How many network cards can XP support?

[rusty2]

Hello,
How many different wireless network cards or adapters can XP support?

 

[eibgrad]

I don't know of a specific limit, but if any limit does exist, it's not anything you're likely to reach soon. You'll exhaust your PCI/PCIe and USB ports long before that happens.

 

[rusty2]

Hi eibgrad;

I errored when I sent that in. I was talking about a wireless limit. I'm running XP Pro and some Linux OSs on the HD and decided that I'd add a second wireless connection. (I assume that there are reasonable limits re: nr. of PCI/USB ports, etc.) This is an old ASUS A7N8X-X MB with AGP8 running several OSs including XP and Linux's.

All OSs work fine with the MB wired port and one wireless (a Belkin PCI wireless card running to a Linksys WRT54GS with DD-wrt firmware as an AP.)

But when attempting to setup either a second wireless card or a USB card to a Linksys WRT160N (also with DD-WRT firmware), either with or without security, and with both set to G, I cannot connect. In fact, in WINXP, I can see the new routers signal, and I can get the signal through, and I can read the firmware, but after that I lose connection to the 1st primary wireless connection and am left with only the wired connection.

I'm running on Satellite with Starband and have a wired router out of the modem.

So, with some experience, I cannot even connect without and security running to the 2nd wireless router. Strange, but I'm certain that there is a good reason. I merely have find it.

 

[Brian_tii]

What does your routing table look like?

 

[eibgrad]

Sounds like two wireless routers possibly stomping on each other’s wireless signal.

Are both routers using different channels and w/ sufficient separation (channels 1, 6, and 11 provide the greatest separation).

 

[rusty2]

Hi;

Yes, I thought of both using a same or close signal. I have a little app which displays the position (channel nr.) and amplitude of each essid being broadcasted. The first router uses channel 1 and the new router uses channel 11. I'm wondering if the DD-WRT firmware is not completely kosher yet with the 160N. I think that I'll try to get another router and use IT for a test to see if I can determine anymore.

As I said, we run on Starband and out of the Starband Modem is a new Netgear wired router the output of which goes to a Linksys "intelligent" switch. All of the machines are CAT5'd to this switch. For wireless, the signal goes to a DD-WRTd WRT54GS, which also plugs into the switch...so all I have to do to go from wired to wireless, in any OS is to switch to the appropriate wireless device on each machine.

That is when I tried to install the new router - the same way. I gave it an IP one less than the Linksys WRT54GS router, and I can interrogate either the wired router's or the two wireless router's firmware with no problem. But I cannot connect wirelessly to the second wireless which is this Linksys ....160N. So, the wireless signals are not running into each other...everything uses the same gateway, X.X.1.1

I'd be the last to say that this is not operator error...but I have to use another wireless router to really define what is at fault.