Troubleshooting wireless connection

Troubleshooting wireless connection

When I connect my Ethernet cable from the modem directly into the WAN port on the router, I lose access. I think the solution has something to do with reconfiguring IP addresses somewhere, but I'm not sure about this, and I don't know how to go about doing it.

Currently I have internet and e-mail access when I plug the Ethernet cable from the cable modem into my computer's wired Ethernet port, but I do not have internet or e-mail access when I try to go through the wireless router.

I have a Windows 2000 Professional laptop computer. I also have a wireless network setup using D-Link products. That includes a D-Link DI-614+ wireless router, a DWL-650+ wireless cardbus adapter, and a DP-300U print server. The network appears to be installed and working correctly. (I have connection and can print using the print server.) I also just got high-speed cable access (Comcast) and use a D-Link cable modem, the DCM-200.
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computer managed to get a valid IP address from your cable provider, but your wireless router has not. This could occur because:

 

  • Your wireless router isn't configured to use DHCP or PPPoE (whatever your cable provider requires, probably DHCP).

     

  • Your cable provider "latches" you to a single IP address and requires change on their end to permit you to have more than one device (MAC address) sending DHCP requests.

    My guess is that your problem is the former and can be cleared up by using the router's administrative GUI. To access the DI-614+ GUI, plug your computer's Ethernet into the router's embedded switch, then open your browser to http://192.168.0.1, enter the name admin, and no password (if you changed your DI-614's address or password when you installed it, use those values instead). Click on the WAN button on the left. Make sure that Dynamic IP Address is checked. If so, power-cycle your router off/on while the WAN port is connected to your cable modem. Your router will automatically try to get an IP address from Comcast.

    If that doesn't do it, then contact Comcast to find out whether you need a static IP address or should be using PPPoE or a reset is needed for them to lease a DHCP address to a device other than your existing PC. To learn more about your wireless router, visit D-Link's website, go to the Support page, click Manuals, and enter your model number.

This was first published in June 2003

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