Adaptec WirelessTM manual

R Adaptec Ultra W ir eless TM PCI Adapter User’ s Guide[...]

ii Copyright © 2002 Adaptec, Inc. All right s reserved. No part of this pub lication may be repr oduced, stored in a retrieval syste m, or tr ansmitted in any f orm or by any means, electr onic, mechanical, photocopyi ng, recor ding or otherwise, without the prior written co nsent of Adaptec, Inc., 69 1 South Milpitas Blvd., Milp itas, CA 95035. T[...]

iii Adaptec T echnical Support If you have questions ab out installing or using your Adaptec product, chec k this document first—you will find answers to most of your ques tions here. If you need further assistance, use the support options listed below . T echnica l Suppo rt Id entificati on (TSID ) Number ■ Before contacting T echnical Support[...]

iv Limited 2-Y ear Hardware W arranty 1. Adaptec, Inc. (“Adaptec”) warrants to the purchaser of this product that it will be fr ee from defects in material and workmanship for a period of two (2) years from the date of pur chase. If the product should become de fective within the warranty period, Adaptec, at its option, will repair or re place [...]

v Adaptec Software Li cense Agreement PLEASE READ CAREFULL Y : THE USE OF THIS SOF TW ARE IS SUBJECT TO THE SOF TW ARE LICENSE TERMS OF ADAPTEC, INC. AND OTHER LICENSORS WHOSE SOF TW ARE MA Y BE BUNDLED WITH THIS PRODU CT . BY YOUR USE OF THE SO F TW ARE INCLU DED WITH THIS PRODU CT YOU AGREE TO THE LICENSE TERMS REQUIRED BY THE LICENSOR OF THA T S[...]

vi 7. Limited W arranty . Adaptec and its Licensor warrant only that the media upon which the Software is furnished will be free fr om defect s in material or workmanship under normal use and service for a period of thirty (30) days from the date of delivery to you. ADAP TEC AND ITS LICENSORS DO NOT AND CANNOT W ARRANT THE PERFORMANCE OR RESUL TS Y[...]

vii Regulatory Comp liance Statements W ARNING: Changes or modifications to this unit not expressly approved by the party responsible fo r compliance could void the user ’s authority to operate the equipment. This equipment has been tested and found to comp ly with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC rules. The[...]

1 In this Guide Getting Star ted 2 Installation T ask List 4 Installing the Wireless PCI Adapter 5 Installing the De vice Dr iver 7 Installing the Adapte c Wireless Utility 18 Disabling Zero Configuration (Windows XP only) 22 Installing Network Protocols 24 Connecting to the WLAN 28 Checking Y our Network Connection 31 Changing the Set-up of Y our [...]

2 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Getting Started This User ’ s Guide provides detailed instructions for installing and configuring your Adaptec A WN-8010 Ul tra W ireless PCI Adapter. See the Installation T ask List on page 4 for an overview of the installation process. This Guide also includes a basic overview of wireless a[...]

3 Getting Started This is Y our Wireless PCI Adapter LINK LED Flashes while the ad apter searches for a wireless connection, the n becomes steady when the con nection is made. (There is no wireless con nection when the LED is flashing. ) PWR LED Glows steady when the adapter is receiving power . This LED goes da rk when the power is turned off. PCI[...]

4 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Installation T ask List T o successfully install your W irele ss PCI Adapter, complete each of these tasks, in or der: ❏ If you are unf amiliar with wir eless technology or LANs, read About Wi reless T echnology and LANs on page 43 for a basic overview . ❏ Install the W ireless PCI Adapter.[...]

5 Installing the Wireless PCI Adapter Installing the W ir eless PCI Adapter T o install your W ireless PCI Adapter: 1 Discharge any static electricity build-up before handling the adapter by touching a gr ounded metal object (such as the exposed metal parts on the back of your computer). 2 T urn off power to the computer and disconnect the power co[...]

6 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide 5 Insert the W ireless PCI Adapte r into the PCI expansion slot. Press down firmly until the adapter clicks into place. When installed pr operly , the adapter should appear le vel with the expansion slot. Note: Depending on the tightness of the PCI slot, gentle but firm force may be requir ed t[...]

7 Installing the Device Driver Installing the Device Driver Before you continue, ensure that you have: ❏ Reviewed About Wir eless T echnology and LANs on page 43 for a basic overview of WLANs. ❏ Installed the W ireless PCI Adapter. See page 5 . The next step on the Installation T ask List ( page 4 ) is t o install the device driver . A device d[...]

8 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Windows XP Driver Installation T o install the device dri ver on W indows XP: 1 Install the W ireless PCI Adapter into your computer . See page 5 . W indows XP automatica lly detects the W ireless PCI Adapter and opens the Found New Hardwar e W izard. 2 Insert the Ultra W ireless PCI CD into yo[...]

9 Installing the Device Driver 5 Click Finish . The device driver installation is complete. W indows XP automatically begins the next installation task by opening the software installation wizard for the Adaptec W ireless Utility . Go to Installing the Adaptec W ireless Utility on page 18 to continue.[...]

10 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Windows 2000 Driver Installati on T o install the device driver on W indows 200 0: 1 Install the W ireless PCI Adapter into your computer . See page 5 . Power on your computer , if it isn’t already r unning. W indows 2000 automatically detects the W ireless PCI Adapter and opens the Found Ne[...]

11 Installing the Device Driver 4 Insert the Ultra W ireless PCI CD into your CD-ROM drive. 5 Select CD-ROM driver , then click Next . 6 Click Next .[...]

12 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide 7 Click Ye s . 8 Click Finish . The device driver installation is complete. W indows 2000 automatically begins the next installation task by opening the softwar e installation wizar d for the Adaptec W ireless Utility . Go to Installing the Adaptec Wir eless Utility on page 18 to continue.[...]

13 Installing the Device Driver Windows Me Driver Inst allation T o install the devi ce driver on W indows Me: 1 Install the W ireless PCI Adapter into your computer . See page 5 . W indows Me automatically detects the W ireless PCI Adapter and opens the Add New Hardwar e W izard. 2 Insert the Ultra W ireless PCI CD into your CD-ROM drive. 3 Select[...]

14 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide 5 Click Ye s to restart your computer . When the re start is complete, W indows Me automatically begins the next installation task by opening the software installation wizard for the Adaptec W i reless Utility . Go to Installing the Adaptec Wir eless Utility on page 18 to continue.[...]

15 Installing the Device Driver Windows 98SE Driver Install ation T o install the devi ce driver on W indows 98SE: 1 Install the W ireless PCI Adapter into your computer . See page 5 . W indows 98SE automat ically detects the W ireless PCI Adapter and opens the Add New Hardwar e W izard. 2 Click Next . 3 Select Search for the best driver ... , then[...]

16 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide 5 Select CD-ROM drive , then click Next . 6 Click Next . W indows 98SE copies files to your hard drive.[...]

17 Installing the Device Driver 7 Click Finish . 8 Click Ye s to restart your computer . When the restart is complete, W indows 98SE automatically begins the next installation task by opening the software ins tallation wizard for the Adaptec W ireless Utility . Go to Installing the Adaptec Wir eless Utility on page 18 to continue.[...]

18 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Installing the Adaptec W ir eless Utility Before you continue, make sure that you have: ❏ Reviewed About Wir eless T echnology and LANs on page 43 for a basic overview of WLANs. ❏ Installed the W ireless PCI Adapter. See page 5 . ❏ Installed the device driver . See page 7 . The next step[...]

19 Installing the Adaptec Wireless Utility 2 The installation wizar d chooses a default destination folder for the software files . Click Next to accept the default destination (recommended), or click Browse to select an alternate destination. 3 Y ou can choose where to stor e program icons in the Program Folder . T ype a new folder name or select [...]

20 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide 4 Click Next . The software installation begins. The Setup Status appears on screen. 5 Click Finish .[...]

21 Installing the Adaptec Wireless Utility Note: Windows XP users only —W indows XP has a built-i n configuration appl ication called Zero Config uration, which automatically takes over as the default utility for your Wi r e l e s s P C I A d a p t e r . When the Adaptec W ireless Utility install ation is complete, a message appears tellin g you [...]

22 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Disabling Zer o Configuration (W indows XP only) Although the Adaptec W ireless Utility is installed on your W indows XP system, W indows XP has a built-in configuration application called Zer o Configurat ion that automatically takes over as the default utility for your W ireless PCI Adapter.[...]

23 Disabling Zero Configuration (Windows XP only) 3 Ensur e that the Use W indows to configure my wireless network settings box is deselected, then cli ck OK . 4 Open the Adaptec W ireless Utility . (See page 29 .) If the Adapte c W ireless Util ity is already running, close it and r e-open it. Ensure chec kbox is empty .[...]

24 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Installing Network Pr otocols Before you continue, make sure that you have compl eted these tasks: ❏ Reviewed About Wir eless T echnology and LANs on page 43 for a basic overview of WLANs. ❏ Installed the W ireless PCI Adapter. See page 5 . ❏ Installed the device driver . See page 7 . ?[...]

25 Installing Network Protocols Windows 98SE/Me User s T o install the appr opriate network protocols: 1 From the Start menu, click Settings , then click Control Panel . 2 Double-click Network . Note: Before you add a network pr otocol, verify that the protocol i s not already installed. (Refer to your W indows documentation for instructions.) Neve[...]

26 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide 3 Select Adaptec W ireless PCI Adapter , then click Add . 4 Select Protoco l , then click Add .[...]

27 Installing Network Protocols 5 Under Manufacturers, select Microsoft , under Network Protocols, select TCP/IP , then click OK . 6 See Connecting to th e WLAN on page 28 to continue with your last Installation T as k.[...]

28 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Connecting to the WLAN Before you continue, make sure that you have: ❏ Reviewed About Wir eless T echnology and LANs on page 43 for a basic overview of WLANs. ❏ Installed the W ireless PCI Adapter. See page 5 . ❏ Installed the device driver . See page 7 . ❏ Installed the Adaptec W irel[...]

29 Connecting to the WLAN T o link your W ireless PCI Adapter to your WLAN: 1 Open the Adaptec W ire less Utility by double- clicking the Adaptec W ireless Utility icon on your task bar . 2 Click the Configuration tab. a Ensur e that the Operating Mode setting is correct for your WLAN. Each stat ion on your WLAN mu st be set to the same operating m[...]

30 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide If your other WLAN stations have Encryption enabled, you must enable Encryption on your W ireless PCI A dapter using exactly the same Encryption Key Lengt h and WEP Key Ent ry Passphrase or Manual Entry i nformation. (See Changing the Encryption Settings on page 35 for more information.) b Mak[...]

31 Checking Y our Network Connection Checking Y our Network Connection Y ou can check the status of your network connection three ways: ■ Look at the Link LED on your W ireless PCI Adapter . If the LED is flashing, the ad apter is sear ching for a connection. If it’s glowing steady , the wireless connection is made. If it’s dark, there is no [...]

32 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Changing the Set-up of Y our WLAN Y ou can use the Adaptec W ireless Utility to change the set-up of your WLAN by: ■ Changing the operating mode. See page 33 . ■ Choosing a specific AP . See page 34 . ■ Changing the Encryption (WEP) s ettings. See page 35 . ■ Changing the transfer rate[...]

33 Changing the Set-up of Y our WLAN Changing the Operating Mode The Adaptec W ireless Utility offers two poss ible operating modes: ■ Ad-hoc mode (sometimes r eferred to as peer-to-peer mode ) allows two computers to connect to each other in wir eless-to- wireless (or peer -to-peer) communication. ■ Infrastructure mode allows multiple computer[...]

34 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Choosing an Access P oint Y ou can choose to connect to a spec ific AP fr om a list of all APs currently available to your W ireless PCI Adapt er. Y ou might want to do this if you want to connect to a diff erent WLAN. T o connect to a specific AP: 1 Open the Adaptec W ireless Utility . See St[...]

35 Changing the Set-up of Y our WLAN Changing the Encryption Settings Wir ed Equiva lent Privacy (WEP) is a security featur e that encrypts the data being sent over the radio waves of your WLAN. Disabled encryption allows your W ireless devices to shar e data in plain text. The default Encryption Key Length setting is Disabled . Setting encryption [...]

36 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide 3 In the Encryption (WEP) drop-down box, select the setting you want. 4 If you select either 64-B it or 128-Bit , you must create WEP keys, which control encryption, and set a default key . (The default key determines which of the four key sets is used for encryption and decryption.) See the n[...]

37 Changing the Set-up of Y our WLAN Creating the Ke ys with a Passphrase 1 Click Create with Passphrase , then type in your chosen word or phrase in the Passphrase text box. As you type, the Adaptec W ireless Utility will auto-generate the requir ed keys and set a default key . (In the example below , the passphrase lomce vak generated the four un[...]

38 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Changing the T ransfer Rate The default transfer rate setting, Auto Rate , allows your W ireless PCI Adapter to automatically adjust its transfer speed for optimal performance and the longest oper ating range. Adaptec recommends that whenever possible, you maintain the Auto Rate setting. Howev[...]

39 Changing the Set-up of Y our WLAN Enabling the P ower Saving Mode Y ou can enable the Power Saving Mode if you wa nt your W ireless PCI Adapter to enter sleep mode when not transmitting data. T o enable Power Saving Mode: 1 Open the Adaptec W ireless Utility . S ee Step 1 on page 29 . 2 Click the Configuration tab. 3 In the Power Saving Mode dr [...]

40 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Saving and Using Configuration Pr ofiles Y ou can save your W ireless PCI Adapter set- ups in differ ent profiles for use in dif ferent working envir onments. Using saved profiles r emoves the need to set up (reconfigur e) your W ireless PCI Adapter each time you move from one WLAN to another [...]

41 T roubleshooting T r oubleshooting If you encounter dif ficulties installing or us ing your W ireless PCI Adapter, w ork through th ese troubleshooting tips. ■ Ensur e that the adapter is seated evenly in the PCI slot. ■ Ensure that the antenna is pr operly attached. ■ Check that the driver installed properly . Look in Device Manager under[...]

42 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide My Adaptec Wireless Utility icon is red. The Link LED on my Wireless PCI Adapter is not on. Y our W ireless PCI Adapter is not linked to the WLAN. Y ou may be outside the range of available APs. 1 Open the Adaptec W ireless Utility . See Step 1 on page 29 . 2 Click the Site Survey tab. A vaila[...]

43 About Wireless T echnology and LANs About W ireless T echnology and LANs This section provides a general ov erview of W ireless technology and LANs. There ar e many books and W eb sites dedicated to this topic that can provide a mor e comprehensive explanation . What’ s a LAN? A network is a gr oup of computers that are connected together in a[...]

44 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide What About Security? Y ou have multiple options for addi ng security to your WLAN. Set security accor ding to the nee ds of your network. ■ Y ou can limit acc ess to parts of the networ k by setting passwor ds and creating special shared fi les. Refer to your operating system’s documentati[...]

45 T echnical Specifications T echnical Specifications Standards IEEE 802.1 1b PCI Interface Channels 1 1 channels (US, C anada) 13 channels (Europe) 14 channels (Japan) Antenna External antenna wi th reversed SMA connector Frequency 2.4 to 2.4835 GHz ( Industrial Scientific Medical Band) Data Rate Up to 1 1 Mbps Operating Ranges Indoor (varie s de[...]

46 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Glossary Access P oint An Access Point (AP) is a wired contr oller that sends data to the wirele ss NICs installed in your ne twork computers, and receive s data back from them. An AP is often connected t o the network computer that has Intern et access, or is directly connected to the Interne[...]

47 Glossary firewall A firewall is a security device that helps prevent users outsi de your network from accessing your LAN or WLAN. A firewall uses special softwar e that keeps unauthorized users out of your network. hot-s wap T o hot-swap is to r emove or attach a device without first shutting off your computer . hub A hub works with a computer l[...]

48 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide netw ork protoco ls Network pr otocols are r ules that determine how devices on a network communicate with each other . NIC Stands for Network Interface Card. A W ireless NIC is a computer ca rd ( s uc h a s a W i rel e ss PC I ad ap te r , W i rel es s PC Ca rd, o r Wirel es s USB adapter) th[...]

49 Glossary transf er rate The transfer rate is the speed at which your W ireless device is sending data. It is expressed in Mbps. The default transfer rate setting, Auto Rate (or Au tomatic ), allows your W ireless device to automaticall y adjust its transfer sp eed for optimal performance and the longest operating range. Adaptec recommends that w[...]

50 Adaptec Ultra Wi reless PCI Adapter User ’ s Guide Wireless Netw ork ID The W ireless Ne twork ID (also ref erred to as the SSID) is l ike a secret code that your AP and your W ireless devices share to prevent unauthorized user s from accessing your WLAN. Y our W ireless devices can only connect to y ou r A P if t h e y ha v e th e s a m e S S[...]

R Adaptec, Inc. 691 South Milpitas Boulevard Milpitas, CA 95035 USA © 2002 Adaptec, Inc. All rights reserved. Adaptec and the Adaptec logo are trademarks of Adaptec, Inc. which may be registered in some jurisdictio ns. Stock Number: 513355-06, Ver. AA, LB 09/02[...]