Dell Inspiron 1501 won't connect to wireless...WHY???

  • Thread starter Thread starter Schwester
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Schwester

My laptop connected to the internet just fine up until last Thursday. I've
tried the following:
1. using system restore to go back a couple of weeks, to no avail.
2. speaking with internet service provider. They determined there was no
problem on their end.
3. speaking with wireless router manufacturer. They walked me through all
the advanced settings, which they determined to be ok. We tried using the
WZC, also to no avail.
4. resetting/unplugging & re-plugging in the modem, to no avail.

I do not have backup discs for this laptop, which runs on Windows XP. My
Dell desktop pc connects to the internet just fine with the wireless router.
My laptop won't connect to the internet anywhere at all, not at home, nor at
a wifi cafe, as of last Thursday. When I try to connect, I see I have a
strong signal, but I get the following message:

"Windows can't configure this wireless connection. If you want Windows to
configure this wireless connection, start the Wireless Zero Configuration.
Refer to Microsoft Knowledge Base article # 871122."

I'm at a loss at this point. I'd sincerely appreciate any suggestions.
Thanks very much!
 
Schwester said:
My laptop connected to the internet just fine up until last Thursday. I've
tried the following:
1. using system restore to go back a couple of weeks, to no avail.
2. speaking with internet service provider. They determined there was no
problem on their end.
3. speaking with wireless router manufacturer. They walked me through all
the advanced settings, which they determined to be ok. We tried using the
WZC, also to no avail.
4. resetting/unplugging & re-plugging in the modem, to no avail.

I do not have backup discs for this laptop, which runs on Windows XP. My
Dell desktop pc connects to the internet just fine with the wireless
router.
My laptop won't connect to the internet anywhere at all, not at home, nor
at
a wifi cafe, as of last Thursday. When I try to connect, I see I have a
strong signal, but I get the following message:

"Windows can't configure this wireless connection. If you want Windows to
configure this wireless connection, start the Wireless Zero Configuration.
Refer to Microsoft Knowledge Base article # 871122."

I'm at a loss at this point. I'd sincerely appreciate any suggestions.
Thanks very much!
Click to expand...

What has changed that may have caused this; i.e., new software, firewall
upgrade, Windows updates, new hardware, etc.?
Go into your network settings and delete any wireless connections that may
be there. Shut the laptop down (not just a reboot). Turn it back on and see
if it finds your wireless home network. If so, check the settings in that
connection with your router settings. Are you using WPA, WPA2, WEP, or no
security settings? Are you using a dynamic IP, or getting one from the
router? Is your passphrase correct on the laptop? Is the laptop wireless
built-in, or are you using a USB network dongle?

SC Tom
 
Does your laptop have any network monitoring software? I have seen this
type of software in an Acer Aspire detect a neighbour's computer.

Have a read of the User Guide:
http://snurl.com/m8ok3 [209_85_229_132]

Could your wireless connection have been hijacked by a neighbour?

Does an ethernet wired connection work?

Have a look in the System and Application logs in Event Viewer for
Errors and Warnings and post copies here. Don't post any more than 48
hours ago.

You can access Event Viewer by selecting Start, Control Panel,
Administrative Tools, and Event Viewer. When researching the meaning
of the error, information regarding Event ID, Source and Description
are important.

A tip for posting copies of Error Reports! Run Event Viewer and double
click on the error you want to copy. In the window, which appears is a
button resembling two pages. Click the button and close Event
Viewer.Now start your message (email) and do a paste into the body of
the message. Make sure this is the first paste after exiting from
Event Viewer.

--


Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
Perhaps the switch is off. Almost all laptops these days have a switch (on
the side or at the back or even at the front above the keyboard) which you
can switch on or off at will. Have you tried it to see if the switch is on?

The fact that you have restored from back ups points to the switch being off
because factory settings is always off.

Hope this helps and let us know if this worked.
 
Schwester said:
My laptop connected to the internet just fine up until last Thursday. I've
tried the following:
1. using system restore to go back a couple of weeks, to no avail.
2. speaking with internet service provider. They determined there was no
problem on their end.
3. speaking with wireless router manufacturer. They walked me through all
the advanced settings, which they determined to be ok. We tried using the
WZC, also to no avail.
4. resetting/unplugging & re-plugging in the modem, to no avail.

I do not have backup discs for this laptop, which runs on Windows XP. My
Dell desktop pc connects to the internet just fine with the wireless router.
My laptop won't connect to the internet anywhere at all, not at home, nor at
a wifi cafe, as of last Thursday. When I try to connect, I see I have a
strong signal, but I get the following message:

"Windows can't configure this wireless connection. If you want Windows to
configure this wireless connection, start the Wireless Zero Configuration.
Refer to Microsoft Knowledge Base article # 871122."

I'm at a loss at this point. I'd sincerely appreciate any suggestions.
Thanks very much!
Click to expand...

First of, did you try to renter the SSID and the Encryption Key for your
wireless?

Click Start >> Connect to >> Show all connection. Right click you wireless,
select Properties. On the wireless Network connection Pro under General tab
click and highlight Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) then click the properties
button.
On the TCP/IP pro Make sure the machine assigned/ obtaining the IP Auto by
check mark these radio mark:

(*) Obtain an IP address auto...

(*) Obtain DNS server address Auto..

Click [OK]

Then again on the WN connection Pro click on Wireless Networks tab and make
sure this check box checked:

[ ] Use windows to config my W Net settings.

Can you remove all the wireless names (SSID) under the preferred networks
and also add your wireless SSID and the Encryption method you are using to
secure your Wireless network then reboot your machine. Does it help?

If you still having problem carry on with the next steps:
Open a Run Command and type in:
services.msc click [OK].
On the services control Panel scroll down to Windows Zero Wireless
configuration and Be sure the service to start Automatically instead of
manually.
Click OK then close the services control panel window and Reboot and see if
the service will hold it's settings to Auto.
If not then try this Key in the Registry:
Open Run and type in:
regedit.exe click OK and on the Registry Editor Locate this key and change
the value in the Right Pane/window to (2):
[-]HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\WZCSVC =

[ON]Start REG_DWORD 0x00000002 (2)


[-]HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\wscsvc =

ON]Start REG_DWORD 0x00000004 (4)

Be warren, back or write down the settings before and after the editing, if
any thing gone wrong you can restore back.

Inspiron 1501
http://support.dell.com/support/dow...temID=INS_PNT_1501&os=WW1&osl=en&catid=&impid

Expand the Network (5) and download the correct Wireless card driver for
your specs.

Another step:
Open Run command type in:
ipconfig /flushdns click [OK]
ipconfig /renew click [OK]
netsh winsock reset click [OK]
Reboot your machine

You receive a "Limited or no connectivity" message on a computer that ...
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/892896

How to reset Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/299357

Your issue lay in your Dell wireless utility management App which I think
you install and configure it to manage the wireless, hence conflict with the
WZC and none of them managing your wireless.

HTH.
Regards,
nass
 
My laptop won't connect to the internet anywhere at all, not at
home, nor at a wifi cafe, as of last Thursday. When I try to
connect, I see I have a strong signal, but I get the following
message:

"Windows can't configure this wireless connection. If you want
Windows to configure this wireless connection, start the Wireless
Zero Configuration. Refer to Microsoft Knowledge Base article #
871122."
Click to expand...

Windows comes with "Wireless Zero Configuration" (WZC) to manage
wireless connections. Many times, the manufacturer of your wireless
card/chip has provided their own configuration program which can
better manage their own card/chipset. When this happens, it disables
WZC and you get the error you are getting. Look in the system tray
(next to the clock on the bottom-right of your screen) and see if one
of the icons there controls your wireless connection.

HTH,
John
 
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