Help with wireless connection *please*

Let me begin by saying that my computer literacy is zero, I'm doing good just to turn the computer on and off. I've tried to get Mr Zola to post here because he has basic knowledge, but he's frustrated.

Our second computer was running off our main computer via router. Second computer no longer has access to internet. Mr Zola thinks he switched the connection from router to directly sucking off main computer.

Can someone talk us through the process of fixing this so he doesn't crash main computer in the process? Help would be greatly appreciated.

often and cannot connect my second laptop until I do this simple process. Aside from this, I don't know.

assuming your router is also your DHCP server for your network. If it is... try setting your lease expiration to 15-30 minutes. What I believe is happening is that you have multiple laptops connecting and disconnecting from your network.. if your lease time is 24 hours, the client will request a renewal at 12 hours before it expires. it will keep the IP address for the full 24 hours (usually the default). If you reboot the router, the same IP will be given to the next client requesting an IP. If the first laptop reconnect, usually when coming out of standby.. IP conflict.

Setting the DHCP lease expiration will keep the routers active leases database very fresh and will probably fix your network problems. A DHCP request is a very small amount of traffic and will not slow your laptop down due to added traffic. A real DHCP Server is supposed to make 5 ping requests prior to issuing a IP lease, to ensure that the IP is not already in use... but these home router manufacturers stray far from the standards.

I did give that a try and hitting the reset button

We will need:

Internet Connection (DSL, Cable, ClearWire, dial-up)
Router: (manufacturer and model)
If you have a Cable or DSL modem.
Connectivity of Main Computer: Wireless or Ethernet (looks like a bigger phone cable)
Operating System of both computers: (Mac, Windows, Linux, VAX/VMS)

From that, I think we can walk you through fixing your troubles. Your main Computer should have no bearing on whether or not Second Computer can access the Internet, if you have a router. Did main Computer need to be on for second Computer to access the network prior to this problem (trying to determine if you are using connection sharing/bridging). Do you remember the name of your SSID (the name that should show up as the network you are connected to). You will need to know your pass-key to connect to your router (do not post it here!).

First let me say thanks for the help.

The internet connection is cable. The router is Linksys model WRT54G2 V1. We have a cable modem. Main computer is ethernet. Both computers are have windows. I can not say for sure if the main needed to be on for the second to work before as the main is almost always on. As for the pass key I am not sure if I know it or if I have changed it or what. In the process of trying to fix this I appear to have made a network that I do not think was there before

Let's jump right into getting this hammered out. Since you have your "main" computer connected through a Wired Connection, this will be where you want to check out the configuration of your router.

On the Wired Computer, open a browser and type: "http://192.168.1.1" into the address bar and hit enter.
You will be prompted for a username and password, the default are "admin" for the username and nothing for the password. Click the "OK" button to sign-in to the router.

In the menu across the top, click the "Settings" option to open the settings page.
You should see that the IP Address, Subnet Mask and Default Gateway address are not zeros.

Now we can check the configuration of your Wireless network. Click the "Wireless" menu option.
Your Security Mode configuration should be "WPA2 Personal" or "WPA2/WPA Mixed Mode", and there should be a textbox labeled Passphrase. Click the "Generate" button to populate the Key 1-4 fields. The passphrase will be used as the pass-key required to gain access to the network from your secondary computer.
You should also see a field, Network Name/SSID... remember this name (don't use spaces because some wireless devices will not connect to SSIDs with spaces in the name).

Make sure that the SSID Broadcast is Enabled.

If you have made changes, save them.

From your second computer, go into Networks and either Show Available Networks, or Connect to a Wireless Network.. depending on which version of Windows you are running.

You should see the Network Name/SSID show up in the available networks. Select your SSID and Connect. You will be prompted for the passphrase that you entered previously. Have it remember the connection and automatically reconnect when in range.

That should get you connected.

I do not seem to know one or the other of the name or pass word

The username should be blank and the default password is "admin" (without quotes).

Try your usual passwords (leaving the username textbox empty, or if your ISP installer set this up - see if they left any documentation behind.

If you try every option for a password.. there is only one last option... a factory reset - but this will leave you without any Internet connectivity until you are able to reconfigure the router to establish connectivity through your cable modem to your ISP. That may be a bit difficult to talk you through unless someone on here knows what your provider's settings require.

Isn't that Username = "admin" & Password = "admin" as default?

http://www6.nohold.net/Cisco2/GetArticle.aspx?docid=33fc81ed80e74c068a8e5b4e2b511d48_15969.xml&pid=80&converted=0#1a

1. What is the default IP Address, username and password for the WRT54G2?

The default IP Address of the WRT54G2 is 192.168.1.1, while the username/password is “admin”.

More reference for the OP's make & model:

Title: WRT54G2 Frequently Asked Questions http://www6.nohold.net/Cisco2/ukp.aspx?pid=80&app=vw&vw=1&login=1&json=1&docid=33fc81ed80e74c068a8e5b4e2b511d48_15969.xml

I don't use Linksys anymore, but I'm fairly certain that my old on used admin/blank...
but it has been a while, and my memory is not as good as it used to be. :)

P.S. Don't feel like you are interrupting... the more eyes on this the quicker she will get it fixed!

...as for the "more eyes"--you've demonstrated--REPEATEDLY--that you're quite reliable & capable which is why I've been "watching from the sidelines" lol. Besides that networking & "stuff" is not my strong suit. All three of my devices are set up as stand-alones so I'd really be just RTFMing if I did reply.

Oh wait...didn't I just "RTFM" in my previous post? :o

Did the default username/password work for you?

There is a way to factory reset the device, but we would need to completely reconfigure the router afterwards.

I think that I will need to do the factory reset but I am not sure I am brave enough to do that.( what if I can not get back online! what if I just make things worse! Who would I go to if I am stuck off line! ) I have found a fix that avoids the problem for now. I have a 35 foot long cable to connect the other comp right to the router.

After looking at how to do a factory reset I believe I may have done that a long time ago and that is what started all the problems. So now I will try to get on using the factory settings and let U know what happens. Thanks for everything so far and sorry for being such a bother.

Whilst good, may have been beyond your knowledge.

Do you have a disc for your router? If so, I'd recommend putting it in your drive and running setup again, then do the same for any other machine in your network.