Intel PRO/Wireless 2100 "This device cannot start" - Code 10

[Donnis]

Hello everybody,

I'm trying to solve a problem with the wireless device of my Acer Travelmate 291i: I have installed the drivers from the Acer's site, but in the properties of the device (in device manager) it says "This device cannot start" and "Error code 10"! I've also tried to install the drivers from the Intel website but with the same result! If I uninstall the drivers, I see that in the device manager, under "other devices" is listed a "Network controler" which is in error (the yellow question-sign). I don't know what to do anymore... Can anybody help me?

Thanks in advance.

 

[G0AOZ]

Is the device actually powered on? There is usually either a little slide switch around the edges of the laptop, or perhaps a hotkey combination, <Fn> key plus one of the function keys. The relevant key usually has something like an upturned triangle or an antenna on it.

Are you sure you're using the correct drivers?

If neither of the above, then it suggests that the device may be faulty...

ROGER - G0AOZ.

 

[Donnis]

The wireless switch on the side is turned on. It even gives a text message on the monitor when I turn it on or off ("Wireless device turned on/off". There is no hotkey combination on the keyboard to turn it on or off... And I'm pretty sure I use the correct drivers because the laptop specifications are written on the (still available) banner sticked near the keyboard.
Is there any diagnostic software where I can obtain a report to see that the device is faulty?

 

[G0AOZ]

Can you gives us a bit of the history surrounding this device?
Have you ever had the device working in the past?
Did something happen, after which it stopped working?
Perhaps it has never worked since the computer was new?
The fact that you can switch it on and off suggests that it's physically installed correctly, and maybe lacks the correct driver.

ROGER - G0AOZ.

 

[Donnis]

You're wright, I will give some additional informations: the device has worked in the past very good. There was a problem few months ago, my laptop didn't start anymore and I sent it to a repair center. After a few days, they gave me the laptop back, saying that probably the motherboard is defective and the Acer is dead. I didn't want to give up and I search on the net for informations, until I found an advice on a forum, describing how to make a bios reset (put some jumpers in contact) and... it started again! I've re-formated the hard disk and fresh installed the OS from the back-up CDs I've received together with the laptop. The only thing I wasn't able to "repair" was and is the wireless device. I have already thought that somebody at the repair center forgot to plug some cable or something similar, but I think in that case I wouldn't have an unknown network controler listed in the device manager, would I? What is your opinion know, knowing the history of my device?

Thanks in advance!

 

[G0AOZ]

That's good you managed to get it going again after the "repair Centre" pronounced it dead!

I would doubt there's a cable incorrectly or not plugged in which is causing the problem. As far as I'm aware many of the wireless devices are separate cards which plug into a dedicated multi-connector slot inside the laptop case. Might be worth checking that it is indeed plugged in ok and that cables are in place, but I doubt that's the issue here. You could try uninstalling the wireless driver, remove the card completely, switch the PC on and let it boot up without wireless. Switch off, then reinsert the card, and load the driver.

I'll assume you initially used the wireless driver on the back-up CDs, and that didn't work. So you then went and got drivers from the Acer website. Is that right?

Did the initial install of the wireless driver from the backup CDs go through ok, or did it throw up any error messages during the install?

Did you try uninstalling this original driver before installing the next driver from the Acer website? If not, then I suggest you try uninstalling ALL wireless drivers, reboot PC, then install the Acer website driver again.

Ditto the Intel driver...

Are you absolutely sure the Intel driver is the correct one for your wirless card? If you can get inside to the wireless card, maybe the chipset will enable you to verify it's the correct one.

Difficult to know now, but I wonder what caused the laptop to stop working in the first place. Did the wireless device take a hit of static? Did the repair centre give it a belt when they were messing with it?

ROGER - G0AOZ.

 

[Donnis]

... you're right again, the wireless device never worked with the original driver from back-up cd... I struggled to find a driver on the internet and I finally found something it worked... and it wasn't the one from Acer website... but now I cannot make it work even with the working driver... Anyway it appears to be pretty sensitive to the right driver! I have uninstalled the previous wireless driver before installing the new one, but no success... I heard it's better to erase any track of the old driver (something about registry informations about the old driver) but I don't know if it's true and how to do it.
It's pretty difficult to open the laptop to get to the wireless card, I've never made it, there are too many clips that could be broken during this operation... but if there is no other possibility, I will try to do it. I don't know what they have done at the repair centre,they just told me about the mother board, but no details. So you are thinking it should be about the driver not matching the hardware... Are there some generic drivers (drivers with basic, minimal configuration) that should work with many types of wireless cards, with less functionality? At least I could be sure if the hardware is ok...

 

[G0AOZ]

I'm not aware of generic drivers that work with wireless cards. I'd say you have to use the correct one, or nothing. But others may disagree with that... With the wireless devices I've come across. I've usually had success only when using the exact driver.

Just a thought... When you reset the BIOS with the jumper, were there any settings in CMOS relating to the wireless device? Would it be worth trying a "reset to default values" in CMOS? But maybe you've done that already.

ROGER - G0AOZ.

 

[Donnis]

Unfortunatelly there is no setting in CMOS related to the wireless...I've already checked that. But maybe I should try to reset the settings to default anyway?
Considering what you say about the drivers, I think the only thing I can do is to download all driver-sets for all similar Intel PRO Wireless devices and to test them one by one... Is it right?

 

[Zen216]

I have had a few network cards go bad after a electrical spike, or overheating issue,,, and then it appeared exactly yhe asme,, (unable to start) I tried several times, since it appeared to be good,, just a driver issue..
(Since these are work boxes and I have tons of them) I pulled the HD and put in another case that had a known good network card and it booted right up and the network adaptor worked...
long story short,, when you first had issues and sent it off for repair, you might have had a thermal issue (fan die maybe?) and it overheated,, or the repair center may have messed it up....

If you can get another card that is the same and try swapping them,,, (I believe most wireless nics are either under the keyboard or under a "flap" on the bottom of the notebook)
Lastly you may have to get a new wireless card,, if you cannot replace the internal one, you can always get a usb one...