Do you get a stable WLAN connection?

[Jerome]

My 770 drops Wlan connections after browsing a few web pages. The only way to keep the connection active is to use the Internet radio while I am browsing.

I reported that earlier. I have been waiting for a pointer in the right direction or anything for 2 weeks and nothing. And frankly, I am not using my 770 any more. Either I have to think about starting an internet radio before browsing or I get the "woof" sound and the message "connection lost" every 5 seconds. It makes the 770 almost unusable for any browsing.

I tried resetting the 770 and re-entering the connection info from scratch, just to find that it will lose the connection on the default bookmarks, from a newly reflashed machine. So I suppose it is not a problem with my settings.


Are there some people who manage to have a stable WLAN connection on their 770? If yes, can you please give details on your configuration? I am interested in people using the same type of connection:

WLAN
WPA-PSK
Netgear router, G mode, hidden SSID
3-4 other active networks around.

I tried B/G mode and broadcasting the SSID to no effect.

[tdjohnson]

I have had problems establishing a WLAN connection with WPA-PSK myself.
SSID not broadcast, G mode, channel 11.

I am able to use non-secured networks which broadcast the SSID just fine.

I have updated to the 45-8 firmware also.

I am using a Linksys wireless access point.

[fpp]

If I had to guess I'd say that either your unit had a defective WLAN subsystem, or there is a problem with WPA-PSK support in maemo. I use my 770 with Wifi networks extensively (what else ? :-), both b and g, open and WEP-protected, in "crowded" environments, etc., and have generally had quite stable connexions and few problems.
The strangest thing I've seen to date was with a (cheap but) brand-new D-Link g router than had WEP, no SSID broadcast AND mac filtering enabled : even right up next to it it did not appear in network list when trying to connect. I had to create it manually in the control panel app before I could select it...

[Mike Cane]

Live via free 770 --

I've had a few dropped connections, but I use open APs (etherpiracy), so I figure that's part of the risk. On the whole, I'm satisfied with its WiFi performance.

[lostinthecity]

I can't be of any help I'm afraid, but I'm experiencing very similar problems to you. I've had my 770 for just over a week, and the connection i'm getting seems to be growing increasingly unstable. I managed to stay connected for about ten minutes at a time when I first got it, but now (and one firmware upgrade later, which may or may not have made the problem worse; currently on 45-8) i'm lucky if I can manage to maintain a connection for half a minute before it drops. Even with internet radio, it manages a few minutes at most before losing the connection.

I'm using an Edimax wireless router with MAC filtering, currently set to mixed mode, but I've tried B and G modes, and played around with lots of other settings, with no improvement. I'm pretty sure it's not a problem with my network hardware, given that none of the desktops or laptops in the house have ever had issues maintaining a connection.

I really hope there's a solution to this cause at the moment my 770 is virtually useless..

[Mike Cane]

Live via 770 --

Perhaps there should be a Sticky thread that Nokia could access where people list their AP hardware, settings, and problems? I'm online about an hour now in Bryant Park. No LOS so far.

[putkowski]

The strangest thing I've seen to date was with a (cheap but) brand-new D-Link g router than had WEP, no SSID broadcast AND mac filtering enabled : even right up next to it it did not appear in network list when trying to connect. I had to create it manually in the control panel app before I could select it...

I think that was because of the "no SSID broadcast." The 770 could see the AP, but did not know how to call it's name...

[Jerome]

The bug has been reported in bugzilla, under numbers 329 and 341, and some folks at Nokia know about it.

[Jerome]

An AP without SSID broadcast will not appear in the network list. This is how it is supposed to work.

[Jerome]

Yes, I also have 2 laptops (Apple) and a MAC mini connected on the same network without any problem. I am using one right now, actually.

If your 770 is so unstable that it is unusable, you may want to reset it. Unfortunately, that means reflashing it, unless you saved earlier settings. That rendered mine more stable (but still not very stable as noted).

A question: did you add and delete a lot of networks to try out things in the beginning? I have a feeling that it was what rendered my 770 unusable originally.

[roadsterboy]

I have the same unstable WLAN connections problem with my brand new 770. Unless I stream the radio, it will disconnect every browsed page. I use a Netgear router in G mode with WPA.
I hope someone in Nokia reads this forum.

[bradb]

I use a Netgear router in G mode with WPA.
I hope someone in Nokia reads this forum.

Stupid question, but it seems to me that WPA is most likely the issue - have you tried turning it off on your AP to see if that helps?

It's not the solution, but may help you narrow the problem down.

Brad.

[putkowski]

Stupid question, but it seems to me that WPA is most likely the issue - have you tried turning it off on your AP to see if that helps?

It's not the solution, but may help you narrow the problem down.

Brad.

The only problem I've had with connections was with "connect without asking"

The first application makes the connection and then shuts-down the connection on close (even if a second browser (or whatever) is open.)

Try manually connecting with the connection manager before doin' the nasty.

This has worked with several different kinds of connections.

P

[Jerome]

I have had disconnects in an Internet cafe, and those don't use WPA.

At this point, I would also like to say that under no circumstances would I run my AP without security. I live in a middle of a large city, so the risk of someone hijacking my connection is real. If this happens, and the hikjacker uses my connection for illegal activities, legally I am co-responsible for "reckless conduct". Small probability maybe, but high risk.

[lostinthecity]

My network's secured by MAC filtering rather than WPA and I'm still having this issue.
If I open up the connection manager, connect to my network then just leave it, it'll happily stay connected for 30 minutes plus. As soon as I start using it though it disconnects a minute or so later, so I'm pretty sure it's a problem with the software rather than a hardware issue. Ah well, time to reflash my firmware to see if it improves things, I think..

[Jerome]

Thanks for the report.

Mac filtering is not very secure as a security method. Mac addresses can be spoofed.

[bradb]

Thanks for the report.

Mac filtering is not very secure as a security method. Mac addresses can be spoofed.

You're right, it's not very secure. It's my understanding that WEP isn't really much better when your dealing with someone talented (or even a good script kiddie).

But if you use WEP and mac address filtering, at least you've made an attempt to keep others out and I'm pretty sure your provider can't ask for much more.

I was just suggesting it as a test.

[lostinthecity]

Is anyone who's been experiencing problems finding the 51-13 update an improvement?
I can now stay connected to internet radio for 30 minutes plus, which didn't happen before. When I use the browser, it's still dropping the connection after pretty much every page load though, but at least the annoying 'connection lost' message doesn't come up anymore, so i guess it's vaguely more bearable.

[Jerome]

Tried firmware 3.2005.51-13 today. The bug is still present, in a slightly modified form. Now the 770 will NOT say "connection lost" (with a woof sound), but the connection is lost nevertheless. It needs to reconnect on every 5th or so web page and dmesg shows the same messages...

[tdjohnson]

Still using firmware 2005.45-8; I noted that I could not use WPA with TKIP mode, had to switch to AES. Access point is Linksys WAP54g.

The workaround I use is to disconnect and reconnect, using the connection manager. This is annoying.

The connection *seems* to stay open while I stay at one site, then when I try to switch sites, I see the "Connecting" message, then finally "failed to connect".

Is there a Bugzilla entry that someone at Nokia has entered to acknowledge similar symptoms?

I'm satisfied that I have a secure (enough) connection, but now I'd like
to contribute to the solution. What observations would be most helpful
to Nokia?

[Jerome]

The bugzilla entry is bug 329.

[msaunby]

I'm also using a Linksys wireless router. No problems here though I have tweaked a few (advanced?) settings.

I had already given up using DHCP from my laptop, so for the 770 I've also used a static IP address - makes life easier with ssh too) I've also selected the low power option on the 770 (10mW rather than 100mW) since this seems to giver better range for me - sometimes it's best not to shout. And perhaps it will give better battery life.

I don't use any encryption though, since I live in the middle of nowhere. If you find yourself in a more crowded place that I realise encryption is required, and you might want to do a scan to find a quite channel.

As for disconnects. I've had a few when listenning to BBC radio, but none when listening to my own music using SlimServer running on a Linux box. The web browser seems to like to make and break conections as needed, which I guess it does to save power. Though it doesn't seem to know what it's doing when in offline mode.

[Arjun]

Well, Your WLAN connection drops off probably because in the Connection setting of the Nokia 770 the WLAN WIFI connections is set to drop after a certain time. If you change this time setting to say ,1 hour then perhaps the connection will last that long.

:cool: