07-08-2011, 11:18 PM

Windows Vista Home Premium 2007

Studio XPS 1640

Intel(R) Core(RM) Duo CPU

2.40GHz

4.00 GB

64 Bit



I've had my computer for almost three years now and during that time, most parts on it have been replaced.

Most recently, I've had both my hard drive and my wireless card replaced due to different issues and now, it's come up recently that I cannot connect to the internet wirelessly. I live with my best friend who also owns a Dell laptop and I myself own an Acer Netbook and an iPhone, both which connect just fine to the wireless internet. It seems to be only my system that is having this problem.

I've spoken with the Dell Support Reps over 5+ times and nothing has solved this problem. They simply tell me it is a software issue and I must purchase some System Repair thing for $100+ (even after spending $600 on a warranty that apparently only covers hardware).



Obviously, I can connect just fine to through an ethernet/wired connection but not wirelessly. Its not that the connection does not show up at all, it shows up and says it connects, but I get 'Local Only' access. This isn't the first problem I've had with my wireless either; I've had other errors such as: "The capability of this network adapter does not match the requirements of this network" or the connection will show up but their will be grayed out as if I'm not receiving any sort of connectivity.

If there is any more information I can give to make this easier to understand, please let me know. I'll post the Windows IP Configuration if it's needed to help solve this issue.



Short version:



-New harddrive

-New wireless card

-New router

-Other devices in the house connect wirelessly

-Local only access

-Using Google Chrome

-No internet access

-"There may be a problem with one or more network adapters on this computer."

-"the capability of your network adapter does not match the requirements of this network"



Is this a Vista problem or what?

07-09-2011, 12:46 PM

Welcome to the Mac Forums.

I moved your post here to our wireless forum where it will likely receive more replies because of the subject matter. Our forums are primarily for questions and problems dealing with Apple hardware, Mac software, etc. However, many of us own Windows computers in addition to the Mac.

The first thing I would ask you... is what kind of wireless system do you have setup and which form of encryption are you using if any? It almost sounds as if the error you're getting has to do with encryption. If your router\modem is setup using WPA2 and your network card can only "see" WEP, the connection will fail. Of course it will still work via ethernet.

What you might try is to turn off all encryption from the router and test the connection in the clear. Your iPhone works because it understands WEP, WPA, and WPA2. Maybe your Dell notebook does not as it is an older model.