Add a Wireless Router to Your Network

So, you've finally decided to add a wireless network to your home? Don't panic - the connection process is not all that complicated. You just need to know what you're doing

Steps

  1. Make sure you have a broadband cable or dsl connection to the Internet, unless you plan on using the new network for local file sharing between your computers.
  2. Choose a wireless standard, there are four different standards commonly used at this time, which are: A, B, G, and N. Recently a new standard came up called AC which is very very fast compared to all the previous standards. It will generally cost more for the faster standards (N and AC) than the slower ones (A and B.) For serious gaming, pick AC, for Internet surfing or business work pick B or G.
  3. Buy a router that has your preferred wireless signal, some popular brands are Linksys, Netgear, and D-link.
  4. Connect the router to the ethernet cable from the broadband modem and turn the router on. The router should automatically broadcast the wireless signal, and if the modem is working, so should the Internet.Note, you have to manually input the IP configuration given to you by your ISP.
  5. Keep in mind that you will also need a wireless adapter for the computer as well if not already installed or built in to the computer. It is recommended (if possible) to use the same brand name router and adapter.
  6. Be sure to secure your wireless network, by turning on the WEP or WPA encryption, changing the administrator password, and adding MAC filtering. Refer to your router's documentation for information on these settings.
  7. One important thing to keep in mind: As the speed of your wireless network increases the range decreases. For home networks it doesn't matter that much but if you need a much larger range then you have to compromise on speed a bit or install multiple access points( in places like large office buildings).

Tips

  • Multiple-input and multiple-output is costly, so unless you want ultimate coverage and transfer speed there is no need to buy it.
  • multiple-input and multiple-output technology, (multiplex in multiplex out) has been shown to be successful in increasing range and data throughput. This is a key component of the present N standard and is currently available in most N models.
  • Unless you have gigabyte (extremely fast) ethernet, your network speed will not be affected much by a high-end router rather than a cheap router. Only computer transfer speed is affected, because the Internet speed is so much slower than all of the standards.
  • Using a firewall can help protect any computer network, wireless or not, from hackers.
  • The speeds of the wireless do not represent the speeds that you will be getting to the Internet. The speed indicated by the router is the connection between the router and the individual computer(s). Normally the Internet connection speed is much slower than the connection from the computer(s) to the router (e.g. internet connection is anywhere from 1-6Mb/s and a wireless G connection is up to 54Mb/s).
  • The N standard has been published and agreed upon by the international standards organization,(IEEE 802.11n). The G standard should be more than enough more most users. The

Warnings

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