Fix for Linksys WMP600N Wireless Card Installation Problems

[playXray]

I just upgraded my computer with a new mobo, CPU etc but no matter what I did I couldn't get my Linksys WMP600N Wireless PCI Card to install correctly in Windows, despite the fact that it worked fine with my PC's previous configuration. Both setups were running Windows 7 x64. After several hours I managed to find the solution, so I thought I'd recount it here in case any else gets this problem in the future.

Initially, Windows tried to install the card as a generic "Wireless PCI Network Adaptor" or something like that, and although it appeared to be installed ok, it wouldn't pick up any wireless networks. I then uninstalled these drivers and tried to install the official drivers from Linksys. The problem was, every time I uninstalled the old Windows drivers, Windows reinstalled them before giving me the chance to use different drivers. I had to then completely remove the Windows drivers from my system by doing the following:

1) Remove adapter from Device Manager.

2) Navigate to C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository and find the folders that start with "netr28" in the name.

3) Change the owner of these folders: Right click on folder -> Choose 'Properties' -> 'Security' -> 'Advanced' -> 'Owner' -> 'Edit' -> Choose your name -> Tick 'Replace owner on subcontainers and objects' and then click 'OK' until you get back to the first menu.

4) Open ?Security? again and Highlight ?Everyone? -> ?Edit? and tick ?Full control?. Click 'OK' a couple more times.

5) Delete the folders starting with "netr28" in the name.

3. Restart computer.

Once I'd done this, I tried to install the Linksys drivers (which I downloaded from here: http://homesupport.cisco.com/en-us/wireless/lbc/WMP600N). However, every time I tried to install them I got an 'Access is denied' error message and the drivers refused to install. This is because the drivers, once you've unzipped them, are for some reason encrypted. So, I got around this by navigating to the drivers folder, right-clicking and choosing 'Properties' -> 'Advanced'. In this menu, I unticked 'Encrypt contents to secure data' and clicked 'OK'.

Finally I got the drivers to install. However, this showed the wi-fi card as 'Disabled', and no matter what I did I couldn't get it to enable. Having spent hours scouring the web for a solution, I found an awful lot of other people with the same problems as me and yet no comprehensive solution to getting the wi-fi card to work properly. Lots of people just sent their cards back to Linksys for a refund as Linksys were unable to help. However, I'd had this card running under Windows 7 x64 without a single problem, and it seemed unlikely that the card had 'broken' when I installed it in my new motherboard, especially as these symptoms were so prolific around the web.

With nothing else left to try, I decided to swap the wi-fi card from one PCI slot to another, in case it was an IRQ conflict or something. To my amazement, the card installed immediately upon booting, and instantly found my (and my neighbour's) wireless networks! I entered the security info, and it connected, and since then I've not had so much as a blip in my connection. So, after all that hassle, it turned out that just moving to another PCI slot fixed the problem. In hindsight, perhaps I should have checked this sooner, but either way, it worked.

So there you go - if anyone out there has a problem installing their Linksys WMP600N wi-fi card, my story might save you a lot of hassle. Good luck!

[Ci7]

maybe bad PCI port?

[playXray]

Yes that thought crossed my mind, but the symptoms I had seem to be so prolific that it seems unlikely that everyone else has a bad PCI port too - I also used my Creative X-Fi card in that slot and it worked fine so I guess it's probably not the slot itself.

[+BudMan MVC]

"This is because the drivers, once you've unzipped them, are for some reason encrypted. So, I got around this by navigating to the drivers folder, right-clicking and choosing 'Properties' -> 'Advanced'. In this menu, I unticked 'Encrypt contents to secure data' and clicked 'OK'."

What?? Are you saying this is something in the zip? Because that makes no sense, what makes sense is you unzipped them into a folder / drive that you had marked to use EFS.

I downloaded this http://homedownloads.cisco.com/downloads/driver/WMP600N_Win7_3_1_0_2_0.zip drive they unzip just fine no EFS encrypted anything.

[playXray]

What?? Are you saying this is something in the zip? Because that makes no sense, what makes sense is you unzipped them into a folder / drive that you had marked to use EFS.

I unzipped them to my desktop - I unzipped about five or six other downloads to the desktop on the same day and none of those were encypted.

I'm clearly not the only one either:

http://www.techsupportforum.com/forums/f135/issue-with-linksys-wmp600n-560166.html#post3243252

http://homecommunity.cisco.com/t5/Wireless-Adapters/Access-Denied-installing-windows-7-drivers-WMP600N/m-p/294232#M24146

I don't know why, but the drivers were definitely encrypted and removing this encryption is the only way I could get them to install.

[+BudMan MVC]

People doing the same freaking thing?? Its not possible for the files to be encrypted to some other key, if they were you would not have ACCESS to even decrypt them.. Have to have a key for that.. So you must of unzipped them into an EFS that would of used your machines keys.. Or you wouldn't have been able to decrypt them, etc.

[playXray]

I really don't understand why they were encrypted, but either way it might still be useful info to other people who have this problem. Still seems very strange though.

[+BudMan MVC]

Well Slap my Ass and Call me Sally!

Out of habit I used my 7zip to extract -- using the built in tools you are 100% correct the files come out encrypted.. But the folder they extract too is not, only these subfolders and files inside.

Now what is also weird is that stupid _macosx folder.. So this was created on a apple somewhere, or using some form of apple zip tool, etc.

Going to look into this deeper for sure!! And check more files off the linksys site.

I have to leave for work, but not you got me really curious to WTF would cause this?? Its clearly encrypted to my efs cert