Wiped clean computer, no router software, how to reconnect to router

[PhotoPhemale]

I had someone do a clean wipe on my computer. It's Windows XP, and in our house we have a netgear wireless router. There is nothing left on the computer as far as software or applications, except for Windows XP and Internet Explorer. Also, the wireless router is about 5 years old, and I do not have any disks or software because we moved and it was lost. I do have all the passwords, access codes, etc. Just no way to connect to the Internet Explorer.

 

[Saga Lout]

Hello and welcome to Tom's Hardware Forums.

Your router is a kind of computer itself and it won't have forgotten anything so the settings that were in there still are. You need Internet Explorer to access the router to find out the security key but only if you need wieless. If you're cabling to the router it will go online straight away.

Internet Explorer is a part of XP and won't have gone far - go Start>All Programmes and it's in the list somewhere.

 

[PhotoPhemale]

Thanks for the quick response and clearing things up. I wasn't the one who set up this old computer for wireless; it was my husband. He just told me there the one piece of very relevant information I had left out of this question to you:

The computer was originally bought 7-8 years ago by and for my husband, and was set up for dial up (and ONLY dial up). So when we got the Netgear wireless router for the house, this computer became the kids computer, and he bought a Netgear USB wireless internet adaptor for them, and that's how it has been connected for the last several years -- this little adaptor has been sitting tucked out of sight behind the computer all that time, and since I really had never used this computer, I had never noticed.

That then, explains the mystery as to why I couldn't get the computer to recognize the wireless router. Now I am downloading the installation software for the adaptor. And I think that will solve the problem.

Thanks again, and sorry I was lacking that very important piece of information.

 

[Saga Lout]

You're welcome. Missing out that bit will slow things down quite a bit.