wireless router

[stevieshag]

I have a belkin 54g wireless router which i want to eventually want to use it for my laptop & my xbox 360.
I have tried to connect to the router but it doesnt connect,
the instructions basically explain it as a plug n play, i just wish this was the case.
i have tried connecting via the ethernet cable aswell but no joy, my isp is virgin.

Help !!! any suggestions.

stevie

[John_W]

I have a belkin 54g wireless router which i want to eventually want to use it for my laptop & my xbox 360.
I have tried to connect to the router but it doesnt connect,
the instructions basically explain it as a plug n play, i just wish this was the case.
i have tried connecting via the ethernet cable aswell but no joy, my isp is virgin.
Help !!! any suggestions.
stevie

Stevie,
That's the same wireless router that I'm using as I type. I have a Mac, a PC laptop and my kids' Playstation connected to broadband through it.

It's OK but the wireless range is crap. To set it up to start with you must be connected to it by wire. I found setting it up fairly straightforward but by no means "plug&play".

When you say it doesn't connect, do you mean the computer can't see the Belkin router control screen, or that the router doesn't connect to the internet ?

John

[stevieshag]

hi john,
the laptop connects to the router ok, the signal strength says it is excellent, thats it i cannot get the router to connect to the internet. i am confsed as i cannot find any way to talk to the router.
stevie

[ailwyn]

You will need to set up the internet connection settings in the router, your best bet is to call Belkin directly who can (usually) supply the correct settings for your ISP.

Failing that, call your ISP.

If you do not know how to get to the admin/setup facilities for the router, look on the box or in the documentation for the IP address, it will be in the form 123.123.123.123 where any of the four values can be between 0 and 255. Usually it will be 192.168.1.1 or similar.

Once you have the IP address, connect your computer to the router, then in your browser enter the IP address for the router as the web page address.

You will need help in setting it up, so even if you can get into the admin functions, call Belkin and get them to talk you through it.

Ailwyn

[Doug]

I use a Belkin wireless at home now too. I think they have the instructions on their website if you lost them--there could be firmware updates for it if it is an older model too. Yes, you have to configure it with the component connected to it via ethernet cable, then you can unplug and roam . . .

[ailwyn]

Yes, you have to configure it with the component connected to it via ethernet cable, then you can unplug and roam . . .

This is an urban myth (but is documented as fact in the manual), the wireless seems to be on by default with no protection, from my experience, so you connect right up - been there and done it (but I've never removed a FED ECU in seconds, or at all for that matter ). I know why Belkin do encourage people to connect via cable, the less technology in the middle, the less that can go wrong.

I say your best bet is to call Belkin, think it's a national rate number, but it's so much easier than trying to figure it out for yourself.

[stevieshag]

I have put the ip address into the web brower address, that didnt work either, i think calling belkin is a good idea, i calledthem before & they were not too helpfull. Maybe it was a friday & the guy wanted to get off. i will try them again.

[dapinky]

Steve,

For what it's worth (probably not much!) I had exactly the same situation when I first got my belkin54g.

Like you, i'm with virgin, and use an IBM laptop (with wireless card).

My mistake was not reading the instructions before plugging it all in.

Apparently, the setup CD has to be installed on the computer at a specific time (in sequence) with the rest of the connections, otherwise it won't find it at all.

You will still 'connect' from PC to router, but not be able to access internet.

If (like me) you are a subscriber to the 'if all else fails, read the instructions' school of thought, it may be worth performing an 'uninstall' then a 'system restore' to how it was before, then starting again.

(it worked for me) i found it quite straightforward after that, and once my laptop was working fine, Angie got hers to connect straight out of the box, as did the kids - they also get their psp's on without problems.

Others have said that there is a poor reception, but i haven't found that at all. Quite the opposite - i can access the internet from anywhere in the house and garden (120' away from the box) and the system even lets me connect to the neighbous' belkin box through lots of solid stone walls.

Good luck.

[Doug]

[a5gcd]

[quote="ailwyn

I say your best bet is to call Belkin, think it's a national rate number, but it's so much easier than trying to figure it out for yourself.[/quote]

If you need to call Belkin, their number is 01933 352000.
There is also a freephone number that looks strange but works, it is 00800 22355460

[stevieshag]

All sorted now, after telling virgin i was going to change my ISP provider they decided to give me the correct information.. then 20mins on phone to belkin & all was resolved..

Cheers for everyones help..

stevie

[RayD]

Our telephone extensions are wired up into wall sockets using alarm cable.

On Dial up it worked perfectly well as in diagram No.1

At present on broadband it is as shown in No.2 but there are some problems with the telephone and broadband working at the same time.

I understand from Talk Talk you need to use the primary BT socket ... and ... they say ... any extensions need to come from the primary micro filter.

Could someone confirm the extension information is correct?

Any other ideas gratefully received.

Thanks, Ray

[Gary]

I think this is cr*p.

It should work fine using the original config you have.

If you contact an ISP with problems they will always tell you to use the master socket. This is eliminate any bad wiring/connections inside your property. It is worth trying to see if it fixes the problem, but you should then be able to use any of the other sockets.

My broadband is off a slave socket.

The thing is, the wiring from the master socket is your responsibility, so if they come out and prove it is a fault in the internal wiring they can charge you for the callout.

[RayD]

Thanks Gary,

All the wiring is newish and in perfect order.

One more thing to consider ... If I turn the power onto the router it will get the green light showing the broadband is connected.

If I lift the phone off the hook and then turn the power on the internet connection light will stay red, presumably until I put the phone down.

Ray

[Gary]

Must admit I've not tried powering my router up whilst I'm on the phone. Normally it is on the whole time.

You need filters on EVERY socket that has something connected - from your diagram it looks like you have.

It could be a faulty filter, or maybe you phone handset is faulty. Again all this is why they suggest the master socket so that these things are ruled out.

[dapinky]

Ray, the only difference you should get by using a slave socket is that the connection speed may be affected ( a bit slower ).

It is worth trying it from the master socket to start with......

....depending on who installed the slaves, they may or may not have all relevant connections made (you can connect 2, 3, 4 or 6 wires inside the cable - depending on wheter you just want incoming, outgoing, dial tone, ringing handset, shared lines etc etc). Usually there will be 3 wires connected, but the domestic phone will probably still work with 2 (without you noticing the difference unless you have a 'caller I/D' phone on that extension.

I don't know if Broadband needs the 'extra' wire or not.

You need filters on EVERY socket that has something connected - from your diagram it looks like you have.

Do you?



Are you sure?





Is it just a ploy to make you buy more of them?


















I've only got one on the router/lounge phone - not on any of the other phones

[Gary]

I'm sure I had a phone without one and it screwed up the internet. I've got loads of the bloody things in any case!

[markv]

I work for an ISP and have suffered a number of the problems described. Here are my recommendations:-

1. Put a microfilter in EVERY phone socket/extension. Go for good quality filters - I was given two by my ISP and had loads of trouble similar to you (broadband dropping every time we used the phone or someone rang). I went for the XF-1e Professional ADSL Microfilter from adslnation here . At £7.99 each they are not cheap, but the difference was immediate (no line drops and faster speed immediately).

2. Plug your router into the master socket microfilter. Make sure you have a decent quality router (I use a Netgear DG834G myself).

3. Buy and install an I-PLate in the master socket (If your socket is compatible - 95% are). This is a BT produced, widely available, user installable add-on which isolates the main socket from almost all the noise produced by the extension wiring (and if you have multiple extensions, you'll probably have a lot of noise). It took me 10 minutes to install the I-Plate into my master socket and I immediately got 3Mb faster download speeds and much improved reliability. See here for the I-Plate and here to check whether your master socket is compatible.

4. Go for an ISP with a track record. I use virgin.net, which offers up to 20Mb adsl in many areas of the country.

After doing all the above, my adsl speed increased from 2.5Mb to almost 8Mb. Every line is different though - although phone extension wiring is a major factor, so is distance from your exchange and quality of the BT copper wires from the exchange to your home.

[Gary]

Do you work for Virgin then Mark ?

As I say my router is on an extension socket and works reasonably well

[a5gcd]

I work for an ISP and have suffered a number of the problems described. Here are my recommendations:-

1. Put a microfilter in EVERY phone socket/extension. Go for good quality filters - I was given two by my ISP and had loads of trouble similar to you (broadband dropping every time we used the phone or someone rang). I went for the XF-1e Professional ADSL Microfilter from adslnation here . At £7.99 each they are not cheap, but the difference was immediate (no line drops and faster speed immediately).

2. Plug your router into the master socket microfilter. Make sure you have a decent quality router (I use a Netgear DG834G myself).

3. Buy and install an I-PLate in the master socket (If your socket is compatible - 95% are). This is a BT produced, widely available, user installable add-on which isolates the main socket from almost all the noise produced by the extension wiring (and if you have multiple extensions, you'll probably have a lot of noise). It took me 10 minutes to install the I-Plate into my master socket and I immediately got 3Mb faster download speeds and much improved reliability. See here for the I-Plate and here to check whether your master socket is compatible.

4. Go for an ISP with a track record. I use virgin.net, which offers up to 20Mb adsl in many areas of the country.

After doing all the above, my adsl speed increased from 2.5Mb to almost 8Mb. Every line is different though - although phone extension wiring is a major factor, so is distance from your exchange and quality of the BT copper wires from the exchange to your home.

I agree with Mark but in addition, If you suspect the extension wiring etc. and you have the type of master socket that can be split for an I-plate, you can isolate the line from everything in the premises. this allows you to plug your filter straight into the line and prove it exactly as a BT man would do.

An I-plate should improve your broadband performance on all sockets, I got the same improvement on all sockets when I fitted mine.

Geoff