To Connect to an Available Wireless Network

1. Right-click the network connection icon in the notification area, and then click View Available Wireless Networks.
2. In Connect to Wireless Network, under Available Networks, click the wireless network that you want to connect to.
3. If a network key is required for Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP), do one of the following:
   • If the network key is automatically provided for you (for example, the key is stored on the wireless network adapter given to you by your administrator), leave Network Key blank.
   • If the network key is not automatically provided for you, in Network key, type the key.
4. Click Connect.
5. To configure additional wireless network connection settings, or if you are having difficulty making a connection to the wireless network that you selected, click Advanced, and then configure the settings in the Wireless Networks tab.

Notes

• On the Wireless Networks tab, you can view and configure additional settings for automatic wireless network configuration. However, to configure settings on the Wireless Networks tab, you must be a member of the local Administrators group, and you must use a wireless network adapter that supports the Wireless Zero Configuration service. If you are unsure whether your wireless network adapter supports the Wireless Zero Configuration service, contact your network administrator. For more information about how to set up automatic wireless network configuration, see Related Topics.
• WEP is a set of security services used to protect 802.11 wireless networks from unauthorized access. For more information about how to configure WEP settings for wireless network clients, see Related Topics.

To Set up Automatic Wireless Network Configuration

1. Open Network Connections.
2. Right-click Wireless Network Connection, and then click Properties.
3. On the Wireless Networks tab, do one of the following:
   • To enable automatic wireless network configuration, select the Use Windows to configure my wireless network settings check box. This check box is selected by default. For information about what happens when you enable automatic wireless network configuration, see Notes.
   • To disable automatic wireless network configuration, clear the Use Windows to configure my wireless network settings check box.
4. To connect to an existing wireless network, do one of the following:

   Access point (infrastructure)

   • To connect to an existing access point (infrastructure) network, under Available networks, click the network name, and then click Configure.

     In Wireless Network Properties, specify the wireless network key (Wired Equivalent Privacy) settings, or, if the network key is automatically provided for you (for example, the key is stored on the wireless network adapter given to you by your administrator), select the The key is provided for me automatically check box. If you are unsure about whether a network key is needed or which settings you need to enter, contact your network administrator or the wireless network adapter manufacturer.

   Important

   • If a network does not broadcast its network name, it will not appear under Available networks. To connect to an access point (infrastructure) network that you know is available but that does not appear under Available networks, under Preferred networks, click Add. In Wireless Network Properties, specify the network name (Service Set Identifier) and, if needed, the wireless network key settings.

   Computer-to-computer (ad hoc)

   • To connect to an existing computer-to-computer (ad hoc) network, under Available networks, click the network name, and then click Configure.

     In Wireless Network Properties, specify the wireless network key (Wired Equivalent Privacy) settings, or, if the network key is automatically provided for you (for example, the key is stored on the wireless network adapter given to you by your administrator), select the The key is provided for me automatically check box. If you are unsure about whether a network key is needed or which settings you need to enter, contact your network administrator or the wireless network adapter manufacturer.

     If you want to connect to a computer-to-computer (ad hoc) network and both computer-to-computer and access point (infrastructure) networks are within range of your computer, click Advanced, and then click Computer-to-computer (ad hoc) networks only.

5. To configure a new wireless network connection, click Add, and then do the following:
   • In Wireless Network Properties, specify the network name (Service Set Identifier) and, if needed, the wireless network key settings.
   • If the network connection that you are configuring is to a computer-to-computer (ad hoc) network, select the This is a computer-to-computer (ad hoc) network; wireless access points are not used check box.
6. To change the order in which connection attempts to preferred networks are made, under Preferred networks, click the wireless network that you want to move to a new position on the list, and then click Move up or Move down.
7. To change the wireless network connection settings for a network that is listed in Preferred networks, click the wireless network for which you want to change settings, click Properties, and then change the settings as needed.
8. To remove a wireless network from the list of preferred networks, under Preferred networks, click the wireless network that you want to remove, and then click Remove.
9. To update the list of available networks that are within range of your computer, click Refresh.
10. To automatically connect to available networks that do not appear in the Preferred networks list, click Advanced, and then select the Automatically connect to non-preferred networks check box.

Notes

• To open Network Connections, click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click Network Connections.
• When you enable automatic wireless network configuration, you can connect to an existing wireless network, change wireless network connection settings, configure a new wireless network connection, and specify preferred wireless networks. You will be notified when new wireless networks are available. After you select a wireless network, your wireless network adapter will be automatically configured to match the settings of that network, and a network connection attempt will be made. For more information, see Related Topics.
• To configure settings on the Wireless Networks tab, you must be logged on as an administrator, and you must use a wireless network adapter that supports the Wireless Zero Configuration service. If you are unsure whether your wireless network adapter supports the Wireless Zero Configuration service, contact your network administrator or the wireless network adapter manufacturer. For more information about automatic wireless network configuration, see Related Topics.
• If you are using third-party wireless networking software, clear the Use Windows to configure my wireless network settings check box.
• If you are unable to connect to an existing wireless network and the name of the network that you want to connect to appears under the Preferred networks list, click the preferred network name, and then click Properties. In Wireless Network Properties, review the settings to ensure that they are correct. If you are unsure whether the settings are correct, contact your network administrator or the wireless network adapter manufacturer.
• If the Preferred networks list includes both access point (infrastructure) and computer-to-computer (ad hoc) networks, you cannot move a computer-to-computer network to a position in the list that is higher than the position of an access point network.
• To provide enhanced security for 802.11 wireless networks and for wired Ethernet networks, IEEE 802.1x authentication is enabled by default. For more information about how to set up 802.1x authentication, see Related Topics.

To Set up 802.1x Authentication

1. Open Network Connections.
2. Right-click the connection for which you want to enable or disable IEEE 802.1x authentication, and then click Properties.
3. On the Authentication tab, do one of the following:
   • To enable IEEE 802.1x authentication for this connection, select the Network access control using IEEE 802.1X check box. This check box is selected by default.
   • To disable IEEE 802.1x authentication for this connection, clear the Network access control using IEEE 802.1X check box.
4. In EAP type, click the Extensible Authentication Protocol type to be used with this connection.
5. If you select Smart Card or other Certificate in EAP type, you can configure additional properties if you click Properties and, in Smart Card or other Certificate Properties, do the following:
   • To use the certificate that resides on your smart card for authentication, click Use my smart card.
   • To use the certificate that resides in the certificate store on your computer for authentication, click Use a certificate on this computer.
   • To verify that the server certificate presented to your computer is still valid, select the Validate server certificate check box, specify whether to connect only if the server resides within a particular domain, and then specify the trusted root certification authority.
   • To use a different user name when the user name in the smart card or certificate is not the same as the user name in the domain to which you are logging on, select the Use a different user name for the connection check box.
6. To specify whether the computer should attempt authentication to the network if a user is not logged on and/or if the computer or user information is not available, do the following:
   • To specify that the computer attempt authentication to the network if a user is not logged on, select the Authenticate as computer when computer information is available check box.
   • To specify that the computer attempt authentication to the network if user information or computer information is not available, select the Authenticate as guest when user or computer information is unavailable check box. This check box is selected by default.

Notes

• To open Network Connections, click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click Network Connections.
• IEEE 802.1x authentication provides authenticated access to 802.11 wireless networks and to wired Ethernet networks. 802.1x minimizes wireless network security risks and uses standard security protocols, such as RADIUS. For more information about 802.1x and 802.11, see Related Topics.
• To configure settings on the Authentication tab, you must be a member of the local Administrators group.
• For wired and wireless network connections, the settings in the Authentication tab apply to the network to which you are currently connected. If you are currently connected to a wireless network, you can verify the name of the network by clicking the Wireless Networks tab. The name of the network will appear in Visible networks and Preferred networks, and it will be preceded by an icon with a circle around it.