Problems with wireless connections

toomanykids

I'm sorry if this question has been asked before, but I'm a complete numpty when it comes to any of this stuff and really could do with some help.

I have Sky broadband, a wireless router and its connected to my pc by a yellow cable (is this called an ethernet cable ). All this is downstairs. At Christmas we bought two extra pc's for two of our kids and bought wireless adapters so they could connect. After having many teething problems with them, including one unit not working at all, we have them set up and connected. The security details are fine and both pc's say they can find my wireless router downstairs. They normally say they are receiving a good signal, sometimes though they say they are only partially connected .

The problem is that for no reason, most days they just don't work. Either of them. I can switch the pcs on and they set themselves up but when I try to go online with either of them they ask "do I wish to connect via broadband or dial up". If I just leave them they sometimes :rolleyes: connect on their own but this can take hours. Sometimes they just don't connect at all. I've tried restarting the pcs, uninstalling the wireless adapters and reinstalling them, leaving them, swearing at them and nothing seems to work twice. I don't get it. If they do establish a connection then they never lose it.

Any help or advice would be appreciated

macman

If you are getting a connection some of the time then it can't be a security issue. Sounds like the wireless signal is not very strong and the connection is intermittent? If you're connecting diagonally upstairs (especially in an older house with solider walls and floors) then at that distance the signal may not be strong enough. Also make sure your router is not sitting next to another electrical device that might interfere (e.g. a Sky box). Switch this off and check if any improvement
I suggest you test this by temporarily relocating one of the upstairs PC's downstairs and sitting the wireless adapter close to the router. If that gives you a reliable connection, then this is the problem.
Then you might experiment with raising the router up a bit higher and also moving the wireless adapters. If they're the USB stick type that plug straight into a rear USB port on your PC's, then buy an extender cable and place them higher up above the PC.
You didn't mention what brand of equipment you are using, but some wireless adapters are not very compatible with certain wireless routers, even though they should in theory work together assuming they're all 'G' standard or higher. For that reason it's best to use the same brand at each end, eg if your router is Netgear, use Netgear wireless adapters and not Linksys.
Finally, you could try changing the default wireless channel in the router set up to a different one. If a neighbour is using the same channel (which happens a lot) this again can weaken or interfere with the link.
Hope this helps.

toomanykids

Wow, thanks macman :D:D Will work my way through your suggestions. You're right I didn't mention the makes One is Belkin (most problematic) and the other is Netgear (same make as router) so you're quite right about same makes giving better results. Hadn't thought of that. They are both G+ as I thought this would be stronger and you are again right about the solid walls and floors.

As soon as hubby comes in I'll get him to bring one of the pc's downstairs and try that. Will let you know how we get on

Many, many thanks again for your help and advice

macman

If you don't want to lug the PC's around, could you borrow a laptop and plug the wireless adapters into this (just disable the internal wireless card if it has one)? Move it around and see what signal you can get.
You could also move the router to an upstairs phone point if you have one, to reduce the distance-however since you still have your main PC downstairs this might just reverse the problem.
One other option-on some routers the aerial is detachable, and there are websites that will sell you a larger and more powerful one-should be no more than a tenner.
I would try changing the channel first as this might be a quick and free fix. Netgear default channel is usually 6-try 4 or 2.
You could try Netgear tech support, as they should be able to help you at least with the Netgear to Netgear connection.

toomanykids

Thanks again. D'oh!! Told you I was a numpty

Had a quick look at the router and it looks like the aerial unscrews, so a stronger aerial (didn't know they existed) is an option I hope. But firstly I will go on to the Netgear site and have a look at changing the channel. I suppose by doing this I'll have to change the settings on the pc's upstairs?

Thanks again

macman

We all started as numpties...
To change channels you just log into the router interface http://192.168.0.1 using your web browser and go to the wireless settings section. Default Sky Netgear username and password settings are usually 'admin' and 'admin' or 'admin', 'password' or 'sky' respectively. Tell me which model Netgear and I can maybe advise further.
No you shouldn't need to change the settings on the other PC's, they should automatically connect to the new channel. You're not changing the security encryption, just the channel number.
I forgot to say that if you are using a Sky supplied router then Sky tech support might be worth a call.