Wistron NeWeb RB1 User Manual

WLAN 802.11g Cardbus

User Manual

Version: 1.0

Jan. 2004

Copyright Statement

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or

transmitted in any form or by any means, whether electronic, mechanical,

photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior writing of the publisher.

Windows™ 98SE/2000/ME/XP are trademarks of Microsoft® Corp.

Pentium is trademark of Intel.

All copyright reserved.

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Federal Communication Commission Interference Statement

This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B

digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to

provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation.

This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not

installed and used in accordance with

the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However,

there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this

equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which can

be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to

correct the interference by one of the following measures:

- Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.

- Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.

- Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the

receiver is connected.

- Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.

FCC Caution: To assure continued compliance, (example - use only shielded interface

cables when connecting to computer or peripheral devices) any changes or

modifications not expressly approved by the party responsible for compliance could

void the user's authority to operate this equipment.

This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the

following two conditions:

(1) This device may not cause harmful interference, and

(2) This device must accept any interference received, including interference that may

cause undesired operation.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

This transmitter must not be co-located or operating in conjunction with

any other antenna or transmitter.

Wistron NeWeb declare that RB1 (WLAN 802.11g Cardbus) is
limited in CH1~CH11 in USA.

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Table of Contents

1. INTRODUCTION 4

1.1 THE WLAN 802.11G CARDBUS ..............................................................................4

1.2 FEATURES ................................................................................................................4

1.3 KIT CONTENTS ........................................................................................................5

1.4 THE CARDBUS LEDS...............................................................................................5

2. PLANNING YOUR WIRELESS NETWORK 6

2.1 NETWORK TOPOLOGY.............................................................................................6

2.2 AD-HOC VERSUS INFRASTRUCTURE MODE ............................................................6

3. SOFTWARE INSTALLATION AND UNINSTALLATION 8

3.1 SETUP WIZARD INSTALLATION .......................................................................8

3.2 ADDITIONAL SETUP PROCESSES............................................................................ 11

3.3 DISABLE WINDOWS XP ZERO-CONFIGURATION .................................................12

3.4 UNINSTALLATION...................................................................................................13

4. USING THE CONFIGURATION UTILITY 15

VERVIEW .............................................................................................................15

4.1 O

4.2 ACCESSING THE CONFIGURATION UTILITY..........................................................15

4.3 CONFIGURE PROFILE ............................................................................................17

4.4 SITE SURVEY..........................................................................................................19

APPENDIX A: TROUBLESHOOTING 20

APPENDIX B: GLOSSARY 24

APPENDIX C: SPECIFICATION 29

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1. Introduction

1.1 The WLAN 802.11g Cardbus

802.11g is the 54Mbps wireless networking standard that's almost five times faster

than the widely deployed 802.11b products found in homes, businesses, and public

wireless hotspots around the country — but since they share the same 2.4GHz radio

band, 802.11g devices can also work with existing 11Mbps 802.11b equipment. The

new 802.11g Cardbus has both standards built in, so you can connect your notebook

to existing 802.11b infrastructure, and also the new screaming

fast 802.11g networks. The included Setup Wizard will walk you through configuring

the cardbus to your network's settings, step by step. Then just slide it into your

notebook's PC Card slot and enjoy network access with your notebook computer,

while retaining true mobility.

Once you're connected, you can keep in touch with your e-mail, access the Internet,

and share files and other resources such as printers and network storage with other

computers on the network, wherever you wander. At home, you can surf the web or

use instant messaging to chat with friends while sitting out on the patio. You'll also be

able to connect with any of the growing number of public wireless hotspots springing

up in coffee shops, airport lounges, hotels and convention centers. And as those

hotspots upgrade to the new high-speed 802.11g standard, you'll be ready to take

advantage of the increased speeds. Get connected to current-standard 802.11b

networks today, and be prepared for the future with the 802.11g Cardbus.

1.2 Features

 54Mbps High-Speed Wireless Transfer rate

 Up to 5X Faster than 802.11b WLANs

 Proprietary turbo mode provides high 72Mbps throughput

 Backward complaint with 802.11b

 32-bit Cardbus

 Roaming support

 Supports up to 128-bit WEP

 Ad-Hoc mode and infrastrucure mode access

 Longer range support than 802.11a-based WLAN

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1.3 Kit Contents

 WLAN 802.11g Cardbus

 Installation Software CD with User’s Manual

 Quick Start Guide

1.4 The Cardbus LEDs

Link LED

Power LED

Power Green. The Power LED lights up when the Cardbus is powered

on.

Link Green. The Link LED lights up and stays solid when the Cardbus

is inserted correctly and a link is established with the Notebook.

The LED flashes when data is transmitted or received..

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2. Planning Your Wireless Network

2.1 Network Topology

A wireless local area network (WLAN) is exactly like a regular local area network

(LAN), except that each computer in the WLAN uses a wireless device to connect to

the network. Computers in a WLAN share the same frequency channel and SSID,

which is an identification name for wireless devices.

2.2 Ad-Hoc versus Infrastructure Mode

Unlike wired networks, wireless networks have two different modes in which they

may be set up: infrastructure and ad-hoc. An infrastructure configuration is a

WLAN and wired LAN communicating to each other through an access point. An

ad-hoc configuration is wireless-equipped computers communicating directly with

each other. Choosing between these two modes depends on whether or not the

wireless network needs to share data or peripherals with a wired network or not.

If the computers on the wireless network need to be accessed by a wired network or

need to share a peripheral, such as a printer, with the wired network computers, the

wireless network should be set up in infrastructure mode. (See Figure 2-1.) The

basis of infrastructure mode centers around an access point, which serves as the main

point of communications in a wireless network. Access points transmit data to PCs

equipped with wireless network cards, which can roam within a certain radial range of

the access point. Multiple access points can be arranged to work in succession to

extend the roaming range, and can be set up to communicate with your Ethernet

(wired) hardware as well.

Figure 2-1

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If the wireless network is relatively small and needs to share resources only with the

other computers on the wireless network, then the ad-hoc mode can be used. (See

Figure 2-2.) Ad-hoc mode allows computers equipped with wireless transmitters and

receivers to communicate directly with each other, eliminating the need for an access

point. The drawback of this mode is that, in Ad- Hoc mode, wireless-equipped

computers are not able to communicate with computers on a wired network. And, of

course, communication between the wireless-equipped computers is limited by the

distance and interference directly between them.

Figure 2-2

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3. Software Installation and Uninstallation

Note! The Installation Section in this User Manual describes the first-time installation

for Windows. To re-install the driver, please first uninstall the previously

installed driver. See Chapter 3.2 “Uninstallation” section in this User Manual.

Note! Do Not insert the Cardbus into the Cardbus slot before the driver installation.

Note! If you have inserted the Cardbus into the Cardbus slot before installing the

driver, a warning message pops up informing you that the software has not yet

been installed. Please click “Cancel” to close the warning message. Remove

the Cardbus, and then start to install the driver.

3.1 Setup Wizard Installation

Follow the steps below to complete the driver/utility installation:

1. Insert the Installation Software CD into the CD-Rom Drive.

2. Click “Next”.

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3. Read the License Agreement and click “Yes”.

4. Click “Next” to continue or click “Browse” to choose a destination folder.

5. Click “Next”.

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