[ltp] Cisco firmware again

[Greg Meyer]

On Friday 30 January 2004 01:35 pm, Joel Ebel wrote:
> I've got a problem with my Cisco wireless card.  It works ok in Linux
> using firmware 5.00.03, and it works great in Windows XP using newer
> firmwares, but as many of you know, the newer firmwares don't work with
> Linux.  My problem is that the older firmwares aren't working well in
> Windows.  I've even tried installing older drivers to match the 5.00.03
> firmware in Windows, but still, every few hours, my wireless will stop
> working, and if I don't shutdown on my own very quickly, I will actually
> get a blue screen.  I realize this is an issue with Windows, and a
> Windows driver, and this is a Linux list, but only Linux users would
> respect the need to use the older firmwares.  Anyone else would just say
> "Upgrade your firmware."  And don't tell me to stop using Windows.  I'd
> like to.  I respect Linux just as much as the rest of you, but I still
> have reasons I must use Windows on occasion.
>
> My question is just if anyone else has experience this, and what you did
> about it?  Have other people not had problems using 5.00.03 in Windows
> XP?  It seems like a pretty serious problem, so I'm surprised Cisco

I am using the 5.00.03 firmware in XP with the driver that comes with the v1.1 
installer, which I think is driver version 3.5.13, I cannot doublecheck 
because I am not in XP now, but I know for sure the installer version was 
1.1.

This driver works fine with the 5.00.03 firmware on my home network which does 
not have WEP turned on (yes I know, but I do use MAC authentication at 
least).  I am having a little trouble with the AP at my office that has WEP 
on, but I have spent zero time trying to get it to work since I rarely use XP 
at work and even less often have a need to be wireless.

At home however, when I am in Windows, I never have had a problem dropping the 
network and locking up, although I did with the newer one whose installer is 
tagged v1.2.  HTH

As far as writing firmware, you can use the ACU utility in Windows to 
reinstall the 5.00.03 easily enough.  I don't recommend trying to do it from 
within the Linux version of the ACU.  It just seems too shaky to me.  I have 
only had to do this once when the Windows driver automatically upgraded the 
firmware before I knew how to turn this feature off.
-- 
/g