Vista Networking Drama - Help...

[sammy5gs]

Hey Guys - I will try to make this brief. I have a simple 3-pc home network in place. I have DSL service through my ISP (BellSouth), in which I have a DSL Modem, connected to a Belkin N1 Wireless Router.

One box is hardwired to the router (Vista Home Basic box) - one box (XP Pro) is connecting wirelessly to the network/to access internet, and one laptop (Vista Ultimate) was connecting wirelessly to the network/to access internet.

Up until two days ago, all was running smooth and fine. No updates, no changes, nada, zip. Then, out of the blue, the laptop (Vista Ultimate) was having trouble identifying the network and was not able to connect to the internet. When I went to the Network Sharing Gui in Vista, it showed that it was still "identifying", while access to the internet had the Red X. When I use the in-house diagnose and repair tools in Vista, I get the dialog that it was not able to correct the issue and that I should power down the modem/router (after they attempt to reset the adapter, get new IP settings, etc). I tried that, to no avail.

For ish and giggles, I tried connecting wirelessly to an unsecured network in my neighborhood and was succesful in doing so on the laptop. Yet, when I try to connect to my network, no joy. When I hardwire the laptop via ethernet to the Router, I connect fine. I have entered and re-entered the security key to my network a number of times, so I know that is not the issue.

Keep in mind, the other wireless rig (XP Box) still is connecting fine with no issues throughout this whole process.

Also, the laptop usually is located 5 feet away from the router.

I am lost. Initially, I thought that wireless card on the laptop was going, but I was able to connect to another network. I then thought something was wrong with my router, but nope, my other rig (XP) connects fine (one I am on now). I thought maybe there was something wrong with the modem, but nope, the hardwired rig (Vista Home) and my other wireless rig (XP) work fine.

Bottom line, something is up with the laptop trying to connect wireless to my network only. Vista is not helping to address it since it can only refer me to power down or contact my ISP.

Any clues that I can explore will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

[hafa]

Try this:

control panel > network and sharing center > in the main window, to the right, click "customize" next to any of your networks, then, at the bottom of the window, click "Merge of delete network locations. Click on the name of your home wireless network and delete it. Your machine should pick it up as a new network and should reconfigure it correctly.

[TempliNocturnus]

Try rebooting the router. If it still doesn't work, remove encryption, try to connect, and then, if you're able to connect, re-enable encryption. This seems to happen to me often, if I disable my interface, before disconnecting. I think this some how causes the keys to be out of sync. One other thing I noticed, that seems to be preventing connectivity, is my adapter will default to WPA2, since my router will accept both WPA and WPA2. If I force my adapter to WPA, it seems to fix itself.

[jhanby]

I had the same thing happen to me when i built my vista wireless rig. It was connecting to our network but not seeing the internet.

In the end I took my computer to the router and plugged it in via a network cable and downloaded all available updates. Now it works perfectly and tbh better than when I had XP on the computer in the exact same place. Very impressed with vista and wireless now.