (the formatting changed--I hope this is
readable...)

IPCONFIG
Windows IP Configuration
Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : NoEthernet adapter

Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast
Ethernet NIC Physical Address. . . . . . . . . :
00-13-D3-AF-6C-8EEthernet adapter

Wireless Network Connection:
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG

Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.101
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . :
24.205.224.35
64.214.48.27
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, May 09, 2006 7:29:26 AM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 7:29:26 AM

PING WIRELESS ROUTER

Pinging 192.168.1.1 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Ping statistics for 192.168.1.1: Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4,
Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds: Minimum = 1ms, Maximum
= 1ms, Average = 1ms


PING WWW.YAHOO.COM

I received a message that said the host could not be found.


PING YAHOO IP
Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Request timed out.Request timed out.Request timed out.
Request timed out.Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

Thoughts?

 

[Ken K]

Ken,

If you have connectivity to the hotspot (and verifying that is best left to the
modern equivalent of Job), you have 2 possible problems.
# DNS.
# MTU.

Diagnose the problem first.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/troubleshooting-internet-service.html#AskingForHelp>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/troubleshooting-internet-service.html#AskingForHelp
# From a command window:
1. Ping www.yahoo.com.
2. Ping 66.94.230.33.
3. Report success / exact text of error messages.
# From your browser:
1. Browse www.yahoo.com.
2. Browse 66.94.230.33.
3. Report success / exact text of error messages.

If you can ping and browse by IP address, but not by name, then we will have to
check DNS. If you have a personal firewall on your computer, then you'll most
likely have to set the firewall to trust the DNS server.

If the problem is NOT DNS, then check for the MTU issue. Read my article, and
the linked articles.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/internet-connectivity-problems-caused.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/internet-connectivity-problems-caused.html

By the way, I have no firewall on this computer and the Windows firewall
is turned off.

Ken

 

[Chuck]

Here is as far as I got: (the formatting changed--I hope this is
readable...)

IPCONFIG
Windows IP Configuration
Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : NoEthernet adapter

Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast
Ethernet NIC Physical Address. . . . . . . . . :
00-13-D3-AF-6C-8EEthernet adapter

Wireless Network Connection:
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG

Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.101
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . :
24.205.224.35
64.214.48.27
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, May 09, 2006 7:29:26 AM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 7:29:26 AM

PING WIRELESS ROUTER

Pinging 192.168.1.1 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Ping statistics for 192.168.1.1: Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4,
Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds: Minimum = 1ms, Maximum
= 1ms, Average = 1ms


PING WWW.YAHOO.COM

I received a message that said the host could not be found.


PING YAHOO IP
Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Request timed out.Request timed out.Request timed out.
Request timed out.Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

Thoughts?

Very interesting. The 192.168.1.1 / 192.168.1.101 makes your hotspot look like
a domestic NAT router, and you the only customer. Were there others connected
when you were (or weren't)?

DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . :
24.205.224.35
64.214.48.27
Even more interesting. The first:
24.205.224.35 | ns4.ca.charter.com | ?St. Louis, MO
The second:
64.214.48.27 | - | ?Phoenix, AZ, USA

An unbalanced pair to say the least.

Are you sure that this is the connection that the others are accessing? Looks
wonky to me. Maybe a man-in-the-middle attack?

And you with no firewall connecting? Can you say "malware host in the making"?

What is this hotspot? The one 1/2 hour away? Why do you need hotspots?

 

[Ken K]

Very interesting. The 192.168.1.1 / 192.168.1.101 makes your hotspot look like
a domestic NAT router, and you the only customer. Were there others connected
when you were (or weren't)?

DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . :
24.205.224.35
64.214.48.27
Even more interesting. The first:
24.205.224.35 | ns4.ca.charter.com | ?St. Louis, MO
The second:
64.214.48.27 | - | ?Phoenix, AZ, USA

An unbalanced pair to say the least.

Are you sure that this is the connection that the others are accessing? Looks
wonky to me. Maybe a man-in-the-middle attack?

And you with no firewall connecting? Can you say "malware host in the making"?

What is this hotspot? The one 1/2 hour away? Why do you need hotspots?

Chuck,

I was the only person in the restaurant this AM. I am a radiologist in
the midst of relocating. I am 2 1/2 hours from home (Fresno) in a
beach house in Avila Beachh, CA, on loan from a friend for the next
month while my wife and I find a home. This cafe/market serves a
private development and is 5 minutes from the beach house. My office in
San Luis Obispo is 20-30 minutes away, so it would be convenient to just
stop in at the market on weekends to pick up email, etc., without
having to make the drive to San Luis Obispo.

I have never seen more than 2-3 people using their laptops at one time
inthe market. I was the only one there this AM. Yesterday my IP
address was 192.168.1.103.

Charter communications serves this area (San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara).

For this AM, I uninstalled Zone Alarm. I share your concerns about
malware, etc. I wanted to make sure that there was nothing between me
and the router.

Any suggestions?

Thanks
Ken

 

[Chuck]

Chuck,

I was the only person in the restaurant this AM. I am a radiologist in
the midst of relocating. I am 2 1/2 hours from home (Fresno) in a
beach house in Avila Beachh, CA, on loan from a friend for the next
month while my wife and I find a home. This cafe/market serves a
private development and is 5 minutes from the beach house. My office in
San Luis Obispo is 20-30 minutes away, so it would be convenient to just
stop in at the market on weekends to pick up email, etc., without
having to make the drive to San Luis Obispo.

I have never seen more than 2-3 people using their laptops at one time
inthe market. I was the only one there this AM. Yesterday my IP
address was 192.168.1.103.

Charter communications serves this area (San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara).

For this AM, I uninstalled Zone Alarm. I share your concerns about
malware, etc. I wanted to make sure that there was nothing between me
and the router.

Any suggestions?

Thanks
Ken

Ken,

OK, good background there. So we'll start from assumptions:
# You are connecting to the hotspot.
# This is a valid hotspot, and there is nothing intentionally malicious in
progress.

Your ping Yahoo, by name and by IP address, suggests lack of connectivity from
the hotspot to the Internet. But you do have working connectivity when using
another hotspot?

This doesn't say much for the hotspot though. It starts to sound like a
candidate for malware, at least inadvertently spread.

Is it possible, at all, that you are connecting to the router, but it wants you
to authenticate before allowing you further? Routers that don't do port based
authentication could get you to this point, and no farther.
<http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/columns/cableguy/cg0402.mspx#ECAA>
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/columns/cableguy/cg0402.mspx#ECAA

Try the same 4 way test on another website, one which you actually need access
to. Resolve IP addresses using these two web sites (using IP addresses because
you would not have DNS to test from):
http://216.92.207.177/toolbox
http://69.2.200.183/

Given no more clues, I'll eventually suspect LSP / Winsock corruption. That's a
painful thing to diagnose, though.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/problems-with-lsp-winsock-layer-in.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/problems-with-lsp-winsock-layer-in.html

Be patient here, and keep feeding me ideas.

 

[Ken K]

Ken,

OK, good background there. So we'll start from assumptions:
# You are connecting to the hotspot.
# This is a valid hotspot, and there is nothing intentionally malicious in
progress.

Your ping Yahoo, by name and by IP address, suggests lack of connectivity from
the hotspot to the Internet. But you do have working connectivity when using
another hotspot?

This doesn't say much for the hotspot though. It starts to sound like a
candidate for malware, at least inadvertently spread.

Is it possible, at all, that you are connecting to the router, but it wants you
to authenticate before allowing you further? Routers that don't do port based
authentication could get you to this point, and no farther.
<http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/columns/cableguy/cg0402.mspx#ECAA>
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/columns/cableguy/cg0402.mspx#ECAA

Try the same 4 way test on another website, one which you actually need access
to. Resolve IP addresses using these two web sites (using IP addresses because
you would not have DNS to test from):
http://216.92.207.177/toolbox
http://69.2.200.183/

Given no more clues, I'll eventually suspect LSP / Winsock corruption. That's a
painful thing to diagnose, though.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/problems-with-lsp-winsock-layer-in.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/problems-with-lsp-winsock-layer-in.html

Be patient here, and keep feeding me ideas.

Thank you for responding, Chuck. I don't think that the Avila Market
has any grudges against their clients--you are correct.

WRT other hotspots, I occasionally use the ones at Starbucks without any
problem. WRT Avila Market, I am told that I am one of 2-3 people who
have difficulty but that many others have none. One day I spent a half
hour with a bright fellow who works there and he was surprised that I
was unable to connect. We tried a direct connection to circumvent any
problems with wireless but that did not change anything. There is a
roving IT company whom they call when there are problems but they have
had no problems (other than me) so they have not called the IT people.

I do now know if this router requires authentication. I assume I would
be presented with a request for name and password? I have been told
that there is not a need for signing up with their website nor for
entering any name or password.

I will try some other websites. I have been unable to contact msn.com,
msnbc.com, cingular.com, etc.

When I have done this, I will post it. It will not be before tomorrow.
Will you continue to monitor this thread or should I leave a note on
your blog? I left my personal email address there today.

Thanks for your work so far on this puzzling problem.
Ken

 

[Chuck]

Thank you for responding, Chuck. I don't think that the Avila Market
has any grudges against their clients--you are correct.

WRT other hotspots, I occasionally use the ones at Starbucks without any
problem. WRT Avila Market, I am told that I am one of 2-3 people who
have difficulty but that many others have none. One day I spent a half
hour with a bright fellow who works there and he was surprised that I
was unable to connect. We tried a direct connection to circumvent any
problems with wireless but that did not change anything. There is a
roving IT company whom they call when there are problems but they have
had no problems (other than me) so they have not called the IT people.

I do now know if this router requires authentication. I assume I would
be presented with a request for name and password? I have been told
that there is not a need for signing up with their website nor for
entering any name or password.

I will try some other websites. I have been unable to contact msn.com,
msnbc.com, cingular.com, etc.

When I have done this, I will post it. It will not be before tomorrow.
Will you continue to monitor this thread or should I leave a note on
your blog? I left my personal email address there today.

Thanks for your work so far on this puzzling problem.
Ken

Ken,

I help here to keep up with the issues that I may deal with in person later.
Your situation is intriguing, and I suspect that I will end up learning as much
as you do.

If you post in this thread, I'll see it. Just reply when you're ready.

Since you say that you did get help (unsuccessfully) from a local expert, I'm
thinking less and less that the problem might be with the hotspot. If you find
it convenient to sometime visit the other hotspot, an "ipconfig /all" log, along
with the results from the 4 way test for a couple websites, will make a good set
of comparative diagnostics.

When you uninstalled ZA, did you get instructions from ZoneLabs?

 

[Ken K]

Ken,

I help here to keep up with the issues that I may deal with in person later.
Your situation is intriguing, and I suspect that I will end up learning as much
as you do.

If you post in this thread, I'll see it. Just reply when you're ready.

Since you say that you did get help (unsuccessfully) from a local expert, I'm
thinking less and less that the problem might be with the hotspot. If you find
it convenient to sometime visit the other hotspot, an "ipconfig /all" log, along
with the results from the 4 way test for a couple websites, will make a good set
of comparative diagnostics.

When you uninstalled ZA, did you get instructions from ZoneLabs?

These are the latest adn greatest from the ZoneAlarm forum:
http://forum.zonelabs.org/zonelabs/board/message?board.id=inst&message.id=48347

I will stop by Starbucks tonight and do a test.

Thanks
Ken

 

[Ken K]

Long post at the end...

Ken,

I help here to keep up with the issues that I may deal with in person later.
Your situation is intriguing, and I suspect that I will end up learning as much
as you do.

If you post in this thread, I'll see it. Just reply when you're ready.

Since you say that you did get help (unsuccessfully) from a local expert, I'm
thinking less and less that the problem might be with the hotspot. If you find
it convenient to sometime visit the other hotspot, an "ipconfig /all" log, along
with the results from the 4 way test for a couple websites, will make a good set
of comparative diagnostics.

When you uninstalled ZA, did you get instructions from ZoneLabs?

Well... Good news and bad news. Short version: using my travel router,
I was able to ping just about everything. The bad news was that I had
great difficulty trying to getting online with t-mobile at Starbucks and
only rarely was able to browse successfully to the t-mobile site but I
was unable to log on. The long version follows...


I went to a local Starbucks and found that all was not rosy.

It took a about a minute to get an assigned IP address. Here is the
ipconfig.txt file:

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : cust.hotspot.t-mobile.comEthernet
adapter
Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast
Ethernet NIC Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-D3-AF-6C-8E

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : cust.hotspot.t-mobile.com
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG

Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.117
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.224
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.97
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.97
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . :
66.94.9.120 66.94.25.120
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, May 09, 2006 6:39:21 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, May 09, 2006 6:54:21 PM



I was not able to ping the default gateway:

Pinging 10.253.100.97 with 32 bytes of dataestination host
unreachable.Destination host unreachable.Destination host
unreachable.Destination host unreachable.Ping statistics for
10.253.100.97: Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),
However, I was able to contact t-mobile albeit inconsistently ( 3
different attempts follow):

One attempt...

c:\ping www.t-mobile.com

Pinging www.t-mobile.com [65.161.188.152] with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 65.161.188.152:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

Another attempt.....

c:\ping www.t-mobile.com

Pinging www.t-mobile.com [65.161.188.152] with 32 bytes of data:

Reply form 65.161.188.152: bytes=32 time 56ms TTL=238

Reply form 65.161.188.152: bytes=32 time 52ms TTL=238
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 65.161.188.152:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 2, Lost = 2 (50% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 52ms, Maximum = 56ms, Average = 54ms


Another attempt...

c:\ping 65.161.188.152

Pinging 65.161.188.152 with 32 bytes of data:

Reply form 65.161.188.152: bytes=32 time 139ms TTL=238

Reply form 65.161.188.152: bytes=32 time 51ms TTL=238
Request timed out.

Reply form 65.161.188.152: bytes=32 time 88ms TTL=238

Ping statistics for 65.161.188.152:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 3, Lost = 1 (25% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 51ms, Maximum = 139ms, Average = 92ms


And another attempt...

Ping request could not find host www.t-mobile.com. Please check the name
and try again.

All this time my connection, without moving from my seat, varied between
1 and 11Mbps, yet, despite the fact that my connection was dropped
quite a few times. It was easily repaired through WinXP.


This was an attempt to contact the DNS:

Pinging 66.94.25.120 with 32 bytes of data:Request timed out.Request
timed out.Request timed out.Request timed out.Ping statistics for
66.94.25.120: Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),



Following is data from my travel router:

Windows IP Configuration
Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : sldiagnostic.com
Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast
Ethernet NIC
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-D3-AF-6C-8E
Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : sldiagnostic.com
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG
Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.1.1.120
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.1.1.254
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.1.1.250
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . :
192.1.1.250
66.17.63.1
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 8:13:44
AM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Thursday, May 18, 2006 8:13:44 AM

Here is the ping of the travel router:

Pinging 192.1.1.250 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 192.1.1.250: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=128
Reply from 192.1.1.250: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128
Reply from 192.1.1.250: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128
Reply from 192.1.1.250: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128

Ping statistics for 192.1.1.250:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds: Minimum = 0ms, Maximum
= 1ms, Average = 0ms


First ping of DNS:

pinging 66.17.63.1 with 32 bytes of data:

Reply from 66.17.63.1: bytes=32 time 161ms TTL=62

Reply from 66.17.63.1: bytes=32 time 58ms TTL=62

Reply from 66.17.63.1: bytes=32 time 14ms TTL=62

Reply from 66.17.63.1: bytes=32 time 12ms TTL=62


Ping statistics for 66.17.63.1:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 12ms, Maximum = 161ms, Average = 61ms

Second ping: !!

Pinging 67.17.63.1 with 32 bytes of data
:Request timed out.
Request timed out
..Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 67.17.63.1:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

(the connection is 54 Mbps)

Here is a third ping of the DNS server:

Pinging 66.17.63.1 with 32 bytes of data
:Reply from 66.17.63.1: bytes=32 time=13ms TTL=62
Reply from 66.17.63.1: bytes=32 time=12ms TTL=62
Reply from 66.17.63.1: bytes=32 time=13ms TTL=62
Reply from 66.17.63.1: bytes=32 time=13ms TTL=62

Ping statistics for 66.17.63.1
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),Approximate round
trip times in milli-seconds: Minimum = 12ms, Maximum = 13ms, Average
= 12ms

Ping to msn.com:

Pinging www.msn.com.nsatc.net [207.68.173.76] with 32 bytes of data:
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 207.68.173.76:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),



Ping to yahoo, both IP and by name (also worked with browser):

Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=31ms TTL=55
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=157ms TTL=55
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=32ms TTL=55
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=31ms TTL=55

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),Approximate round
trip times in milli-seconds: Minimum = 31ms, Maximum = 157ms, Average
= 62ms

Pinging www.yahoo.akadns.net [66.94.230.32] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.230.32: bytes=32 time=31ms TTL=55
Reply from 66.94.230.32: bytes=32 time=30ms TTL=55
Reply from 66.94.230.32: bytes=32 time=33ms TTL=55
Reply from 66.94.230.32: bytes=32 time=31ms TTL=55

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.32:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),Approximate round
trip times in milli-seconds: Minimum = 30ms, Maximum = 33ms, Average
= 31ms

Ping to t-mobile:

Pinging www.t-mobile.com [65.161.188.152] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 65.161.188.152: bytes=32 time=35ms TTL=244
Reply from 65.161.188.152: bytes=32 time=110ms TTL=244
Reply from 65.161.188.152: bytes=32 time=35ms TTL=244
Reply from 65.161.188.152: bytes=32 time=35ms TTL=244

Ping statistics for 65.161.188.152:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),Approximate round
trip times in milli-seconds: Minimum = 35ms, Maximum = 110ms, Average
= 53ms

So, there you have it. With my travel router, little, if any, problem,
but not perfect. With the router at the market and yesterday at
Starbucks, problems.

Thoughts?

Thanks
Ken K

 

[Ken K]

See post below...

Ken,

I help here to keep up with the issues that I may deal with in person later.
Your situation is intriguing, and I suspect that I will end up learning as much
as you do.

If you post in this thread, I'll see it. Just reply when you're ready.

Since you say that you did get help (unsuccessfully) from a local expert, I'm
thinking less and less that the problem might be with the hotspot. If you find
it convenient to sometime visit the other hotspot, an "ipconfig /all" log, along
with the results from the 4 way test for a couple websites, will make a good set
of comparative diagnostics.

When you uninstalled ZA, did you get instructions from ZoneLabs?

Chuck,

Here is followup from the 5/10 post. Basically, I updated the drivers
for the Intel 2516 wireless card adn I am back to where I was before:
everything works except the market, although I am able to ping the
router at Avila Market. Here is some info...

I decided yesterday to check the driver for the Intel wireless card and it was one or two versions behind, so I downloaded the driver and in stalled it. I am now back to where I was before: I was able to log onto Starbucks t-mobile hotspot with no problem but still had difficulty with the Avila Market. Following are the various files.
At Starbucks my reception remained at 11 Mbps all the time, as opposed to the day before when it varied down to 1 Mbps:

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : cust.hotspot.t-mobile.com

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast Ethernet NIC
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-D3-AF-6C-8E

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : cust.hotspot.t-mobile.com
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.113
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.224
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.97
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.97
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 66.94.9.120
66.94.25.120
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 6:53:49 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 7:08:49 PM

Ping to DNS:

Pinging 66.94.9.120 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=63ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=61ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=61ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=62ms TTL=249

Ping statistics for 66.94.9.120:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 61ms, Maximum = 63ms, Average = 61ms

Ping to yahoo:

Pinging www.yahoo.akadns.net [66.94.230.50] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=68ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=81ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=82ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=97ms TTL=51

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.50:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 68ms, Maximum = 97ms, Average = 82ms

Ping to yahoo using their IP address:

Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=172ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=140ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=149ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=67ms TTL=51

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 67ms, Maximum = 172ms, Average = 132ms

Next, I drove over to the Avila Market. I was able to connect to the router and ping the gateway but that was all, as the following shows.


IPCONFIG
Windows IP Configuration
Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast Ethernet NIC
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-D3-AF-6C-8E

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.101
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 24.205.224.35
64.214.48.27
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, May 09, 2006 7:29:26 AM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 7:29:26 AM

Ping to gateway:

Pinging 192.168.1.1 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150

Ping statistics for 192.168.1.1:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),

Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 1ms, Average = 1ms

Ping to yahoo:

Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),
Ping to DNS:

Pinging 64.214.48.27 with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

Ping to DNS
Pinging 24.205.224.35 with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

So what thoughts do you have?????

Thanks
Ken

 

[Chuck]

See post below...

Ken,

I help here to keep up with the issues that I may deal with in person later.
Your situation is intriguing, and I suspect that I will end up learning as much
as you do.

If you post in this thread, I'll see it. Just reply when you're ready.

Since you say that you did get help (unsuccessfully) from a local expert, I'm
thinking less and less that the problem might be with the hotspot. If you find
it convenient to sometime visit the other hotspot, an "ipconfig /all" log, along
with the results from the 4 way test for a couple websites, will make a good set
of comparative diagnostics.

When you uninstalled ZA, did you get instructions from ZoneLabs?

Chuck,

Here is followup from the 5/10 post. Basically, I updated the drivers
for the Intel 2516 wireless card adn I am back to where I was before:
everything works except the market, although I am able to ping the
router at Avila Market. Here is some info...

I decided yesterday to check the driver for the Intel wireless card and it was one or two versions behind, so I downloaded the driver and in stalled it. I am now back to where I was before: I was able to log onto Starbucks t-mobile hotspot with no problem but still had difficulty with the Avila Market. Following are the various files.
At Starbucks my reception remained at 11 Mbps all the time, as opposed to the day before when it varied down to 1 Mbps:

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : cust.hotspot.t-mobile.com

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast Ethernet NIC
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-D3-AF-6C-8E

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : cust.hotspot.t-mobile.com
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.113
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.224
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.97
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.97
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 66.94.9.120
66.94.25.120
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 6:53:49 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 7:08:49 PM

Ping to DNS:

Pinging 66.94.9.120 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=63ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=61ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=61ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=62ms TTL=249

Ping statistics for 66.94.9.120:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 61ms, Maximum = 63ms, Average = 61ms

Ping to yahoo:

Pinging www.yahoo.akadns.net [66.94.230.50] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=68ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=81ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=82ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=97ms TTL=51

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.50:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 68ms, Maximum = 97ms, Average = 82ms

Ping to yahoo using their IP address:

Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=172ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=140ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=149ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=67ms TTL=51

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 67ms, Maximum = 172ms, Average = 132ms

Next, I drove over to the Avila Market. I was able to connect to the router and ping the gateway but that was all, as the following shows.


IPCONFIG
Windows IP Configuration
Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast Ethernet NIC
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-D3-AF-6C-8E

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.101
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 24.205.224.35
64.214.48.27
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, May 09, 2006 7:29:26 AM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 7:29:26 AM

Ping to gateway:

Pinging 192.168.1.1 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150

Ping statistics for 192.168.1.1:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),

Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 1ms, Average = 1ms

Ping to yahoo:

Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),
Ping to DNS:

Pinging 64.214.48.27 with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

Ping to DNS
Pinging 24.205.224.35 with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

So what thoughts do you have?????

Thanks
Ken

Ken,

I think we need to start by separating different issues:
# WiFi Connectivity - authentication and encryption issues.
# Bandwidth and stability - ping packet loss, and varying throughput problems.
# Network connectivity - ability to access Internet resources when connected.

I haven't written any, or identified any useful third party, articles on WiFi
authentication and encryption issues. But there are a few issues which I have
in mind, some of which I've touched on briefly with you. I'll write, with my
thoughts, later today.

I'll ask you to read some of my articles about WiFi problems in general, though.
Some of the items won't directly apply to you (you're not setting up the WiFi
router for instance), but they may contain insight.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/11/setting-up-wifi-lan.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/11/setting-up-wifi-lan.html
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/10/wifi-will-never-be-as-fast-as-ethernet.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/10/wifi-will-never-be-as-fast-as-ethernet.html
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/05/you-have-to-share-wifi-bandwidth.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/05/you-have-to-share-wifi-bandwidth.html

I'm going to go thru your diagnostics later this morning, you have excellent
diagnostic skills (is that a side effect of Radiology maybe). I wish half the
folks asking for help here were half as thorough as you are. Maybe you'll
appreciate my articles, given your attention to detail. I'll bet there are a
couple explanations in there that may help you.

 

[Ken K]

See post below...

Chuck wrote:


<SNIP>

Thank you for responding, Chuck. I don't think that the Avila Market
has any grudges against their clients--you are correct.

WRT other hotspots, I occasionally use the ones at Starbucks without any
problem. WRT Avila Market, I am told that I am one of 2-3 people who
have difficulty but that many others have none. One day I spent a half
hour with a bright fellow who works there and he was surprised that I
was unable to connect. We tried a direct connection to circumvent any
problems with wireless but that did not change anything. There is a
roving IT company whom they call when there are problems but they have
had no problems (other than me) so they have not called the IT people.

I do now know if this router requires authentication. I assume I would
be presented with a request for name and password? I have been told
that there is not a need for signing up with their website nor for
entering any name or password.

I will try some other websites. I have been unable to contact msn.com,
msnbc.com, cingular.com, etc.

When I have done this, I will post it. It will not be before tomorrow.
Will you continue to monitor this thread or should I leave a note on
your blog? I left my personal email address there today.

Thanks for your work so far on this puzzling problem.
Ken




Ken,

I help here to keep up with the issues that I may deal with in person later.
Your situation is intriguing, and I suspect that I will end up learning as much
as you do.

If you post in this thread, I'll see it. Just reply when you're ready.

Since you say that you did get help (unsuccessfully) from a local expert, I'm
thinking less and less that the problem might be with the hotspot. If you find
it convenient to sometime visit the other hotspot, an "ipconfig /all" log, along
with the results from the 4 way test for a couple websites, will make a good set
of comparative diagnostics.

When you uninstalled ZA, did you get instructions from ZoneLabs?

Chuck,

Here is followup from the 5/10 post. Basically, I updated the drivers
for the Intel 2516 wireless card adn I am back to where I was before:
everything works except the market, although I am able to ping the
router at Avila Market. Here is some info...

I decided yesterday to check the driver for the Intel wireless card and it was one or two versions behind, so I downloaded the driver and in stalled it. I am now back to where I was before: I was able to log onto Starbucks t-mobile hotspot with no problem but still had difficulty with the Avila Market. Following are the various files.
At Starbucks my reception remained at 11 Mbps all the time, as opposed to the day before when it varied down to 1 Mbps:

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : cust.hotspot.t-mobile.com

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast Ethernet NIC
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-D3-AF-6C-8E

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : cust.hotspot.t-mobile.com
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.113
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.224
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.97
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.97
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 66.94.9.120
66.94.25.120
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 6:53:49 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 7:08:49 PM

Ping to DNS:

Pinging 66.94.9.120 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=63ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=61ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=61ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=62ms TTL=249

Ping statistics for 66.94.9.120:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 61ms, Maximum = 63ms, Average = 61ms

Ping to yahoo:

Pinging www.yahoo.akadns.net [66.94.230.50] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=68ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=81ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=82ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=97ms TTL=51

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.50:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 68ms, Maximum = 97ms, Average = 82ms

Ping to yahoo using their IP address:

Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=172ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=140ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=149ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=67ms TTL=51

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 67ms, Maximum = 172ms, Average = 132ms

Next, I drove over to the Avila Market. I was able to connect to the router and ping the gateway but that was all, as the following shows.


IPCONFIG
Windows IP Configuration
Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast Ethernet NIC
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-D3-AF-6C-8E

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.101
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 24.205.224.35
64.214.48.27
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, May 09, 2006 7:29:26 AM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 7:29:26 AM

Ping to gateway:

Pinging 192.168.1.1 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150

Ping statistics for 192.168.1.1:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),

Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 1ms, Average = 1ms

Ping to yahoo:

Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),
Ping to DNS:

Pinging 64.214.48.27 with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

Ping to DNS
Pinging 24.205.224.35 with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

So what thoughts do you have?????

Thanks
Ken

Ken,

I think we need to start by separating different issues:
# WiFi Connectivity - authentication and encryption issues.
# Bandwidth and stability - ping packet loss, and varying throughput problems.
# Network connectivity - ability to access Internet resources when connected.

I haven't written any, or identified any useful third party, articles on WiFi
authentication and encryption issues. But there are a few issues which I have
in mind, some of which I've touched on briefly with you. I'll write, with my
thoughts, later today.

I'll ask you to read some of my articles about WiFi problems in general, though.
Some of the items won't directly apply to you (you're not setting up the WiFi
router for instance), but they may contain insight.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/11/setting-up-wifi-lan.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/11/setting-up-wifi-lan.html
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/10/wifi-will-never-be-as-fast-as-ethernet.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/10/wifi-will-never-be-as-fast-as-ethernet.html
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/05/you-have-to-share-wifi-bandwidth.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/05/you-have-to-share-wifi-bandwidth.html

I'm going to go thru your diagnostics later this morning, you have excellent
diagnostic skills (is that a side effect of Radiology maybe). I wish half the
folks asking for help here were half as thorough as you are. Maybe you'll
appreciate my articles, given your attention to detail. I'll bet there are a
couple explanations in there that may help you.

Hi, Chuck.

We are down in Newport today visiting our kids in college for the
weekend, so time will be limited. I will read as I am able to. Let me
know if the diagnostics I did give you any clues. We are off to England
for a couple of weeks late June and I would hate to schlep my laptop if
I am likely to have connectivity problems!

Thanks
Ken

 

[Chuck]

See post below...

Chuck wrote:





<SNIP>



Thank you for responding, Chuck. I don't think that the Avila Market
has any grudges against their clients--you are correct.

WRT other hotspots, I occasionally use the ones at Starbucks without any
problem. WRT Avila Market, I am told that I am one of 2-3 people who
have difficulty but that many others have none. One day I spent a half
hour with a bright fellow who works there and he was surprised that I
was unable to connect. We tried a direct connection to circumvent any
problems with wireless but that did not change anything. There is a
roving IT company whom they call when there are problems but they have
had no problems (other than me) so they have not called the IT people.

I do now know if this router requires authentication. I assume I would
be presented with a request for name and password? I have been told
that there is not a need for signing up with their website nor for
entering any name or password.

I will try some other websites. I have been unable to contact msn.com,
msnbc.com, cingular.com, etc.

When I have done this, I will post it. It will not be before tomorrow.
Will you continue to monitor this thread or should I leave a note on
your blog? I left my personal email address there today.

Thanks for your work so far on this puzzling problem.
Ken




Ken,

I help here to keep up with the issues that I may deal with in person later.
Your situation is intriguing, and I suspect that I will end up learning as much
as you do.

If you post in this thread, I'll see it. Just reply when you're ready.

Since you say that you did get help (unsuccessfully) from a local expert, I'm
thinking less and less that the problem might be with the hotspot. If you find
it convenient to sometime visit the other hotspot, an "ipconfig /all" log, along
with the results from the 4 way test for a couple websites, will make a good set
of comparative diagnostics.

When you uninstalled ZA, did you get instructions from ZoneLabs?




Chuck,

Here is followup from the 5/10 post. Basically, I updated the drivers
for the Intel 2516 wireless card adn I am back to where I was before:
everything works except the market, although I am able to ping the
router at Avila Market. Here is some info...

I decided yesterday to check the driver for the Intel wireless card and it was one or two versions behind, so I downloaded the driver and in stalled it. I am now back to where I was before: I was able to log onto Starbucks t-mobile hotspot with no problem but still had difficulty with the Avila Market. Following are the various files.
At Starbucks my reception remained at 11 Mbps all the time, as opposed to the day before when it varied down to 1 Mbps:

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : cust.hotspot.t-mobile.com

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast Ethernet NIC
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-D3-AF-6C-8E

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : cust.hotspot.t-mobile.com
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.113
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.224
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.97
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.97
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 66.94.9.120
66.94.25.120
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 6:53:49 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 7:08:49 PM

Ping to DNS:

Pinging 66.94.9.120 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=63ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=61ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=61ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=62ms TTL=249

Ping statistics for 66.94.9.120:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 61ms, Maximum = 63ms, Average = 61ms

Ping to yahoo:

Pinging www.yahoo.akadns.net [66.94.230.50] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=68ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=81ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=82ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=97ms TTL=51

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.50:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 68ms, Maximum = 97ms, Average = 82ms

Ping to yahoo using their IP address:

Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=172ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=140ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=149ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=67ms TTL=51

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 67ms, Maximum = 172ms, Average = 132ms

Next, I drove over to the Avila Market. I was able to connect to the router and ping the gateway but that was all, as the following shows.


IPCONFIG
Windows IP Configuration
Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast Ethernet NIC
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-D3-AF-6C-8E

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.101
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 24.205.224.35
64.214.48.27
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, May 09, 2006 7:29:26 AM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 7:29:26 AM

Ping to gateway:

Pinging 192.168.1.1 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150

Ping statistics for 192.168.1.1:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),

Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 1ms, Average = 1ms

Ping to yahoo:

Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),
Ping to DNS:

Pinging 64.214.48.27 with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

Ping to DNS
Pinging 24.205.224.35 with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

So what thoughts do you have?????

Thanks
Ken

Ken,

I think we need to start by separating different issues:
# WiFi Connectivity - authentication and encryption issues.
# Bandwidth and stability - ping packet loss, and varying throughput problems.
# Network connectivity - ability to access Internet resources when connected.

I haven't written any, or identified any useful third party, articles on WiFi
authentication and encryption issues. But there are a few issues which I have
in mind, some of which I've touched on briefly with you. I'll write, with my
thoughts, later today.

I'll ask you to read some of my articles about WiFi problems in general, though.
Some of the items won't directly apply to you (you're not setting up the WiFi
router for instance), but they may contain insight.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/11/setting-up-wifi-lan.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/11/setting-up-wifi-lan.html
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/10/wifi-will-never-be-as-fast-as-ethernet.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/10/wifi-will-never-be-as-fast-as-ethernet.html
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/05/you-have-to-share-wifi-bandwidth.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/05/you-have-to-share-wifi-bandwidth.html

I'm going to go thru your diagnostics later this morning, you have excellent
diagnostic skills (is that a side effect of Radiology maybe). I wish half the
folks asking for help here were half as thorough as you are. Maybe you'll
appreciate my articles, given your attention to detail. I'll bet there are a
couple explanations in there that may help you.

Hi, Chuck.

We are down in Newport today visiting our kids in college for the
weekend, so time will be limited. I will read as I am able to. Let me
know if the diagnostics I did give you any clues. We are off to England
for a couple of weeks late June and I would hate to schlep my laptop if
I am likely to have connectivity problems!

Thanks
Ken

Ken,

Having looked at your results from T-Mobile / Starbucks, it would appear that
your laptop is not having connectivity problems, or at least any that are its
own fault. The T-Mobile setup is a good baseline, and it looks good there.

Now WiFi connectivity is a complex subject. I've just begun to touch upon it in
my articles (linked above). Those articles describe the problems from a
domestic LAN viewpoint, ie your LAN where you control the LAN itself, and the
Internet service (as much as any customer can control the Internet service).

There are things that you can't control, as a domestic WiFi LAN owner.
# Noise on the channel (analogue interference).
# Neighbors sharing the WiFi spectrum (digital interference).

When you use a public hotspot, you are still subject to those problems. You
have 3 additional problems.
# Internet service used by the hotspot.
# Other customers at the hotspot (digital interference).
# Authentication / encryption used by the hotspot, to control the customers, and
to keep the customers secure.

These issues all apply after you are connected to the hotspot. Connection is
another issue. And authentication (do we allow you to connect) / encryption
(how we keep your data secure between you and the hotspot) is a problem.
# WEP, the original standard for WiFi security, only provided encryption, with a
static encryption key. The hackers figured out how to break the key, so WEP has
been dismissed for security.
# WPA / WPA2 has several versions of authentication and encryption. You will
probably use the simplest: WPA-PSK with TKIP. PSK is a pre-shared key, similar
to the key used in WEP, but more complex. TKIP is an encryption protocol which
starts off using the pre-shared key, but changes the encryption key regularly,
which keeps hackers from breaking the key.
# At most big hotspot chains, like T-Mobile, they have dismissed using WPA
because it's a pain in the @ss to setup. If you setup a home LAN, you will use
it, because you control the LAN. But how can you do that, if you don't control
or even meet the customers and their computers? And not everybody with a laptop
at Starbucks is capable of setting up a WPA client, without help.

With most hotspot chains, the hotspot itself will be open. You connect to the
hotspot, THEN you authenticate using your credit card (or maybe a token provided
by the store running the hotspot).

Obviously, you got connected to T-Mobile, since you provided ping diagnostics
from www.yahoo.com. So you have a baseline:
# Your laptop IS capable of connecting.
# YOU are capable of dealing with hotspot connection procedures.

The latter two issues are not always not certain, so it's good to get them out
of the way. With that in mind, you should be safe schlepping the laptop on your
trip.

Now, please clarify your earlier statement:

At Starbucks my reception remained at 11 Mbps all the time, as opposed to the
day before when it varied down to 1 Mbps.

Was the day before at Starbucks too? Have you ever connected at the Avila
Market?

 

[Chuck]

See post below...

Chuck wrote:





<SNIP>



Thank you for responding, Chuck. I don't think that the Avila Market
has any grudges against their clients--you are correct.

WRT other hotspots, I occasionally use the ones at Starbucks without any
problem. WRT Avila Market, I am told that I am one of 2-3 people who
have difficulty but that many others have none. One day I spent a half
hour with a bright fellow who works there and he was surprised that I
was unable to connect. We tried a direct connection to circumvent any
problems with wireless but that did not change anything. There is a
roving IT company whom they call when there are problems but they have
had no problems (other than me) so they have not called the IT people.

I do now know if this router requires authentication. I assume I would
be presented with a request for name and password? I have been told
that there is not a need for signing up with their website nor for
entering any name or password.

I will try some other websites. I have been unable to contact msn.com,
msnbc.com, cingular.com, etc.

When I have done this, I will post it. It will not be before tomorrow.
Will you continue to monitor this thread or should I leave a note on
your blog? I left my personal email address there today.

Thanks for your work so far on this puzzling problem.
Ken




Ken,

I help here to keep up with the issues that I may deal with in person later.
Your situation is intriguing, and I suspect that I will end up learning as much
as you do.

If you post in this thread, I'll see it. Just reply when you're ready.

Since you say that you did get help (unsuccessfully) from a local expert, I'm
thinking less and less that the problem might be with the hotspot. If you find
it convenient to sometime visit the other hotspot, an "ipconfig /all" log, along
with the results from the 4 way test for a couple websites, will make a good set
of comparative diagnostics.

When you uninstalled ZA, did you get instructions from ZoneLabs?




Chuck,

Here is followup from the 5/10 post. Basically, I updated the drivers
for the Intel 2516 wireless card adn I am back to where I was before:
everything works except the market, although I am able to ping the
router at Avila Market. Here is some info...

I decided yesterday to check the driver for the Intel wireless card and it was one or two versions behind, so I downloaded the driver and in stalled it. I am now back to where I was before: I was able to log onto Starbucks t-mobile hotspot with no problem but still had difficulty with the Avila Market. Following are the various files.
At Starbucks my reception remained at 11 Mbps all the time, as opposed to the day before when it varied down to 1 Mbps:

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : cust.hotspot.t-mobile.com

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast Ethernet NIC
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-D3-AF-6C-8E

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : cust.hotspot.t-mobile.com
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.113
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.224
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.97
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.253.100.97
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 66.94.9.120
66.94.25.120
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 6:53:49 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 7:08:49 PM

Ping to DNS:

Pinging 66.94.9.120 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=63ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=61ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=61ms TTL=249
Reply from 66.94.9.120: bytes=32 time=62ms TTL=249

Ping statistics for 66.94.9.120:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 61ms, Maximum = 63ms, Average = 61ms

Ping to yahoo:

Pinging www.yahoo.akadns.net [66.94.230.50] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=68ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=81ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=82ms TTL=52
Reply from 66.94.230.50: bytes=32 time=97ms TTL=51

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.50:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 68ms, Maximum = 97ms, Average = 82ms

Ping to yahoo using their IP address:

Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=172ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=140ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=149ms TTL=51
Reply from 66.94.230.33: bytes=32 time=67ms TTL=51

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 67ms, Maximum = 172ms, Average = 132ms

Next, I drove over to the Avila Market. I was able to connect to the router and ping the gateway but that was all, as the following shows.


IPCONFIG
Windows IP Configuration
Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : LAPTOP
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mixed
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8139/810x Family Fast Ethernet NIC
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-D3-AF-6C-8E

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-CE-C8-96-59
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.101
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 24.205.224.35
64.214.48.27
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, May 09, 2006 7:29:26 AM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, May 10, 2006 7:29:26 AM

Ping to gateway:

Pinging 192.168.1.1 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150
Reply from 192.168.1.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=150

Ping statistics for 192.168.1.1:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),

Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 1ms, Average = 1ms

Ping to yahoo:

Pinging 66.94.230.33 with 32 bytes of data:
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),
Ping to DNS:

Pinging 64.214.48.27 with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

Ping to DNS
Pinging 24.205.224.35 with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 66.94.230.33:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

So what thoughts do you have?????

Thanks
Ken

Ken,

I think we need to start by separating different issues:
# WiFi Connectivity - authentication and encryption issues.
# Bandwidth and stability - ping packet loss, and varying throughput problems.
# Network connectivity - ability to access Internet resources when connected.

I haven't written any, or identified any useful third party, articles on WiFi
authentication and encryption issues. But there are a few issues which I have
in mind, some of which I've touched on briefly with you. I'll write, with my
thoughts, later today.

I'll ask you to read some of my articles about WiFi problems in general, though.
Some of the items won't directly apply to you (you're not setting up the WiFi
router for instance), but they may contain insight.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/11/setting-up-wifi-lan.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/11/setting-up-wifi-lan.html
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/10/wifi-will-never-be-as-fast-as-ethernet.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/10/wifi-will-never-be-as-fast-as-ethernet.html
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/05/you-have-to-share-wifi-bandwidth.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/05/you-have-to-share-wifi-bandwidth.html

I'm going to go thru your diagnostics later this morning, you have excellent
diagnostic skills (is that a side effect of Radiology maybe). I wish half the
folks asking for help here were half as thorough as you are. Maybe you'll
appreciate my articles, given your attention to detail. I'll bet there are a
couple explanations in there that may help you.

Hi, Chuck.

We are down in Newport today visiting our kids in college for the
weekend, so time will be limited. I will read as I am able to. Let me
know if the diagnostics I did give you any clues. We are off to England
for a couple of weeks late June and I would hate to schlep my laptop if
I am likely to have connectivity problems!

Thanks
Ken

Ken,

Having looked at your results from T-Mobile / Starbucks, it would appear that
your laptop is not having connectivity problems, or at least any that are its
own fault. The T-Mobile setup is a good baseline, and it looks good there.

Now WiFi connectivity is a complex subject. I've just begun to touch upon it in
my articles (linked above). Those articles describe the problems from a
domestic LAN viewpoint, ie your LAN where you control the LAN itself, and the
Internet service (as much as any customer can control the Internet service).

My latest article discusses issues related to using a public hotspot.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/05/using-public-wifi-networks.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/05/using-public-wifi-networks.html

Obviously, you got connected to T-Mobile, since you provided ping diagnostics
from www.yahoo.com. So you have a baseline:
# Your laptop IS capable of connecting.
# YOU are capable of dealing with hotspot connection procedures.

The latter two issues are not always not certain, so it's good to get them out
of the way. With that in mind, you should be safe schlepping the laptop on your
trip.

Now, please clarify your earlier statement:

At Starbucks my reception remained at 11 Mbps all the time, as opposed to the
day before when it varied down to 1 Mbps.

Was the day before at Starbucks too? Have you ever connected at the Avila
Market?