Dell WiFi and an Encypted Router - Is this Possible?

[gwosborn]

I just bought an Axim X5 with the Dell WiFi card. The installation went fine and the card was able to detect my wireless network. However, whenever I try to access the internet, Internet Explorer keeps telling me "The page you are looking for cannot be found."

The Dell tech support rep told me that the problem I was having related back to the fact that my wireless network is encrypted. She said that I must shut off the digital encryption in order to access the Internet.

Anyone know how I can get around this since I want to keep my WiFi network secure?

If I return my Dell WiFi flashcard and buy another brand, would this work?

Thanks,
Gareth

[Steven Cedrone]

If you turn off WEP on the AP, can you surf without any problems? If yes, just double check the WEP settings and re-enter your key on the device...

Steve

[FredMurphy]

Don't forget that Connection Manager frequently prevent IE from connecting. There are a few threads here on how to get that working but the most likely solution would be to ensure the three drop-downs are set to "Internet Settings, Internet Settings, The Internet".

I'd agree that you should definitely get your Axim connected to your network when it's wide-open before adding WEP or MAC address filtering. I presume if you've already set up your wireless network, you're familiar with all this.

[proberts31]

I have had an Axim since it was first released and just got a Dell WiFi card last week and had lots of problems connecting to my access point (a Netgear MR814) with encryption enabled. I found help in the posts on the Dell forums.

Basically this is what I needed to do.
1) Set a static IP on your Axim (go to settings/connections and select Network Adapters and properties of the Dell Wireless Network Adapter). Enter an IP address, set the subnet to 225.225.225.0 and type the IP of your access point as the default gateway. On the next tab put the DNS of your ISP (your router should tell you this info)
2) Go into the setup of your router and reserve the IP you set on the Axim for the MAC address of your Axim's WiFi card
3) When you set up the wireless profile on the Axim be sure to type in the encryption key exactly as it is listed in the router and don't try and generate it with the passphrase.

Once you do this you should be able to connect no problem.

[patwoods]

Don't forget that Connection Manager frequently prevent IE from connecting. There are a few threads here on how to get that working but the most likely solution would be to ensure the three drop-downs are set to "Internet Settings, Internet Settings, The Internet".

Actually on this subject, I am new to this also. Just got my card yesterday. I understand the connection manager stuff for the home network, but I also sync at work (proxy server) so I need to switch to the Work Settings pull-down at work in order for Journal Bar, etc. to update correctly. Is there a cool utility out there that will switch settings, so that I won't have to mess with the connection manager all the time back and forth? What a hassle!

[doogald]

I have had an Axim since it was first released and just got a Dell WiFi card last week and had lots of problems connecting to my access point (a Netgear MR814) with encryption enabled. I found help in the posts on the Dell forums.

Actually, Netgear's site has a BIOS update for the MR814 that seems to help with PocketPCs. For example, I am able to use DHCP, rather than a static address, with my Netgear 814 and WiFi card.

I agree with you on the passphrase, though. It's ok to generate a WEP string with a passphrase on one or the other, but don't expect two different vendors to have the same hex strings for each passphrase. Generate the WEP strings on the router, write them down, and copy them onto the device directly.

[Steven Cedrone]

You can always go here (http://www.andrewscompanies.com/tools/wep.asp) to generate a key...

Steve