Wednesday 5 December 2007

Bring back wires

Yesterday I spoke about my successful transition from wired to wireless. Today, all is not well - my wireless gaming adapter can't be configured using Windows Vista. Belkin kindly provided me with software for installing the adapter. Unfortunately, Vista can't find the hardware during the setup process but any computer running XP has no problems. After repeatedly configuring it at a friend's house, I now know of a web interface (accessible from Vista :D). I spent about 2 hours speaking to Belkin's support staff trying to get it to work! Hopefully, I can help others who are having similar problems and can't find the solution without spending a ridiculous amount of time on the phone.

Here are the steps you should follow:
  • Disconnect from any wired/wireless networks

  • Connect the gaming adapter to your PC

  • Edit the TCP/IP properties for the Ethernet connection (Local Area Connection) - set the IP address to 192.168.2.100 (try not to conflict with any other network device), set the subnet mask to 255.255.255.0 (default), leave the default gateway blank and obtain the DNS server addresses automatically.

  • Navigate to http://192.168.2.225 in a web browser - this should load the web interface. From here, you can change the wireless settings such as SSID and encryption type. I'd recommend using WEP encryption although it depends on the router model. Because I have the new Belkin N1 Vision, they claim that is uses an advanced form of WPA encryption not compatible with the gaming adapter. Before you save the changes, make sure the device will obtain an IP address from the DHCP server automatically (there is an option on the same setup page).


  • This is a great solution but why couldn't they include the information in the box!? I only found out after calling their support line - the online help wasn't very impressive.

    The interface is also used to perform firmware updates - something you'll need to do if your network has WPA encryption.

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