Member Avatar for ExPlosioN

Just installed fresh copy of windows xp on my friends dell and everything works fine except when i try to connect to the internet. XP doesnt detect the dsl modem.. it only setups dial up. During install options it also prompts me to type in area code etc., never happened to me before and ive installed xp on 5 of my friends pc's. Also installed his wireless adapter and it doesnt detect the router. Checked in device manager and nothing shows.. idk what else to do really never had this problem before any help?

thanks much appreciated

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Dani AI

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Short, practical diagnostics to narrow whether this is a hardware/firmware issue, a missing OS component, or a driver/identification problem — building on points from , and .

At the firmware/hardware level, confirm the onboard NIC or wireless radio is enabled in the BIOS/firmware (often under Integrated Peripherals or Onboard Devices). Laptop models (see ’s ThinkPad mention) frequently have a physical radio switch or a Function‑key toggle; a hardware kill switch will keep the adapter invisible to the OS.

At the Windows level, look beyond the visible Network Connections. In Device Manager enable View → Show hidden devices and inspect Unknown/Other entries; capture the Hardware Ids (Properties → Details) for any unidentified controllers to identify the vendor/device. Check Services (services.msc) to ensure core pieces are running — Plug and Play, Remote Procedure Call (RPC), DHCP Client, Network Connections (Netman) and Wireless Zero Configuration — since stopped/disabled services can remove network bindings and UI elements.

For isolation: boot a lightweight Linux live CD/USB or attach a known‑good USB‑Ethernet adapter to see whether the machine detects networking outside Windows. Run ipconfig /all — a 169.254.x.x address indicates APIPA/DHCP failure (adapter present but no DHCP lease); absence of any adapter listing points to firmware/hardware invisibility. When a Hardware Id is available but no driver exists, use that ID to locate the correct network or chipset package. Caution: changing BIOS or service settings can affect other devices — record original settings before altering them.

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Member Avatar for risky.riot

Yeah, I'm having a similar problem... A friend of mine had me reformat his IBM Thinkpad using a XP SP2 CD, but it doesn't detect any internet connections... It detects neither the hardwire ethernet cable that is plugged into the network card and the router we have, nor does it detect any wireless connections, despite being less than 2 feet away from the router... Needless to say, I am baffled... I've even reformatted the bastard 3 times because I thought that maybe something went wrong... but... it's just kept giving me the same outcome... I don't know what to do... He is using a IBM thinkpad with 1.5 GHz processor and a gig of RAM...
But... what I mean, regarding my problem, is that when I go into the Network Connections thing, there is NOTHING showing! No wired LAN connection or Wireless connections/network cards... I don't get it! What do I do???

Member Avatar for Temmu

whoa!

xp doesn't detect dsl modems. it does not need to.

assuming you both have plugged in the dsl filters between the wall and each and every phone, and the the dsl "modem" has the dsl light on and solid:

all you have to do is plug the ethernet (not the usb cable)(do not use the usb cable at all) into the network (ethernet) port on the back of your pc and voila', instant networking.

you may have to go to network properties, tcp/ip and select

(o) obtain ip address automatically
(o) obtain dns server address automatically

there ya go!

Member Avatar for vhex

Also if this is a reinstall of the OS and your NIC (Network Interface Card) is onboard you may need to download the NIC drivers and install.

Member Avatar for bobbyraw

you migh want to check device manager if u have a group that said other all those items will need theire respective drivers. i bet thats where your nic card is. id the nic there then get another computer and get the drivers from the ibm site.

Member Avatar for jbennet

On the dell the NIC is usually a wierd intel model that XP doesnt support out of the box. Get the driver from dell support and install it

This was the case on my d5150

Member Avatar for Temmu

dell also glues the "broadcom" brand nic to their motherboards, also ~not~ supported by xp; likewise must dld those from dhell.

Member Avatar for Dr Windows (XP)

first of all, have you tried to install those modem drivers?

Member Avatar for Temmu

with all due respect, a dsl "modem" is an external device that if used with an ethernet cable to the PC's internal network card does not require any driver - it is not a device that the operating system sees or cares about.

using the usb cable, of course, then requires the hardware detect wizard to kick off & that requires drivers. but i would avoid that like the plague... why involve the usb system with your networking?

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