Error message 14103 occurs sporadically, every 2 or 3 days, about half an hour after start up on my HP laptop. The message is "The netcard driver failed the query for OID-GEN-LINK-SPEED" and adds "indicates a serious problem."I experience no problems, the network adapter, Intel (R)PROWireless 3945ABG, reports it is OK, I have checked with HP all drivers are fully updated, I have changed the Quality of Service (QoS) function from Manual to Automatic but this error message still nags me.What does it mean and what should I do?1 person needs an answerI do too

Do you have your connection speed set at a particular speed (such as 100 Mbps/Full Duplex) or is it set to Auto-negotiation? You can check and change that in your NIC properties under the Advanced tab.The error message (very generally) means that you are not connecting at the maximum allowed/rated speed of your NIC. I wouldn't say it's indicative of a "serious problem" but if you're not connecting at your rated or paid for speed, you're not getting your money's worth :-)SC Tom-There's no such thing as TMI when asking for tech support.

That makes a lot of sense. The Wireless Connection icon reports the speed as about half (54.0 Mbps) what it should be. But I can't find the Advanced tab you describe despite opening tabs and panels I've never seen before. If I go to Properties for the Intel connection all I get with the Advanced tab are Windows Firewall and Internet Connection Sharing options. I looked through the Advanced tab for the Configure Wireless Network Connection and there are many details, such as Mixed Mode protection and Roaming Aggressiveness, but nothing about speed.I am using Windows Pro on an HP Compaq nx6310. It has a wireless connection to an Orange Livebox ADSL router which is connected to my old, custom desktop via an Ethernet cable. Many thanks for your quick reply - hope you can guide me to the right tab!

Click on your wireless connection icon and select 'Open Network and Sharing Center' (or open it in Control Panel). On the left side is an entry 'Change adapter settings.' Click on it, then right-click on your Local Area Connection icon and select Properties. In the box at the top, it should list your NIC. Just below that is a box labeled 'Configure...' Click on it, then click on the Advanced tab. Somewhere in the list items on that page should be an entry for Speed & Duplex. Click on it, and you'll have selections in the Value box to the right. Mine is a Realtek, so I can only go by those listings. If you change anything, reboot to see if the error goes away.Open the properties on your wireless connection the same way, then go to Configure, Advanced on it (Mine's an Intel 4965AGN, so my settings may be similar to yours). If you are connecting through a wireless router or configurable wireless modem (such as one provided by a cable company), you might try setting the Ad Hoc Channel to a particular channel instead of the default. (Because of other interference, I had to set my router and laptop to channel 11.) Adjust the other settings to what may work best, mostly through trial and error. Since your adapter only supports 802.11b/g, the max throughput you're going to get is 54Mbps.If possible, you can try disabling the wireless, plug in an ethernet cable, and see if the error goes away when using your NIC. If you're getting a 54Mbps connection with the wireless, I'm not real sure where the error is coming from, unless the laptop is trying to connect through the ethernet NIC and there's no cable plugged in. On my Gateway, when I'm on wireless, there's a red X under my Local Area Connection icon.SC Tom-There's no such thing as TMI when asking for tech support.

Thanks very much for this detailed answer which I printed out to be sure I followed the steps accurately. Now I am pretty sure I do not have a Network and Sharing Center which could figure as my computers are not networked to each other. In Control Panel I clicked on Network Connections which has four entries, none of them Open Network and Sharing Center. The four entries simply list the different sorts of connection available (1: dial-up, 2: Broadcom 440x10/100 Integrated Controller ethernet, 3: 1394 firewire and 4: the Intel Wireless). The only entry for Speed & Duplex I can find is in the Advanced tab for the Broadcom configure box and this is set to Auto. I disabled Broadcom and rebooted. The Wireless Network Connection launched OK with its usual “excellent signal strength” so I’ll see if that gets rid of the 14103 error message. If not I’ll try re-enabling Broadcom and changing Auto to 100Mb Full and see what happens.My next step if that’s no good will be to try switching the Ad Hoc channels in the Intel configuration then I’ll try using an Ethernet cable. I have had a good search through Event Viewer for Applications and System to see if error message 14103 occurs consistently with another error or warning but I haven’t found a pattern. It will be several days before I work through the possibilities and I can report what happens (longer if the heavy snow now forecast brings down the power lines!) I’m grateful for all your advice. The fact that you’re not certain of the error source reassures me that it can’t mean imminent doom. Could the error be triggered by the pc coming out of standby?

<Burgundian> wrote in message news:Email removed for privacy...Thanks very much for this detailed answer which I printed out to be sure I followed the steps accurately. Now I am pretty sure I do not have a Network and Sharing Center which could figure as my computers are not networked to each other.I'm so sorry about the confusion. I had just jumped from a Windows 7 forum to this one, and my old f@rt brain must not have caught up yet. The Network and Sharing center is in Windows 7.The fact that youre not certain of the error source reassures me that it cant mean imminent doom. Could the error be triggered by the >pc coming out of standby?That would be easy enough to test. Put it into standby and bring it back up. Wait a while and see if the error is set. If so, that may possibly be a cause.One other thing to do is go into Device Manager, and under Network Adapters, double-click on your Broadcom NIC. The properties page will come up, and on the Power Management tab, uncheck the box next to 'Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.' This should keep the PC from polling it when coming out of standby.SC Tom-There's no such thing as TMI when asking for tech support.

The Broadcom Ethernet connection would seem to be the culprit. If it is disabled then error 14103 does not appear in Event Viewer, System, no matter how the pc is powered on. Changing the Broadcom Speed and Flow value from Auto to 100Mb Full made no difference.If Broadcom is enabled then error 14103 is logged immediately on start up or on coming out of standby but not on restart. I know I originally said the error was intermittent and not immediate so maybe I have changed something so that it is triggered straightaway.I am guessing there is some glitch with the Ethernet and powering down the pc for any length of time. This happens whether or not the Ethernet or wireless connection has been configured not to let the pc turn it off to save power. (For Broadcom this function is called Wake Up and I selected None to turn it off.) Windows Device manager shows the connections as working properly.In addition, if Broadcom is enabled then Wireless Networks forgets it has been told to use Windows to configure its settings although the necessary Wireless Zero Configuration (listed in Services in Administrative Tools in Control Panel) is started and I previously checked the Wireless Connection Properties box for Windows to be used.What happens is this: pc is powered on, the taskbar internet icons show both Ethernet and Wireless as not functioning. I click on the Wireless icon and select Repair, Windows starts the routine of fixing the connection and finally reports it cannot connect because Windows cannot configure the connection. As soon as I navigate to the Wireless Connection Properties and again check the now-unchecked box for Windows to be used, the pc is connected.I haven’t yet tried twiddling the Ad Hoc Channel settings on the Intel wireless connection because it seems the Ethernet connection is the probable error cause. What do you think?And it’s OK about the Windows 7 / Xp Pro mixup – after years of trying to outwit domestic appliances I should know by now that if the instructions say Press Button A and I can’t find Button A then there is no Button A and it’s time to assume it’s been removed/relabelled. And I bet I'm older than you, anyway!

And I bet I'm older than you, anyway!I'm 64, so if you're older than that, I guess you win :-)Man, this is a puzzler. I don't think changing the Ad Hoc channel will make any difference since the wireless seems to be functioning just fine (once it starts).Did this notebook come with XP Pro on it? I checked HP support for driver options, and the only OS listed for it is Windows 2000. Since there seems to be a recurring problem of the wireless setup remembering its own settings, my next step would be to uninstall both the Broadcom NIC and Intel wireless drivers, rebooting, and reinstalling them. If Windows asks for a location to install drivers from, use the original driver disk if available. You can always update later, if necessary. If it all works fine with no errors after the re-installation, I would not use Microsoft updates for new hardware drivers. They may be fine for security and OS updates, but I shy away from their hardware updates. I would rather use the hardware manufacturer's site for that whenever possible.SC Tom-There's no such thing as TMI when asking for tech support.

(I lose my bet but only by a couple of years. There goes another prejudice – that I was the only computer forum user over 30 years old.) Yes, the notebook already had XP Pro plus the Broadcom and Intel drivers on it. I have explored their websites as well as HP’s to check for updates. Hewlett Packard has a labyrinth of support websites and there is one for this notebook model with XP Pro and I think my drivers are all up to date.I did try installing HP’s Wireless Assistant application, having found their Print Diagnosis an excellent tool, but the Assistant is a feeble imitation of Microsoft’s network manager so I uninstalled it. And promptly had a recurrence of Wireless Networks losing its settings. It's fine now so I shall just note it as really touchy.Not having any installation disks I am reluctant to uninstall anything so that will be a last resort should internet connecting get too troublesome. Besides I also have a suspicious eye on my Internet Service Provider (Orange) and its invasive software. You’ve given me plenty to explore (thanks for the driver update tip) but now that the mysterious 41013 error message has been banished, even though we're not entirely sure why it appeared, I think that’s the end of this thread. Many many thanks for your guidance and may you have a festive Christmas.

You're more than welcome! It's good that it's fixed, but like you, it bothers me we couldn't figure out why. One of those "Huh. Go figure" moments.Have a great Christmas yourself, and a safe and happy New Year!SC Tom-There's no such thing as TMI when asking for tech support.