MacBook does not like WEP on my Actiontec Router

Can you confirm that you are not using MAC address access control.

One of the problems with WEP is that the actual standard relies on a 10 character HEX key for 40bit WEP and a 26 character HEX key for 128bit WEP.

In order to make things easier for people, vendors use certain algorithms to convert simple alphanumeric passwords (or passphrases) into HEX keys, thus enabling people to use simple memorable WEP password rather than lengthy HEX keys.

The problem is that different vendors use different algorithms to generate the HEX key and therefore a ASCII password on an AEBS will be hashed differently on a Netgear client and vice versa.

One thing is a 13 character 128 bit WEP password will be hashed by all vendors in the same way (if you use 40bit WEP then a 5 character password is required).

Though sometimes not even that works and the HEX key must be used regardless.

AirPort: Joining an encrypted wireless network
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106424

Choosing a password for networks that use Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP)
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=108058

iFelix

Try prefixing the password with a dollar sign ($).

I had the same problem using 2 different wireless routers. I solved the problem by stepping up to WPA. It's pain for existing wireless clients, but you're essentially improving your security, so it's not a bad deal.

The confusion I ran into is that when the MB is asking for the WEP key, if you click the pull down next to "WEP", you'll see two or three other WEP choices. This wasn't obvious to me. I had to choose the "WEP HEX" choice (and enter the key) for my work network. It worked great after that.

And a HUGE thank you to Apple for having the "Show Passwod" option. I noticed that this feature will be in Windows Vista, but I can't count the number of times in XP where I had problems because I typed the key in incorrectly. 🙂

Are there any good instructions online that talk about how to setup WPA with the Actiontec? I didn't see much in the actiontec manual.

I say that because, in the router settings for the actiontec WPA setup, there was no place for a 'username' but when my Macbook wanted to connect to the actiontec, a 'username' field was there to be filled in.

Like the others, my Macbook connects to my Actiontec GT704-WG, with WEP off, I can surf the internet. With WEP on, I can't surf the internet, but can connect to the actiontec.

I have the intel C2D MBP and could not connect to Verison DSL Actiontec with WEP. I was able to connect using MAC authentication. Also, instead of MAC authentication, WPA works. Just follow the instructions in the manual and select PSK for WPA Personal.

You can access the actiontec using http://192.168.1.1

Macbook Pro Mac OS X (10.4.8) G5, Mac Mini, MBP

WEP isn't a secure solution any longer and if you can use WPA or WPA2, you should. It doesn't really matter what password you use in WEP, it's not going to be entirely secure anyway. The MacBook supports WEP, WPA, and WPA2 encryption methods without a hitch.

I had this same problem, my actiontec GT-701wg modem (Qwest ISP) worked fine using 64 bit WEP with 2 iBook G4's (airport extreme), an iBook G3 (regular airport card), and an HP PC with a PCMCIA wireless card. I tried many different things to get my new MBP C2D to connect wireless, but nothing worked. I always got the message "there was an error connecting to the wireless network". I thought the airport extreme in my new MacBook was faulty, but I took it to an Apple Store and it worked just fine there, connected immediately to an Airport base station using WEP.

I resorted to upgrading the firmware in the actiontec modem. Qwest has a internet site that posts 2 files for the firmware upgrade, the standard upgrade and a recovery firmware image. If you try this, I strongly recommend you download both files - because once you break the modem there is no way to reconnect to the internet and download the other file. Note: you must use a PC to perform the firmware upgrade (actiontec lives in the dark ages).

I tried the firmware upgrade first, and ended up with a modem that did not work. After "upgrade", the modem kept trying to boot up, but it never found what it was looking for, so it recycled to boot up in an endless loop. I then tried the firmware restore, and it worked! I ended up with a newer firmware version in my modem than I started with, and my MBP connected immediately. The only difference is that the new firmware uses 128 bit WEP instead of 64 bit. I had to go back and update the WEP key in all the other computers, but it now works with all computers, and has a much nicer user interface to program the wireless settings. I would recommend this fix to anyone who has this problem, but strongly recommend download of both firmware files before attempting the upgrade.

cube, iBook G3&G4,MBPc2d Mac OS X (10.4.8)