Wireless Tips
The following are some general wireless tips to help minimize the impact of interference within an environment.
Assign your network a unique SSID
Do not use anything that would be identifying like “Smith Family Network”. Choose something that you would easily identify when searching for available wireless networks.
Do not turn off the SSID broadcast
The SSID broadcast is intended to be on and turning it off can cause connectivity issues. The preferred method of securing a wireless network is to choose a strong form of encryption with a strong and varied encryption key.
Note: after setting up the SSID, encryption type and encryption key/passphrase, please make a note of them for future reference. You will need this information to connect your wireless computers to the wireless router/access point.
Change the channel
Most wireless access points and routers are defaulted to channel 6. If you have a site survey tool that will display the channels you can plan your channel selection around neighboring access points to minimize interference from them. If your site survey tool does not display the channel try using channels 1 or 11.
Change the channel bandwidth
If you are using an 802.11n router or access point you can also make the following changes. Change the channel bandwidth to 20/40MHz. This will provide the highest possible performance using an 802.11n device. Also, if using 802.11n you should be securing the network with WPA2 security.
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Avoid stacking hardware on top of each other to prevent overheating issues
Maintain enough free space around the hardware for good ventilation and airflow. There should also be plenty of free space around the antennas to allow the wireless signal to propagate. Please also make sure that the wireless hardware is not placed in any type of shelving or enclosures.
There are a number of other environmental factors that can impact the range of wireless devices.
1.Adjust your wireless devices so that the signal is traveling in a straight path, rather than at an angle. The more material the signal has to pass through the more signal you will lose.
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