Thinkpads Forum

I've got a Z61M hardwired to a wireless router, which is providing great connectivity to it and two other computers downstream in my home. Normally, the Z61m never leaves my desk, so this has never come up before... but when I unplugged the router cable on the computer and tried to connect to the network in another room with Access Connections, it won't connect. Access Connections says that the computer is disconnected, and when I click on "connect," it goes through "applying wireless connections" OK but fails at the "waiting for association" step.

Any suggestions gratefully received.

Paul

paulbaran wrote:Access Connections says that the computer is disconnected, and when I click on "connect," it goes through "applying wireless connections" OK but fails at the "waiting for association" step.

Can Access Connections "see" your wireless router at all in "find network"?

If so, do you have any wireless encryption or other access control (such as MAC address) set in the wireless section of the router setup?

Cheers,

Bill B.

Hello Bill,

No, it doesn't see it when I try "find network." On the router, I have WEP enabled with a 10-digit password, and I added the Z61's MAC address (along with the downstream computers) to it when I set it up. FWIW, I'm running XP Pro.

Thanks

Greetings from Coquitlam (guess it's time to update my signature . . . ). Hope you enjoyed the snow over the weekend!

My first question is whether you have your AC profile set to play with both wired and wireless connections. In AC go: Locations > Manage Profiles > select your profile and click Edit and on the General Settings tab make sure you have wired and wireless adapters enabled in 3. Choose the network adapter you want to use at this location. My suspicion is that you may have just the wired and not the wireless enabled. Of course, you also have to enter your SSID, WEP key, etc., on the Wireless Settings tab. Give that a go and see what happens.

Do you have a firewall running on the Z61 other than the XP firewall like Norton Internet Security? If so make sure it is not blocking the wireless connection.

Sorry, I’m a novice when it comes to wireless… I reviewed your suggestions and my AC General Settings show both the Ethernet and the wireless adapters as enabled. In Wireless Settings, the Static WEP Properties are set, including the key.

But still, when I unplug from the router, Windows’ Network Connections still shows the “wireless network connection” as disconnected. No network shows up when I select View Available Wireless Networks.

There’s no added security apart from the XP firewall.

Must be a setting in the router I'm overlooking?

Thank you

Make sure that the switch on the front of the machine is set to wireless, then hit FN-F5 on your keyboard. Enable wireless from the screen that pops up.

paulbaran wrote:Must be a setting in the router I'm overlooking?

Make sure the router is set to broadcast the SSID of the wireless network. There's no real benefit in hiding it in most cases, and it sometimes makes a difference in trrms of establishing connectivity.

Cheers,

Bill B.

Thanks. Yes, the switch is on and the FN-F5 switches are all on. I unplugged again, and did the "repair" Wireless Connection in Network Connections, and oddly, it now shows as “connected,” with excellent signal strength. But it’s still not "really" connecting to the Internet. I checked the System-Device Manager settings for the Intel Pro Wireless adapter, and it’s enabled too. I'm sure it's just a switch somewhere, but where? I'm almost wondering if it's worth the time to reconfigure the wireless router to an older laptop and then see if the Z61M will connect to that network...

I'm delighted to report I'm sending this "unplugged." I re-entered the info in the Dynamic DHCP Client List area (network filter) for the router, and I'm off to the races. Thanks to all for the support.