Did the wi fi test as requested , bad results.

jonnyhillow said:

Yes , sorry about the confusion. It's a Dell machine and Asus router , the computer was running fine for the longest time and got good wireless .

This is not a Dell laptop , it's a Dell desktop which connects to an Asus router

Well now I'm REALLY confused.

Exactly what model is this computer. I thought it was a laptop, but now you say it's a desktop. And this desktop was previously NOT connected via ethernet cable to the router, but instead was operating "wireless" to the router? The Dell desktop machine has both wired and wireless network adapters (as your Properties -> Device Manager screenshot showed), but you were previously using the wireless connection choice?

How did any wires get moved around? Did your father move things, and re-connected cables himself, and you think he just made a mistake?

Again, wall coax from your ISP screws on to the RF connector of the modem. Ethernet cable from the one ethernet port on the modem goes to the WAN port on the router. Then if you have any devices (including the desktop PC) that you want to connect "wired" to the router, they connect via ethernet cable to one of the four LAN ports on the router. If you instead want to connect "wireless" to the router, you must just ensure that the router is configured properly to operate in wireless mode, and that the PC is configured to "connect" to the WiFi network SSID which should appear in the popup list when you right-click on the network icon in the System Tray.

For "wireless" mode operation, the computer should NOT be connected to ANYTHING via ethernet cable.

So, exactly what happens when the desktop PC is booted (with NO ethernet cable connecting it anywhere, not to the router and not to the modem) and you right-click on the network icon in the System Tray?

NOTE: the error message in your latest screenshot asked to be sure the modem was connected to the Internet. This really means the wiring must be like I described above. The computer should NOT be connected via ethernet cable to either modem or router, if you're operating in "wireless" mode. The wall coax goes to modem, an ethernet cable goes from modem to router WAN port, and the computer then should be able to connect "wireless" to the router's SSID network as you've set it up.

Here is where i am at , when i unplug the ethernet cable from the router i get wireless , thank you , thats a improvement .

My modem must be very different than what your used to , there is no coax option , you are supposed to plug the ethernet cable into it , thats how everyones modem is through ATMC . It has a power cable , a lan 123 and 4 and a phone line , thats it .

The router has an antenna , power cable, lan 123& 4 and a wan .

dsperber said:

jonnyhillow said:

Yes , sorry about the confusion. It's a Dell machine and Asus router , the computer was running fine for the longest time and got good wireless .

This is not a Dell laptop , it's a Dell desktop which connects to an Asus router

Well now I'm REALLY confused.

Exactly what model is this computer. I thought it was a laptop, but now you say it's a desktop. And this desktop was previously NOT connected via ethernet cable to the router, but instead was operating "wireless" to the router? The Dell desktop machine has both wired and wireless network adapters (as your Properties -> Device Manager screenshot showed), but you were previously using the wireless connection choice?

How did any wires get moved around? Did your father move things, and re-connected cables himself, and you think he just made a mistake?

Again, wall coax from your ISP screws on to the RF connector of the modem. Ethernet cable from the one ethernet port on the modem goes to the WAN port on the router. Then if you have any devices (including the desktop PC) that you want to connect "wired" to the router, they connect via ethernet cable to one of the four LAN ports on the router. If you instead want to connect "wireless" to the router, you must just ensure that the router is configured properly to operate in wireless mode, and that the PC is configured to "connect" to the WiFi network SSID which should appear in the popup list when you right-click on the network icon in the System Tray.

For "wireless" mode operation, the computer should NOT be connected to ANYTHING via ethernet cable.

So, exactly what happens when the desktop PC is booted (with NO ethernet cable connecting it anywhere, not to the router and not to the modem) and you right-click on the network icon in the System Tray?

NOTE: the error message in your latest screenshot asked to be sure the modem was connected to the Internet. This really means the wiring must be like I described above. The computer should NOT be connected via ethernet cable to either modem or router, if you're operating in "wireless" mode. The wall coax goes to modem, an ethernet cable goes from modem to router WAN port, and the computer then should be able to connect "wireless" to the router's SSID network as you've set it up.

Amazingly i get wireless , i never had that ethernet cable unplugged before.

I think you figured it out , no more ethernet cable from the computer to either the router or modem. I am just testing everything out but i can't thank you enough , really .

Your efforts are very much appreciated.

jonnyhillow said:

Here is where i am at , when i unplug the ethernet cable from the router i get wireless , thank you , thats a improvement .

Again, I thought this PC was previously always operating wireless? Why would there now be an ethernet cable connecting it to the router, which wasn't there before? Was this done only after the wireless connectivity mysteriously disappeared, to just get something to work?

Was that cable going from PC to the router (correct), or from PC to the modem (incorrect)?

And if you've now disconnected the recently attached ethernet cable going from PC to router (presumably once again making things look like they always used to be) and you've not changed anything else, how is it that suddenly you once again have wireless connectivity whereas you didn't have it earlier (when you started this thread)??

Maybe it was the re-boot after removing the ethernet cable going to the router that kick started everything back to the way it always used to look. Don't know.

My modem must be very different than what your used to , there is no coax option

My mistake, if you are on DSL from the phone company rather than Broadband from a cable company. I was describing a cable modem, which has an RF screwon connector for coax. If you have a DSL modem from the phone company it would get a telephone wire, not a coax. Sorry for the confusion.

Ok. Are you saying everything is now once again working perfectly?

And the only thing you did is unplug the ethernet cable from the desktop PC? That cable must have been connected to something at the other end. What was it?

Please tell me what the other end of the ethernet cable was connected to... one of the 1/2/3/4 LAN ports on the router? Or was it connected to the ethernet port on your DSL modem?? Or what?

So just to confirm, everything is now working perfectly again... in wireless mode?? Case closed? Problem completely solved? No lingering mysteries or questions?

dsperber said:

jonnyhillow said:

Here is where i am at , when i unplug the ethernet cable from the router i get wireless , thank you , thats a improvement .

Again, I thought this PC was previously always operating wireless? Why would there now be an ethernet cable connecting it to the router, which wasn't there before? Was this done only after the wireless connectivity mysteriously disappeared, to just get something to work?

Was that cable going from PC to the router (correct), or from PC to the modem (incorrect)?

And if you've now disconnected the recently attached ethernet cable going from PC to router (presumably once again making things look like they always used to be) and you've not changed anything else, how is it that suddenly you once again have wireless connectivity whereas you didn't have it earlier (when you started this thread)??

Maybe it was the re-boot after removing the ethernet cable going to the router that kick started everything back to the way it always used to look. Don't know.

My modem must be very different than what your used to , there is no coax option

My mistake, if you are on DSL from the phone company rather than Broadband from a cable company. I was describing a cable modem, which has an RF screwon connector for coax. If you have a DSL modem from the phone company it would get a telephone wire, not a coax. Sorry for the confusion.

Ok. Are you saying everything is now once again working perfectly?

And the only thing you did is unplug the ethernet cable from the desktop PC? That cable must have been connected to something at the other end. What was it?

Please tell me what the other end of the ethernet cable was connected to... one of the 1/2/3/4 LAN ports on the router? Or was it connected to the ethernet port on your DSL modem?? Or what?

So just to confirm, everything is now working perfectly again... in wireless mode?? Case closed? Problem completely solved? No lingering mysteries or questions?

I think when we were working on it cables must have been plugged into places where they shouldn't have been . I had a feeling it was something with the setup and you confirmed it .

Ok. Glad you got this all sorted out.

The bottom line is that if the PC is to run in "wireless" mode then you don't have any ethernet cables involved. That's what "wireless" means... no wires from the PC. The connection is "wireless" from PC to the router (not to the modem).

If you do plug an ethernet cable into the PC (and the other end of the cable to the 1/2/3/4 LAN ports on the router), well now you've indicated to Windows that you want to be connected using the "wired" connection method rather than "wireless". So even though both options are available, Windows will just prefer to use the "wired" connection path.

However if you want to use the router, then it's the router that connects to the modem via ethernet cable, with the PC connecting to the router (either wired with an ethernet cable to 1/2/3/4 ports, or just wireless). The PC should never be connected to the modem unless you have no interest in the functionality of having a router in your setup, which of course provides shared use of the modem for up to four wired devices as well as essentially an unlimited number of wireless device connections, all simultaneously and all sharing the modem's Internet access. That's what a router provides, and that's why you use one... to support shared access to the Internet using either wired or wireless connections from ethernet-enabled devices (e.g. smart TV's, smart phone's, smart BluRay players, smart gaming devices, laptops, desktops, etc.) to the router.

I still suggest that you reconfigure your router setup to enable "security", with encryption (e.g. WPA2-PSK [AES]) and a password. This is really to try and best protect your LAN computers from outside neighbor or drive-by intrusion and hacking, which is particularly possible when you're running a wireless network.

Thanks again , you really showed patience and a lot of professionalism and i appreciate it.