Wireless Connectivity; Using Your Wireless Card Setup Program - NETGEAR RANGEMAX WNDR3300 User Manual

NETGEAR RangeMax™ Dual Band Wireless-N Router WNDR3300 User Manual

Wireless Connectivity

The first steps in solving wireless connection problems are these:
1. Using your wireless card's setup utility program, make sure that your wireless card can find
your wireless router.
2. Configure and test with the simplest wireless connection possible, and then add security.
The topics in this section describe these steps.

Using Your Wireless Card Setup Program

When you install a NETGEAR wireless card in your computer, a Smart Wizard utility program is
installed that can provide helpful information about your wireless network. You can find this
program in your Windows Program menu or as an icon in your system tray. Other wireless card
manufacturers might include a similar program.
If you have no specific wireless card setup program installed, you can use the basic setup utility in
Windows by following these steps:
1. Open the Windows Control Panel, and double-click Network Connections.
2. In the LAN section, double-click Wireless Network Connection.
Use the setup program to scan for available wireless networks. Look for a network name (SSID) of
NETGEAR or your custom SSID if you have changed it. If your wireless network does not appear,
check these conditions:
• Is your router's wireless radio enabled? See
• Is your router's SSID broadcast enabled? See
• Is your router set to a wireless standard that is not supported by your wireless card? Check the
Mode setting, as described in
If your wireless network appears, but the signal strength is weak, check these conditions:
• Is your router too far from your computer, or too close? Place your computer near the router,
but at least 6 feet away, and see whether the signal strength improves.
• Is your wireless signal obstructed by objects between the router and your computer? See
"Wireless Placement and Range Guidelines" on page
If your wireless network appears and has good signal strength, configure your wireless card and
router for the simplest possible connection, as described in the next section.
Troubleshooting
"Advanced Wireless Settings" on page
."Advanced Wireless Settings" on page 2-15
"Manually Configuring Your Wireless Settings" on page
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