Setting up Virgin wireless broadband

livalicious

Hi there,

We recently moved house, and after 3 weeks finally received an activation date to set up the broadband and phone line we have with Virgin. Im having a bit of trouble setting up the wireless router and connecting it to my computer. The wireless router has been plugged in and seems to be working fine, but the USB adapter I have is not connecting. Sorry if this dont make sense, im not very computer savvy as you can tell. Basically at our previous home, we used BT Wireless, so the USB Wireless adapter we have is obviously a BT one. So really my question is, could I use the BT adapter to connect to the Virgin Wireless router, or do I have to get a different one.

The installation guide says to delete the previous wireless installation from BT, which I did, and then under Network Places, locate Add a new wireless device. But I cant seem to find the Virgin Broadband wireless router. I basically have no idea what im doing wrong, or if its literally just a case of getting another USB adapter. Virgin are no help, I get put through to the wrong departments, and they never seem to be open, when I do get through to the technical team.

Any help or advice would be appreciated! Thanks!

ps. I have resorted to plugging in the ethernet cable from the computer to the modem to access the internet, which worked fine.

Lil306

I see no reason why it shouldn't work, the adapter is merely a USB Dongle (essentially a wireless USB Pen) that acts as a connection interface between your PC and the router....

Now, first, is the wireless on the Virgin router actually switched on?
Is there a light lit up for the wireless, or some form of number lit up that corresponds to the wireless?

Have you installed the drivers for the USB adapter?

If you have installed the drivers for the USB Adapter, and the wireless is on. Please give us the model number of your laptop and also the router.

aliEnRIK

I suspect the USB drivers havnt been installed

livalicious

It may be that I have accidentally uninstalled the USB wireless (drive?) when I uninstalled the BT Home hub installation. But then I did a system restore to undo that. And ever since then the Adapter has not flashed (it did the first time I plugged it into the computer and a message came up saying Found New Hardware).

If this is the reason, what can I do to fix it as I cant find the Installation CD it came with (or at least I think it did)

The model number on the wireless router reads : DSL-2640R Broadband Wireless G ADSL 2+ Router. I have a desktop computer, and Im not sure where the model number would be

Lil306

Is that the USB thing you have, if so, go this page, and choose the appropriate download link...
http://www.voyager.bt.com/wireless_devices/voyager_1055/downloads.htm#

livalicious

I suspect I messed up things somehow when I deleted the wireless utility installation and then system restored. Because BT Voyage Wireless utility is still listed under Hardware, but when I click on it, it comes up with an error message, even when I tried to uninstall or delete it. Ive also tried opening the zip files from the link above, but when I try to open it, it comes up with more error messages!

Please help, i spent hours scratching my head trying to sort this out, and top of that my PC is slower than ever as well! Grrr!

danthemoneysavingman

the virgin BB should've come with a CD, stick this in, may resolve your problems. Follow the instructions TO THE LETTER!

livalicious

It didnt come with a CD, nor was it listed as items included in the box. The instructions just say to delete previous broadband installation, set up router, plug in USB wireless adapter, and then to Add new wireless device under Network places, then connect to internet. Thats it. I think the main problem is installing the driver for the BT USB which i cant seem to do.

danthemoneysavingman

So, your computer uses a USB dongle to become wireless. Your previous statement suggests Virgin have provided you with a new dongle, so why are you trying to reinstall drivers for the BT device? or indeed still trying to use the BT device? I would've thought there was no difference between the 2 devices if they are what I think they are (essentially the same).

Forgive the cliche but "have you tried turning it off and on again"? Insert the dongle AFTER this, may have some luck.

The link thru to the dongle driver : select your operating system from the first drop-down, and click go. SHould deliver what you're after.

sorry for rambling...

Lil306

Go to start - run - type devmgmt.msc and press enter
Expand the network adapters and see if there is an option for BT Adapter
If there is right click - uninstall and restart

You should then be left in a state where you can plug in and reinstall drivers.
What model BT Adapter do you have, I don't know if the one in above link is yours I just guessed

livalicious

Sorry if im not making any sense, I will try again. Had BT Wireless before, used BT Wireless USB. Moved home, now with Virgin Broadband. Virgin sent Wireless router/modem but no Wireless adapter. So i tried to use BT Wireless USB i had before. However, I deleted the BT Voyage Wireless utility by mistake and tried to system restore to before that point. And ever since then the BT Wireless USB has not been connecting, so I cant pick up the broadband wirelessly, i have to use the Ethernet.

Meanwhile, ive been trying to reinstall the BT Voyage driver, but having problems firstly deleting previous installation which wont delete for some reason, and trying to reinstall it is not working either. Maybe im not unzipping the files properly. When it says Unzip files to... where should I save it to?