Belkin F5D7001B User Manual

Belkin Ltd.

7 Bowen Crescent, West Gosford NSW 2250, Australia +61 (0) 2 4372 8600 +61 (0) 2 4372 8603 fax

Belkin B.V.

Boeing Avenue 333 1119 PH Schiphol-Rijk, The Netherlands +31 (0) 20 654 7300 +31 (0) 20 654 7349 fax

Belkin Tech Support

US: 877-736-5771

310-898-1100 ext. 2263 Europe: 00 800 223 55 460 Australia: 1800 235 546 New Zealand: 0800 235 546 Singapore: 800 616 1790

Belkin Corporation

501 West Walnut Street Los Angeles, CA 90220-5221, USA 310-898-1100 310-898-1111 fax

Belkin Ltd.

Express Business Park, Shipton Way Rushden, NN10 6GL, United Kingdom +44 (0) 1933 35 2000 +44 (0) 1933 31 2000 fax

© 2006 Belkin Corporation. All rights reserved. All trade names are registered trademarks of respective manufacturers listed. 54g is a trademark of Broadcom Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. The mark Wi-Fi is a registered mark of the Wi-Fi Alliance. The “Wi-Fi CERTIFIED” logo is a certification mark of the Wi-Fi Alliance.

P74485-A

Wireless G Plus

Desktop Card

User Manual

F5D7001

Connect your desktop computer to a wireless network

Wireless G Plus

Desktop Card

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1 Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Benefits of a Home Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Advantages of a Wireless Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Placement of your Wireless Networking Hardware for

Optimal Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

2 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Product Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Applications and Advantages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Product Specifications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

System Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Package Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

3 Installing and Setting up the Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Step 1: Install the Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Step 2: Insert the Card into an Available PCI Slot on

your Desktop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Step 3: Use the Belkin Wireless Networking Utility . . . . . . . . . . . 11

4 Using the Belkin Wireless Networking Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Accessing the WNU from the Windows System Tray . . . . . . . . . 12

Setting Wireless Network Profiles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Securing your Wi-Fi Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Configuring your Belkin Wireless G Plus Desktop Card

to use Security. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

5 Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

6 Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Table of Contents

Introduction

sec tio n

Thank you fo r purchasing th e Belkin Wi re le ss G Plus Desk top Card (the Card). No w y ou can take ad vantage of th is great new tec hnology and gain t he free dom to netw ork your home an d off ice comp ut ers wireless ly. This Ca rd al lows you to co nn ect a deskt op compute r to your ne tw ork. The ea sy install ation an d s etup will hav e y ou networ king wireles sly in minute s. Pleas e b e s ure t o rea d t hrou gh this User Manu al compl et ely, a nd pay specia l a ttent io n to the secti on entitl ed “Placem ent of your Wi re le ss Netwo rking Hardwa re for Optima l P erforma nce” on pag e 2 .

Benefi ts of a Home Netw ork

Your B elkin Ho me Network wi ll allow yo u t o:

• Share one hig h-speed In terne t c onnec ti on with all th e c omput er s in your ho me

• Share resources, su ch as files, a nd hard dr ives amo ng all the connec ted comput ers in your ho me

• Share a single p ri nter wit h t he entire famil y

• Share docume nts, music , v ideo, an d d igital pic tures

• Store, re triev e, and copy file s f ro m o ne compu te r to anothe r

• Simulta neously pl ay games on line, chec k I nternet email , a nd chat

Advant ages of a Wirele ss Ne twork

Here are some of the advantages of setting up a Belkin wireless network:

• M obili ty – y ou’ll no long er need a dedi cated “com puter room”—

now you ca n w ork on a netwo rk ed lapto p o r d esktop com puter anywhe re wi thin your wirel ess range

• Easy inst allatio n – Belkin Eas y I nstalla tion Wiz ard mak es

setup sim ple

• Flexib ility – set up an d a ccess pr in ters, co mputers , a nd other

networ king devic es from anywhere in you r h ome

• Easy expa nsion – the wi de range of Be lk in netwo rking produc ts

lets you e xp and your ne twork to in cl ude devi ces such as prin ters and gamin g c onsol es

• No cablin g req uire d – you can spa re the e xp ense and ha ssle of

ret ro fitting Et her net cablin g t hroughout th e h ome or office

• Widesp re ad industr y a cceptan ce – c hoose from a wid e r ange

of interope rable netw orking produ cts

Introduction

Placement of your Wireless Networking Hardware for Optimal Performance

Your w ireless conn ection wil l b e stronger th e c loser your co mputer is to your wi rele ss ro uter. Typical ind oor oper at ing rang e f or your wireless de vices is betw een 100 and 20 0 f eet. In the sa me way, your wirele ss connect ion and per fo rmanc e w ill degrad e s omewhat as the dis ta nce betw een your wirele ss ro ut er and conn ected devi ces increase s. This may or ma y n ot be noticea ble to you. As yo u m ove farthe r f ro m y our wireless rout er, c onnec ti on speed ma y d ecrease. Factor s t hat can wea ken signal s s imply by ge tting in the way of your netw ork’s ra dio wave s a re me tal applia nces or obs tr uctio ns , and walls .

If you hav e c oncer ns about yo ur network ’s perfo rmance t ha t might be rel ated to ran ge or obstr uc tion fac tors, try mov ing the com puter to a positio n b etwee n f ive and 10 fee t f rom t he wire less router in o rder to see if dis tance is the p robl em. If difficul ties persi st even at clo se range, pl ease con ta ct Belki n Techn ical Suppo rt.

Note: W hile some o f t he items list ed below ca n a ff ec t networ k

perfor mance, the y w ill not prohi bi t your wirele ss network from functi oning; if y ou are c on cer ned that yo ur network is no t o peratin g at its max im um effective ness, th is checkli st may help.

1. Placement of your Wireless Router

Place you r w ireless router, t he central co nnectio n p oint of you r networ k, as close as po ssible to t he center of you r w ireless networ k d evices.

To ach ieve the be st wire less net work cover age for you r “ wire less client s,” (i.e. c om puter s e nabled by Wirel ess Notebo ok Cards, Wireless De sktop Cards, an d W irel ess USB Ada pters):

• Ensure that yo ur wireless route r’s ante nnas are parall el to each other, an d a re po sitione d v ertical ly (toward the c ei ling) . I f y our wireless router it self is pos itioned ve rticall y, poi nt the antenn as as much as po ssible in an u pw ard d irection.

• In multistory homes, place the wireless router on a floor that is as close to the center of the home as possible. This may mean placing the wireless router on an upper floor.

• Try not to plac e t he wireless route r n ear a cordles s

2.4GHz ph one.

Introduction

sec tio n

2. Avoid Obstacles and Interference

Avo id placi ng your wireles s rou te r near devi ces that ma y e mit radio “noise ”, such as mic rowa ve ovens . O ther objec ts that can in hibit wireless co mmunica tion can incl ude:

• Refrig erators

• Washe rs and/or d ry ers

• Metal cab inets

• Large aquariu ms

• Metall ic-base d, UV-tinte d w indows

If your wi rele ss signal s ee ms weak in som e s pots, ma ke sure that object s s uch as thes e a re no t b locking th e s ignal ’s path bet ween your comput ers and wireles s rou ter.

3. Cordless Phone Placement

If the per fo rmanc e o f y our wireless ne twork is im pa ired after attend ing to the abo ve issues, an d y ou have a cordle ss phone:

• Try movin g c ordless phon es away from the wi rele ss ro uter and your w irel ess-ena bled compu ters.

• Unplug an d rem ove the bat te ry from any cordless ph one that oper ates on the 2. 4GHz band ( ch eck manu facturer’s inform ation). If th is fixes th e p ro blem, your ph one may be interf ering.

• If your ph on e suppor ts channel se lection , c hange th e channe l o n t he phone to th e f arthe st channel from yo ur wireless ne twork as poss ible. Fo r e xample, ch ange the phone to c ha nnel 1 and mov e y our wireless rout er to channe l 1 1. (Your channe l s electio n w ill vary de pending on your region .) See your ph one’s us er manual f or detail ed instruc tions.

• If necess ary, c on sider sw itching to a 9 00 MHz or 5GHz cordless ph one.

4. Choose the “Quietest” Channel for your Wireless Network

In locati ons where homes or offi ces are close to ge ther, su ch as apartm ent buildi ngs or office co mp lexes , t here ma y be wireless networ ks nearby t ha t can confl ict with yo ur s. Use the Sit e S urvey capabi lities of y ou r Wireless Ne tw orkin g U tility to loc ate any oth er wireless ne tworks, an d m ove your wi rele ss ro uter and co mp uters to a channe l a s f ar away from oth er network s a s p ossib le .

Experi ment with m ore tha n o ne of the avai lable ch an nels, in orde r t o find the c le arest connec tion and av oid interf eren ce from neigh bo ring cordless ph ones or other wi re less devic es.

For more wireles s n etworki ng prod ucts from Bel kin, use the det ailed Site Surv ey and wireless ch annel in formati on include d i n y our User Manu al.

5. Secure Connections, VPNs, and AOL

Secure conn ections ty pically requ ire a us er name and pa ss word, and are used where secu rity is impor tant. Se cu re co nnectio ns inclu de :

• Vir tual Pri vate Netwo rk (VPN) co nn ectio ns , often use d t o c onnec t rem otely to an offi ce network

• The “Brin g You r O wn Access” prog ram from Americ a O nline (AOL), wh ich lets yo u u se AOL through broad band provide d b y anothe r D SL or cable se rvice

• Most onli ne banki ng website s

• Many comm ercial websi tes that require a user na me and passwo rd to ac cess your a cc ount

Secure conn ections ca n b e i nterr up ted by a compu ter’s po wer manage ment setti ng, whic h c auses it to “g o t o s leep.” The si mplest soluti on to avoid th is is to simpl y recon nect by re-runn ing the VPN or AOL softw are, or by re -loggin g i nto the sec ure w eb site.

A second alternative is to change your computer’s power management settings so it does not go to sleep; however, this may not be appropriate for portable computers. To change your power management setting in Windows, see the “Power Options” item in the Control Panel.

If you con ti nue to have di ff iculty wit h S ecure Connec tions, VPN s, and AOL, plea se re view steps 1– 4 above to be s ure you ha ve addressed these iss ues.

Introduction

sec tio n

Product Features

The Card compl ies with th e I EEE 802.11 g s tandard in order to commun icate with ot her 802. 11g-com pliant wirel es s device s a t 54Mbps . T he Card is compa ti ble with al l 8 02.11g d ev ices as wel l a s other 802 .11b product s a t 1 1Mbps . 8 02.11g produ ct s run at speed s of up to 54Mb ps (or 125Mbp s* using G Plu s) and operat e o n the same 2.4G Hz frequency ba nd as 802.1 1b Wi-Fi® p ro ducts.

• 2.4GHz ISM (Industrial, Science, and Medical) band operation

• Integrated easy-to-use Wireless Networking Utility

• PCI interface, for operation in virtually any desktop computer

• WPA, WPA2, 64-bit WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy), or 128-bit encryption

• Wireless access to networked resources

• Support for both Infrastructure and Ad-Hoc (peer-to-peer) networking modes

• Data rate of up to 125Mbps* in G Plus, 54Mbps (802.11g), or 11Mbps (802.11b)

• Easy installation and use

• External antenna

• Network link and activity link LED indicators

*When operating in G Plus, this Wi-Fi device may achieve an actual throughput of up to or greater than 34.1Mbps, which is the equivalent throughput of a system following 802.11g protocol and operating at a signal rate of 125Mbps. Actual throughput will vary depending on environmental, operational, and other factors.

Overview

Applications and Advantages

• Wireless roam in g w ith a lapto p a ro und the hom e o r o ff ic e Off ers the freed om of network ing—wit hout cable s

• Connec tion rates of up to 54Mbps o r 1 25Mbps* us ing G Plus Pro vides im mediate wi re le ss conne ctivity at ho me, work , a nd hotspo t l ocation s w ithou t c ompromising th e use of exist ing

802.11 b a nd 802.1 1g prod ucts

• Compat ibility wi th 802.1 1b prod ucts

802.11 g w ireless LAN sol utions a re back ward-comp atible wit h existi ng Wi-Fi (I EE E 802.11 b) prod ucts and wi th other produc ts that disp lay the 54g lo go

• Difficul t- to-wi re en vi ro nments Enable s n etworki ng in build ings with sol id or finis hed walls, or open areas whe re wi ring is difficu lt to install

• Fre quent ly changin g e nvironmen ts Adapts ea sily in offices or environment s t hat frequent ly re arrange or change lo catio ns

• Temporary L AN s f or speci al proj ects or pea k t ime Sets up te mp orary ne tworks suc h a s a t trade sho ws, exhibi tions, and const ruction si tes, whi ch need netwo rks on a short -term basis; al so compa ni es who need ad ditiona l w orkst at ions for a peak acti vity per io d

• SOHO (Sma ll Office/Ho me Office) netw orking n ee ds Provides the easy and quick, small-network installation SOHO users need

* When operating in G Plus, this Wi-Fi device may achieve an

actual throughput of up to or greater than 34.1Mbps, which is the equivalent throughput of a system following 802.11g protocol and operating at a signal rate of 125Mbps. Actual throughput will vary depending on environmental, operational, and other factors.

Product Specifications

Host Inte rface: 32-bit PC I

Power Con sumptio n: Tx/Rx pea k 5 10/25 0m A @ 3.3VDC (ma x.)

Operat ing Temperature: 32—140 de grees F (0—60 de gree s C )

Storag e Tempe rature: -4—176 de grees F (-20—80 de grees C)

Humidi ty: M ax. 90% (no n-conde nsing)

Typical Opera ting Ran ge : 1 00–200 ft. (3 0–60m) i nd oors

Overview

sec tio n

Overview

(a) Link LED

Lights up wh en the Card link s t o a wi re less netwo rk

(b) Activity LED

Lights up an d flashe s w hen the Card is act iv e

Fits secu re ly into your c om puter ’s PCI slot

(d) Antenna

System Requirements

• PC-com patible de sktop co mp uter wit h o ne availab le PCI slot an d CD-ROM dr ive

• Window s® 9 8SE, Me, 20 00, or XP

Package Contents

• Wireless G Plu s D esktop C ard

• Quick Ins tallati on Guide

• Instal lation Sof tware CD

• User Manu al

(c)

(b)

(a)

(d)

Step 1 Install the Software

Important note: Install the software before inserting the Card.

1.1 Insert the Installation Software CD into your CD-ROM drive.

1.2 The Belkin Wireless Networking Utility (WNU) will automatically appear

(may take 15–20 seconds to appear).

Note: If the WN U s creen does no t a ppear with in 20 secon ds , access

your CD-R OM by doubl e-click ing on the “My Co mputer” ic on; then, double -click on t he CD-ROM dri ve into whi ch the instal lation CD has been p la ced. Dou ble-cli ck on the fold er named “Fil es”, then double -click on t he icon named “s etup.ex e”.

Installing and Setting up the Card

1.3 Click “install” from the menu.

sec tio n

Installing and Setting up the Card

1.4 Ins ta llati on will now star t. Choos e

an instal lation l oc ation . C lick “Next” to ac cept the de fault locati on or click “B rows e” to selec t a different loca ti on, and the n click “Ne xt”.

1.5 The wizard will promp t y ou to shut

down your co mpute r a nd insert the Card into the PCI sl ot.

Step 2 Insert the Card into an Available PCI Slot on your Desktop

2.1 Shut down yo ur compu ter and disco nnect your po wer cord.

2.2 Remov e t he screws behin d y our comp uter case tha t s ecure the

comput er cover an d remov e c over.

N ot e: Touch any metal pa rt of the case to discharge stat ic

electr icity to av oi d damage to th e p ro duct or you r c omputer.

2.3 Locat e a n e mpty PCI ex pansion sl ot. It is usua lly white i n c olor.

Confir m t hat the Card wil l f it into the sl ot you have chos en. Keep in mind th at the includ ed antenna ne eds to be orie nted with t he top point ing up. If the re are cab le s and other co nnector s i n the way, tr y t o pick the PCI sl ot that has th e f ewest ob structi ons to the correct po sitioni ng of the ante nna.

2.4 Remov e t he metal po rt cover from the bac k o f the compu ter that

correspo nd s to the PCI sl ot you select ed. If there is a screw, place it i n a sa fe place, a s y ou will be using it to attach the Ca rd to the com pu ter late r.

2.5 Pus h t he Card firmly int o t he PCI

slot that yo u have chos en. Apply pre ssure as need ed until the connec tor is full y s eated.

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