Computer Hardware Forum

So I go down to Circuit City and buy a WRK54G + WPC54G ver.4. Ok.

It turns out that the WRK54G needs a power reset maybe a few times every
day. Sometimes my wireless link will be fine, but my wife's connection is
lost... and I cannot login to the router.

So I head over to the Linksys website... they don't have WRK54G or WPC54G v4
in their product support list.

So I contact their tech "support" using their online "help".

The support person tells me to download the firmware (of a newly released
unit)... then support person tells me that I must relocate the router..
(!?). Never mind that I had a WAP11 in that same place for one hell of a
long time and it works fine. Never mind that the WRK54G works fine for some
but not all of the wireless connections.

So the tech "support" tells me to Return the unit. So I go to their website
and guess what --- WRK54G is not in the RMA model list either.

Thanks for nothing, LINKSYS.

RMA dept. (949) 271 5461

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The newest firmware for the WRK54G is v1.55.02, which is available from:
ftp://ftp.linksys.com/pub/network

I suspect that the problem with the WRK54G and WPC54Gv4 combination once
again lies in the desire to use the cheapest functional wireless chipset in
order to compete with other manufacturers on price.  Whereas the WRT54G and
WPC54Gv3 use a Broadcom chipset and work well together, the WRK54G is based
on a new chipset by Marvell and the WPC54Gv4 is supposed to be based on a
chipset by Atheros.  The latest firmware versions of the WRT54G no longer
work well with the 802.11b WPC11v3, which is based on what was an Intersil
Prism chipset so similar incompatibilities may currently exist between the
WRK54G and WPC54Gv4.

Regarding the inability to login to the router; are you changing the default
password?  Have you enabled encryption?  Do you have any other wireless
devices in the area?  If you check the system event log (control
panel->administrative tools->event viewer->system), are there any TCP/IP or
DHCP or similar events listed for times where the wireless cards lose their
connection?  Are you using a utilitity from Linksys to manage the wireless
connections or do you use XP's built-in Wireless Zero Config service
(selected with the "use Windows to configure my wireless network settings"
when looking at the properties for your network card)?

-Yves

"HJK" <hh@hh.com> wrote in message news:KTStc.8128$4A6.1679@attbi_s52...
> So I go down to Circuit City and buy a WRK54G + WPC54G ver.4. Ok.
>
> It turns out that the WRK54G needs a power reset maybe a few times every
> day. Sometimes my wireless link will be fine, but my wife's connection is
> lost... and I cannot login to the router.
>
> So I head over to the Linksys website... they don't have WRK54G or WPC54G
v4
> in their product support list.
>
> So I contact their tech "support" using their online "help".
>
> The support person tells me to download the firmware (of a newly released
> unit)... then support person tells me that I must relocate the router..
> (!?). Never mind that I had a WAP11 in that same place for one hell of a
> long time and it works fine. Never mind that the WRK54G works fine for
some
> but not all of the wireless connections.
>
> So the tech "support" tells me to Return the unit. So I go to their
website
> and guess what --- WRK54G is not in the RMA model list either.
>
> Thanks for nothing, LINKSYS.
>
> RMA dept. (949) 271 5461
>
>

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"Yves Konigshofer" <yvesk@sStTaAnNfFoOrRdD.edu> wrote in message
news:c9ac4d$3m7$1@news.Stanford.EDU...
> The newest firmware for the WRK54G is v1.55.02, which is available from:
> ftp://ftp.linksys.com/pub/network

Thanks for the link. The RETARDS at Linksys customer service could have told
me about it... I just downloaded the latest and hopefully that will fix the
problems (who am I kidding??)

> Regarding the inability to login to the router; are you changing the
default
> password?

Yes.

> Have you enabled encryption?

Yes, I have tried WEP 64 bit and 128 bit with the same results.

> Do you have any other wireless devices in the area?

Yes, neighbour has WAP11 (with default password, of course).

> If you check the system event log (control panel->administrative
tools->event viewer->system), are there any TCP/IP or
> DHCP or similar events listed for times where the wireless cards lose
their
> connection?

Nope.

> Are you using a utilitity from Linksys to manage the wireless
> connections or do you use XP's built-in Wireless Zero Config service
> (selected with the "use Windows to configure my wireless network settings"
> when looking at the properties for your network card)?

No XP. This is W2K and Linux (Tivo) only

> -Yves

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"HJK" <hh@hh.com> wrote in message news:gM4uc.13922$eY2.11334@attbi_s02...
>
> "Yves Konigshofer" <yvesk@sStTaAnNfFoOrRdD.edu> wrote in message
> news:c9ac4d$3m7$1@news.Stanford.EDU... 
>
> Thanks for the link. The RETARDS at Linksys customer service could have
told
> me about it... I just downloaded the latest and hopefully that will fix
the

Now that I think about this even more, the more pissed off I get with
LINKSYS. They obviously KNEW there were problems with the firmware BUT they
couldn't take a minute or two to write it up for the PATHETIC knowledgebase.
No, they didn't even bother to open a product page for a NEW PRODUCT.

XXXX THESE COMPANIES. I'M DONE WITH BULLSHIT SERVICE. IF IT DOES NOT SETUP
IN LESS THAN 30 MINUTES, AND DOES NOT WORK RIGHT --- IT'S GOING BACK FOR A
REFUND.

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>No XP. This is W2K and Linux (Tivo) only

On the notebook see if you have this in your registry for w2k:

 HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic
es\Pcmcia\Parameters

Value name: DisableIsaToPciRouting
Data type: DWORD
Value data: 0

If not add it in, reboot and see if that helps.

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When dealing with the Linksys WRK54G you need to refer to it as a
WPC54G. This is the part number of the kit that the WRK54G came in.
This IS in the RMA model list. This is also the case when downloading
firmware for it. It so happens that the firmware is the same as the
WRT54G even though some people say it is different, when you download
the f/w for the WRK54G you get the file for the WRT54G.



"Yves Konigshofer" <yvesk@sStTaAnNfFoOrRdD.edu> wrote in message news:<c9ac4d$3m7$1@news.Sta
nford.EDU>...[vbcol=seagreen]
> The newest firmware for the WRK54G is v1.55.02, which is available from:
> ftp://ftp.linksys.com/pub/network
>
> I suspect that the problem with the WRK54G and WPC54Gv4 combination once
> again lies in the desire to use the cheapest functional wireless chipset i
n
> order to compete with other manufacturers on price.  Whereas the WRT54G an
d
> WPC54Gv3 use a Broadcom chipset and work well together, the WRK54G is base
d
> on a new chipset by Marvell and the WPC54Gv4 is supposed to be based on a
> chipset by Atheros.  The latest firmware versions of the WRT54G no longer
> work well with the 802.11b WPC11v3, which is based on what was an Intersil
> Prism chipset so similar incompatibilities may currently exist between the
> WRK54G and WPC54Gv4.
>
> Regarding the inability to login to the router; are you changing the defau
lt
> password?  Have you enabled encryption?  Do you have any other wireless
> devices in the area?  If you check the system event log (control
> panel->administrative tools->event viewer->system), are there any TCP/IP o
r
> DHCP or similar events listed for times where the wireless cards lose thei
r
> connection?  Are you using a utilitity from Linksys to manage the wireless
> connections or do you use XP's built-in Wireless Zero Config service
> (selected with the "use Windows to configure my wireless network settings"
> when looking at the properties for your network card)?
>
> -Yves
>
> "HJK" <hh@hh.com> wrote in message news:KTStc.8128$4A6.1679@attbi_s52... 
>  v4 
>  some 
>  website 

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