3Com Wireless LAN Products December 6, 2002 ReadMe Version 1.6.2 ******************************************************************* WIRELESS LAN MANAGER ******************************************************************* 1. Changing Adapter Settings 2. Failure of the operating system to recognize your 3Com Wireless LAN PC Card 3. Switching from 3Com Wireless LAN Manager to Windows XP's Wireless Zero Configuration service 4. Unexpected behavior when using Windows XP 5. Network Adapter Advanced Properties 6. Frequent re-authentication when using PEAP 7. Auto Profile Select with Ad Hoc profiles ******************************************************************* 3LINK ******************************************************************* 8. NetMeeting on Windows 98SE ******************************************************************* 3COM WIRELESS LAN MONITOR FOR WINDOWS CE POCKET PC ******************************************************************* 9. How to use the 3Com Wireless LAN Monitor for Pocket PC 10. Advanced Options Available in 3Com Wireless LAN Monitor for Pocket PC 11. Screen lockup on Pocket PC Devices ******************************************************************* INSTALLATION AND UPGRADING ******************************************************************* 12. Avoiding possible network conflicts with embedded adapters 13. Instructions for upgrading 3Com Wireless LAN Manager software and drivers 14. If installing driver after previously uninstalling Windows 2000 or XP ******************************************************************* WIRELESS LAN MANAGER ******************************************************************* 1. Changing Adapter Settings If using the 3Com wireless LAN manager to configure your wireless LAN card, it is required that all configuration options be set in the profiles. Changes made through the Windows Control Panel will be overwritten when profiles are activated by the Wireless LAN Manager. ------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Failure of the operating system to recognize your 3Com Wireless LAN PC Card Some laptops may exhibit compatibility problems between the operating system and the PC Card controller. These incompatibilities can cause the PC Card to not be properly detected. To ensure proper operation, please check the following: A) Verify that your computer has the latest BIOS and PC Card controller drivers from the system manufacturer. B) Verify that your computer has the latest Service Pack from Microsoft for the operating system you are using. Symptoms of the compatibility problem between the operating system and the PC Card controller include, but are not limited to, the following: A) Wireless LAN Configuration utility always shows a "red X" or "yellow X" for a connection status. B) Device Manager shows a "yellow exclamation point" indicating the wireless LAN network card is not operating. C) Scanning for wireless networks returns "no visible networks" in the WLAN Configuration utility. D) LED on the WLAN card never comes on. E) LED on the WLAN card stays on constantly. For additional information on issues with certain laptops, consult http://knowledgebase.3com.com/. ------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. Switching from 3Com Wireless LAN Manager to Windows XP's Wireless Zero Configuration service During the 3Com Wireless LAN Manager installation, the Windows XP service is disabled. When using Windows XP, it is highly recommended that you use the 3Com Wireless LAN Manager unless using the 3Com OfficeConnect Wireless LAN PC Card (3CRSHPW196 and 3CRSHPW696). However, if you choose to switch from the 3Com Wireless LAN Manager for the 3Com Wireless LAN PC Card (3CRWE62092b) to the Windows XP Wireless Zero Configuration service, the following steps will uninstall the 3Com Wireless LAN Manager. Uninstalling will automatically enable the built-in Windows XP wireless LAN configuration utility. A) Insert your 3Com wireless LAN adapter B) Go to the Windows Control Panel and choose Add/Remove programs. C) In the list of software installed, click on "3Com Wireless LAN Manager", then click Remove. D) On the 3Com Mobile Software maintenance window, choose the Remove option then click Next. To re-configure your Wireless LAN PC Card when traveling to a new country if using the Windows XP Wireless Zero Configuration service run: \CountryConfig\\wlm_countryconfig.exe from the PC Card installation CD. Where is the letter of your CD-ROM drive, and is the desired language for the application. For example E:\CountryConfig\English\wlm_countryconfig.exe To switch back to 3Com Wireless LAN manager, run SETUP.EXE found on the 3Com supplied installation CD. ------------------------------------------------------------------- 4. Unexpected behavior when using Windows XP It is important that only one configuration utility be used to manage your 3Com Wireless LAN PC Card. Failure to do this can cause unexpected behavior such as dropping connections or switching between access points. If you have installed the 3Com Wireless LAN Manager and are experience issues in Window XP check to make sure the Windows XP Wireless Zero Configuration service is turned off. To manually disable the Windows XP Wireless Zero Configuration service follow these steps: A) Go to the Control Panel B) Double Click Network Connections C) In the window that appears, single click on the Wireless Network Connection to select it and choose the Properties menu item from the File menu D) In the dialog that appears, click on the Wireless Networks tab E) In the Wireless Networks tab, uncheck the checkbox labeled "Use Windows to configure my wireless network settings". ------------------------------------------------------------------- 5. Network Adapter Advanced Properties Perform the following steps to view or change the Advanced Network Adapter Properties NOTE: You should not configure the card though the Advanced Network Adapter Properties when using the 3Com Wireless LAN Manager. 1. Select START> SETTINGS> CONTROL PANEL 2. Double click the NETWORK applet 3. Select the 3Com Wireless LAN PC Card 4. Select PROPERTIES 5. Select the ADVANCED tab ALB Mode (Available only on 3CRWE62092B Card) Autonomous Load Balancing mode maximizes throughput by monitoring access point traffic and connecting to the access point with the most bandwidth. Available selections: Enable (Default) Disable Authentication Type Method for authenticating to an access point. Open allows any device regardless of its WEP keys to authenticate and attempt to associate. Shared Key requires the client and access point to complete an authentication sequence using a shared secret key before associating. Auto will attempt Open authentication and then Shared Key authentication if Open fails. Available selections: Auto (Default) Open System Shared Key Basic Rates Basic rate defines the data rate at which control and management frames will be transmitted. To support older 1Mb and 2Mb devices, its basic rate set should be set to 1, 2 Mbps. Available selections: 1, 2 Mbps (Default) 1, 2, 5.5, 11 Mbps Beacon Period Beacon Period defines how often, in mS, an AP will send out beacons, or how often clients will send them if operating in Ad Hoc mode. Each Beacon contains fields used by listening clients, including power save mode operation information. Beacon Period can be set from 90-1000. Available selections: 100 (Default) Channel The Channel selection is only used for Ad Hoc mode. In U.S. you can choose between 1-11. In Europe and most other countries you can select from 1-13 and in France from 10-13. Before selecting a channel, verify that channel is legal to be used in your country. Available selections: 3 (Default) 1-14\ Encryption Level Specifies the level of WEP encryption to use. Available selections: Disabled (Default) 64-bit 128-bit 128-bit 3Com DSL (DSL encryption needs to be configured through the 3Com Wireless LAN Manager). ESSID Extended Service Set ID used to identify a wireless LAN infrastructure network. Default is empty which will connect to first available access point. Available selections: (Default) Fragmentation Threshold The frame size in bytes at which packets to be transmitted are divided into smaller packets. The fragmentation threshold can be set from 30-3000 bytes. Available selections: 2346 (Default) International Roaming (Available only on 3CRWE62092B Card) 802.11d roaming automatically specifies the wireless client channel setting based on access point settings. NOTE: This feature requires an access point that supports 802.11d International Roaming. Available selections: Disabled (Default) Enable Operating Mode Use infrastructure mode when connecting to an access point. Use Ad Hoc mode when connecting peer-to-peer with another PC. Available selections: Infrastructure (Default) Ad Hoc Power Mgmt Mode Active mode will keep the PC card continuously powered. Power Save mode will allow the card to go into a lower power mode when not transmitting or receiving data. This is not the same as Windows low power modes. Available selections: Active (Default) Power Save Preamble Type The short preamble option shortens the preamble so there is less bandwidth used with each packet. This may improve network efficiency but can cause compatibility problems with certain access points. Long preamble may avoid certain compatibility issues. All 802.11b systems must support the long preamble. Available selections: Auto (Default) Long Short Radio Mode Always ON mode will force the radio on. Always OFF mode will force the radio off and you will not be able to transmit or receive data. By Antenna Position (available only on 3CRWE62092B Card) allows the antenna position to determine the state of the radio (IN=OFF, OUT=ON). Available selections: Always ON (default for 3CRSHPW696/3CRSHPW196) Always OFF By Antenna Position (default for 3CRWE62092B Card) RTS Threshold When the packet to be sent is equal to or larger than the RTS threshold, an RTS packet is sent. The destination node must then respond with a CTS packet before the packet can be sent. The RTS Threshold can be set from 30-3000. Available selections: 2347 (Default) Tx Rate Auto transmit rate will try to send at 11 Mbps, but if unsuccessful, will transmit at lower rates. The fixed rates will always transmit data at the same rate. Available selections: Auto (Default) Fixed 1 Mbps Fixed 2 Mbps Fixed 5.5 Mbps Fixed 11 Mbps WEP Mode The optional WEP mode allows communication with or without encryption. Mandatory WEP mode forces WEP to be used if the encryption level is set to 64 or 128-bit. Available selections: Mandatory (Default) Optional ------------------------------------------------------------------- 6. Frequent re-authentication when using PEAP Early implementations of PEAP by some access point vendors can incorrectly cause the operating system to force a user to re-authenticate frequently. If you are experiencing frequent login screens please contact your access point vendor for updated Access Point firmware. ------------------------------------------------------------------- 7. Auto Profile Select with Ad Hoc profiles When using Auto Profile Select move any Ad Hoc profiles to the end of your profile list. Since Ad Hoc profiles are considered to always connect, any profiles listed after an Ad Hoc profile will never be tried. ******************************************************************* 3LINK ******************************************************************* 8. NetMeeting on Windows 98SE It is highly recommended that you upgrade to Microsoft NetMeeting version 3.01 (or greater) when running 3Link on Windows 98SE computers. This software can be downloaded from the http://www.microsoft.com/windows/netmeeting/ web page. ******************************************************************* 3COM WIRELESS LAN MONITOR FOR WINDOWS CE POCKET PC ******************************************************************* 9. How to use the 3Com Wireless LAN Monitor for Pocket PC The 3Com Wireless LAN Monitor for Pocket PC (WLAN Monitor) manages wireless connections and provides information about both your 3Com Wireless LAN PC Card and connections. WLAN Monitor can manage connections to both access points (APs) and Ad Hoc networks. Wireless LAN Monitor was designed for use with Pocket PC's, other versions of Windows CE are not supported. A tray icon in the lower right-hand corner of the Today screen indicates the signal strength detected by the WLAN Monitor. Click the tray icon and choose "Show Monitor" to display the application. You can edit connection properties or view the status of the current connection. Status information is continually updated to provide up to date information on signal quality, IP address and network SSID. When connecting to an access point (AP), select the "Infrastructure" operating mode in the WLAN Monitor. If connecting to another computer, select "Ad Hoc" mode. Enter the name of the AP or Ad Hoc connection in the SSID field. If it is left blank the WLAN Monitor will attempt to connect with the first device it contacts. To configure secure connections, enter the desired encryption type and keys in fields under the "Encryption" tab. WEP keys can be specified by tapping the "WEP Keys" button. WEP Keys can be entered as either hexadecimal digits or ASCII characters. The settings entered in the WLAN Monitor needs to match those enabled on the access point(AP) or other Ad Hoc device. When the WLAN Monitor starts for the first time, the "Region" tab appears prompting you to select a location so that the regional settings are properly configured for your country. You may reset your geographic location by going to the "Region" tab and selecting your location. ------------------------------------------------------------------- 10. Advanced Options Available in 3Com Wireless LAN Monitor for Pocket PC In addition to providing basic functionality, the 3Com Wireless LAN Monitor for Pocket PC(WLAN Monitor) offers advanced options for connecting. These features are "automatic release and renew" of IP addresses and "smart scan" of SSIDs. To access these options, bring the Monitor to the forefront by clicking on the tray icon and selecting "Show Monitor". From within the WLAN Monitor, select the "Advanced" tab and tap the Advanced Options button. The checkbox next to each feature enables it when checked and disabled when unchecked. When the "automatic release and renew" checkbox is selected, the WLAN Monitor checks to see if the current IP address is valid. If it is not, it is released and then renewed. The WLAN Monitor retries until it has a valid IP address. This feature is checked by default. When the "smart scan" checkbox is selected and there is no connection established, the Monitor tries to connect to an Access Point(AP) listed on the Status tab under SSID. It continues scanning until either a connection is established or it has tried all of the APs in the list of SSIDs (Maximum of 5). This feature is not checked by default. ------------------------------------------------------------------- 11. Screen lockup on Pocket PC Devices Due to timing issues between certain Pocket PC devices and their PC Card adapters, a condition can exist which causes the screen to lockup when using the 3Com Wireless LAN PC Card. Should this occur the Pocket PC device lockup can be corrected by performing a reset of the device. If the problem persists contact your handheld vendor for a version of the sled that is compliant with the PC Card standard timing specifications. ******************************************************************* INSTALLATION AND UPGRADING ******************************************************************* 12. Avoiding possible network conflicts with embedded adapters You may experience problems with data transfer on a PC with other wireless or wired LAN adapters that are connected to another network. Other LAN adapters, especially wireless LAN adapters, being used on the same PC may cause routing conflicts that prevent data from transferring with the 3Com wireless LAN adapter. To avoid possible conflicts, we suggest you disable other wireless LAN adapters in your PC to use the 3Com adapter, and unplug wired adapters when not in use. Follow the instructions below to disable the other wireless LAN adapter in Device Manager: For Microsoft Windows XP 1. Open the Control Panel by clicking on START> CONTROL PANEL 2. Click the PERFORMANCE AND MAINTENANCE icon (when using Windows XP Category View) 3. Click the SYSTEM icon 4. Select the HARDWARE tab 5. Click the DEVICE MANAGER button 6. Under Network Adapters double click the NON-3COM ADAPTER listed in this section 7. On the window that opens click on the GENERAL TAB 8. In the box at the bottom labeled DEVICE USAGE, select from the list the option "Do not use this device (disable)" and click OK For Microsoft Windows 2000 1. Open the Control Panel by clicking on START> SETTINGS> CONTROL PANEL 2. In the Control Panel Double click on SYSTEM 3. Then click on the HARDWARE tab 4. Click the DEVICE MANAGER button 5. Look for the section labeled NETWORK ADAPTERS and double click on the NON-3COM ADAPTER listed in this section 6. On the window that opens click on the GENERAL TAB 7. In the box at the bottom labeled DEVICE USAGE, select from the list the option "Do not use this device in any hardware profiles (disable)" and click OK For Microsoft Windows 98SE or Windows Me 1. Open the Control Panel by clicking on START> SETTINGS> CONTROL PANEL 2. In the Control Panel Double click on SYSTEM 3. Then click on the DEVICE MANAGER tab 4. Look for the section labeled NETWORK ADAPTERS and double click on the NON-3COM ADAPTER listed in this section 5. On the window that opens click on the GENERAL TAB 6. Check the box at the bottom labeled DISABLE IN THIS HARDWARE PROFILE and click OK ------------------------------------------------------------------- 13. Instructions for upgrading 3Com Wireless LAN Manager software and drivers IMPORTANT: The instructions below assume that you currently have the 3CRWE62092B/3CRSHPW696/3CRSHPW196 card installed. NOTE: If you have previously installed the "3Com Wireless 802.1X Agent" for 3Com Serial Authentication remove the program "3Com NDIS 5.1 802.1x Client Tools" from Add/Remove Programs before installing the 3Com Wireless LAN Manager. Windows XP, 2000, 98SE, ME users: Run the uninstall utility found on the 3Com provided installation CD. Go to START>RUN> and type in: \\Uninstall\WiFi_Remove.exe where is the letter of your CD-ROM drive. NOTE: If you downloaded updated software from 3Com.com, the defalt saving location for this software is: C:\3Com\<3CRWE62092B/3CRSHPW696/3CRSHPW196> Remove the 3Com PC Card and reboot your computer. Insert the 3Com provided installation CD and follow the instructions to install the driver and software. NOTE: If you downloaded updated software from 3Com.com, you should run SETUP.EXE from the downloaded software directory. The defalt saving location for this software is: C:\3Com\<3CRWE62092B/3CRSHPW696/3CRSHPW196>\setup.exe Windows CE Users: To upgrade Windows CE drivers and software click "INSTALL ON WINDOWS CE" from the 3Com 11Mbps Wireless LAN Master Install Menu. Installation requires ActiveSync 3.5 or higher to be loaded on your PC. ------------------------------------------------------------------- 14. If installing driver after previously uninstalling on Windows 2000 or XP This is applicable to Windows 2000 and XP only. If you have previously uninstalled the driver and wish to re-install, you should run an uninstall utility from the 3Com installation CD. The uninstall utility will delete cached versions of the driver and ensure the latest driver version is installed. To run the cleanup utility run \\Uninstall\WiFi_Remove.exe from the PC Card installation CD where is the letter of your CD-ROM drive.