Installing A Wireless Internet Setup

[LarryG]

Got another question about wireless networking, still a subject about which I know essentially nothing.

One of the partners at work has moved his son into a new residence. They will use cable (Charter) for Internet access. (BTW the location is 120 miles away so I'm unfortunately having to do all this by remote control.)

They bought a cable modem (Motorola), a wireless router (Netgear), and a USB wireless adapter (also Netgear).

They thought -- as would I -- that they'd hook the cable to the cable modem, the cable modem to the wireless router, and then establish a connection by making the USB wireless adapter talk to the wireless router. But there was something in the setup instructions that leads them to believe they'll have to have, always, a PC at the location of the wireless router.

I told them I didn't think so ... that they might have to use a wired connection to install software and configure the router so it'll talk to the modem, but once this is done the PC can be anywhere in the house. Which is, of course, the whole point of going wireless.

Would someone be good enough to tell me how this is all supposed to work, and outline the basic steps they will need to follow to get this stuff working?

[Stytooner]

This ain't my area at all, but that is what I had to do. Initially hardwire the computer until it's setup. Then you can move it once it's configured. My computer dosn't have to be turned on to use a laptop on wireless.
Some wireless routers can also be setup to just be a wireless acccess point as well. Not sure about this Netgear though.

[LCHIEN]

Got another question about wireless networking, still a subject about which I know essentially nothing.

One of the partners at work has moved his son into a new residence. They will use cable (Charter) for Internet access. (BTW the location is 120 miles away so I'm unfortunately having to do all this by remote control.)

They bought a cable modem (Motorola), a wireless router (Netgear), and a USB wireless adapter (also Netgear).

They thought -- as would I -- that they'd hook the cable to the cable modem, the cable modem to the wireless router, and then establish a connection by making the USB wireless adapter talk to the wireless router. But there was something in the setup instructions that leads them to believe they'll have to have, always, a PC at the location of the wireless router.

I told them I didn't think so ... that they might have to use a wired connection to install software and configure the router so it'll talk to the modem, but once this is done the PC can be anywhere in the house. Which is, of course, the whole point of going wireless.

Would someone be good enough to tell me how this is all supposed to work, and outline the basic steps they will need to follow to get this stuff working?

I wouldn't think you need a PC at the Wireless router location although you can. many times the instructions illustrate various possible configurations, they might have been looking at one with a AP configuration (access Point).

Also you may need a PC, at least temporarily, at the router to do web-based setup thru one of the hard-wired ports.

Since you are somewhat computer literate, I would suggest you go to the manufacturer's site and down load the manual for the specific router being used and that should help.

Finally the use of a USB-to wireless is probably the weakest way to go, I understand the USB side takes a lot of PC resources to run even if it has the throughput (USB-2 required), a built-in wireless card will give better performance.

[jziegler]

Larry,

I don't know about netgear, never used it, but I have setup some Linksys stuff, and here's how it goes:

You need to initially configure the router with a wired connection. Hopefully the PC has an ethernet port. Plug it into the router and then either run the software that comes with the router (which is just a configuration utility) or follow the steps that they give to access it's configuration webpage. You should only need to do the configuration once. The router should store all of the configuration in internal flash or something like that. Then you can just use the wireless.

In every case that I've seen, the software included with the router is just to configure it, not something that needs to run all the time to make it work.

Hopefully someone else here will have experience with Netgear to confirm this.

Jim

[radhak]

You got it right : wired connected PC/laptop to begin with, not needed later.

The reason for that is that when you set up, you will need to configure passwords, etc 'online'. Once the password and other security is set, you can access this screen even wirelessly.

1. Plug an Ethernet cable into the DSL/Cable modem. Plug the other end of the cable into the "WAN" port on the Netgear.
2. Using an Ethernet cable, plug any wired computers into any of the 4 Ethernet ports on the Netgear.
3. Launch your Web browser. Enter "http://192.168.0.1" into the address bar (that's a constant for Netgear wireless routers).
4. A logon pop-up screen will appear. Type "admin" for the username and "password" for the password. [Note, sometimes I have seen this initial combination to be 'administrator/pword']
5. A Netgear Settings screen will appear. All changes to the Netgear configuration are made here.

( I have a feeling the 'initially wired' may not be mandatory, but just what I have always done and had no problems with).


The netgear site allows you to download the user manuals for all their products, convenient for 'remote help'. eg : http://kbserver.netgear.com/products/WGR101.asp

[Jeffrey Schronce]

They bought a cable modem (Motorola), a wireless router (Netgear), and a USB wireless adapter (also Netgear).

Did they call the cable company and give them the modems MAC address? Since the cable company did not provide the modem they will not be aware of the MAC address to provide connectivity to. The MAC address is on the modem itself.

As others have stated, I used a wired computer to set up the connection. If there is only one computer in the home they will likely need to move the computer to the modem/router, do the installation for the IP configuration on the webpage provided by the router company. He can then disconnect the PC and move it to its proper location.

[offthemark]

A wireless network card is always better than a USB card. If the computer is a laptop, a lot of them come with the card already. If it is a desktop, the cards are fairly inexpensive.

You will find it much more difficult if not impossible to do the work without being "hard wired" for intital setup.

Most importantly, take security very seriously. You need lock down your access passwords. If you don't, the factory default is used. In my house I can see my (secure) network plus 3 others that belong to my neighbors. I had a small DSL outage last month when they were working on the phone lines and I just "borrowed" my neighbors cable modem connection through their unsecure wireless network.

To fix the security, change the SSID to something unique. Your router instructions should show you how. Use lots of numbers, mixed case, etc. You only have to enter it the first time on each device so you won't be hassled with remembering it every time. Make it VERY long. Also, enable WEP encryption at 128bit. Give it a unique hex key. There are internet sites that can give you a random hex key when you provide a starting value. For example http://www.csgnetwork.com/wepgeneratorcalc.html

Good luck.

[leehljp]

I have had wireless since 2000. In Japan and In the USA. Different setups in both places. I never had to hardwire to a computer, then move to wireless for setups at home.

CableModem -> ethernet wire to -> wireless router.

Have Used NetGear, Linksys, and Apple Airport. I carry a Linksys with me when I travel cause many hotels and places I visit still have hardwire ethernet. I plug my Linksys in and start my wireless connections.

[Jeffrey Schronce]

I have had wireless since 2000. In Japan and In the USA. Different setups in both places. I never had to hardwire to a computer, then move to wireless for setups at home.

CableModem -> ethernet wire to -> wireless router.

Have Used NetGear, Linksys, and Apple Airport. I carry a Linksys with me when I travel cause many hotels and places I visit still have hardwire ethernet. I plug my Linksys in and start my wireless connections.

Note, it CAN be that simple. I installed a Netgear wireless system in my parents house and it was as simple as plugging in the cords/wires, rebooting modem/router and it was off to the races.

[jseklund]

Larry,
Wireless networking can be VERY touchy. Oftentimes, if one thing is set wrong- it can be difficult to figure out.

Many times, the router comes with teh "wireless" portion already turned on and with no security set, so you can access it wirelessly and set it up. Othertimes, you need to hardwire a computer first, because the wireless portion of the router is turned off. I have not run into having to hardwire first too often though.

I haven't used Netgear routers either. Motorola, Linksys, DLink, but no netgear.

My question is- what is the EXACT problem they are having? Did they just read the instructions, get confused, and not do anything yet because they weren't sure about the wired computer? Or did they setup everything, turn it on, and not get a connection?

If they are not getting a connection, the first thing to do is find out where it is "breaking". I would disconnect everything, turn the modem on and watch the lights on the modem. If all of the lights are on, you get a connection that is going both ways (from your provider and to your provider), and the modem seems connected, then hardwire a computer directly to that, and then see if it connects to the internet. If that works, then turn everything off, plug the router into the modem, turn the modem and the router on, and watch the lights. If that works, then try a hardwired computer to the router, and so on.....If you do these steps to trouble shoot, it may save you some time from focusing on the computer or router when the modem is not even connected, or the computer when the router is the problem, etc.

Also, with a lot of USB and wireless cards, you have to install the software BEFORE you plug the card or the USB into the computer. If you try to do it reverse, that can cause you to pull out some hair.....

With the router, I hardly ever use the software that comes with the router. Just do what RadHak said- open a web browser (Internet Explorere, Firefox, etc), and type in the routers address. In this case, Radhak indicates that the address is http://192.168.0.1.

Good luck, if you need more help, let us know.

[LarryG]

My question is- what is the EXACT problem they are having? Did they just read the instructions, get confused, and not do anything yet because they weren't sure about the wired computer? Or did they setup everything, turn it on, and not get a connection?

The former. It was moving day, and I think they had just run out and bought the gear, barely had time to do anything more than open the boxes and go, "Hmm, this may not be as easy as we thought ..."

Thanks, very much, to all who responded. I think I've got enough info now that we/they will be able to puzzle it out. I'll definitely holler again if we/they get stuck!

[scorrpio]

My take on this: far as I know, most wireless routers ship 'butt naked open' Means you turn one on, and any 802.11b/g device in the vicinity can see them and connect. Was the case with MY Netgear, at least. But it is several years old - they might have changed to some more secure initial settings since then.

In theory, following should work:
1. You plug the USB adapter into a PC, get its software installed.
2. You power up the router. At this point, scanning for networks on the PC should show a network named 'Netgear' or something like that. PC should be able to connect to it with no problem.
3. Next, open up your internet browser and go to whatever IP specified in the router manual as router address. Should popup a password window, I think default login for netgear is admin/admin, and then you are in and can start configuring things.
4. Set up a good password for admin login, change network SSID to something non-obvious, and set to not broadcast it. At this point, connection should drop.
5. Go into network settings on PC and specify the SSID you just set as network to connect to. PC should find the router again. Now, if you don't plan to make your router available to visiting friends, you can set up MAC filtering, but first add your PC to the allowed list.
6. Next, configure the WEP. Connection should drop again, but setting PC to same WEP key should get you reconnected.

Now, when you'd need a wired PC? If something goes awry with your security setup, and wireless PC can't connect, without a wired connection you are screwed, short of hitting reset and having to reconfigure router from scratch. It is also a lot easier to configure everything from wired - no dropped connection every time you change a setting. But once everything is configured and stable, there's no need to stay wired.

Oh, and if they got any 2.4GHz cordless phones in the vicinity, the network is gonna be VERY flaky. Some routers/cards support 802.11a which operates in 5.8 GHz range, and does not conflict with 5.8 phones as much as 2.4GHz devices do with each other, so if have problems, they might consider 802.11a.

[JimD]

My experience sounds typical. I have DSL and the phone line goes to the DSL router and the desktop is plugged into the router because it has no wireless card. As I understand the setup, I could change it from a wireless connection - I do not think you have to be hard-wired but that is the way I did it. In addition to setting WEP 129 bit (there is something later but my work laptop did not support it so I went WEP) and changing my SSID, I also decided not to broadcast my SSID.

The modem worked and I could connect without changing anything. Anybody else with a wireless card within range could also connect to my setup, however, until I turned on the WEP protection. The give away is when you see something like "linksys" as an available connection. One of my neighbors does not have a protected network that I can pick up within my house. I did some work in Dallas earlier this year on a signal that was open from a constultant I do not know. It is not my preferable way to work but I was kind of desparate. I am relating this to let you know that people will hijack your signal if you let them - I would set up the protection.

Jim

[mkel2000]

Two things I would add to what's already posted:

Most wireless routers I'm familiar with have the option to allow their settings to be modified via a wireless connection. This setting is turned off by default and it is best to leave it that way. Just have a CAT5 cable handy for the few times you would need to make changes.

I would stay as far away from WEP security as possible. WEP has been replaced by WPA (WiFi Protected Access) which operates at 256 bit encryption and is much more secure. With a new router and wireless card you might not even have the option for WEP any more. With WPA, you will see a setting similar to WPA-PSK (PSK stands for Pre-Shared Key) and it should use the TKIP protocol. You can provide any phrase up to 63 characters (including spaces and special characters.) The longer the phrase and the more special characters, the more secure the password.

If you follow the suggestions given by all the other posts (change the SSID, change the default password for the router, turn off broadcast, and implement MAC filtering) plus use WPA security, you'll have a relatively secure network.

Mark

[scorrpio]

Well, actually, with WPA, MAC filtering, strong admin password and no-broadcast SSID, only the most ****-bent hacker with a supercomputer and a slew of special equipment will be ale to crack in. But I doubt anyone will waste that kind of resources on anything short of military or corporate. A regular wardriver might detect a network presence, but that's about all he'll likely be able to do. Oh, and if you decide to go 802.11a, most would-be intruders would not even have hte hardware that can talk to it.