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Wireless Laptop, what is ascii/hexadecimal

Discussion in 'Networking (Hardware & Software)' started by rjc1, 2007/05/24.

  1. 2007/05/24
    rjc1

    rjc1 Inactive Thread Starter

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    Hi,
    I have a laptop, windows xp....our office went to this WPA2 AES well my lep isn't set up for the 2....well today the guy changed it sadi I should be able to hook up fine and gave me the code, it's WEP, whcih my computer has and will locate the signal then I put the code in and this is what comes up:

    "The network password needs to be 40 bits or 104 bits depending on our network configuration.
    This can be entered as 5 or 13 ascii characters or 10 or 26 hexadecimal characters "

    What is this and how do I do it??? Help please...I'm sooo frustrated!

    Thanks, RHonda
     
    rjc1,
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  2. 2007/05/25
    Hugh Jarss

    Hugh Jarss Inactive

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    Hi Rhonda

    it's asking for a password and giving you two separate ways that you can enter it

    It will probably ask you "do you want to enter the password in ascii or in hexadecimal" - to keep things simple, choose ascii.

    ascii : ascii characters are the letters, numbers, spaces, punctuation that you type in; each letter or number or space constitutes an ascii character.

    so when it asks for 5 ascii characters, it's expecting you to type 5 keys.
    When you get to entering the password, you will either need to type 5 keys or 13 keys.

    How do you tell which to do? Hopefully, when you get to the "enter password" screen, there will be some clue :eek: most probably it will tell you 40 bits, or 104 bits.

    If it says 40 bits, use 5 keystrokes; if it says 104 bits, use 13 keys.

    [SIZE= "1"]inside your computer the data is stored in bytes; one byte can contain one ascii character. As 8 bits make up a byte, 5 bytes (ie 5 keystrokes) gives you 40 bits. 13 keystrokes works out at 104 bits.[/SIZE]

    ==

    hexadecimal : if you are setting the password yourself you won't need to bother about this. If you are entering a password which someone else has aleady set then you might have to.

    Their network password is basically a collection of bits. You can enter these bits 8 at a time by typing in ascii characters - but doing this won't allow to choose all the possible combinations of 8 bits, only the ones which correspond to "normal" typing (normal typing = ascii characters).

    If you choose to enter in hexadecimal, you only use the number keys 0 to 9 and letter keys A to F (inclusive); each hex character thus entered is worth 4 bits towards the password, so you have to type twice as many keys; but by doing it this way you can achieve all possible combinations of password bits.

    If you want to keep it simple, stick to ascii when you get the choice ;)

    ==

    It might be considered a security bonus to use a password which cannot be entered by "normal" typing

    best wishes, HJ
     
    Last edited: 2007/05/25

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  4. 2007/05/25
    rjc1

    rjc1 Inactive Thread Starter

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    It's not giving me a choice it just says it needs to be put in one way or another....I didn't get to choose the password (series of numbers and letters), the office sset it up and just handed me the code, I was thinking there is 10 all together...it's at work. I check when I get there. I guess my question is: Is there someplace to go to set how I put it in ascii or hexadecimal and if so how?

    Here what happens....my wireless will locate the router, then I hit connect ( of course it's a sercured) so then it ask for the code....I put it in and then the box comes up that I have in my original post saying all the stuff about acsii or hex....hit ok....and nothing. So it sounds like I need to change it somewhere I just don't know how to.

    I can go in and change the WPA...I did that, they went from WPA (which worked fine with mine....to WPA2...bought the card and when I did that it messed others ones up (haven't figured that one out yet) so the guy came in changed it to a less crypt....to Open and WEP...gave me the code and said there ya go...now I have this...the ascii or hex.

    Rhonda
     
    rjc1,
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  5. 2007/05/25
    Hugh Jarss

    Hugh Jarss Inactive

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    from the way you describe it, 10 characters (letters and numbers altogether) would need to go in with it set to entering in hex

    without seeing the screen where the password gets requested it's hard to know, but I would have guessed that the default would be to enter in ascii, ie that you have to tell it that you want to enter in hex

    that might be the problem - or they might simply have given you the wrong code :eek:
    perhaps the easiest way to solve this would be to go back to this guy and say "Oi this code you gave me doesn't work "

    sorry not to be more helpful

    best wishes, HJ
     
  6. 2007/05/25
    Hugh Jarss

    Hugh Jarss Inactive

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    if it's anything like this then it looks like it susses that it's hex just from the length of what you enter

    noted: they use uppercase for the letters

    BW, HJ
     
    Last edited: 2007/05/25
  7. 2007/05/25
    rjc1

    rjc1 Inactive Thread Starter

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    I did actually try the upper case...still didn't work. I don't think the guy its all that good...he messed my laptop all up which I ended up having to do a restore on it...then he is the one who told me to do a card for the WPA2...which in turn messed the other laptops up, they wouldn't stay connected. He had to reset the Linksys, then set it at a lower crypt, the WEP. I will call him and see what he says. I'll do and if I don't get nothing I plan on brining it home this weekend, so I can write down maybe set be step what it is doing then maybe that will help to give me some help.

    Thanks, Rhonda
     
    rjc1,
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  8. 2007/05/25
    rjc1

    rjc1 Inactive Thread Starter

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    Got it working thought I would post what I know of that he did.....

    He said it needed to be on a "Shared" network not "Open" like it was....it was in fact 10 letters/numbers, but they were all small case letters. Pretty much it.

    But thanks for trying to help, always like this board for that!! :)

    Rhonda
     
    rjc1,
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  9. 2007/05/25
    Hugh Jarss

    Hugh Jarss Inactive

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    :rolleyes: (you'd tried both anyway...)

    Rhonda - thanks for posting back with the answer :) nice one!

    best wishes, HJ
     
  10. 2007/05/26
    visionof

    visionof Inactive

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    there are two settings in the router .
    I do not know which is which
    If you need to generate a code the easy way would be if you had access to a router with the encryption format
    There should be a generator for codes in the router
    You can try both ways and save the info
    Some cards have a code generator ( makes it easier to guess codes on the fly i guess - address , phone number , wife's name , name of pet...._)
    SMC products have a generator in at least some of their wireless network cards .
    There must be a generator online as it is a standard accepted format

    maybe this : http://www.kurtm.net/wpa-pskgen/



    my feelings are for a home network if someone can break into your wep 64 bit network this is most likely the least of your problems
     
  11. 2007/05/26
    rjc1

    rjc1 Inactive Thread Starter

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    my feelings are for a home network if someone can break into your wep 64 bit network this is most likely the least of your problems[/QUOTE]


    HI,
    It is working now, the guy came and fixed it, it needed to be on Shared not Open.....but it's not for a home network, it's a work in a doctors office, it's my personal laptop, but still in a doctors office...

    Thanks!
     
  12. 2007/05/26
    TonyT

    TonyT SuperGeek Staff

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    HI,
    It is working now, the guy came and fixed it, it needed to be on Shared not Open.....but it's not for a home network, it's a work in a doctors office, it's my personal laptop, but still in a doctors office...

    Thanks![/QUOTE]
    If a doctors office, and the network has patient files or patient info on ANY computer then you are bound by HIPPA laws, which are quite strict now. WEP enctyption is acceptable, but I'd suggest upgrading all the wlan cards in all computers on that wlan to cards that can use WPA2 encryption.

    WEP is very insecure. As a test, I cracked my own 64 bit wep wlan today using free utilities. It took 1 and a half minutes total time to break the encryption using 44,000 captured packets. The wep key is a 10 character hex key. WPA is easily cracked too now, but more time consuming.
     
  13. 2007/05/28
    TonyT

    TonyT SuperGeek Staff

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    If a doctors office, and the network has patient files or patient info on ANY computer then you are bound by HIPPA laws, which are quite strict now. WEP enctyption is acceptable, but I'd suggest upgrading all the wlan cards in all computers on that wlan to cards that can use WPA2 encryption.

    WEP is very insecure. As a test, I cracked my own 64 bit wep wlan today using free utilities. It took 1 and a half minutes total time to break the encryption using 44,000 captured packets. The wep key is a 10 character hex key. WPA is easily cracked too now, but more time consuming.
     
  14. 2007/05/28
    rjc1

    rjc1 Inactive Thread Starter

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    Mine doesn't contain files of patients....there's does but I don't know how there is set up, the guy told them they were secure is all I know and he fixed mine and said mine was set up WEP. I do know when I tried the WPA2 card on mine it shut there laptops down....weird....well it wouldn't let them on the internet, it messed that part up on theres. So the guy took the encryption down a notch. But said they were secure...
    Besides it's a chiroprators office, don't know why they would want to break intot he system...don't really have social's any more, they changed allot of that on the insurance stuff....anyway it's all working now...

    Thanks, RHonda
     
  15. 2007/05/29
    visionof

    visionof Inactive

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  16. 2007/05/29
    rjc1

    rjc1 Inactive Thread Starter

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    I have no control on how they set it up, that is up to them...he just let's us use our personal laptops there too, how he sets it up is his thing...he wouldn't listen to me anyhow if I told him, LOL!! But thanks for the info.
    Rhonda
     

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