Broadcom 4321 WLAN Not Detected

The HP forum is worthless, so I thought I'd give this a try.

I've installed Windows 7 Ultimate x86 on my machine (hp tx2110us). Been able to get pretty much everything working, but the Broadcom WLAN isn't consistent. Sometimes when I reboot it disappears! Can't see it in Device Manager at all, like it's not even connected!

When I installed Windows 7 initially it detected the card during setup on first boot and I had no problem connecting to my network.

At first I thought it was a conflict as it seemed to happen when I installed other drivers. So I wiped the HD, did a CLEAN install of 7, got it working, installed the Windows Update for Broadcom, rebooted, AND IT DISAPPEARED. So no other drivers have been installed other than stock Windows and IT STILL DISAPPEARED. I rebooted into safe mode with networking to see if maybe it would appear, got nothing. So I rebooted and when I logged in, IT CAME BACK! So I rebooted again without changing ANYTHING, and guess what? NO WIRELESS CARD. Not in the device manager, not listed under Network, not listed under unknown, NOT LISTED. Win 7 just seems to see it whenever it feels like it!

Win7 probably detects it about 1 time out of 25 reboots.

I've tried installing the suggested HP driver for it, but it has zero effect. How can I troubleshoot a device that doesn't appear in the device manager?!?!

Does anyone have a clue?

Edit: Left out the fact that I downgraded to WinXP to test the card and make sure it was functional, in 20 reboots it worked 20 of 20 times, so the hardware is definitely good.

romaonly said:

How can I troubleshoot a device that doesn't appear in the device manager?!?!

Click to expand...

By clicking on any device or section at all first, then clicking action, scan for hardware change.

If/when it shows up, install the driver again by pointing to the .inf of the installer.

Right click on device. Update driver software. Browse. Let me pick. Have disk. Browse. Find the .inf and double click on it. Hit ok.

Thanks torrentg,

but...

I am at the point now where I absolutely cannot get the Broadcom to appear at all.

No matter how many times I reboot.

No matter how many times I scan for hardware changes.

It won't come up.

Any other ideas?

Yes. Pull the card out and get a can of compressed air. Spray compressed air on the PCI socket on the motherboard. Use a Q-Tip or something soft like a paper towel to gently clean the connections on the card.

If you don't have compressed air, you can use a vacuum on the slot if you're careful about it. Follow suggestions for grounding etc....by touching chassis.

Point is, get it all as clean as possible and try again. Try another slot if necessary.

Make sure Plug & Play OS is set to yes in the bios. Update chipset drivers from motherboard manufacturer.

Solution

Solution Deleted: 24 hours later my Broadcom 4321 has disappeared again. Can't seem to find a permanent solution.

romaonly said:

ANY OS install DO IT IN THE FREEZER.

Click to expand...

Very bad advice! That can easily damage hardware from condensation process. Stories abound.

Glad it didn't and things worked out for you though.

Unfortunately, this is the only way to get setup complete on this particular machine, you could set it on a bag of ice, but you still run the risk of condensation with the bag sweating.

Thank you for pointing that out, I added a warning to my solution post.

Still can't seem to get it working. Had it going for about 24 hours, but now it's disappeared yet again. Can't get it to show up with reboots, even tried the Windows 7 upgrade that brought it back before and had no luck.

Odd. I ordered a D-Link USB WLAN from eBay, and got it in the mail Monday. Plugged it in, got it working, and then... The first time I rebooted with it plugged in, my Broadcom re-appeared.

It happened again today. Funny thing is, the Broadcom has not worked 1 single time since I ordered the D-Link, that was 2 weeks ago.