Windows Was Unable To Find A Certificate To Log You On To The Network

Users of Netgear and Linksys routers sometimes face a common issue when they try to connect to the network in Windows XP OS. At the system tray, you can see an error bubble popping up that says "Windows was unable to find a certificate to log you on to the network". From the error message, it is understandable that Windows is searching for a certificate that is not present in the system.

But how do you actually fix this issue? Read through this article to learn all you need to know.

In various forum sites, people have reported this problem and many of them have stated that they are able to connect their other computers to the network but the error shows up in only one of the systems. This kind of scenario indicates it's not a hardware issue, so that's good news! You do not need to worry that something has gone bad with your wireless router.

Fix the error through Microsoft Knowledge Base patch

A simple fix for the issue "Windows was unable to find a certificate to log you on to the network" can been found on the Microsoft Knowledge Base article here.

At the official page linked above, you can find a patch that will enable you to make use of the most recently updated types of WPA encryption that were not available when Service Pack 2 was released for WinXP.

Once you run the patch, apply it and reboot your computer, you shouldn't see that error message again.

Fixing the error manually

If you're feeling adventurous, here is how you can fix the error manually:

1. Move your mouse pointer towards the system tray and then click on the Wireless icon. This will open the Wireless Network Connection window. On the left panel, you can see several options listed below Related Tasks; from there you need to click on Change advanced settings.

2. You will now see the Wireless Network Connection Properties dialog box. You need to click on the second tab that reads Wireless Networks. Under Preferred networks, you will see the list of available networks that you can connect automatically. Click on the name of your wireless network that is causing that error and then click on Properties.

3. Again, you will see a new dialog box with the name of your wireless network. Among the three tabs, you need to click on the second tab that reads Authentication and then you need to remove the check mark from the box near Enable IEEE 802.1x authentication for this network. The "Windows was unable to find a certificate to log you on to the network" error popped up because there was a check mark in this box. Certificate security is not supported for your wireless router but still Windows was searching for a certificate. This is the reason why Windows shows you the error message.

If you try to connect to the network after performing the above mentioned steps, you will not face the same error message again.

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-By Dominic

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