Re: 'Limited or no connectivity' after installing SP2

From: Michael Taylor (mike_at_(nospam)mtcs.ltd.uk)
Date: 10/28/04 

Date: Thu, 28 Oct 2004 12:52:27 +0100

"Kent W. England [MVP]" <kwe@mvps.org> wrote in message
news:e0OYNxCvEHA.3424@TK2MSFTNGP09.phx.gbl...
> Michael Taylor wrote on 26-Oct-2004 5:01 AM:
>> I'm getting the 'Limited or no connectivity' message for my wireless
>> adapter on my laptop. For a while I was able to temporarily resolve it by
>> uninstalling and re-installing the adapter using device manager. I've
>> also used NETSH commands to reset the TCPIP stack, which would make it
>> work for a while.
>>
>> Now I found neither of these workarounds works any more. I can only get
>> connectivity by using a wired connection. My access point is normally
>> configured to use wep with 64bit encryption. I've also used wpa, but
>> nothing works. If I uninstall SP2 it all works perfectly.
>>
>> My wireless equipment is all Dlink. I'm using the latest firmware for the
>> access point, and the latest MS certified driver for the PCMCIA card.
>>
>> The MS knowledge base articles on the subject haven't helped. Can anyone
>> suggest other workarounds, solutions or resources on the net that could
>> be of use.
>>
> "limited connectivity" alerts are an option and they indicate an inability
> to receive a dynamically assigned IP address. Check your adapter settings
> and if the address is 169.254.x.y, then you are using DHCP but are not
> getting an IP address assignment from your DHCP host (your Dlink router).
>
> Try assigning a static IP address from the router address range (usually
> 192.168.0.x or .1.x). If this works, it is definitely a DHCP issue. But
> don't stop here, keep reading.
>
> Try disabling the Windows firewall temporarily. If this solves the
> problem, then your firewall is likely blocking broadcasts. Normally, the
> default settings for the Windows firewall do not block DHCP, so reset to
> defaults. There are enough problems with the new Windows firewall that we
> can't rule out misbehaviour.
>
> Finally "View all wireless networks" in XP or in the Dlink applet that
> controls your wireless network. If you ever tried to connect to your
> neighbor's WAP, your preferred order may have gotten mixed up and you may
> be on the wrong access point. It can happen. If your neighbor is smart
> enough to use MAC address filtering, your symptoms might appear.
>
> Use WPA preferred or WEP as a fallback. Enable MAC address filtering and
> then no one else can get on your WAP. If you only have 11g adapters, then
> set your WAP to only accept 11g. That will block neighbors with only 11b
> adapters.
>
> I love the limited connectivity option. It really improves adapter
> diagnostics. Did you notice the yellow balls on the tray icon? These
> indicate that address assignment is happening. Until the yellow balls
> disappear, your apps can't access the Internet.
>
> Your adapter goes through three stages:
>
> 1) connecting to the wireless access point or hub/switch
> 2) getting an address assignment
> 3) enabling IP address and establishing IP connectivity
>
> Wireless networks take more time for all of these to happen and with
> improved security, each stage can break down in various ways.
>
> --
> Kent W. England, Microsoft MVP for Windows Security

Kent,

Thank you for your advice. Yesterday I uninstalled SP2 and found that I
couldn't get wireless to work even on SP1. Thats never happened before. I
re-installed SP2 and wireless wouldn't work last night, but as of this
morning it is working fine. I've left my laptop running to see if it stays
connected.

My Dlink access point is a DWL-7000AP. I use the 802.11a capability for my
laptop and 802.11b for a pocket pc with wi-fi. 802.11a is using WPA while
802.11b is using wep because the pda won't support WPA.

I have tried a static IP address and found that when I had 'limited'
capability I could not ping any other devices on my private network. Do you
think my access point might have a problem retrieving a DHCP address from my
DSL router? My DSL router is a Zyxel Prestige 652-R11. That has DHCP running
on it, and DHCP is turned off in the access point so the two don't conflict.

Fortunately I have no neighbours using wi-fi. I use mac address filtering.

I have noticed the 'yellow balls' - i'm wondering if sometimes my access
point isn't quite fast enough to sort out the DHCP address. Is there a way
to make Windows wait a little longer before giving up? Perhaps a registry
change?

If the problem happens again, i'll reset the windows firewall and/or turn it
off. I have a feeling it may not be the firewall though, as my wi-fi access
through 802.11a with wpa is working.

Regards
Mike

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