Connecting a Windows Laptop to the Wireless Network

Please note that procedures on this page also work with Windows Vista. Select the correct version of WiscVPN for your Windows OS version.

• Instructions on using the "wired-authenticated" network in Statistics MSC

The Statistics wireless network is part of the UWNet wireless service provided by DoIT. The wireless network in our area is identified with the SSID (Service Set IDentifier) of UWNet-Medical_Sci_Ctr, or UWNet-Service_Mem_Inst if you are in 1335, 133 or 140. If you have a laptop with a built-in wireless function, activate that function per instructions associated with your particular operating system (Win 2000 or Win XP). If your laptop does not have built-in wireless, attach an external wireless device through either the PC Card slot or through the USB port. Follow the instructions associated with installing the wireless hardware and software for the particular operating system on your laptop. Usually the network detection will be automatic. However, it may be necessary to manually set or change the SSID to UWNet-Medical_Sci_Ctr (or UWNet-Service_Mem_Inst) when using your notebook in the Statistics area. If the network does not start as expected, check that the SSID is correct.

Testing the Wireless Connection

To test the wireless connection, open a browser window (Firefox is the preferred browser, or use Internet Explorer). You should get a default web page with the title Welcome to UWNet with a left side-bar message Log in for Network Access. If you do not get this page, go back to the previous step and make sure your wireless hardware and software are fully installed, and that the wireless connection is activated and associated with the appropriate UWNet network. On some notebooks (Toshibas for example), there is a button that must be pushed to turn on the internal wireless interface.

Authenticating to the UWNet Wireless Network

To use the full network from a wireless connected laptop, you must log in to the network and be authenticated as a valid user. You can initially authenticate by entering your NetID and Password on the left side of the Welcome to UWNet screen. Once you get a Login Successful message, you will have access to the network. The preferred method for authentication is to install and use the WiscVPN client. This authentication method provides greater security for communications. You can find the download link for the WiscVPN client by scrolling down the Welcome to UWNet page. For additional details about the UWNet wireless setup and services, see the Wireless UWNet Info Page.

-- ColleenBrabender - 16 Aug 2012