Naked Science Forum
Non Life Sciences => Geek Speak => Topic started by: chris on 05/04/2008 10:37:57
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Hello everyone
I wonder if anyone has had the same experience as me. I use a wireless network but my house is quite big and the signal is weak at the other side of the house and frequently limps along at 2-11 mbps!
I decided to solve the problem by buying a range extender; this carried the added bonus that I could also move my LAN printer (which was in a very inconvenient place next to the router) and plug it into the range extender, thereby killing two birds with one stone.
But, here's my problem. Depending upon how it's feeling, sometimes my computer connects itself to the nice juicy signal from the nearby range extender (54 mbps), but other times I decides to use the pathetically weak connection from the ADSL router (2-11 mbps).
The devices are both Belkin.
Does anyone know how I force my static machine to connect preferentially to the stronger signal from the extender? The documentation that came with the device is crap, and when I called their "tech Support" the person talking to me from India, using what sounded like two yoghurt pots on either end of a piece of string, was absolutely unintelligible, nevermind the language barrier!
Cheers
Chris
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Not tried it, but I would suggest maybe using non-default channels for the devices.
Most WiFi devices I believe default to channel 11, and most receivers will search through all the channels. If you tell the receiver only to use channel 6, and set the range extender to channel 6, see what happens? (do not use adjacent channel numbers as there is a risk of interference, hence my suggestion of using channel 6, which is well away from channel 11).
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Thanks for the tip; I'll give it a try.
Chris
P.S. I have to say, the claim by Belkin that it's possible set up their wireless systems at "the push of a button" is misleading to say the least.
It's true in so much that if you are happy to run your network with no security whatsoever then, yes, it can be activated at the push of a button. Most people, however, are not happy to do the wireless equivalent of placing a free-for-all net socket in the street and prefer to make their system secure. But to do that takes some serious tinkering with the settings. You also have to do things in just the right order, otherwise one router cannot see the other.
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This whole security problems is why I buy my own wire and make any length RJ-45 cable I wish, run it through the attic, then wall and have a connection where I need it. Even on th couch a little wire is just a minor inconvenience.
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I don't have Belkin hardware, so I can't say if it can do this, it should though...
(Plus being from Germany I use german software, so hopefully I "translate" this correctly)
On your computer look for a wireless setting that mentions the MAC address (MediaAccessControl, has nothing to do with Mac computers), it should be called obligatory access point or something like that. Next you need to find out the MAC address of the range extender, with any luck it's on a sticker outside the extender, if not you need to take a look at the configuration of the extender. Enter this MAC address at your computer wireless configuration and after that your computer will only connect to the range extender.
HTH
Monika