VISTA WIRELESS Issues and Fixes

If you have a wireless access point, and you KNOW it works on other
computers, but you get a "local only" message from Vista, the built-in DHCP
router in your Wireless Access Point probably is NOT compatible with Vista...
Here is one solution that may work for SOME routers (but it does NOT work for
all of them!)

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928233/en-us

If this does not work, and you still get the "local only" message, but you
KNOW the access point works with XP wireless, etc., then MANUALLY SET the IP
address info. Unfortunately, if you have to manually set the IP info, you
will have to delete those settings with other wireless access points. And
let me say one more time, DO NOT waste your time with the Alternate IP
configuration, it doesn't work!

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928152/en-us ; (affects mostly wireless on
laptops)
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929847/en-us ; (Vista and XP together in a
wireless environment)

If your Gateway is on a different subnet (usually locations with large
numbers of wireless spots such as businesses, universities, etc.) then you
may have connection problems that FORCE you to manually configure your IP
settings on the adapter. This is a FIX for XP SP2 that doesn't look like it
made it into Vista, so, if you are experiencing this problem, LIKE ME, then
you have no choice but to manually configure the IP settings.

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=822596

If you are having periodic connection problems (and you know they didn't
exist before), Vista has changed the Automitic IP Address discovery timing to
be almost instantaneous. So if you have an older wireless access point, or
one that has long broadcast / "handshake" times, then you may have trouble
because of this "improvement."

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/931550/en-us ; (MS Does not provide a
solution, only info. Like the other options, you will likely have to
MANUALLY set up your IP info in the adapter, or purchase a new wireless
access point.)

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929824/en-us ; (problems if you have the SAME
Gateway address as the one assigned to the computer you are trying to connect
to the Wireless spot).

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To see your adapter info, use a command prompt window (Start > Run > type in
CMD) and then type:

ipconfig /all

Find your network adapter and write down the Gateway, DNS, IP Address, and
other settings.

Also, go to the EVENT VIEWER and see if there are any messages related to
you trying to connect to your wireless adapter at the times you tried to
connect.

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Regardless of the problem, if you KNOW the wireless spot works, and you had
little or no trouble on XP, try MANUALLY setting up the IP info for that
wireless access point.

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I'm VERY disappointed at how many problems there are with the Vista wireless
networking. Especially when SO MANY of the early Vista users are exactly the
same customer base that USES WIRELESS!