Security → ssid

I turned off ssid at the router, but the computer in the garage (and wifes phone) can't connect to the wifi. I thought there was a manual method of connecting...Win7, router is plugged into the home box and wifi to my laptop. Is there a manual method to input the ssid and password so the house can connect, but not be broadcast to the neighbors?

I have Win 7 - 64bit. Here is how I manually entered the SSID:

- Control Panel -> Networks and Sharing
- Manage wireless networks
- Add
- Manually create a profile
- enter Network name (that's the SSID) and fill out Security key, select Security type, etc., etc... You should be able to follow the rest..

Or you could just change your SSID to "Nothing to see here" and be done with it.

MYTHOS ...... "Preventing your router from broadcasting this information, and thereby rendering it somewhat invisible to people you don't want on your network, might sound like a good idea. But some devices%u2014including PCs running Windows 7 or later%u2014will still see every network that exists, even if it can't identify each one by name, and unmasking a hidden SSID is a relatively trivial task. In fact, attempting to hide an SSID in this way might pique the interest of nearby Wi-Fi hackers, by suggesting to them that your network may contain sensitive data." ,,,,,[ »www.pcworld.com/article/ ··· now.html ]

"Home" pops up in about a dozen places when I run WiFi Analyzer. Including mine.

OP: The experts *generally* advise that you not hide the SSID. It does nothing for security and may actually attract more attention than it deters.

 
What I sometimes see is an access point with multiple SSIDs defined and one of the SSIDs is hidden. I wonder if the owner of that access point knows that the MAC address is usually the same (and broadcast) for all those SSIDs, so they all can be tied to the same access point.

 
I have a similar generic SSID. However, I have to add the network manually to Win 7 because I use WAP2-Enterprise, and Windows 7 does not seem to have a method that I can find which allows me to select a (WPA2-Enterprise) SSID then enter auth info for it. I go the manual route and wind my way through the screens and sub-screens and sub-sub-screens....

edit: clarify

I'm weak in the area of networking. Becoming aware of programs that not only flush out hidden ssid's but exchange packets until they can guess the password? I know the neighbors and know that none are technically capable..but their kids may be. The ssid that I see is the main box, that I built for my wife at christmas. Generic name, however, I connect to it wirelessly, and the ssid is my user name, which is my name. I've never seen my wireless connection in the list, but can someone use software to our win7 box and see my wireless connection to the home network?

Thanks for the replies, btw. Edit: There's nothing particularly sensitive on my computer or my wifes. But, I'm seeing that you can download software that can eventually "sniff" out enough info to guess a password. I just want to protect our network and I don't want the neighbors to see "joewho" on any list. Edit. I'm seeing that the computer name is the ssid. That's scary. Wpa2-spk,802.11n, aes encryption, 8 character password..

Make your SSID something like B~'ddWl&|v~oF|bwF{P785ot,f-Nxlq=eg/_GFN>o0&glaIC%kM&],{ytQrm":Z. To anyone who doesn't know it looks like the router information is corrupted.