Wireless network drops randomly

Recently, I moved my desktop computer upstairs, and since I could not bring the wireless router any higher, I had to switch to a USB adapter instead of a cable. The connection is fine, excellent signal quality, fast speed and all that; however, the connection drops every now and then ( a period of 1-3 days). No warning messages, windows still says it is connected, but there is no internet.

Bringing back the connection is easy: right click, then repair. Works every time. But what if this happens during a big file download?
I do not think this is a problem with the router, as all the laptops connected to it are fine. Static DNS didn't solve the problem. No interference so far as I know: phones are in a different frequency, no metal close to the adapter, etc.
Looking at it, it might be a hardware issue, since if it was an IP issue, then the problem would have been there with the cable as well (which it wasn't).

Any ideas?

Specs:
Belkin F5D8053 N Wireless USB Adapter; Driver Date: 8/24/2007
Linksys Wireless-N Broadband Router WRT160N; Firmware Version: v1.02.4-CA
Windows XP Professional SP2

 

First thing is to update WiFi drivers- these are over 2 years old.
I don't know about your hardware version number so you gotta check it yourself

http://en-us-support.belkin.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/464

EDIT: OK, there is only one hardware version with driver matching your driver's release date- v1.
That means Belkin has not updated drivers and all they have is 1.00.04.
There is good news though- from the inf file you can see that this Belkin is based on Ralink RT2870.
So you can download driver directly from Ralink and it should be 1.4.9.0 (for XP)
This will not install automatically as vendor ids won't match but you can install it manually.
It's not really dangerous and this method is used by people having problems with Win7 drivers for this card.
http://www.ralinktech.com/support.php

 

"EDIT: OK, there is only one hardware version with driver matching your driver's release date- v1."

I checked mine, it says v3. Driver version is 1.0.4.0

 

Well I couldn't unpack this one without actually installing it and then I found v1 that seemed to be the right one, sorry.
Anyway- that doesn't change anything as v3 is also based on Ralink RT2870 so download the driver pack from Ralink I linked in my previous post (first from the top on their page).

 

These issues are a pain in the rear to diagnose cause there could be like a 1000 things that can potentially drop your connection.

It sounds like the network is having to reautheticating everytime you repair. I can't be sure without looking at Process explorer.

The easiest way to diagnose DHCP issues simply by giving your desktop a static address.

Also another alternative to look at is trying a different usb adapter for a few days.

 

When giving your machine a static address, make sure you give it one outside of the DHCP range. Check your router's configuration to find that range, and shrink it if necessary.

 

It doesn't have to be outside the range. Unless you plan on regularly adding and subtracting devices from your network.

 

It's by far the easiest way to avoid conflicts, and generally good form.

 

The ralink driver didn't work... The installer did not activate the .sys file, and windows refused to recognize the .inf file and install the driver itself when I tried manually. I reinstalled the old driver and just now replaced that .sys file with the ralink one and it works.

What do I have to see in Process explorer?

Again, if it were an IP issue, I would have probably had the same problems with the cable.

 

Are you sure you downloaded the proper driver? They make several different versions based on the chipset.

Before you try to force the driver to install, I would make sure you have the right version. The only way you can force a signed driver to install is to include the device id to the inf file by hand. In fact forcing a driver should be the LAST thing you try. Ralink is actually pretty good with OEM drivers, (unlike say Broadcom, they are very poor in this realm).