PC network connection issue with D-Link WiFi router.

July 7, 2004 10:12 PM

What's wrong with my PC's network connection? I know this is XP Networking 101 stuff, and most of the time I know my way around, but one PC out of six I've got sharing a DSL connection via a D-Link WiFi router is refusing to play. [more inside]

I have Internet access via Verizon DSL, and a Linksys WRT-54G WiFi/Wired broadband router (I know I typed D-Link above, that's at work!). I have successfully gotten all but one PC to connect through it, some wired and some WiFi, with WEP and MAC filtering.

What works? A wired Windows 98 box, a wireless Windows ME box, a wired XP Pro box, a Tablet PC and a TiVo (both also via WiFi). So, you'd think I've got this stuff down pat?

But I've got a XP Home PC that just wont play. It's in fact the only device with a Linksys Wireless G PCI card (the rest of my WiFi setup is mixed brands), so I figure getting it to work would be a cinch. And, in fact, it sorta works -- that is, the Wireless Connection is active and bridged and the little icon in the taskbar reports an "Excellent" connection. (And the router's admin reports that the PCI NIC has a valid/active lease.)

The PCI NIC and the router are talking fine. It's the PC that's not talking to the PCI NIC.

I did all sorts of things. Absolutely I made sure it was set to get its settings automatically (DHCP). I used various ipconfig commands (release, renew, flushdns), enabling and disabling and bridging and unbridging things under Network Connections (the PC also has a standard Ethernet NIC but it's not being used)... but as far as the system is concerned, there is no connection to the Internet.

The only sign something is wrong? ipconfig /renew hangs. It can't connect to anything. And I just noticed that ipconfig /release -- which usually gives me a variety of default IP values -- instead displays a specific IP (169.254.75.12).

Help!

posted by pzarquon to Technology (3 answers total)

Response by poster: Hmm. The value, specifically, that's set to that IP address is "Autoconfiguration IP Address." I've never seen that in any of the "Properties..." I've rummaged through.
posted by pzarquon at 10:45 PM on July 7, 2004

Try This?

Also, is there a reason you're sticking with XP Home on this machine?
posted by falconred at 10:49 PM on July 7, 2004

Response by poster: Figured it out. Whatever the hell a Network Bridge does, it wasn't helping. After I moved all the bridged connections outside, a new icon called "Internet Gateway/Internet Connection" suddenly appeared, and voila, everything worked.

Thanks, Falconred! Oddly enough, I ended up at that site courtesy Google earlier today!
posted by pzarquon at 12:45 AM on July 8, 2004