Trying to get my wireless connection turned on

I just found this Forum 5 min ago; this is my first post here. I think this is the right spot for this post; hope so.

Ok, maybe about a year ago I had a nasty virus on my T42. I started having problems one day, backed up my important stuff the following day, and the next day the machine was basically useless. I re-imaged and everything went in fine, with the exception of the driver for my wireless connection. I went to the TP web site:
http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site.wss/MIGR-55386.html

I downloaded and installed the Cisco Wireless LAN mini PCI adapter and the ThinkPad 802.11bg wireless LAN Mini PCI adapter and I tried the Intel PRO/Wireless LAN 2100 3b Mini PCI adapter; none worked.

If I go to Control Panel > System > Advanced > Hardware > Device Manger
I can see 3 big yellow question marks next to: Ethernet Controller, PCI Modem, and Video Controller (VGA Compatible). Clearly, there are some issues here. I tried downloading and installing the wireless drivers from the site, and none seem to work. Am I missing something? Although I’m typically connected via a land-line, I’d like to get my wireless working very soon because it’s getting kind of inconvenient when I travel to client sites. What do I need to do to get my wireless back?

Thanks so much,
Ryan--

 

Try to right click on the yellow question marks items, choose uninstall & reinstall driver or update driver.

 

Also, try reinstalling drivers from the drivers disc that should have come with the laptop.

 

devil301 - Thanks! That was helpful. Now I have my 'Standby' back; I can now go into power-save mode without downing my TP. I haven't seen that in a year; nice to have it back. However, I still don't have wireless.

TevashSzat - I don't have a TP reimage disk. I only have Windows XP; this is where my current image is from. I bought this TP off eBay. I think it is my 5th or 6th; I've always had TPs, since the first color monitor came out in...1994...I think.

Anyway, still no wireless. I am thinking that there must be a way to force the machine to find it. It seems to have trouble finding the hardware. So far I have tried these drivers:
v3.8.26.01 > 1kwc42ww.exe
v4.1.2.156 > 77wc39ww.exe
v1.2.4.41 > 1rwc89ww.exe

If I go to Control Panel > System > Hardware > Device Manager...I have one large yellow question mark and the device is Ethernet Controller. Is this the device that manages the wireless connection? I don't have any trouble getting online with the Ethernet port...but the yellow question mark indicates that the Ethernet Controller does have a problem.


I tried the 'Wireless Network Setup Wizard'...nothing. I also tried 'Wireless Link'...that seems to be for IR.


The icon of the tower, with the signals coming out, used to have a little green light under it; there is no green light anymore. To install a wireless connection I go to 'Network Connections' and then create a new connection, right. Is there something else tat I am missing? Any other ideas?

Thanks,
Ryan--

 

A couple of things you should try: Restart in Safe Mode, hit F8 repeatedly while rebooting. Go to Start---> Run and type "msconfig" then go to Startup and deselect whatever you find suspicious. Then go to Start---> Run and type "devmgmt.msc" and reinstall your drivers. Also clear your temporary folders completely and startup again in Normal mode.

 

Thanks Twiz57, I tried what you recommended. I didn't see anything 'suspicious', but I did delete the 'Ethernet Controller' under 'devmgmt.msc'. On the restart, I got a message prompting me to install new hardware (the Ethernet Controller). I clicked through the wizard menus. At the end, I got a message saying 'cannot install this hardware'. I'm not a Windows programmer (although I do a lot of .NET work) but something really doesn't make sense here. Unless the hardware is malfunctioning, I would expect one of those three drivers to do...something...not sure what but at least something...

Under Device Manager, I still have a yellow question mark next to my Ethernet Controller.

Can anyone think of anything else, short of buying a new TP, and then reinstalling SQL Server, .NET, XP critical updates, etc., etc., etc...

Thanks,
Ryan---

 

Basically grab all the drivers from the support site you provided and re-install them. And don't exclude anything related to LAN, bluetooth, PCI bridge, wireless, system interface driver, Intel Chipset from your setup. You've got them all there on that support website. Are you sure they're all installed? Stay away from BIOS flashing and video drivers, or system diags. They won't help you much in this case. Try to get rid of ALL yellow exclamation signs from device manager even if you think they prove to be useless. Also run "services.msc" and make sure Wireless Zero Configuration is set to Automatic and Started. You could check the rest of the services related to drivers, connection and make sure they're set according to your configuration.

 

Thanks again Twiz57! I downloaded and installed all 4 WinXP drivers from the Lenovo website -- still nothing. I looked online for help; many resources list step-by-step instructions for what to do, but I literally can't follow some of the early-listed steps because I don't have what they say I should have. I can't right-click 'Right-click Wireless Network Connection' and then 'Select View Available Wireless Networks' -- I simply don't have this stuff. One site claimed the following 'Setting up a wireless network can be a tedious and time-consuming process...' I concur!!

Another thing that was baffling, under the 'Wireless Network Setup Wizard', was that I was prompted to unplug my flash drive from the TP, and plug it into my wireless router. I use Linksys for my router; there literally is no USB port on the Linksys so I couldn’t proceed.

Any other thoughts? If I don't get it within the next 12 hours or so, I'll just have to do without it. It would be nice to have wireless, but I can't spend countless hours on this thing.

Thanks again!
Ryan---

 

You should probably download all of the drivers that are available for your laptop, including any system software. Your chipset drivers might not be correct. Since things haven't been the same since your virus, you might consider doing a complete install, making sure to format the c drive during the process. Then, install all of the necessary drivers.

 

Good advice, all of it! I'll have to find some time, down the road a bit, when I can do a wipe and clean install. Or, maybe at the end of the year, I'll get a new machine, ThinkPad, of course.

Thanks everyone,
Ryan---