Identifying wireless and network status icons

Icon

Name

Description

 

 

 

 

Wireless (connected)

Indicates that one or more wireless devices are on.

 

 

 

 

Network Connection icon

Indicates that the wired network is connected and active. If both

 

status (connected)

wired and wireless connections are active, the operating system

 

 

uses the wired connection because it is faster.

 

 

 

 

Network Connection icon

Indicates that wired and wireless networks are not connected.

 

status (disconnected)

 

 

 

 

Creating a wireless connection

Your computer is equipped with a wireless local area network (WLAN) device.

Turning wireless devices on and off

Using the wireless button

Use the wireless button to turn both the wireless network controller and the Bluetooth controller off or on simultaneously. They can be controlled individually through Control Center or Setup Utility.

NOTE: Refer to Getting to know your computer on page 3 for information on identifying the location of the wireless button on your computer.

Using the operating system controls

To enable or disable a wireless and/or wired network device:

1.Right-click the Network Connection icon in the notification area, at the far right of the taskbar.

2.To enable or disable one of the following devices, select or clear one of the following options:

●Enable Networking (all network devices)

●Enable Wireless

Using a WLAN

A wireless connection connects the computer to Wi-Fi networks, or WLANs. A WLAN is composed of other computers and accessories that are linked by a wireless router or a wireless access point.

16 Chapter 3 Networking