Toshiba laptop not seeing any network with replacement wireless NIC

[JesseKnows]

Hello,

I have a Toshiba A135-4656 running Win7. I am trying to get 802.11n into it, to replace the 802.11g card it came with.
I purchased a Gigabyte mini-PCI-E card from geeks (http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?inv...-WS32L-RH-BULK), installed it. Win7 located drivers on its own.

Then I couldn't get any network to be seen (yes, I connected the antennae). Tried updated drivers from Gigabyte, no go. Win7's wireless scan finds nothing. The Gigabyte utility shows "disconnected". The LED on the front of the laptop is dark. Fn-F5 (the Wireless control) does nothing (but it also does nothing with the original Toshiba card).

I moved the card to a Thinkpad 60 (BIOS hacked to allow any network card), works fine. Sees a half dozen networks in my area.

Is there some provision in the Toshiba that prevents a "foreign" NIC from working? I saw nothing in the BIOS that could relate to this.

 

[JesseKnows]

Anyone?

 

[JackMDS]

Check the Device Manager for valid Wireless card entry.
http://www.ezlan.net/Win7/net_dm.jpg

If there is No valid entry, delete any Bogus Entry, and re-install the Wireless card's Drivers.

Check the Network connections to make sure that you have a Wireless Network Connection Icon/Entry, and that the Properties of the Icon (right click on the Icon) are correctly configured with TCP/IPv4 protocol in the Network Connections Properties.
http://www.ezlan.net/Win7/net_connection_tcp.jpg

Make sure that if there is a vendor's Wireless Utility the utility is Not Running together with the Windows native Wireless utility.

Make sure that No Firewall is preventing/blocking the Wireless components to get to the Network.

Working TCP/IP stack should look this way.
Right click on the Wire card Network Connection, choose Status, Details, and see if it got an IP and the rest of the settings.

http://www.ezlan.net/Win7/status-nic.jpg

Description is the card manufacturing data.
Physical address is the card's MAC number.
The xx should be a number from 0 to 255 (all xx same number).
yy should be from 0 to 255
zz should be from 0 to 255 (all zz the same number.
The lease date should be valid to the current time.

*Note 1. IP that starts with 169.xxx.xxx.xxx is not valid functional IP.

*Note 2. There might be an IPv6 entries too. However, they are not functional for Internet traffic or LAN. They are needed for Win 7 special HomeGroup configuration.

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If everything above is OK you have to be able to connect to the Router. A Window that says Connected does not means that your are really connected. Connecting to the Router means that you can enter the Router's core IP into an address bar of a browse, be able to connect, see, and configure the Router's menus. If it does not connecting to the Router log from any computer that can connect to Wireless Router with a Wire, disable the Wireless Security, (make sure that the Wireless broadcast SSID) is On, and try to connect with No Wireless security.

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I really checked and configured every thing and it does Not work.
Software Firewall application that is Not configured to allow local traffic (between the computer and the Router is a possible issue too.
some 3rd party Software Firewalls keep blocking aspects of Local Traffic even it they are turned Off (disabled). If possible configure the Firewall correctly, or totally uninstall it to allow clean flow of local network traffic. If the 3rd party software is uninstalled or disables, make sure that Windows native Firewall is On .


😎

 

[JesseKnows]

Thanks, JackMDS.

I don't have the system set up now (returned the Toshiba card to service), so I can only respond from memory.
Given that, I'd say that all of the points in your post do not seem relevant to my issue. I replaced one NIC with another - the firewall settings did not change; drivers were installed (both Win7 native and newer ones from Gigabyte); neither the Windows Configuration Utility nor the manufacturer's utility could see any access point. It's as if the RF link was broken, with nothing getting in.
And it Just Worked on the Thinkpads (two of them, one with Win7 and one with XP).

 

[JackMDS]

Hi

The worse attitude that can be taken when trying to deal with technology is the ""I did not change any thing"".

Technology and posts like this are not personal (for personal you go to OT).

The above is a step by step evaluation of the Wireless system it is Not implying any thing.

If at the first step you find that there is no valid Entry in the Device Manger then there is No point to go on before it is fixed.


😎

 

[Emulex]

if you violate the FCC terms by swapping out the radio - the bios will stop the machine from operating. it's weird because you can add a gobi card internally to a laptop but not wifi. not sure why that is. was quoted legal terms when i asked for more detail.

 

[JesseKnows]

if you violate the FCC terms by swapping out the radio - the bios will stop the machine from operating. it's weird because you can add a gobi card internally to a laptop but not wifi. not sure why that is. was quoted legal terms when i asked for more detail.

I've known about this "feature" in IBM Thinkpads (Google for no-1802), and heard about similar behavior in HPs.
In Thinkpads the machine doesn't boot. In the Toshiba it seems the radio cannot receive anything. This is my first attempt with a Toshiba, therefore my question.