# [SOLVED] Thinkpad T40 &amp; Trendnet card networking issues



## flavamost (Oct 25, 2008)

I have an IBM Thinkpad T40 with Windows 7 Ultimate. I have all the updates from both Windows Update and Lenovo. Everything is working great except that I can't seem to get my wireless PC card to work. It's a Trendnet TEW-421PC card. Windows found the driver for the card but it still doesn't work. I even downloaded the driver from Trendnet's website and installed it and it doesn't work. The "Activity" light blinks continuously and Windows detects the card but I can't seem to get it to connect to the internet. I've installed Trendnet's Wireless Configuration Utility and it doesn't show my wireless network or any wireless network in my area. I've tried running it with Windows "Manage Wireless Network". I try to add the network and it says there is a "problem found". "There might be a problem with the driver for the Wireless Connection Adapter" is what it reads. Windows installed the driver initially but I installed the same driver from Trendnet's website and I get the same thing. When I had Windows XP, I had no problems. I've been running this machine w/o wifi but decided to try and install the card. Can anyone help? Thanks in advance


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## etaf (Dec 28, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

can we see a device manager screen shot of the network adapters - see below - also right click on it and select properties - will tell you if working 

also can we see and ipconfig /all and xirrus screen shot

all details below


*------------------------------------------------------------------------*
* Run Xirrus Wi-Fi Inspector  Download and install*
If you cannot access the internet with this PC, then you will need to copy the program across to the faulty PC

Xirrus: The Leader in High Performance Wi-Fi - Advanced IT Wi-Fi Networking Tools
Direct link to the program is here Xirrus: The Leader in High Performance Wi-Fi - Advanced IT Wi-Fi Networking Tools
Then run and install the program - on a wireless enabled PC/Laptop
if you get an error - You need NET Framework installed for the WiFi Inspector to function.

Run the program 

post a screen shot of the program running - if there are a lot of networks showing can you click on "networks" top lefthand area - so we can see all the network information, and also post which network "Adapter Name" (1st column) is yours on the list 

To post a screen shot of the active window, hold the Alt key and press the PrtScn key. Open the Windows PAINT application and Paste the screen shot. You can then use PAINT to trim to suit, and save it as a JPG format file. 
To upload it to the forum, open the full reply window and use the Manage Attachments button to upload it here.
Full details are here TSG Posting a Screenshot - TSG Library of Knowledge

Note:
For a reliable (or robust as the Xirrus user guide says) wireless connection you need a signal of about -70 dBm or better.
*------------------------------------------------------------------------*

*------------------------------------------------------------------------*
* Device Manager *
Post back the results in device manager
If you cannot access the internet with this PC, then you will need to copy the program across to the faulty PC
Start > control Panel {Vista set to classic view}> system > {Vista, device manager on left hand side} {XP hardware Tab, device manager button} > 
windows 7
start > control panel> System and Security> Device Manager

*network adaptors, click on the + * > post back the devices listed there
are there any ! ? or X


post a screen shot of the device manager - network adapters

To post a screen shot of the active window, hold the Alt key and press the PrtScn key. Open the Windows PAINT application and Paste the screen shot. You can then use PAINT to trim to suit, and save it as a JPG format file. 
To upload it to the forum, open the full reply window and use the Manage Attachments button to upload it here
Full details are here TSG Posting a Screenshot - TSG Library of Knowledge
*------------------------------------------------------------------------*


*------------------------------------------------------------------------*
* ipconfig /all *
If you cannot access the internet with this PC, then you will need to paste the results into something like notepad and then copy onto a machine that can access the internet and post results here

We would like to see the results from ipconfig /all post back the results in a reply here

Hold the *Windows* key and press *R*, then type *CMD* then press *Enter* to open a command prompt box (A new dialogue box - black with white font, will appear on screen ):

In the command prompt window that opens, type the following command:

_Note that there is a space before the /ALL, but there is *NOT* a space after the / in the following command._

* ipconfig /all > network.txt & network.txt *

It will export the results to notepad and then automatically open notepad.

Now all you need to do is copy and paste those results to a reply here
to do that:
From the notepad menu - choose *Edit* - *Select all* 
all the text will be highlighted
Next
From the notepad menu - choose *Edit* - *Copy*
Now go back to the forum - reply and then right click in the reply box and *paste* 
*------------------------------------------------------------------------*


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## flavamost (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

Here's the info you asked for:

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : Arson5-PC
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . : 
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : Belkin

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : Belkin
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/100 VE Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-0D-60-B0-02-8F
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::a975:2d11:a008:62b5%10(Preferred) 
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.2.8(Preferred) 
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Monday, April 18, 2011 9:40:17 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Friday, May 26, 2147 4:17:12 AM
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.2.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.2.1
DHCPv6 IAID . . . . . . . . . . . : 234884448
DHCPv6 Client DUID. . . . . . . . : 00-01-00-01-15-34-58-34-00-0D-60-B0-02-8F
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.2.1
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled

Tunnel adapter isatap.Belkin:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : Belkin
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Microsoft ISATAP Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 11:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : 
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IPv6 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 2001:0:4137:9e76:2480:651:b388:8a93(Preferred) 
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::2480:651:b388:8a93%11(Preferred) 
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : ::
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled

Xirrus didn't detect any wifi connection withe the card installed. I still just get the blinking light


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## etaf (Dec 28, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

no adapter shown in the xirrus or on the ipconfig /all 

if you right click on the realtek 8185 wireless adapter in device manager - properties - what does it say ?

there will be a wireless switch some where on the laptop - either a phyisical switch or a key combination of FN key + one of the F keys - which will have a wireless symbol on 
which looks something like this Google Image Result for http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Dx_UOOINsZA/TKnUFEn_IxI/AAAAAAAAA2w/NBKSHdRhFdo/s200/wireless+symbol.png

support site here 
Lenovo Support - Drivers and software - ThinkPad T40, T40p, T41, T41p

to get to the user manual , we need to know the rest of the model number
Lenovo Support - User Guides and Manuals Index

Key combinations 
Lenovo Support - How to use the function (Fn) keys on the keyboard - ThinkPad T40, T40p, T41, T41p, T42, T42p, T43, T43p

FN + F5 

try toggle that

wireless trouble shooting 
Lenovo Support - Troubleshooting wireless networking issues - ThinkPad


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## flavamost (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

I've tried the Fn + F5 keys to no avail. They're used to turn on & off wifi if it's built in the computer. My laptop is an IBM T40 2373 W1L w/o the built in wifi. That's why I have the PC card. 

Lenovo's website and the manual didn't help. Neither did Windows Support.

Trendset's manual didn't help either. I've tried contacting Trendset last week but have gotten no response yet. 

I even tried rolling the drive back but that did nothing.

Could it just be the driver isn't working with Windows 7? I did some searching on the internet and it seems other people have had problems with the Realtek 8185L driver, too. I haven't found a solution to my problem though. 

I've been thinking about getting a new card but I'm afraid of wasting money if the same thing happens with that card. 

Here are screens shots of what my Device Manager shows:


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## etaf (Dec 28, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

looking at the windows 7 compatibly website - it should just work in both 64 and 32bit versions

Windows 7 Compatibility for Trendware TEW-421PC 802.11g 54Mbps Wireless Network Adapter: Trendware. Drivers, Updates, Downloads


uninstall the realtek device from device manager and then without the card installed - restart the pc - and make sure in device manager there are NO yellow ! or ? anywhere 
also check with - view - show hidden devices - selected from the device manager menu - at the top of the window

If there are any yellow ? or ! post back a image here - and lets get those sorted 
see if the realtek wireless adapter is showing in device manager - if it is - post back here 

if NO yellow ? or ! and no wireless adapter shown

connect the laptop to the router with a cable and make sure that you have internet access 

now once we know everything is OK in device manager - plug the wireless card into the laptop and follow what it does when - windows detects new hardware - if it asks to go onto the internet and use windows update to find a driver - let it do it


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## flavamost (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

I uninstalled the Realtek driver after I plugging the card in.

I rebooted my PC and the following attachment showed no issues or the Realtek driver. Everything seems to be working fine.

I plugged the card into my PC after attaching the ethernet cable. It found the driver on it's own and installed it with no problems but I still can't connect to the internet with it. The "Act" light on the card just continuously blinks.


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## etaf (Dec 28, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*



> I plugged the card into my PC after attaching the ethernet cable. It found the driver on it's own and installed it with no problems


 its not listed in device manager
are you sure it installed ok - nothing showing yellow?or ! anywhere in device manager


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## flavamost (Oct 25, 2008)

It shows it in the device manager. There is no ? or ! It shows all of my devices as working including the Realtek driver. (Sorry I put the wrong attachment up. That attachment was the Device Manager before I put the card in). But for some reason my PC doesn't get WiFi. I even unplugged my ethernet cable and tried and the driver installs but Windows shows no network still. I know my wireless router works because i use my iPhone & PSP with no problems.


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## etaf (Dec 28, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

can we see the correct device manager and an xirrus screen shot and another ipconfig /all please


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## flavamost (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

Here's the ipconfig /all:

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : Arson5-PC
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . : 
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : Belkin

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : Belkin
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/100 VE Network Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-0D-60-B0-02-8F
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::a975:2d11:a008:62b5%10(Preferred) 
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.2.8(Preferred) 
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Thursday, April 21, 2011 7:45:22 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Monday, May 29, 2147 2:20:27 AM
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.2.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.2.1
DHCPv6 IAID . . . . . . . . . . . : 234884448
DHCPv6 Client DUID. . . . . . . . : 00-01-00-01-15-34-58-34-00-0D-60-B0-02-8F
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.2.1
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled

Tunnel adapter isatap.Belkin:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : 
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Microsoft ISATAP Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 11:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : 
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IPv6 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 2001:0:4137:9e76:2480:651:b388:8a93(Preferred) 
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::2480:651:b388:8a93%11(Preferred) 
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : ::
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled

Attached are screenshots of device manager and Xirrus:


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## flavamost (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

Here's 2 more screenshots of the device manager showing the driver Windows installed and that Windows says it's working properly. All this was after I uninstalled the driver, plugged the card in and let Windows reinstall the driver. I get the same results with the driver from Trendnet's website.


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## etaf (Dec 28, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

Lets see what utility is controlling the wireless 
Windows is called "WLAN AutoConfig "
see if there is a trendnet utility running in services 

to view services 

Start>control panel> administrative tools > services 

IN fact lets see the status of all the following services


*------------------------------------------------------------------------*
*Services*
Shamelessly stolen from a John Will Post 
post back the status - started/stopped and automatic/manual
Check your Services are Started on all PCs: 

COM+ Event System (for WZC issues)
Computer Browser
DHCP Client
DNS Client
Network Connections
Network Location Awareness
Remote Procedure Call (RPC)
Server
TCP/IP Netbios helper
Wireless Zero Configuration _(XP wireless configurations only_)
WLAN AutoConfig (_Vista wireless configurations only_)
Workstation

_*Note:* You can check the services in Control Panel, Administrative Tools, Services._

*All of these services should be started, and their startup type should be automatic (or perhaps manual).*

If a service is not running, open it's properties and check the dependencies. Check each of the dependencies and see which one is preventing the service from running.

Checking the event log is also a good idea here, there may be clues to what is failing.
Start > control panel > administrative tools > event Viewer

*------------------------------------------------------------------------*


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## etaf (Dec 28, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

looking at the user manual http://downloads.trendnet.com/tew-421pc/manual/qig_tew-421pc(english).pdf page14 - whats the settings there


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## flavamost (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

I posted a shot of the Administrative Tools/Services. Everything seems to be started and running.

In the Event Viewer, I keep getting a warning with the WLAN AutoConfig but I can't seem to find out why. The details don't tell me anything.


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## flavamost (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

My Trendnet Wireless Configuration Utility doesn't show anything. Not in the Profile or Site Survey. It doesn't even show other networks that my router can detect.


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## etaf (Dec 28, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

i suspect the trendnet may be conflicting with the Wlan service - I would stop the Trendnet from running and see if wlan is then able to manage the wireless service 

is there a trendnet service running at all?
also have a look in msconfig - >start> _ in the search box type _ msconfig > goto the startup tab - see if anything to do with trendnet is there - if so untick it and re boot the pc


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## flavamost (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

The Trendnet utility doesn't seem to be running. I have had this problem even before installing Trendnet's Wireless Config. Utility. Here's what Windows msconfig shows:


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## etaf (Dec 28, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

the wlancu application appears to be the trendnet utility 
How to remove WlanCU.exe Startup process
WlanCU.exe Startup Item Info | AboutMyPC.net

I would untick that and reboot and see if that helps, as it may be conflicting with wlan from windows and hence the event viewer info


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## flavamost (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

I unticked it and rebooted it. Unfortunately, I get the same problem as before. I even uninstalled Trendnet's Wireless Config. Utility and uninstalled the driver before I rebooted. I then let Windows install the driver again and nothing changes. I have noticed that the wireless taskbar icon is missing also. The only time it appeared is when I ran Trendnet's utility.


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## 2xg (Aug 5, 2009)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

Hello,

When you first purchased the laptop, was the the Wi-Fi working?

Is the laptop still under warranty, I'd contact Lenovo if it is.

Can the Card be taken out then reseat it back in?

If suggestion above is not an option you may try a Repair Install.

Last thing try is to buy a new Wi-Fi Adapter (Card or USB).

Please post your progress and let us know.


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## flavamost (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: Thinkpad T40 & Trendnet card networking issues*

I got it fixed! It was my firewall, ZoneAlarm, that was causing the problem. I tried using Windows Support to troubleshoot and I got "There might be a problem with the driver for the wireless network connection adapter" again. I left my pointer on that phrase and "Windows couldn't automatically bind the IP protocol stack to the network adapter" appeared next to it.

I did a search for those phrases and I checked this page
No Internet Connection After Boot UP or Wake Up - Windows 7 Forums

I found the solution there. Now I have wireless. Thanks to all that helped me!


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## etaf (Dec 28, 2008)

excellent - thanks for letting us know the solution , will be useful


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