*** Written for the original release version of Windows XP and Windows XP with Service Pack 1. (XP Service Pack 2 users click here)
802.11b/g technology enables computers equipped with Wireless LAN cards to join a wireless network. The following steps are covered in this document to help you configure your PC with Windows XP to use its wireless card.
Open the "Computer Management" administrative tool. It can be found by pressing the "Start" button, selecting "Settings" and clicking on "Control Panel". Double-click on "Administrative Tools", and then on "Computer Management". At left, click once on "Device Manager". At right, click the "+" next to "My Computer" to expand a list of device categories. Click the "+" next to the "Network Adapters" category. Your adapter should be listed, and there should not be a yellow exclamation point or a red "x" next to it. Absence of these marks indicates that the adapter is properly installed with the correct drivers and that there are no conflicts. If there is a yellow or red problem indicator on the adapter's icon, you may have to look at your device guide to troubleshoot the problems.
The TCP/IP protocol is used to connect your computer to the Internet. Make sure you set your wireless network adapter up to use DHCP.
Windows XP has changed much of how a connection is made. This is true whether it is a wireless connection or any other connection. This change has made it somewhat simpler to access the wireless network. However, for those unfamiliar with this new way of doing things, configuring the wireless card can be a bit troublesome. The first thing you will need to find is the "Properties" of your "Network Connections" The simplest way to get to this location is to right click on the "My Network Places" icon and select properties.
You may notice that there is an "X" next to your wireless connection. This is expected. It shows that your wireless card is properly installed, but you have not as yet connected to a wireless network. You need to right click on the wireless network icon, and select "View Available Wireless Networks"
You should see a list of available wireless networks. If you do not see "campus_wireless" then you need to get into range of a college Wireless Access Point. Information about where such locations can be found is available at http://its.cocc.edu/services/wireless.
For various reasons the COCC Campus Wireless network has not implemented WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy), thus you will be informed that the wireless connection is not secure. If you select "Allow me to connect..." you will then be connected to the Campus wireless system.
It may do some things, but an icon in the lower right hand corner of your desktop should eventually appear stating that you are connected.
You are now ready to authenticate to the Campus wireless system.
To test the TCP/IP protocol, open your web browser (Internet Explorer, FireFox, Mozilla, etc). You should see the wireless authentication page come up. If not, verify that your wireless card is working properly. (See the first step in this document).
NOTE: Even if you are planning on using another internet resource such as SSH or other service, you will still need to launch a web browser first and authenticate. After authentication, you will be able to access those other internet programs as you would normally.
When opening your browser a web based login web page will appear containing instructions regarding how to log in in the right portion of the page. (click here for an example of this login web page) If this login web page does not appear please review the notes in the Troubleshooting section.
Troubleshooting
For up-to-date troubleshooting tips for common problems see the Troubleshooting section on the following web page: http://its.cocc.edu/Services/Wireless/default.aspx
If you have other Networking cards, you may want to remove them. The system will try to use all Network cards bound to TCP/IP. If a network card exists, but isn't attached to the network, it may try using that card to access the Internet.
You can type "ipconfig /Release" and "ipconfig /Renew" at a command window on Windows XP machines. This will attempt to communicate to the DHCP server. If an IP address is available, you will be assigned one quickly. If not, then the AP may be having problems, and you should try another location. If it works at another location, please contact the Computer Lab Coordinator at (541) 383-7719 to report the problem.
Click here to send COCC feedback about these wireless configuration instructions.