Wireless-G Router WGR614v9 Reference Manual

Troubleshooting

7-9

v1.1, May 2008

Problems with Date and Time

Under Content Filtering in the main menu, select

E-mail

to display a screen that shows the current

date and time of day. The Wireless-G Router uses the Network Time Protocol (NTP) to obtain the

current time from one of several network time servers on the Internet. Each entry in the log is

stamped with the date and time of day. Problems with the date and time function can include the

following:

•

Date shown is January 1, 2000.

Cause: The router has not yet successfully reached a network time server. Check that your

Internet access settings are correct. If you have just completed configuring the router, wait at

least 5 minutes, and check the date and time again.

•

Time is off by one hour.

Cause: The router does not adjust for daylight savings time. In the E-mail screen, select the

Adjust for Daylight Savings Time

check box.

Solving Wireless Connection Problems

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

.

Wireless-G Router WGR614v9 Reference Manual

7-10

Troubleshooting

v1.1, May 2008

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

“Viewing Advanced Wireless Settings” on

page 2-10

.

•

Is your router’s SSID broadcast enabled? See

“Viewing Advanced Wireless Settings” on

page 2-10

.

•

Is your router set to a wireless standard that is not supported by your wireless card? Check the

Mode setting as described in

“Viewing and Configuring Basic ISP Settings” on page 1-5

.

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

“Optimizing Wireless Performance” on page 5-13

.

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.

Setting Up and Testing Basic Wireless Connectivity

Follow these instructions to set up and test basic wireless connectivity. Once you have established

basic wireless connectivity, you can enable security settings appropriate to your needs.

Note:

If you use a wireless computer to change wireless settings, you might be

disconnected when you click

Apply

. Reconfigure your wireless adapter to match

the new settings, or access the wireless router from a wired computer to make any

further changes.

Wireless-G Router WGR614v9 Reference Manual

Troubleshooting

7-11

v1.1, May 2008

1.

Select

Wireless Settings

under Setup in the main menu of the WGR614v9 router.

2.

For the wireless network name (SSID), use the default name, or choose a suitable descriptive

name. In the

Name (SSID)

field, you can enter a value of up to 32 alphanumeric characters.

The default SSID is NETGEAR.

3.

Select the region in which the wireless interface will operate.

4.

Set the channel. The default channel is

Auto

.

This field determines which operating frequency is used. It should not be necessary to change

the wireless channel unless you notice interference problems with another nearby wireless

router or access point. Select a channel that is not being used by any other wireless networks

within several hundred feet of your router. For more information about the wireless channel

frequencies, click the link to the online document

“Wireless Networking Basics” in

Appendix B

.

5.

Set the mode to

b and g

.

Figure 7-1

Note:

The SSID is case-sensitive; NETGEAR is not the same as nETgear. Also, the

SSID of any wireless access adapters must match the SSID you specify in the

Wireless-G Router. If they do not match, you will not get a wireless connection

to the Wireless-G Router.

Wireless-G Router WGR614v9 Reference Manual

7-12

Troubleshooting

v1.1, May 2008

6.

For Security Options, select

None

.

7.

Click

Apply

to save your changes.

8.

Select

Wireless Settings

under Advanced in the main menu of the WGR614v9 router.

9.

Make sure that the

Enable Wireless Router Radio

and

Enable SSID Broadcast

check boxes

are selected.

10.

Click

Setup Access List

.

11.

Make sure that the

Turn Access Control On

check box is

not

selected.

12.

Configure and test your wireless computer for wireless connectivity.

Program the wireless adapter of your computer to have the same SSID and channel that you

specified in the router, and disable encryption. Check that your computer has a wireless link

and can obtain an IP address by DHCP from the router.

Once your computer has basic wireless connectivity to the router, you can configure the advanced

wireless security functions of the computer and router (for more information about security, see

Chapter 2, “Safeguarding Your Network

”).

Note:

If you are configuring the router from a wireless computer and you change the

router’s SSID, channel, or security settings, you will lose your wireless

connection when you click

Apply

. You must then change the wireless settings

of your computer to match the router’s new settings.

Figure 7-2

Wireless-G Router WGR614v9 Reference Manual

Troubleshooting

7-13

v1.1, May 2008

Restoring the Default Configuration and Password

This section explains how to restore the factory default configuration settings, changing the

router’s administration password back to

password

. You can erase the current configuration and

restore factory defaults in two ways:

•

Use the Erase function of the router (see

“Erasing the Configuration” on page 6-7

).

•

Use the restore factory settings button on the rear panel of the router. Use this method for cases

when the administration password or IP address is not known.

To restore the factory default configuration settings when you do not know the administration

password or IP address, you must use the restore settings button on the rear panel of the router.

1.

Press and hold the restore settings button for 10 seconds.

2.

Release the restore settings button, and wait for the router to reboot.

If the wireless router fails to restart, or the Power light continues to blink or turns solid amber, the

unit might be defective. If the error persists, you might have a hardware problem and should

contact Technical Support at

.