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If you are reading this article then it is likely you are a apart of the modern trend of users leaning towards the use of wireless technology to connect to public or private networks. Many home networks these days have wireless infrastructure that allow uses to connect to their ISP’s or the Internet. However, there are times where this technology just does not seem to work. Hopefully these steps will help you to troubleshoot wireless network issues in Windows XP.

1. Verify that there is a fairly strong wireless signal to make the connection. In the Windows XP system tray (bottom right hand corner) there should be an icon called “Wireless Network Connection” that gives you an indication of the wireless signal strength. Move the Windows XP client away from sources of interference such as cell phones and try the connection again.
2. Open Device Manager and check the status of the Wireless NIC device. Ensure that the status reports “the device is working correctly.”
3. If the customer is using a 3rd party Wireless Configuration software, disable it and try the Wireless Zero Configuration service.
4. View the properties of the Wireless Connection icon and verify that you see the Wireless Networks tab. If the tab is not visible then it means that the network adapter driver does not fully support the Wireless Zero Configuration service.
5. Update the drivers and firmware on the Wireless NIC. If it is a laptop, ensure that the latest PC Card socket drivers are installed as well.
6. Update the firmware on the access point.
7. Ensure that authentication, and encryption type on the XP client matches the configuration on the access point (Wireless switch or router combo).
8. Determine if the communication is successful with authentication disabled on the access point.
9. Determine if the communication is successful with encryption disabled on the access point.
10. Verify that the Service Set Identifier (SSID) in the wireless connection matches the SSID of the access point.
11. Verify that you have the latest version of WZCSVC.DLL for the Windows XP.

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Filed under: Network