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TRoUblesHooTINg
• Mywirelessnetworkperformanceisinconsistent.
• Datatransferissometimesslow.
• Signalstrengthispoor.
• Difficultyestablishingand/ormaintainingaVirtualPrivate
Network (VPN) connection.
Wireless technology i s radio-based, w hich means conne ctivity and
the throughput perfo rmance between devices decreas es when the
distance between devi ces increases. Other factors th at will cause sign al
degradation (metal is g enerally the wor st culprit) are ob structions such
as walls and metal app liances. Note also that connection speed may
decrease as you move far ther away from th e Router.
Limiting the wireless t ransmit rate—Limitin g the wireless tr ansmit rate
can help improve the ma ximum wireless r ange and connec tion stability.
Most wireless cards h ave the ability to l imit the transmis sion rate. To
change this propert y, go to the Windows Co ntrol Panel, open “ Network
Connections” and doubl e-click on your wireless card’s con nection. In
the properties dialo g, select the “Co nfigure” button o n the “General” t ab
(Windows 98 users wil l have to select th e wireless card in the list box
and then click “Proper ties”), then choo se the “Advanced” tab and select
the rate property.
Wireless client cards are usually set to automatically a djust the wireles s
transmit rate for you, bu t doing so can ca use periodic dis connects when
the wireless signal is too weak; as a ru le, slower transmis sion rates are
more stable. Experime nt with differen t connection rate s until you find the
best one for your enviro nment. Note that a ll available transm ission rates
should be acceptable for browsing the Int ernet. For more a ssistance,
see your wireless car d’s user manual.
In order to determine if wireless issue s are related to ra nge, we
suggest temporarily m oving the computer, if possible, five to 10 feet
from the Router.
Changing the wireless channel—Depending o n local wireless traffic
and interference, switc hing the wireles s channel of your network can
improve performance a nd reliability. The default channel the Router
is shipped with is cha nnel 11; you may choose from several other
channels depending on your region. See the section on pa ge 41
entitled “Changing th e Wireless Chann el” for instructi ons on how to
choose other channels .