Broadband Forum

Hello All,

I have a new laptop loaded with [B][U]Vista [/U][/B]OS that I am currently unable to connect to Internet via an existing BSNL modem/router (DataOne). Another laptop with XP works fine with this. However, [B][U]I need to find a modem/wireless router that will work with Vista[/U][/B]. I am in Hyderabad. I've tested that I am able to connect to internet on the Vista laptop using "City Online", but apparently they do not provide for residential use. Also tried Airtel ( spoke with a very helpful guy), but unfortunately they don't yet provide service in the area.
Any recommendations?

As far as I know all the modems bsnl provides work just fine with vista, are you sure you have your settings right?

If you want to get a wireless router to connect your laptop then I suggest you just get any netgear router which will cost less then Rs1500 and works pretty well.
I use a netgear router at home which connects 2 PC's and a laptop and everything work just fine

Some one please correct me if I am wrong on the vista compatibility part.

Hi Parminder,

Thanks for the reply.
A few follow-ups (I've tried to respond in the same sequence as your post):

1. Vista is notoriously lame in supporting old hardware when it comes to routers and I have bookmarks galore of people having the exact same complaint - all of which have the same kind of answer from MS: replace the router.

2. The current BSNL router (DataOne/WA 3002-g1) works fine as a wireless router and I am able to connect [B]wireless-ly[/B] with my DELL laptop that runs on XP. It is only with the new laptop that runs on Vista, that I am unable to connect to the internet.
Are you suggesting that I get the Netgear as an independent router and connect to the BSNL box (which is presumably acting as both the modem and router presently)? This seems like a reasonable idea - not sure if it will work as the BSNL box will still be part of the setup...can you please clarify that I have understood your point correctly? Can I go to a store that sells Netgear routers and sound off this idea? (Any specific nation-wide store that will have informed reps?)

3. As far as settings go, I am fairly certain that everything is as it should be on the laptop. This is further verified by the fact that with the same settings (and Vista), I am able to connect wireless-ly on a "CityOnline" ISP service. If you are referring to settings for the router, I don't believe I see any that I can change. (Accoding to my folks, they didn't get any software installed when the BSNL guy came to set up the modem/router) If you are referring to specific settings that I might have missed, please list them and I will re-verify.

Finally, just to reiterate, the current setup with the BSNL router connects a desktop and a laptop - and this works just fine as well. The thing is the desktop is Windows ME and the laptop is XP. It doesn't work when I introduce a Vista laptop into this setup.

Thanks in advance to any help/suggestions, etc...

No you wont need another router in that case.

To be honest I am not a networking guy but as far as I know your operating system hasent got anything to do with this problem..
Can you check if the DNS settings are the same on both your laptops?

Does your vista laptop pick up the router in available networks or is it not showing atall? Are you using a PCMCIA card for the laptop or does your laptop have an inbuilt wireless lan pci card and if it does does it support 802.11g or whatever is written on your wireless router.
I am sure answers to one of the above questions will sort out the problem.

The Vista laptop [U]does[/U] pick the router in the 'Available Networks' list.

The Vista laptop has got an inbuilt Wireless card.
It does support 802.11g (It's Broadcom 802.11b/g WLAN)
Now, I am not sure if the router supports 802.11b/g - the model is BSNL's TYpe II WA3002-g1...no info listed on it to give an indication of what protocol of 802.11 is supported?

I too am reluctant to blame the OS for connectivity issues of this sort, but I am more inclined to do so now, given that I was able to connect to the internet without any issues using other routers/ISP. (Cityonline for instance)

As for DNS settings, specifically for the Wireless LAN adapter, I see a few differences (I used ipconfig /all):
- The Vista laptop Subnet Mask of 255.255.0.0 whereas the XP has 255.255.[B]255[/B].0
- The Vista laptop Default Gateway is [B]blank [/B]whereas the XP has 192.168.1.1
- The DNS Servers are different as well.
Plus, there are extra fields for "Link-Local IPv6 Address and IPv4 Address", which I recall reading somewhere else, that these can be suppressed.

Any specific DNS settings that I should pay particular attention to?

[B]However, I am still unable to figure out why I am able to connect to the internet with the same networking information - without making any modifications - using Cityonline's wireless router, but am unable to do so with BSNL's?[/B]

Thanks for your continues help on this...

Hello All,

I have success to report in my quest. The problem was, of course, the old DSL router/modem from BSNL. The solution was simply to switch to a different Broadband provider and replace the hardware with a new modem/router.
A few experiences (don't mean to get personal - just thought might be useful for others in a similar situation):[LIST]
BSNL has the worst customer service that I have experienced in a long while. I have no subtle way of putting this: "BSNL Sucks!" - My advice would be to stay away from it if at all possible; there are many alternatives with comparable rates and much, much better customer service (not to mention informed customer service)[/LIST][LIST]
Cable appears better than DSL here. Also, no PPPoE stuff installed - the Cable setup is easy and effortless. The guy came over with the modem and I was able to hook it up to the router that I purchased (Netgear for about 2000) and the wired/wireless connections were up and running in a matter of minutes. (Of course, this also involved the cable guy setting up the initial connection - which was quite simple through the router's interface)[/LIST][LIST]
Rent the modem if that's an option (rather than buying it). More options when upgrading and updating software this way...[/LIST][LIST]
In Hyderabad, specific to the my location, I went with "YouTele" ([url=http://www.youtele.com]Broadband from YOU Telecom: Leading Hi Speed Broadband Internet Service provider in India.uper Fast Connection.[/url]). It's been about 4 days since I signed on and so far, the connection speeds have been great. I was pretty impartial in selecting the ISP - checked out VSNL, Airtel and tried to contact other ISPs with little success. Airtel was pretty helpful, but they don't cover our area and in fact, YouTele was recommended by them. VSNL is just as bad as a "government" service with one guy acting as "customer service" and he was handling everything from bill payments, trouble-shooting to new customer accounts...need to take a coupon and wait for a while before getting a chance to talk with him...walked out after waiting for 10 mins.[/LIST][LIST]
YouTele was very helpful from the beginning. Fast, courteous and above all very helpful technically - was able to speak with a Tech Manager who understood my issue very quickly and was very open to my suggestion that I get my laptop to test out the wi-fi at their office, which I did successfully (both XP and Vista). The follow-up installation was within 2 days and the technician was also helpful and friendly (a kid, perhaps a bit green, but eager to learn and had the right attitude)[/LIST]
So, that's that, folks! Hope my experience proves helpful to someone in a similar situation. If there are any follow-up questions, I can try and answer in the next few days before I go back. Personally, I found it helpful to air my issues on this forum and thanks to Parminder for sound advice. Great forum!
Adios.