Wireless utility Information + other information requested

There have been numerous posts in this NG about what to use for passwords, the last one I looked at is :-

Thank you

I have now connected to the router and have wireless access.

I seem to be getting a signal of about %35. The antenna on my pc can be moved, but this does not make a lot of difference. Has anyone any tips for improving signal strength.

Point two. On the front of the Thomson Router is a button with a wireless logo. It flashes during activation. It seems to be depressable. Any idea what this button does?

Thanks

Another point.

I assume that I don't logout of the router. When I have finished a session, I assume that I just close the browser, and when ready switch off the pc

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You didn't say which wifi card you got but you were thinking about getting on which had the antenna on an extension cable, if you got one of those you could try making a reflector for it.

Did you look at WPS in the manual?

This just occurs to me.

I am using Channel 6.

The bloke downstairs will also be using this router. Will we both be using Channel 6?

Can I change the channel without affecting him?

Or will any Channel change also be a change for him?

Thanks

Hi,

No manual came with it. I am using WPA authentication. TKIP;AES Encryption

Very brief setup instructions - a leaflet

I pressed that button , I didn't notice any change

Just looking at the profile in wireless. I seem to have setup two identical setups. I assume that I can delete one. I changed the profile name from the default. I think that this accounts for this replication

Unless one of you you changes it.

Yes.

No.

You want to change it otherwise you will be sharing the radio bandwidth of that channel. So your equipment will listen to his signals and vice versa even if they're encrypted, to decide whether they're actually for you.

You and he would be on the exact same bell curve we talked about when we discussed overlapping channels.

But don't just change it willy nilly to find a clean one on your own because he will probably be doing the same.

Talk to him and agree to use different channels.

If he has the same problem with the guy downstairs from him, work something out between the three of you.

You don't switch the TV cable box off either, do you?

He did say "The bloke downstairs will also be using this router." Going by all his other threads they are sharing a router.

I haven't been following them all because he seemed to be asking the same question several times.

I thought he meant a combined modem/router supplied by the broadband provider because neighbours don't usually share the same internet service.

But you're right. I just found a message saying the router wasn't his responsibility, he has permission to use it when it arrives.

So he's basically stuck with what the other guy does.

It's not up to him what channel to use. The other guy controls it at the router. The PC will find it and lock onto it.

The caveat will be whether the other guy has set N-only and he doesn't have N. Of course another issue is whether the signal is strong enough to punch through the floor.

I wouldn't do this with my current router because I like my security but recent ones support guest pass keys which allow access to a subset of the network.

Yes, the signal is punching through the floor.

The router is a G type.

I am a bit confused as to whether I can change the channel independently from the bloke who shares the router.

Because we share the router must we use the same channel.

If I get permission to login to the router can I select a different channel, and the bloke can do likewise.

Otherwise, as said we will be using the same bell curve

As you can see, I am not sure what independence I can gain via the router.

Thanks

No you can't. It's set at the router and your computer locks onto it when it makes the connection.

Yes.

No. The channel can be changed but everybody still uses the same one.

That was my misundertanding when I thought you were using different routers on the same channel. Talking about channel separation confirmed this in my mind.

Basically you're sharing the same band width on the same bell curve.

Not much.

You'll both use the same encryption key so you'll need to disable file sharing from the Windows Network and Sharing Center or its equivalent on your OS.

Are any of your extras like printer, external disk drive backup, scanner etc on the network, or directly connected?

Mine are because they're shared between a recent deskopt, the ealier one it replaced and a laptop.

So I use N because G is too slow accessing shared data.

Once the router is configured, you won't be logging into it unless or until you need to make an additional configuration change. On a daily basis, you'll mostly just leave it alone.

Chris,

I have a printer connected to my pc.

I now understand that I will be using the same channel as the bloke who shares the router..

Is there any way that I can limit the obvious radio interference that I will get because we are sharing the same bell curve?

If not, will it cause much of a problem?

On a related point. If I get a weak signal does this affect my speed of connectivity?

Would it affect downloading times?

If not, what are the disadvantages of a weak signal?

Thanks for all the advice.

Much appreciated.

Best wishes.

I'm not Chris, but I'll take a stab. :)

Irrelevant.

Yes, you can get your own router and configure it to use a different channel. Seriously, though, there is very little interference unless both of you are actively using the wireless connection simultaneously. Most users generate relatively short spikes of network activity, and such a scenario works pretty well for shared wireless.

Wait and see. If both of you are surfing the web, for example, you'll each generate short bursts of activity, and for the most part the wireless connection will be virtually dormant.

Yes, as a signal gets weaker it can cause the connection speed to step down.

You have been asking general questions and we have been giving general answers leaving you to work out the specifics for your situation, which isn't working.

So we need more detail.

What is the complete setup of devices on your local network? Not just yours but his as well.

Will there be any local traffic between devices connected to the router? File sharing? Networked printing?

Or will it all be to and from the Internet?

If so the limiting factor will probably be the throughput of the DSL connection, not the wireless network.

How is it connected?

If it's on a USB port it isn't an issue unless the other guy prints to it via your PC. Which is a Windows feature that can be turned on or off.

For security purposes, turn it off.

If it's connected to the router then remove it and connect it to a USB port.

If it's one of the latest wireless printers I have no experience of these but I would expect them to use up bandwidth because they use the same wireless adapter on your PC. I would guess they have some kind of encryption to make sure your stuff doesn't appear on somebody else's printer or vice versa

Also for security purposes turn off file sharing which is another Windows feature.

That's not so much interference as contention. It's just devices sharing the same channel. Only one can talk at a time. It's the same situation as using your laptop at Starbucks.

If it's his router you haven't any control over how many devices he has connected to it.

The amount of concurrent access to all devices including his and yours makes a difference to the speed you will get out of the wireless link.

If all you are both doing is connecting one computer to the outside world then you probably won't notice it.

But even if you do, it's his internet connection you're using for free, and his router. You're stuck with how he has the encryption set up, what its pass key is, etc. You might suggest he uses the strongest possible with a phrase you and he can remember but that's all you can do - ultimately it's up to him.

In fact the limiting factor will probably be the DSL connection not the wireless because that's the slowest link in the chain.

You'll find that those of us with fast wireless use it for things like shared networked disk storage which need the speed.

It depends on the traffic. If you're both doing downloads at the same time, either files, large web pages, high volume newsgroups etc, they will slow down because you can only get so much bandwidth out of a link. Bit torrent downloads can slow everything down.

Below a certain signal strength there will be more retries. Because the level of the radio static doesn't change.

Yes.