Travel Technology - Can a new wireless system crash my computer?

I'm on the road, moving from hotel to hotel. My laptop (Sony TR3A) has been purring along. Last night, I brought up the computer in a new hotel. I happened to have the wireless control set to off, and it came up fine. As soon as I turned the wireless on, it crashed. I must have spent 2 to 3 hours working on it. (Stop laughing, Scotty.)

The blue screen of death came up every time the wireless was on, and a couple times when it wasn't. It said I had either installed a new driver or new software, or there was something wrong with my caching or shadowing. I had installed nothing new since the morning in hotel A when it worked fine and afternoon in hotel B when it didn't. I reset the computer to a day last week when it worked fine; this didn't help. I could work in wireless mode and Excel and Word worked just fine.

Now, I am at hotel C and the computer is again purring.

As a non techy person, to me the clues point to the wireless system of hotel B. Can it be the culprit? And if so, why?

I've never heard of this happening. Are you using Windows Zero Config or a proprietary wireless utility?

It is Windows. Even if something is not technically possible, Windows can still make it happen.

It could have something to do with the channel the wireless was on, or something weird with the way it assigned you an IP address.

I'd keep an eye on it, worst case you may need to reinstall the wireless drivers.

Scott - could it also be a VAIO hardware problem or added VAIO bloatware? I've used a few VAIO laptops in the past that has had strange problems as well.

It definitely can happen with some Intel Centrino chipsets and older Intel software. I had this happen with my Presario X1000, when I was using it in the LAX UA RCC with my T-Mobile subscription a few months ago. It started blue-screening every few minutes. Upon reboot, Windows popped up a message about a serious error with a link to the MS Hardware compatibility site. That linked me into an Intel site with updated software. Since I was in a hurry, I didn't update from there.

Got crashes at some other T-Mo hotspots also. This happened whether or not I used the T-Mobile Connection Manager, or let Windows manage the wireless.

Finally installed the update and it's fine.

I don't have the exact links, and they vary by OEM manufacturer and version of the Intel chipset - but basically some newer CISCO access points handshake with the WiFi client in a way that causes the older Intel software to hard crash.

Yes, it doesn't sound like it was possible, but it is. And no, it wasn't mal-ware, and it wasn't the much older Centrino/VPN incompatibility from a few years ago.

I just did a search of Intel's site and believe this was the link MS redirected me to:
http://www.intel.com/support/wireless/wlan/pro2200bg/sb/CS-022538.htm

In my case I got the newer drivers from HP/Compaq and it's been fine since. The weird thing here is it's an upgrade to the access point that causes the PC to crash - nothing you've done on your PC, other than continue to run the software that worked fine for a couple of years.

...As a non techy person, to me the clues point to the wireless system of hotel B. Can it be the culprit? And if so, why?

I am also not a techy.

On place A my laptop crashed when connecting to wifi.
Went home and updated the driver for the wifi card (D-Link laptop cardbus adapter).
... back to place A and the wireless connection was working.

What's your security setup?

What's your security setup?

I have Windows firewall enabled. I use AVG for anti virus protection.

This has happened to me before. When I am at certain hotels with wireless on, my laptop will crash a few times in an hour. I m using a dell latitude d610.

Happened to me last week. It was the first time ever. I normally can get my work laptop connected just about anywhere - wired or wireless.

Unfortunately, I had to do about an hour's worth of work, and it took my IT dept almost that long to get me working - and not even fully. I had to call the office to have them move some files around for me. That hour's work stretched to 2 1/2 because of it.

Something with the hotel system did not play nice with my corp system. I suspect the same may have happened to you. Something in your personal firewall didn't "agree" with the hotel's.

I got home and it worked perfectly again.

Sorry it happened - but boy, do I know how frustrating it is.

I just did a search of Intel's site and believe this was the link MS redirected me to:
http://www.intel.com/support/wireless/wlan/pro2200bg/sb/CS-022538.htm

Having procrastinated all these months, I'm finally getting serious about resolving this problem. I know that my wireless is incompatible with the UA International First Class Lounge at LAX, and I will be there on Wednesday night.

I used the link, downloaded the tool to learn what my driver is, and determined that I have;

Intel Pro/Wireless 2200BG Network Connection

Drive 8.0.110

I then found the download site for drivers for the 2200BG Network. I downloaded them to my computer, but I didn't know where they should go. As a result, they are in a file in my Documents folder. I have an ominous feeling that I've done the wrong thing.

Help, please!

Did you try to update your drivers?
Right click on My Computer
Select Properties
Select Hardware, then Device Manager
Expand Network Adapters by clicking on the + sign
Right click on the Network LAN Adapter
Select Properties, then Driver, then Update Driver
When you go through the Wizard, select No, then Next, then Install from a Specific Location
When you get to Include this Location in your Search, use Browse to make sure it shows the location where you stored the new drivers.

removed

I went thru this last weekend at home. After 6 years, I finally upgraded my 802.11 access point, and my IBM T41 Thinkpad immediately started crashing (blue screen of death) every 10-15 minutes as long as I had wireless turned on.

After puzzling over it for a bit, I downloaded the latest driver for my wireless chipset (2 years newer than what I'd been using), and everything was fine again.

So upgrade to the latest drivers for your Sony, and you should be fine.

Bob

I'm on the road, moving from hotel to hotel. My laptop (Sony TR3A) has been purring along. Last night, I brought up the computer in a new hotel. I happened to have the wireless control set to off, and it came up fine. As soon as I turned the wireless on, it crashed. I must have spent 2 to 3 hours working on it. (Stop laughing, Scotty.)

The blue screen of death came up every time the wireless was on, and a couple times when it wasn't. It said I had either installed a new driver or new software, or there was something wrong with my caching or shadowing. I had installed nothing new since the morning in hotel A when it worked fine and afternoon in hotel B when it didn't. I reset the computer to a day last week when it worked fine; this didn't help. I could work in wireless mode and Excel and Word worked just fine.

Now, I am at hotel C and the computer is again purring.

As a non techy person, to me the clues point to the wireless system of hotel B. Can it be the culprit? And if so, why?

Having procrastinated all these months, I'm finally getting serious about resolving this problem. I know that my wireless is incompatible with the UA International First Class Lounge at LAX, and I will be there on Wednesday night.

I used the link, downloaded the tool to learn what my driver is, and determined that I have;

Intel Pro/Wireless 2200BG Network Connection

Drive 8.0.110

I then found the download site for drivers for the 2200BG Network. I downloaded them to my computer, but I didn't know where they should go. As a result, they are in a file in my Documents folder. I have an ominous feeling that I've done the wrong thing.

Help, please!

Before I say yeah go for it run the file; did you download the drivers from Sony, Intel, or elsewhere? Don't trust 'em if they came from anyplace but directly from Sony or Intel.

That said, so long as they're from a trusted location just doubleclick on the file to execute it and it will upgrade the drivers for you.

Right click on My Computer
Select Properties
Select Hardware, then Device Manager
Expand Network Adapters by clicking on the + sign
Right click on the Network LAN Adapter
Select Properties, then Driver, then Update Driver
When you go through the Wizard, select No, then Next, then Install from a Specific Location
When you get to Include this Location in your Search, use Browse to make sure it shows the location where you stored the new drivers.

Thank you for such detailed instructions. I followed them, though didn't link back to the new driver I had downloaded. Rather, I had it check in its automated way when I got to:

Select Properties, then Driver, then Update Driver

It claimed that I had the current up to date drivers.

I hope that I get to the UA IFL lounge tonight in time to use my computer, knowing that attempts to use it there in late November resulted in the blue screen of death.

(kanebear, thanks for your caution, which I had followed.)

Unfortunately for Intel drivers (and Sony for that matter) that method does not work. The drivers you downloaded are in installable form. What that means is that they're in a monolithic package that you 'run' which then installs the drivers. Windows doesn't see those as 'drivers' as such and you can't use the procedure mentioned to install drivers packaged in such a manner.

Ergo, you must find that file and run the program which will update the drivers. Windows doesn't know the drivers exist yet, so it says the buggy drivers (the ones that cause crashes) are the most current.

Thank you for such detailed instructions. I followed them, though didn't link back to the new driver I had downloaded. Rather, I had it check in its automated way when I got to:

Select Properties, then Driver, then Update Driver

It claimed that I had the current up to date drivers.


What it probably claimed was that the installed driver is the latest one that it knows about. That's not the same as the driver being up to date.

Even though it says you have the most up to date drivers, don't believe it. Manually go to the Sony or Intel site, check the date stamp, and compare it to the date found under the driver properties on your PC. If the Sony/Intel site has newer drivers, install them using the self-executing file.

I'm not sure what the purpose of Microsoft's "Update Drivers" link is, aside from providing false reassurance. It certainly makes you believe its checking locally and on the Internet for newer drivers, but that's not certainly not the case.

Bob

Thank you for such detailed instructions. I followed them, though didn't link back to the new driver I had downloaded. Rather, I had it check in its automated way when I got to:

Select Properties, then Driver, then Update Driver

It claimed that I had the current up to date drivers.

I hope that I get to the UA IFL lounge tonight in time to use my computer, knowing that attempts to use it there in late November resulted in the blue screen of death.

(kanebear, thanks for your caution, which I had followed.)

Even though it says you have the most up to date drivers, don't believe it. Manually go to the Sony or Intel site, check the date stamp, and compare it to the date found under the driver properties on your PC. If the Sony/Intel site has newer drivers, install them using the self-executing file.

I'm not sure what the purpose of Microsoft's "Update Drivers" link is, aside from providing false reassurance. It certainly makes you believe its checking locally and on the Internet for newer drivers, but that's not certainly not the case.

Bob


Most drivers now are offered in self-installing packages. A few aren't. For those, when you decompress the package, you then go to 'Update Driver' and locate what you downloaded. I've never yet had the 'automated' updating work... I always have to spoonfeed it.