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®
AirConnect
Wireless PCI Card
User Guide
3CRWE777A
http://www.3com.com/
http://www.3com.com/productreg
Part No. 09-2006-000
Published October 2000
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3Com Corporation 5400 Bayfront Plaza Santa Clara, California, U.S.A. 95052-8145 Copyright © 2000 3Com Corporation. All rights reserved. No part of this documentation may be reproduced in any form or by any means or used to make any derivative work (such as translation, transformation, or adaptation) without written permission from 3Com Corporation. 3Com Corporation reserves the right to revise this documentation and to make changes in content from time to time without obl
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CONTENTS 1 OVERVIEW Introduction 1 Package Checklist 1 Hardware Description 2 Features 2 Applications 2 Status LED Indicator 3 System Requirements 4 2 INSTALLATION Introduction 5 Card Installation Procedure 5 Windows 95/98/2000/Me Driver Installation Procedure 7 Windows NT 4.0 Driver Installation Procedure 9 3 NETWORK CONFIGURATION AND PLANNING Introduction 13 Network Topologies 13 Ad hoc Wireless LAN 13 Infra
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5 TROUBLESHOOTING Introduction 23 Preliminary Troubleshooting 23 PCI Compatibility 23 Network Connection Problems 24 6 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS Specifications 27 A TECHNICAL SUPPORT Online Technical Services 29 World Wide Web Site 29 3Com FTP Site 29 Support from Your Network Supplier 30 Support from 3Com 30 Returning Products for Repair 32 INDEX WARRANTY AND REGULATORY COMPLIANCE
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OVERVIEW 1 Introduction 3Com's Wireless PCI Card is an 11 Mbps wireless network adapter that seamlessly integrates with existing Ethernet networks to support applications such as mobile users or temporary conferences. This solution offers a high data rate and reliable wireless connectivity with considerable cost savings over wired LANs (which include long-term maintenance overhead for cabling). Just install PCI adapters into your notebook PCs, and start networking. Using
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2 CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW Hardware Description 3Com's Wireless PCI Card supports 1, 2, 5.5, and 11 Mbps half-duplex connections to Ethernet networks. This card is fully compliant with 2.4GHz DSSS CSMA/CA wireless networking as defined in IEEE 802.11b. It is designed to complement PCI Local Bus computers. It supports Windows 95/98/NT/2000/Me. Features 1, 2, 5.5, and 11 Mbps data rate. Wireless connection without the difficulties and cost of cabling Gre
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Hardware Description 3 Difficult-to-wire environments: Historic or old buildings, asbestos installations, and open areas where wiring is difficult to employ. Frequently changing environments: Retailers, manufacturers and banks who frequently rearrange the workplace and change location. Temporary LANs for special projects or peak times: Trade shows, exhibitions and construction sites that need a temporary setup for a short time period. Retailers, airline, and shipping compa
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4 CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW Always On Blinking Off Power is being The PCI card is No power is being supplied to the PCI attempting to associate supplied to the PCI card. with an access point. card. A valid connection to the network exists. The PCI card is transmitting or receiving data. System Requirements Before you install the wireless PCI card, check your system for the following requirements: Windows 95/98/NT/2000/Me operating system (prepare the Windows insta
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INSTALLATION 2 Introduction Before Installing the 3Com Wireless PCI Card, be sure you read and follow the precautions listed here: Network cards are sensitive to static electricity. To protect the card, always touch the metal chassis of your computer before handling the card. Be sure to turn off power to your computer before you plug in or remove a wireless PCI card. Card Installation Procedure 1 Turn off power to your desktop computer and unplug the power cord. 2 Remove
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6 CHAPTER 2: INSTALLATION Figure 2 5 Secure the card with the screw that you removed earlier. 6 Replace the cover of your PC and plug in the power cord. 7 Turn on the power to your computer. 8 Depending on your operating system, proceed to either “Windows 95/98/2000/Me Driver Installation Procedure” or “Windows NT 4.0 Driver Installation Procedure”.
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Windows 95/98/2000/Me Driver Installation Procedure 7 Windows 95/98/2000/Me Driver Installation Procedure Your End User Utilities CD contains all the software drivers available for the 3Com Wireless PCI Card. New or updated drivers can be downloaded from 3Com's web site at http://www.3Com.com. 1 Windows 95/98/2000/Me will automatically detect the new hardware and prompt you to install the driver. Click "Next" to find the driver. 2 Insert the CD and click "Next". 3 Specify the CD dri
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8 CHAPTER 2: INSTALLATION 6 If you are setting up an ad hoc wireless LAN, set "Channel" to the same radio channel as that used by the other wireless clients in your group. However, if you are connecting to a network via an access point, then use the same channel as that used by the access point (access point default: 3). 7 Set "Mode" to ad hoc or infrastructure, depending on the type of network you want to connect to. Click OK (default: infrastructure). 8 Set "RTS Threshold"
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Windows NT 4.0 Driver Installation Procedure 9 Windows NT 4.0 Driver Installation Procedure 1 From the Windows desktop, select "Control Panel," double-click "Network," click "Adapters," and then click the "Add" button on the Network dialog box. 2 Windows NT will present a list of all its supported adapters. Click "Have Disk" to continue. 3 Windows NT will ask for the drive/path containing the Windows NT drivers. Insert the CD into the drive, specify the drive letter of the CD, then click
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10 CHAPTER 2: INSTALLATION Mode - Set to "ad hoc" or "infrastructure", depending on the type of network you want to connect to. SSID - Set the "SSID" identifier to the same as that used by the ad hoc workgroup or access point you want to connect to. (access point default: 101). Channel - If you are setting up an ad hoc wireless LAN, set the channel number to the same radio channel used by the other wireless clients in your group. However, if you are connecting to a network via an acce
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Windows NT 4.0 Driver Installation Procedure 11 9 Restart your computer when prompted. 10 To ensure that the 3Com Wireless PCI Card works correctly, go to the Windows Control Panel and double-click Devices. The 3Com Wireless PCI Card driver status should be “Started.”
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NETWORK CONFIGURATION 3 AND PLANNING Introduction 3Com's Wireless Solution supports a stand-alone wireless network configuration, as well as an integrated configuration with 10 Mbps Ethernet LANs. The Wireless PCI card can be configured as: • Ad hoc for departmental or SOHO LANs • Infrastructure for enterprise LANs Network Topologies Ad hoc Wireless LAN An ad hoc wireless LAN consists of a group of computers, each equipped with a wireless adapter, connected via radio signals as an independent
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14 CHAPTER 3: NETWORK CONFIGURATION AND PLANNING Infrastructure Wireless LAN The wireless PCI card can also provide access to a wired LAN for wireless workstations. An integrated wired and wireless LAN is called an infrastructure configuration. A Basic Service Set (BSS) consists of a group of wireless PC users, and an access point that is directly connected to the wired LAN. Each wireless PC in this BSS can talk to any computer in its wireless group via a radio link, or access other compu
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Setting the Communication Domain 15 Setting the Communication Domain Stationary Wireless PCs The Basic Service Set (BSS) is the communication domain for each 3Com wireless access point (AP). For wireless PCs that do not need to support roaming, set the domain identifier (SSID) for the wireless card to the BSSID of the AP you want to connect to. Ask your administrator for the BSSID of the AP point he or she wants you to connect to. Roaming Wireless PCs A wireless infrastructure can also supp
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