Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Merrick, NY
Posts: 34

Applications will not connect with Springport on Prism

Help! I'm at a loss.

I connect to my Linksys WAP11 just fine. I can ping all the machines on my lan. I can hotsync via the wireless (Serial/USB). Everything looks great.

BUT, not one single application wants to connect. They all seem to successfully query the DNS, but when they try to connect they all just time out.

These include: Blazer, Eudora Mail, AIM for Palm, Browse-It. They all pretty much exhibit the same symptom - timing out while trying to connect. But I immediately check the status of the Springport and everything is fine.

Do they all try to direct connnect to their respective servers, or are they looking for some type of proxy server?

I'm using Verizon DSL.

If you need any more info, feel free to post.

Thanks in advance for any tips.

Jeff Lanka

Registered: Aug 2000
Location:
Posts: 48

You are in the same shoe as I am with my springport. I send them an email to Xircom or Intel. They send me back stating that 'There may be an issue with the SWE and the Linksys WAP11'.

However, I got it to work. But it is a ***** to make it work. Here are some of the solution that I have tried:

1. If the Blazer does not talked to the WAP11, reset the Handspring and try again.
2. If step 1 does not work, Disconnect using the Preferences Screen and after it disconnect, remove the xircom module and reinsert the module and try again.
3. If step 1 and 2 does not work, keep doing it until Blazer can talk to the WAP11.

It seems to work if you keep resetting the Handspring.

What I find out is that it is not Blazer that cannot talk to outside world. I think there is a problem with the module talking to Linksys WAP11. They both can authenicate but once the net traffic get started, they cannot authenicate at all. I still think it is a bug with the Xircom.

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Merrick, NY
Posts: 34

Wow - thats amazing. I wonder if there is anything on the web about that incompatibility problem. So far, no amount of resetting/reconnecting/reseating the Springport has allowed a successful connection. But I'll keep trying.

I'd love to be able to try it out with a different Access Point. I'll search around and see if anyone I know may have one.

Thanks for the reply. If anyone else knows a workaround or another possible solution, I'd welcome the help.

Jeff

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Merrick, NY
Posts: 34

I just found this article:

Handspring preview which seems to indicate that the author tested it successfully with a WAP11. I'm going to try to contact him to see if he has any ideas on our plight. I will report any findings here.

Jeff

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Albuquerque
Posts: 24

I am having the same problems. I am using a Belkin WAP and a SMC WAP. I am pretty sure it's a compatibility problem with the waps. I am going to buy a Cisco Aironet 340 and retry again. It connects fine but stops when I try and do anything on any program.

Registered: Aug 2000
Location:
Posts: 48

What firmware are your WAP11 and your Xircom? I am using the latest firmware on WAP11 v1.4h3.

quote:

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Originally posted by jlanka
Wow - thats amazing. I wonder if there is anything on the web about that incompatibility problem. So far, no amount of resetting/reconnecting/reseating the Springport has allowed a successful connection. But I'll keep trying.

I'd love to be able to try it out with a different Access Point. I'll search around and see if anyone I know may have one.

Thanks for the reply. If anyone else knows a workaround or another possible solution, I'd welcome the help.

Jeff

---

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Albuquerque
Posts: 24

I have tried both the old software it came with and the latest. No difference. I have tried a dhcp number and a static number also.

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Merrick, NY
Posts: 34

1.4g.7 on WAP11 - 1.4h.3 wouldn't allow me to use SNMP config.

1.13 on the SpringPort.

I e-mailed that guy who wrote the article about the SpringPort and WAP11. Let;s see what he has to say.

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Albuquerque
Posts: 24

I just noticed one thing, the status ip screen doesn't have a dns primary or secondary. all the other ip info is ok. I think I may have a dhcp problem as well.

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Merrick, NY
Posts: 34

Can you surf with explicit address? For instance, try going to

http://129.42.16.99

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Albuquerque
Posts: 24

I tried one of my local machines without luck. still hangs.

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Merrick, NY
Posts: 34

Are you running an HTML server on that machine?

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Albuquerque
Posts: 24

Yes and a pop3 server as well. nothing seems to be working except the status page. I am looking right now for a used cisco aironet 340 wap. As soon as I get that up and running I'll repost the results.

BTW I am running SW ver 1.13 and FW ver 3.82 on a visor
with 3.5.2H1.5/Net Lib v3.2.0.d000

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Merrick, NY
Posts: 34

I've got everything the same except PalmOS 3.5.2H1.4

I also cannot connect to a local http server :-(

Will keep you updated of my ongoing search mission.

I'm having trouble believing it's our Access Points. But you never know.

Good luck.

Jeff

Registered: Aug 2000
Location:
Posts: 48

I also doubt it is the access point. My setup is as follows:
LinkSys WAP11 v1.4h3
Xircom SpringPort v1.13
Handspring Prism v3.5.2H1.5.

Does anyone has a different access point and got to work? Even if it failed, maybe we should start listing them what work and does not work. It might help all of us.

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Merrick, NY
Posts: 34

Here's an interesting test I just ran:

I was running an html server on PC A, which has a DOS window that displays requests. I then tried to pull that up on Visor B using Blazer. I actually saw the "GET" requests appear on the DOS window on PC A.

So it seems that the requests are successfully making it to the HTTP servers (or POP servers or whatever) but the responses are somehow getting lost.

I wish I had a sniffer to take a closer look at this. Mine was crushed in the rubble of 2 WTC on 9/11. Oh well.

I'll keep testing, and report any more findings. We'll get to the bottom of it.

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Merrick, NY
Posts: 34

The previous test may have been flawed. I can't seem to repeat it. The log entries may have been from another PC rather than the Visor.

I'll keep plugging away.

Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Albuquerque
Posts: 24

I am making progress, I think. I bought a Linksys WAP11 at lunch and took it home. I hooked it up and I am getting the right dns entry now. The dns entry is working on the linksys but still not on the other two wap's. It takes longer to time out on blazer also. It says connecting at the top of the screen. still times out though.
The article you mentioned says the WAP11 does work. so I don't know at this point. I am going purchase the new blazer and see if that works any better. multimail is not working still.

Registered: Aug 2000
Location:
Posts: 48

Even with the new Blazer, it will not work. I have tried Blazer v1.1 and v2.0. Both gave me the same result. Not talking to the internet. For some strange reason, if I reset the Visor Prism, it works on my machine. I just do not know what makes the Xircom works sometime and not others times.

quote:

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Originally posted by dlopan
I am making progress, I think. I bought a Linksys WAP11 at lunch and took it home. I hooked it up and I am getting the right dns entry now. The dns entry is working on the linksys but still not on the other two wap's. It takes longer to time out on blazer also. It says connecting at the top of the screen. still times out though.
The article you mentioned says the WAP11 does work. so I don't know at this point. I am going purchase the new blazer and see if that works any better. multimail is not working still.

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Registered: Mar 2001
Location: Alabama, USA
Posts: 92

Similar Problems

I have a WAP11 as well and use it with my Xircom Springport. I think the problem may be in the WAP11. In my case, whenever my Xircom is unable to connect using Blazer I can pull the power on the WAP11, leave it out for about 5-10 secs and plug it back in. Then, magically the Xircom and WAP11 work fine! At least for about a week. Then it happens again.

I'm not sure what causes this problem, but try the above and let me know if it works for you. If it does, then it may confirm a theory that the problem is with the WAP11. At no point could I imagine the WAP11 being unresponsive to a certain device, being fixable by power on/off/on and it being a Xircom problem. In my interpretation it points to the WAP11. But then again, Xircom could be doing something non-standard (or not supported by the IEEE 802.11b standard).

Anyways, hope this is helpful. Let me know if it is (or isn't)