Windows Operating Systems
Figure
shows the
various Windows OS environments that can support Aironet drivers. The Aironet
Windows driver disk includes drivers for all Windows 95 and 98 versions, as
well as Windows ME, Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows CE 2.x,
3.x, and 4.x. Additionally, the driver is included on the Windows Install CD
for Windows Me, Windows 2000, and Windows XP.
Because all reduced
instruction set computing (RISC) processors are not alike, it is necessary to
develop a separate compiled version of the driver on a per-processor basis.
Also, because of the nature of Windows CE, it is necessary to develop a
separate driver for each version. Finally, not all CE devices adhere to the
PCMCIA standards because of their limited size and cost-cutting construction.
This means that even with the correct driver for the processor and CE release,
it still may not work. A machine will not work if the card in the system
displays the message "unknown card inserted". It should display the
message "network card inserted". Typically, this happens because the
vendor does not follow the PC CARD 2.1 specifications fully, resulting in
incompatibility issues.
Non-Windows Operating Systems
Cisco Aironet offers support for
Linux and Macintosh, as shown in Figure
. The
Cisco Aironet Linux driver is for use with any version of Linux using kernel
versions 2.2.x or 2.4.x. The Cisco Aironet Macintosh driver is for use with
Macintosh PowerBooks and PowerMacs using Mac OS 9.x or Mac OS X 10.1. The
driver is not for use with Macintosh notebooks that have a built-in wireless
card.
Downloading Wireless Software from Cisco Connection Online
(CCO)
All of the available drivers, utilities, and firmware can be
downloaded from Cisco Connection Online (CCO). To gain access to these
materials a CCO username and password is required. To get a valid CCO username
and password requires a smartnet maintenance account.
From the main Cisco
page (www.cisco.com), select Products and Services from the drop-down
menu. Click on WLAN Products, and then on Aironet WLAN Client
Adapters. Next, click on Software Center, on the left, and on
Software Center, again. Select Wireless Software and then
Option 2: Aironet Wireless Software Display Tables. This is shown in
Figure
. Option 1 allows
the downloading of bundled drivers, for example, all Windows drivers.
The latest updates to all Cisco Aironet firmware and software are available
through this link.