Thinkpads Forum

I've upgraded my router to one that supports 802.11N on both 2.4 and 5 GHz and since there's no local competition or intereference on 5GHz...and higher speeds...I'd like to tell my Wifi adapter (the original built in miniPCE card) to use the 5GHz N setting instead o the old 2.4G that it has been using.

I managed to do that once by opening the Intel WiFi Administrator Tool, which didn't offer any simple switches but had a convulted way to change the preference, say it to a Group Policy, and then store that and run it on the compter. (Vista OS)

Somehow...it defaulted back to 2.4G and I can't get it back to 5N at all. And I keep thinking, there's GOT to be a simpler more direct way to just tell the radio "Yo! Use this other band and mode NOW PLEASE!" without setting group policies and all.

I've checked ThinkVantage Access Connections, I' e checked the Vista networking settings...I'm hoping I've got a blind spot the size of a barn door and there is, surely, a simple way to do this?? Or to set the wireless network profile to default to one setting rather than the other??

devmgmt.msc
Properties->Advanced->Wireless Mode.
(I guess. Mine is only 3945ABG)

device manager, network adapters, Intel 4965AGN, Porperties, Advanced: Wireless Mode.
There's a choice of six here:
a
b
g
b/g
a/g
a/b/g

But none that even mention the "n" mode. I think the A and N modes are both able to use the 5GHz radio, perhaps Intel got sloppy about updating the driver (this is v.12.4.0.21 dated 3/4/2009 but it appears to be the latest available) and selecting "A" only will force 5+N. (I've been using the a/b/g setting.)

Let's see what happens when I push this button and go offline...

Woa! Shazaam! Magic mode engaged, the driver setting is for 802.11A but as best I know, my router doesn't speak that, so it must be working in 5+N mode. Thanks for the pointer. I guess I'll have to gnetly chide someone at Intel and remind them that there are 802.11N final standards out there now, they (ahem) really ought to update that year-old driver and at least MENTION the N modes in it.

hellosailor wrote:really ought to update that year-old driver

The current Intel version 13 WiFi drivers date from a few months back.

Bill, how would I know what's current for that radio? When I tell Vista "Go forth and seek ye new drivers on the web" it just says there are none. Is my OS lying to me again?!

Did you find newer ones at Intel, or Lenono?

Intel doesn't say what their newer driver and control application address, Lenono's latest offerings just say they add new models and address a BSOD on radio power-up. I guess I'll have to go exploring...

It took me all of 2 minutes to find these....

Win 7 http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... MIGR-73611

Vista http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... MIGR-70505

XP http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... MIGR-70504

Bill-
Yes, I also found that one, but other than a reference to the previous release "Fixed an issue where connection randomly dropped." which I'm already running...the latest release appears to only be an expansion for newer models of TPads. The random dropping has been real--I replaced the radio itself under warranty and when that didn't fix random drops, I replaced (upgrading) the router as well. But if their versioning is correct, I think I'm also already running that driver update. The matching software update (not the driver itself) may have a "n" button in it. Or maybe not. I was hoping someone else knew "for sure" before I threw in an update at random.
Got enough hexadecimal pasta stuck on the wall already, so to speak.<G>

I would have expected Vista to be able to find the driver on the web--if Intel and Lenono could only agree on whose driver is current and stable to use, and drop MS a little note to that effect.

Later...

I did a little experimenting tonight, Bill. Dl'd and tried installing the Lenovo update 6mwv15ww.exe which appears to be the lastest driver+control rollup for Vista32. The accompanying txt file warns the user to download and install KB932063 but MS shows that is a "pre-SP1" "at your own risk" hotfix. Since we're now past Vista SP2...that's curious advice. Needless to say, running this exe file resulted in the loss of my wifi radio completely. And no, I didn't install the obsoleted hotfix.

Running the Intel diagnostics brought up a message that the current (12.x) driver didn't support the newer ProSet control software, so I installed the later 13.x driver from Intel over the failed Lenono software package. The Lenono driver required a (slow) reboot, the Intel driver update didn't. And the Intel update brought back the radio.

This is why I put no trust in published instructions--as opposed to direct feedback from users. Lenono's instructions are apparently obsoleted by more than a year (per-SP1 ?! for a late 2009 driver update?!) and in this case, apparently the Intel software works while the "check your OEM first" doesn't.

Whether either one will address the "sometimes the connection is dropped and can't re-authenticate" problem, I don't know, but along the way I see the problem itself IS substantially documented. If Lenono hardware support had known about this, we probably could have skipped swapping out my radio if someone had said "Oh, that's a driver issue, would you mind trying a driver update first?"

Of course if it was Dell, they'd have blamed my ISP and told me to rebrick the computer instead.<G>