How Can You Optimize Your Router for Better Internet Speed?
How Can You Optimize Your Router for Better Internet Speed?
Blog Article
Are you looking for how to Optimize Your Router for Better Internet Speed? Follow these simple steps to configure your router and wireless network correctly.
Wi-Fi router installation utilities have become easier to use over the years, but getting the best out of your new router usually means delving a little deeper than the standard installation routine will go. Just because you've plugged in everything and all the blinking lights have turned green doesn't mean your network's performance and security are as good as they could be. Follow these basic steps to configure your router and optimize your wireless network properly.
What Kind of Wi-Fi Router Is Best?
Our advice below assumes you've already found the right router for your home. If you're still looking to make a purchase, check out our wireless router buying guide (link above), or if you're looking for something a little cheaper, try our budget routers roundup. If you're looking for the fastest possible pipe to enjoy video gaming, check out our gaming router guide. All these buying guides contain our best and latest reviews in each category, with every player completing the PCLaPCLabs 'less router testing suite.
Wi-Fi mesh systems are for folks willing to pay more for two primary benefits: easy basic setup and whole-home Wi-Fi coverage. While you can increase the coverage in your home with a standard router and a wireless range extender, that solution tends to make users jump through a few additional hoops to get things working smoothly, notably forcing users to log into different wireless networks depending on where they are in the home. Wi-Fi mesh makes all that go away with a quick, easy path to initial setup and a series of compatible" node nodes that integrate seamlessly into a single wireless network that blankets your entire home.
Newer Wi-Fi mesh systems combine Wi-Fi 6 and mesh technology into a single package. While Wi-Fi mesh is the most straightforward option for achieving that basic set of green blinking lights, it still represents just basic router setup, mesh or otherwise. Let's say, though, that you want to improve security with a guest network and parental controls or add quality of service (quality of service) settings to protect the traffic from a specific application or traveling to a particular device. You must dig beneath your router's or mesh system's essential installation utility. That's when the steps below will come in handy.
How Do I Connect My Wi-Fi Router?
Before getting started, you must consider where your router will be placed. Finding an open space near the center of your residence is the best way to ensure optimal coverage. Be aware that walls and floors will impede Wi-Fi signals, so the more obstructions you have between your devices and your router, the weaker (and potentially slower) the signal will be. Avoid proximity to large metal, glass, brick, or concrete objects. Wi-Fi mesh systems get around this problem by letting you place an attractively designed node wherever coverage is weakest. However, for those working with standard routers or even wireless range extenders, this will require patience and testing to see your optimal placement areas.
As mentioned above, most mesh Wi-Fi systems and some of the latest standard wireless routers can now be configured entirely from your smartphone. Manufacturers will have their unique setup app, so consult your router's quick-start guide to ensure you download the right one. Not all routers have a mobile app; if you'd instead not use one, there's always a backup method. Typically, this is a dedicated website URL that loads the router's internal configuration page.
How Do I Configure My Router?
With the username and password set, you can configure your router. As with cooking a dier, there's"a right to install a router," every model will likely have its unique steps, depending on its features. Because of this, trying to describe every possible configuration path here would be exhausting and pointless. We recommend consulting your router's manual for specifics.
That said, we do have a few points of advice. First, use the easy setup wizard. Most routers provide some form of brief setup routine that asks for little more than the SSID and password. If in doubt, start with this. (The SSID is your router's Wi-Fi name. It might be something like" asu" or" netgNetgearut of the box, but feel free to change this to something creative, like"FBI-surveillance-van.") Yes, this utility only gets you as far as that abovementioned set of blinking green lights, but even for those looking to go beyond that stage, you must get there first. Following the documentation and using its setup utility is always the shortest path to that destination.
Suppose you've done a proper job with security and made a password with randomized uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. In that case, you'll utterly forget it and not want to mess with typing it in again. Instead, press the WPS button on your router. You should allow at least a minute for the router and laptop to find each other and successfully pair. Keep in mind that WPS works only with Windows and Android devices.
Finally, when in doubt, let the router do it—auto-configuration tools are your friend. For example, while you can certainly go to the trouble of building your internal IP address range and assigning static addresses to all your devices by hand, simply checking the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) box in your router's-things will take care of that immediate since this is a protocol that automatically assigns IP addresses to devices. The lesson here is that just because you can change something doesn't mean you,l At least during the setup and early-use stages, go with the auto settings as much as possible.
That said, if you want to keep using 2.4GHz, consider experimenting with the channel selection."Aut" usually does a decent job of hopping around the channel options and finding the best one, but if you're juggling with client connections, try manually setting the channel to 1 or 11. The 2.4GHz band has 11 channels you can switch among to avoid interference, with channel 6 usually being the default. When you select a given channel, there is some signal spillover. So, selecting channel 2, for example, will often spill traffic onto channels 1 and 3. Thus, switching to the extremes of 1 or 11, the farthest points from the default of 6, can sometimes ensure the best-performing connections.
After the""eas"" setup, some routers will walk you through a few extra steps, such as establishing parental controls (features that allow you to filter certain types of content) and automatically updating the router firmware. After these preliminaries, proceed to""wireless setup"" or a similarly named tab/screen to activate your Wi-Fi network. Once your network is activated, you can connect any device to and start browsing most routers; simply activating your network and connecting to the internet only scratches the surface of what you can do. While a tab name like" advanced setting" may seem intimidating, the menus here often allow you to control some of your router's most helpful features. We'll cover some of the most compelling items below. Netseg offers the best routers at the best price and fast worldwide shipping.