Going wireless......

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: Trav
Maybe in a large metro area it would be different.

Good point. I'm in a condo building. From my apt, I can see 16 different wireless networks, all of them WEP or WPA protected.

 

[PandaBear]

WEP is already cracked, and anyone with a laptop and the right tool can crack it in minutes. might as well let it open.

WPA can dog some routers that are low end and do not have enough power for it. So you probably should spend $100+ and get a gaming router, or those beefier router that can switch to Open Source FW that is updated all the time for it.

Personally I prefer to use a router that has open source firmware for the reason of flexibility. I set the transmission power just enough so signal doesn't travel too far out of the house (important in a dense neighborhood), set it to recognize only selected MAC, disabled DHCP on the local network, manually set an arbitrary network mask, and only turn on my wireless connection as need, to deter the unusual war drivers and bandwidth thiefs.

Still, there is no replacement for physical connection.

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: PandaBear
WEP is already cracked, and anyone with a laptop and the right tool can crack it in minutes. might as well let it open.

WPA can dog some routers that are low end and do not have enough power for it. So you probably should spend $100+ and get a gaming router, or those beefier router that can switch to Open Source FW that is updated all the time for it.

Personally I prefer to use a router that has open source firmware for the reason of flexibility. I set the transmission power just enough so signal doesn't travel too far out of the house (important in a dense neighborhood), set it to recognize only selected MAC, disabled DHCP on the local network, manually set an arbitrary network mask, and only turn on my wireless connection as need, to deter the unusual war drivers and bandwidth thiefs.

Still, there is no replacement for physical connection.


ASUS makes a few inexpensive (~40.00) routers, like the WL-520G for example that handle WPA/WPA2 easily.

 

[Oldmoparguy1]

Originally Posted By: Oldmoparguy1
I reciently installed a LINKSYS WRT54G. Got it on sale at Target for $33.95 . It's working great. It replaced an old D-link DI-524 which was prone to forget what it's job was.


Well foo..

My internet service was down this morning, worked with tech support for an hour, finally replaced the new LINKSYS router with my old D-Link DI-524 router. and was back on line.

The linksys was working fine on the local lan and my wireless link, but seemed to be having a problem talking to the modem.

Does anyone know of a way to test it to see what is going on, or will I just have to pitch it and get something more reliable?

I hate that old D-link. I have to reset it 2-3 times a week to keep it working and the wireless signal is not very strong.

What is a good reliable budget priced router?

 

[tmorris1]

I've had good luck with Netgear routers. I have the 824 RangeMax MIMO router and it had been flawless for over a year. I bought it refurbished for $29.

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL
Originally Posted By: PandaBear
WEP is already cracked, and anyone with a laptop and the right tool can crack it in minutes. might as well let it open.

WPA can dog some routers that are low end and do not have enough power for it. So you probably should spend $100+ and get a gaming router, or those beefier router that can switch to Open Source FW that is updated all the time for it.

Personally I prefer to use a router that has open source firmware for the reason of flexibility. I set the transmission power just enough so signal doesn't travel too far out of the house (important in a dense neighborhood), set it to recognize only selected MAC, disabled DHCP on the local network, manually set an arbitrary network mask, and only turn on my wireless connection as need, to deter the unusual war drivers and bandwidth thiefs.

Still, there is no replacement for physical connection.


ASUS makes a few inexpensive (~40.00) routers, like the WL-520G for example that handle WPA/WPA2 easily.


See above post.

 

[firemachine69]

Disable DHCP and broadcast, only selected MAC addy's, and you should be golden.


[censored]-dam I leave mine open all the time... Mind you, that may change as they keep putting up houses in the new subdivision in my backyard...

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: firemachine69
Disable DHCP and broadcast, only selected MAC addy's, and you should be golden.


[censored]-dam I leave mine open all the time... Mind you, that may change as they keep putting up houses in the new subdivision in my backyard...


Airsnort to determine IP address range and AP name, then spoof the MAC of one of the stations you monitored the traffic from via airsnort..... Pretty easy to get by this sort of basic protection on an open system.

At least encryption makes it time consuming and a PITA.

 

[tmorris1]

I've tried speed tests with and without WPA2 enabled and it doesn't make that much difference with my setup. I think it might depend on how much horsepower your router and PC have also. The older routers were a little slower than the new hardware.