I have a wireless network in my home, but the signal is very week. What are some things that I can do to improve the range of my WiFi network?
There are a number of things one can do in order to boost the strength of a wireless home network. Microsoft has an excellent introductory how-to on this subject, titled 10 tips for improving your wireless network. The author discusses both simple equipment adjustments and equipment upgrades. According to Microsoft, you can…
- Position your wireless router or access point in a central location in your home, so that you’re not wasting energy projecting your broadband signal into the street.
- Move the router away from objects that interfere with its signal.
- Upgrade your wireless router’s antenna.
- Add a wireless repeater – a device that boosts the reach of your wireless signal beyond the reachers of your original wiress router.
Among all of Microsoft’s suggestions, the one that we’d like to point out the most is “Upgrade 802.11b devices to 802.11g”. There are different types of wireless networks, examples being 802.11b vs. g. The different types of WiFi all enable you to create a wireless network in your home, and are backwards compatible, yet some are faster than others. For instance, 802.11g is a lot faster than b. Whenever you buy wireless equipment, you should check to see which grade of WiFi it is.
Extend your Apple Airport network
If you’re a dedicated Mac user and are powering your WiFi network with Airport hardware, Apple also sells a product meant to extend the reach of your network. Airport Express is a small WiFi appliance that will boost your signal strength beyond the limits of your original Airport base station. In addition to improved WiFi coverage, Airport Express also functions as a print server, and is able to stream music from iTunes to your home stereo.
Detect the quality of your wireless network
Whether you’re not sure about the speed of your wireless network, or just want to see how much of an improvement you were able to make, you’ll need special software in order to inspect the signal.
NetStumbler that will let you find areas of poor coverage, as well as inspect security and interference.
iStumbler is a Mac application similar to NetStumbler. iStumbler shows you the status of your WiFi network’s signal, strength and security.
More Information
If you have others questions about your wireless network, or just want to learn more about WiFi in general, read Wireless Home Networking Kit – FAQs from the University of Texas at Austin. It’s a short article that addresses some frequently asked questions about wireless networks, and touches on the subject of extending the reach of your wireless network by adding access points.
[tags]WiFi,wireless,hardware,networking[/tags]
