No Driver for Network Adapter? part 1

Exemer

I was running my computer on Windows XP and it more or less crashed on me so I decided it was time to upgrade to Windows 7.
I did a custom load and everything and it is loading fine for the most part but I cant seem to get an internet connection. I'm using a LAN and the same ether net cord plugged into the same outlet gives my laptop connection no problem but nothing for the desktop.
I tried everything I can think of but with no internet connection how am I supposed to get the drivers I need?
If anyone may have a solution to my problem I would be in your debt.

Lemur

Welcome to SF, Exemer! You will need to provide a specific name/model to go along with Alienware.

You will need to download the driver from another computer, save it to CD/DVD or usb device, and load it from there.

Exemer

It is one of the Aurora series, can't recall exactly what model.
Any idea what driver I will need and where to get it?

Lemur

Make a copy of $msnfo32.nfo, zip it, and attach it here.

**EDIT** You should also be able to look at the back of your computer and see the model.

Exemer

I found the model, it's an Aurora 3500-R4 but, I can't figure out where this $msnfo32.nfo file is at.

***Edit*** Maybe is is it?

RedsennaCy

I'm having the same issue, let me know how this goes and if the drivers work.

Drivers didn't work for my Win 7 64 bit Ultimate

Lemur

�� Quote: Originally Posted by Exemer

I found the model, it's an Aurora 3500-R4 but, I can't figure out where this $msnfo32.nfo file is at.

***Edit*** Maybe is is it?

Sorry, but the file ends in nfo, not exe.

You could also run SIW for hardware information:

SIW Freeware - free software download and software review - system information tool from SnapFiles

stormy13

�� Quote: Originally Posted by Exemer

I found the model, it's an Aurora 3500-R4

Doesn't help much as using that doesn't return anything useful,

alienware Aurora 3500-R4 - Google Search

Wouldn't happen to have a service number tag on the computer somewhere would it? If so you can go here,

Dell - Drivers and Downloads

enter the service tag number and find out what is in it.

Lemur

Good grief. I went to Alienware's site, and the download page does NOT list by model. This is the strangest thing.

Alienware : The Ultimate Gaming Machine

I forgot, they are sold by Dell. Thanks, Stormy. And, as Stormy indicated, we need a service tag #.

http://support.dell.com/support/down...=19&l=en&s=dhs

karlsnooks

Exemer,
Microsoft Fix it Solution Center
Windows 7 Solution Center

WIN | type troubleshooting | click on Troubleshooting in the Control Panel section

Click on Network and Internet


WIN is the key with the wavy flag on it.

Exemer

Will this work?

stormy13

�� Quote: Originally Posted by Lemur

Good grief. I went to Alienware's site, and the download page does NOT list by model. This is the strangest thing.

Great isn't it? You have to know exactly who made what in it in order to download anything. You would think with what they charge for those things they would at least have a decent download page.

And it isn't any better on Dell's page either. You go through everything to get to the generic (for lack of a better term) Aurora page,

Drivers & Downloads

and it lists 5 different network drivers.

Exemer that Txt file didn't work. Try it again only this time save it as HTML.

Lemur

�� Quote: Originally Posted by stormy13

Exemer that Txt file didn't work. Try it again only this time save it as HTML.

You can change the extension as html. It provides all info EXCEPT network card. Argh!

Exemer

It wont let me upload a HTML file so i copied everything it said onto a txt file.
Also, as far as Service Number tag I haven't been able to find one.

stormy13

OK that worked. Not much info there but it does at least list the chipset, NF-MCP55, which is from the old Nforce 5 series. That being the case this,

NVIDIA DRIVERS 15.53 WHQL

should work as a start, and after installed hopefully the rest of the info will show up. One thing Exemer, when you install it select custom install and do not install the Nvidia "Network Management Tools". One thing you will find out with doing a custom install as well is if the network driver in that package is the correct one for that motherboard or not, as if it is will be in the list of drivers to choose, iof not it won't be in the list.

P.S. You're also missing the sound driver, but we can cross that bridge once we get the rest of the drivers installed.

Exemer

I installed the driver twice and there doesn't seem to be any change. Also, there was no option for a custom install or a Network management tool. Might there be something i need to do to turn on the driver or something?

Lemur

Ok, if SIW doesn't do it, how about:

HWiNFO32 Download

Gotta find out what the NIC is.

Did you buy this computer from Dell?

karlsnooks

Exemer,
Don't be mislead by the title. This will probably provide the info regarding your system.
Belarc Advisor - Free Personal PC Audit

Exemer

I bought it from AlienWare. Weather or not Dell build it; I'm unsure.

stormy13

And that one doesn't shown it either. It does at least show that it has the Realtek ALC882 of which you can find the latest driver for here,

Latest Realtek HD Audio Driver Version

Edit: Just had a better look at that log and it lists the motherboard as the Foxconn N570SM2AA. Now Foxconn does have a retail version of that board,

Foxconn - Products: Motherboard

which has the Dual Marvell 88E1116 PHY for its network control. Unfortunately they don't list a separate driver for it, so I am assuming that it is included in the chipset driver package they have listed (which is quite a bit older than the one from Nvidia I linked too).

What does it show under Network Adapters in Device Manager? Also anything under "Unknown devices"? For either of which is showing right lick on them and select Properties, then click on the Details tab and from the dropdown select "Hardware IDs and post a screen shot of them.

Exemer

There's the screen shot of the unknown device. I should have mentioned that earlier.

Should I be installing both of those or just the one from the edit?

pebbly

Hi exemer, have you tried the Atheros drivers , you should have a wireless mini lan card in your lappy download and install the atheros driver in compatibility mode for Vista , will load up my lappy now and give you the exact driver in about 10 mins

chev65

If this is an upgrade install you will sometimes need to reset Winsock to get the network up and running.

1. Click start, type cmd in the Start Search box, right-click cmd.exe, click Run as administrator, and then press Continue.



2. Type netsh winsock reset at the command prompt, and then press ENTER.

Note If the command is typed incorrectly, you will receive an error message. Type the command again. When the command is completed successfully, a confirmation appears, followed by a new command prompt. Then, go to step 3.


3. Type exit, and then press ENTER. You should be prompted to reboot, if not you should reboot and test.

If the problem persists then sometimes a clean installation from the upgrade CD works better.

Clean Install Windows 7

pebbly

exemer,this should be the driver you require Drivers and Downloads this is 64bit software for vista

stormy13

pebbly, it's a desktop. The fun part is determining what it has for its onboard NIC. One possibility assuming Alienware didn't have the NIC changed from what is on the reference Foxconn board is that it may have come with the Killer NIC in it (Killer had to sell those things somehow).

Exemer quick question; is the ethernet cable plugged into the general area of #1 or #2,



If it is #1 then it is the onboard NIC. If it is #2 (or even if #1 and there is an ethernet port anywhere near #2), then it also has a separate NIC card. If it is #2 and that is what you are using, then the easiest way to find out what it is is to pull the card and make note of the make and model number of it, then search for the drivers.

As far as that screen shot you posted with the hardware ID showing as PNP0510, from what I can find that is for an IrDA port,

Infrared Data Association - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is one of those things that if you're not using it, and assuming they didn't hide the option in the bios you can disable. Unfortunately this is one of those things that you know is actually being used, short of disabling it and seeing what doesn't work, the only way I can think of to see if it is connected to anything is to open the computer and see if there is something connected to the IrDA port on the motherboard. If you want to check inside and see it should be located here based on the reference Foxconn board green circle),



If there is nothing attached to it then you should be able to disable it in the bios here,



Highlight the option and hit Enter, then set it to disabled (you can also do the same with the serial and parallel ports if you're not using them).

Exemer

Thanks for at last trying to help pebbly.

Chev65, I tried resetting Winsock like you said and it doesn't seem to have done anything.

It is located in the #1 area, Stormy13. There are two ports if that means anything.

Exemer

�� Quote: Originally Posted by stormy13

And that one doesn't shown it either. It does at least show that it has the Realtek ALC882 of which you can find the latest driver for here,

Latest Realtek HD Audio Driver Version

Edit: Just had a better look at that log and it lists the motherboard as the Foxconn N570SM2AA. Now Foxconn does have a retail version of that board,

Foxconn - Products: Motherboard

Should I have tried to install either of these?

pebbly

�� Quote: Originally Posted by Exemer

�� Quote: Originally Posted by stormy13

And that one doesn't shown it either. It does at least show that it has the Realtek ALC882 of which you can find the latest driver for here,

Latest Realtek HD Audio Driver Version

Edit: Just had a better look at that log and it lists the motherboard as the Foxconn N570SM2AA. Now Foxconn does have a retail version of that board,

Foxconn - Products: Motherboard

Should I have tried to install either of these?

exemer, you have nothing to lose by trying them, the drivers are for Vista
so you may have to install them in compatibility mode, also have you got the foxxcon live update installed?

chev65

�� Quote: Originally Posted by Exemer

Thanks for at last trying to help pebbly.

Chev65, I tried resetting Winsock like you said and it doesn't seem to have done anything.

It is located in the #1 area, Stormy13. There are two ports if that means anything.

Have you tried using the "other" eithernet port on the back of the machine? Have you attempted to clear the cmos yet?

pebbly

exemer, listed here are 5 nic cards Alienware : The Ultimate Gaming Machine= 1of these cards must be what you have installed on your desktop , if by any chance you are using a seperate nic have you disabled the onboard nic ?

Exemer

�� Quote: Originally Posted by chev65

�� Quote: Originally Posted by Exemer

Thanks for at last trying to help pebbly.

Chev65, I tried resetting Winsock like you said and it doesn't seem to have done anything.

It is located in the #1 area, Stormy13. There are two ports if that means anything.

Have you tried using the "other" eithernet port on the back of the machine? Have you attempted to clear the cmos yet?

Yeah, that was the problem before I upgraded to 7. For some reason the internet would only work one of the two ports. I did try both and neither of them are working. Also, I'm not sure what cmos is.

Exemer

[QUOTE=exemer, you have nothing to lose by trying them, the drivers are for Vista
so you may have to install them in compatibility mode, also have you got the foxxcon live update installed? [/QUOTE]

I will try those driver when I get off of work tomorrow afternoon if I can.
And I don't think I can update Foxxcon via my laptop can I? Since the whole issue is no internet on my desktop.

Exemer

Well i got the audio working. The reason it showed that I didn't have any drivers at the time was because I didn't have any Audio Devices plugged in at the time. I'm using a cheap headset and never got around to plugging it in before I realized I couldn't get my internet to work.

Now I just need a Network Adapter Driver and I'll be all set.

stormy13

Can we get a confirmation on the model number of your computer please, as about the only thing of any relevance to what you have listed is this,

Alienware Aurora 3500 (Athlon 64 Review (3800) - Desktops - CNET Reviews

and the specs listed on page 2 there don't match up to what Siw and others are showing. Also nothing shows up when searching Alienware's support site using 3500.

Might even be worth signing up here (if you haven't already),

http://support.alienware.com/Profile...%2fmyhive.aspx

and see if they can tell you exactly what is inside the computer.

Exemer

The only other set of numbers I can find on the back of the computer is:

Account#AW: PC-435633A

***Edit***

I have upgraded it some more since i bought it from them so they wont know what I put inside it.

pebbly

�� Quote: Originally Posted by Exemer

The only other set of numbers I can find on the back of the computer is:

Account#AW: PC-435633A

***Edit***

I have upgraded it some more since i bought it from them so they wont know what I put inside it.

exemer, did you upgrade the network card when you upgraded ? Drivers & Downloads
this is the original hardware drivers supplied when the PC was new , as you can see there were 6 variations of network adaptor available at that time , could you please help us and download a little proggy called speccy
Speccy - System Information - Free Download and post us a screen shot so we can actually see what hardware you have in the pc

HammerHead

Here is what I found at Alien ware.

This drivers and downloads site is intended for customers who purchased an Alienware system prior to September 2009 and do not have a service tag included on the system.
For systems that were purchased after September of 2009, please visit www.support.dell.com for the latest drivers and updates. In addition, if your system has a service tag on the bottom of the system (Notebooks) or in the front of the system (Desktops) then you will also need to visit www.support.dell.com for the latest drivers and updates.

pebbly

�� Quote: Originally Posted by HammerHead

Here is what I found at Alien ware.

This drivers and downloads site is intended for customers who purchased an Alienware system prior to September 2009 and do not have a service tag included on the system.
For systems that were purchased after September of 2009, please visit www.support.dell.com for the latest drivers and updates. In addition, if your system has a service tag on the bottom of the system (Notebooks) or in the front of the system (Desktops) then you will also need to visit www.support.dell.com for the latest drivers and updates.

thank you for the added info HammerHead , It is from the Dell site that we are supplying the drivers for the OP

Exemer

Here's the screen shots.

I don't think that I upgraded the Network Card when I upgraded it. Mainly the Video Card and Power Supply. I will try those drivers and see if any of them work.

Exemer

�� Quote: Originally Posted by pebbly

exemer, did you upgrade the network card when you upgraded ? Drivers & Downloads
this is the original hardware drivers supplied when the PC was new , as you can see there were 6 variations of network adaptor available at that time

I tried a few of those drivers. One froze when it started installing the drivers. The other managed to fully install but it says there's still no driver.

Exemer

I did some more looking around but I can't find any drivers that haven't already been listed. Is there any other drivers or solutions you could suggest?

pebbly

Exemer, If you have tried all the drivers we have supplied and suggested for you, and none have worked ,isn't time to think about having an hardware problem as in dead network card . is there any chance you can borrow a network card from some one or buy a cheap one to try ?

Exemer

Lol, All my friends and family gave up on their desktops and got laptops a long time ago, I'll look and see if i can find a cheap one online somewhere.