verve247

These questions apply to home networks.

1. What channel from 1-11 do you prefer and why? I think i might be getting interference at 6 and want to change to a more optimal one.

2. For those with secured networks, do you prefer WPA or WEP? My main concern is available bandwidth.

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navyones

I prefer Channel 1 or Channel 2 for my wireless network. Since most wireless routers have a default of 6, Channels 1 and 2 seem to have less interference.

As far as security is concerned, WEP is fine. Use the 128 bit encryption, if it is available.

verve247

After security, my main concern is the encryptions slowing down my data transfer. I do have a G network and ~1.2mbit/sec dsl so the effects may be negligible. Any opinions?

navyones

802.11g is the fastest wireless protocol available for now. This year the 802.11n is supposed to be introduced.

If you are looking for speed, be sure to check out www.speedguide.net. It gives excellent guidance on some tweaks that make your connection more efficient.

StonedWheat

http://www.openxtra.co.uk/articles/wpa-vs-wep.php


I was reading on some forums, and people refer to wep as a "bandwidth killer".

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navyones

Great article!

AlpineJay

I like channels 1 and 11. It's far away from channel 6 which is commonly used so there's less likelihood of interference.

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bachviet

1) channel 9
2) WEP

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Daversinger

my lucky number is 7...
evryone will probly choose that one so don't do 7 or 6
128bit.. how many digits is that for the encryption code?

speedracer120

I'm on 6 because my 2 of my neighbors are set at 11; 1 and 2 get interference from the cordless phones.

WPA, just because it's easier to setup.

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Jeffbx

Channel: whatever has the strongest signal for you. It'll be different for everyone. Cycle through them & measure the signal strength with Net Stumbler, then pick the strongest. Make sure you try it with your wireless phone (if it's 2.4GHz) & your microwave oven on. Those will cause the most interference.

Encryption: turn it OFF. There's no need to encrypt your traffic, unless you think there's a legitimate risk of someone sitting within range of your WAP with a wireless sniffer trying to capture your packets. Use MAC authentication only - you won't kill your speed & you'll still be blocking out 99.99% of unwanted visitors.

verve247

MAC authentication, is that where the router only lets specific MAC addresses connect to the router? Every time i try that, i can't reconnect to my router. Got any tips Jeffbx?

speedracer120

When you do MAC filtering, make sure you have the correct settings. If you have Linksys WRT54G like I do, make sure it's set to allow only the listed MAC addresses, rather than preventing the listed MAC addys.

I'm to lazy to look it up right now, but is there a lot of overhead for WAP traffic as well?

hapoo

you know what i like to do at school. We have no encryption so i fire up ethereal, capture other peoples packets and follow their aim conversations / webpage visits / etc. Lets just say i wouldn't want my neighbors doing that.

Jeffbx

Yes, that's correct. Be sure to remember to add your hard wired MACs to the list as well... I forgot that once, applied the changed & locked myself out of the router. D'oh! Maybe that's the issue?




OK, at a university I'd say there could be a legitimate risk of this. In a neighborhood? Not too likely, but of course use your own judgement.

verve247

I think you're on to something. I need to add my wireless card and my hard MAC address.