NetComm NP642 User Manual

Caution

The NetComm NP642 must be installed and operated in accordance with the instructions provided in this Quick Start Guide. Damage caused by incorrect or careless installation is not covered by warranty.

Static Electricity

Computers are very sensitive to static electricity which may be discharged by the user when the internal circuitry is touched. Ensure that you have discharged any static prior to touching the computer’s PCI slots and to removing the NetComm NP642 from its static bag, by touching an earthed object ﬁrst. This can be the computer’s Power Supply provided the power is switched off at the wall, but the power cord is connected to the power socket; static will be discharged through the power cord’s earth connection.

2 NP642 IEEE 802.11g PCI Adapter YML785 Rev1

Contents

INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................... 4

Wireless Terminology .......................................................................... 5

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

GETTING TO KNOW YOUR NP642 ............................................................... 8

Package Contents ............................................................................... 8

NP642 LED Indicators .......................................................................... 9

HARDWARE INSTALLATION ..................................................................... 10

PCI Card Installation Instructions ........................................................ 10

Connecting the Antenna .................................................................... 11

SOFTWARE INSTALLATION ...................................................................... 12

Windows 98se/ME/2000/XP Utility and Driver Installation ....................... 12

USING THE WIRELESS UTILITY ............................................................... 14

I. Link Information ............................................................................ 14

II. Conﬁguration............................................................................... 16

III. Advanced ................................................................................... 19

IV. Site Survey ................................................................................. 22

V. About ......................................................................................... 24

APPENDIX A: Glossary .......................................................................... 25

APPENDIX B: Registration and Warranty Information ................................. 32

Contact Information .......................................................................... 32

Customer Information ....................................................................... 33

Product Warranty .............................................................................. 34

Limitations of Warranty ..................................................................... 35

NP642 IEEE 802.11g PCI Adapter 3 YML785 Rev1

INTRODUCTION

Congratulations on your purchase of the NP642 108Mbps IEEE 802.11g Wireless PCI Card.

This manual is designed to help familiarise users with the product and offers detailed operational and installation instructions, so please keep it for future reference.

With the NP642 Wireless (IEEE 802.11g) PCI Card, a computer can communicate with the Network wirelessly. User-friendly utility software is bundled with the NP642 providing conﬁguration, monitoring and diagnostic options.

The NP642 provides data transfer rates of up to 108 Mbps, which is 10 times faster than most existing Wi-Fi wireless networks.

Designed to handle bandwidth-intensive applications and multimedia content, the NP642 eliminates the need for unsightly ethernet cables while providing fast and secure network transfer rates.

The NP642 has the most advanced security features available today with 128 bit WEP encryption and WPA security.

The Wireless PCI Card conﬁguration is easy to conﬁgure for peer-to-peer networks, suitable for a small number of users, or for full infrastructure networks that allow broad area roaming.

4 NP642 IEEE 802.11g PCI Adapter YML785 Rev1

Wireless Terminology

Wireless Standards

802.11, 802.11b and 802.11g all refer to a series of standards which govern a

common method of creating wireless local area networks (WLANs).

802.11b and 11g are the most common WLAN types, with 11g being the later and

faster of the two standards with a maximum transmission rate of 54Mbps.

The NP642 is faster again as it is built around a processor which ‘turbo-charges’

transmission rates up to 108Mbps.

802.11g is ‘backward compatible’ with 802.11b, which means that the two

standards are able to communicate, albeit at the lower 11Mbps rate of the 11b

standard.

The NP642 can communicate with both kinds of device at their maximum rate,

and with other ‘turbo-charged’ devices at the much higher rate of 108Mbps.

Wireless Security Terms

The Advanced Features of the NP642 include the ability to select from several

types of Wireless Security.

WEP WEP stands for Wired Equivalent Privacy. Introduced

with 802.11b, WEP uses encryption to protect data conﬁdentiality by way of pre-shared keys (passwords or pass-phrases) that are entered at both ends. Superseded by WPA and 802.11i but still in use.

NP642 IEEE 802.11g PCI Adapter 5 YML785 Rev1

WPA WPA stands for Wi-Fi Protected Access - authorizes and

identiﬁes users based on a secret key that changes automatically at a pre-deﬁned interval. This is called TKIP (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) to change the temporal key every 10,000 packets (= unit of data.) Keys can either be pre-shared or established by a RADIUS Server.

RADIUS RADIUS is part of 802.11i security; this is a wireless standard

which is only concerned with wireless security standards. Authentication is based around a secure server with a challengeand-response method of interaction which veriﬁes the identity of the client wishing to connect to the network. If you wish to connect to a RADIUS server ask the Network Administrator for details. RADIUS servers are not usually used as part of home networks.

6 NP642 IEEE 802.11g PCI Adapter YML785 Rev1

System Requirements

• Desktop computer with available 32bit PCI slot.

• Windows 98SE, ME, 2000, XP

• 32Mb of memory and a 300MHz processor

• 20Mb spare disk storage

• CD-ROM Drive

Caution

The NetComm NP642 must be installed and operated in accordance with

the instructions provided in this Quick Start Guide. Damage caused by

incorrect or careless installation is not covered by warranty.

Static Electricity

Computers are very sensitive to static electricity which may be discharged

by the user when the internal circuitry is touched. Ensure that you have

discharged any static prior to touching the computer’s PCI slots and

to removing the NetComm NP642 from its static bag, by touching an

earthed object ﬁrst. This can be the computer’s Power Supply provided

the power is switched off at the wall, but the power cord is connected to

the power socket; static will be discharged through the power cord’s earth

connection.

NP642 IEEE 802.11g PCI Adapter 7 YML785 Rev1

GETTING TO KNOW YOUR NP642

This chapter provides unpacking and setup information for the NP642 Wireless PCI Card.

Package Contents

Open the box of the Wireless PCI Card and carefully unpack it. The box should contain the following items:

� One 108Mbps 802.11g Wireless PCI Card

with removable antenna

� One Installation CD, including Utility

Software and User Guide.

If any item is found missing or damaged, please contact your local reseller for replacement.

8 NP642 IEEE 802.11g PCI Adapter YML785 Rev1

NP642 LED Indicators

LED Indicator Description

Power (PWR) The PWR indicator lights green to indicate that it is receiving

power from the PCI slot. If the PWR indicator light is off, it is not receiving power.

ACT (Activity) The ACT indicator blinks green while the Wireless PCI Card is

transmitting data.

NP642 IEEE 802.11g PCI Adapter 9 YML785 Rev1

HARDWARE INSTALLATION

PCI Card Installation Instructions

1. Shut down the computer, unplug the power cord, and remove the chassis cover.

2. Insert the contact edge of the Wireless PCI Card into the available PCI Bus Master

Expansion slot. Press the card ﬁrmly into the connector so that the card’s contacts are

fully seated in the PCI slot connector.

3. Install the bracket screw and secure the card to the computer chassis.

4. Replace the computer’s cover.

5. Switch the computer power on. Windows will display a ‘Found New Hardware’ dialog

box. Click Cancel to dismiss and proceed with installation of the driver from the CD-

ROM as described on Page 11, after attaching the antenna.

10 NP642 IEEE 802.11g PCI Adapter YML785 Rev1

Connecting the Antenna

Before continuing with the Software Installation section, you will need to connect the antenna

1. The antenna has a retaining nut which must be screwed into the connector on the back

of the card. Place the screw retaining nut over the antenna connection on the rear of

the NB642 and turn it clockwise.

Screw

retaining nut

clockwise

Bend

antenna

to a 90

angle

Note: Do not over-tighten the attaching nut - but do make sure that

you have screwed it all the way to its end.

2. Adjust the antenna to a 90o angle.

Note: Please note that you may have to rotate the complete antenna

assembly to do this and have the antenna pointing vertically.

NP642 IEEE 802.11g PCI Adapter 11 YML785 Rev1

over the antenna

connection

+ 25 hidden pages