Wifi USB Adaptor Help

Ok so I started a thread on here a while back asking for advice on how to improve my wifi signal and received dead useful advice- thank you.

I took up one recommendation and got an Alfa Networks USB adaptor. Installed it all fine etc. Here is the problem- when I go to view my wireless network options I have a fair list my normal uni wireless connection with 1 bar, that I have always had, and below it the exact same connection with 4/5 bars. Naturally I tried to connect to the one with 4/5 bars but it wont connect. When I ask it to diagnose why, it gives me the bog-standard "Windows association failed because Windows failed to receive any response from the wireless router or access point." With the option to troubleshoot "low wireless signal quality problems"

Can anyone offer advice? I can still connect to the Uni network that only has 1 bar, but obviously this is of little use to me as I could connect to that before I bought this USB antenna!

Ok now when I try and diagnose the connection problem it's just telling me Windows cant detect any problem- yet still wont connect.

The adaptor thing seems to be working as I am picking up half a dozen new wireless networks I wasn't seeing before.

Am I just being dense and missing something painfully obvious...? The first time I tried to connect to my uni's wifi I had to get a tech guy to 'register it to the network' but all he did was change the port settings and stick the damn annoying java webfilter in the proxy address so that's not going to need changing or anything is it?

Anyone got any ideas...?

 

This "Alfa Networks USB adaptor" is a network card, or what?
Do you have two wireless network cards running now?
Call this IT guy and ask do they use MAC filter.
And if you have two WiFi cards on, switch off the old one.

 

No it's just a booster...as far as I know? It's this:- http://wifi-warehouse.com/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=17
The "Alfa Networks High Power USB Wifi Adapter AWUS036H" So I don't think I have to switch off my inbuilt network card...do I? Bear in mind I'm a bit of a novice when it comes to wireless internet, and the Alfa networks troubleshooting is about as useful as a chocolate teapot.

 

It seems to be a network card. I don't see how could you use an USB antenna to improve reception and send signal back to the internal card anyway.
It's also confirmed somewhat by you seeing the same network twice with different signal strength. Also specs of Realtek chip found in this device seem to confirm it.
That would mean your new card has a new MAC address and it may not be allowed on the network without prior registering it by IT crowd.

 

Ah ok what you're saying seems to make sense. I was just hoping for a "plug it in and everything will immediately all work fine" approach. Should have known better.

So you think I should disable my current network card and ask the IT crowd to try and register the MAC address USB antenna? Not that I have great faith in the IT lot here as there networking knowledge seems to be on about a par with mine, but if thats all you think it will take then it has to be worth a shot

 

Sounds like they are using some sort of protection - WPA, WPA2 ,etc, etc. I would bring it to the IT folks and have them set it up to go on the network. There is probably a network key that needs to be entered.

 

Fair do's I will take it into them tomorrow then. But as I said they're not the best when it comes to networking issues as it took them about 2 days to figure out why my laptop wasn't connecting (they hadn't pressed the big wifi 'on' button in the corner of the keyboard- awesome), so will I definitely need to disable my internal network card, or does that not matter?

 

If you want to use the usb one, yes, disable the internal one. It sounds like they would be confused easily.

 

Disable the internal wi-fi

Make sure that you plug in the 2nd usb on that dual cable to allow for full output power

Position the adapter where the signal is strongest

Run microsoft update and update the driver for your Alfa card

Have the IT dept recheck the settings , if your regular adapter has 1 bar , you should see 2 or 3 bars

If you are having difficulty with the Alfas connection utility, change over the the windows utility

Alex

 

Gaaah. Ok I have disabled my internal wifi card and still cannot connect via the USB. The IT dept. are indicating they need a mac address for the alfa networks adaptor, but I have no idea where to find this and google has thrown up nothing. Is there anyway around this? I mean I know vaguely what a mac address is, but not enough to know why they would need it and how I can find it etc...

 

Open command prompt and type in: "ipconfig/all" and will get a list of all NICs with their physical addresses (meaning MACs)

 

Ah I've actually just found it, it's stamped on the barcode. Happy days. TIme to see if this works....

Cheers for all the advice (really!) Though no doubt I will be back again in 5minutes when the IT crowd throw up another problem they don't know how to rectify.

Don't worry, I'll recommend to the head of the IT dept. he forwards their salaries onto you guys this month...

 

Right I finally got this working- happy days. Unfortunately my internet speed fluxuates between 54MBPS and 11MBPS, annoyingly spending more time at 11 than it does at 54. Is this because I am in student rooms and there are dozens of others on the network? (actually there are probably only a dozen at most on this network.) And if so- is there nothing I can do about it? (short of going round and breaking the laptops of every other student to stop them stealing my bandwidth of course...)