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Entelligence
Ek Lite
Premium Member
join:2002-04-24
Santa Barbara, CA

Entelligence

Premium Member

Slow Connection!

I have done a lot of reading lately and tried a lot of different things, but haven't been able to fix the problem . I have two computers running wireless (zonet 802.11g). One is right next to the router, and the other is in another room. The one in the separate room is getting dial-up speeds (I have comcast). I downloaded NetMeter and have been doing some testing but can't seem to get above 20kbps! I also tried download the same rapidshare link on each computer (at separate times) and the one right next to the router downloads around 100kbps, while this one runs less than 10kbps! Both say 'excellent - 54Mbps', sometimes this one in the separate room says 36Mbps but still... The driver that I currently have installed is from the disk that came with my wireless card. I went to the zonet site and downloaded the newest, but for some reason the card wouldn't work at all after that, so I had to uninstall and put the old driver back on. The card is a Zonet ZEW1601.
Any advice will be greatly appreciated, this is very frustrating!

Thanks!

No_Strings

join:2001-11-22
The OC

No_Strings

Tune your TCP/IP parameters.

To test: »/tweaks

To fix: »/drtcp

Entelligence
Ek Lite
Premium Member
join:2002-04-24
Santa Barbara, CA

Entelligence

Premium Member

I tried running the test but I don't think it's working for me. It starts off downloading the file fine, my network useage shows as it should for downloading a file (besides the fact that it's slow!), then after a minute or so it just stops. The first time I tried it, I waited about 10 minutes and then restarted it. This time I have been waiting about 30 minutes and it still just says 'downloading file of size 1024000' with little network usage. I get small spikes of 2-8kbps every 30-60 seconds. Is it supposed to work like this or am I experienceing a bug?

Thanks!
Entelligence

Entelligence

Premium Member

I tried it in both IE and FireFox and it's just not working for me! Is there any other way I can find the correct values to use with Dr TCP?

Thanks!

No_Strings

join:2001-11-22
The OC

No_Strings

It's a java applet, so I'll assume you have that loaded and properly working. »www.java.com/en/download ··· stvm.xml

If you can't even get the test file downloaded, though, the connection is worse than the tweak test can fix.

Common culprits are 2.4GHz phones, baby monitors, wireless cameras, security systems and microwave ovens. Some will interfere always, some only when used. Not all will disrupt every setup, so it's a little bit of trial & error to find the problem.

Other wireless LANs can conflict, so change channels on the router (do you "see" other networks around you?).

I'm concerned about the updated driver not working (that might be a clue, or might be a bad driver). Double-check to make sure you grabbed the right one for your card and Google for others with similar problems with the driver.

Entelligence
Ek Lite
Premium Member
join:2002-04-24
Santa Barbara, CA

Entelligence

Premium Member

Click for full size
Yes, the applet loads and starts properly. I do have a 2.4 ghz phone, but have never had any conflicts with phones in previous setups....it may just be the model though. Anyway, last resort will be to buy a new phone. I do pick up something else in my network range, as you can see in the screenshot (Workgroup is mine). I had just figured that was the other network card or something. As far as the driver goes, I wish they had a 'standalone' version. The only one that I could find was a single install file and it installed config/management tools along with the new driver. It's a year newer.

Thanks!
Entelligence

Entelligence

Premium Member

Okay, so i've done some further investigating. I took my computer out into the main room (with the router) and it works fast & fine...so I know it's not my configurations. I also have all of my phones unplugged (until I get this resolved). I have messed around a bit with the channels and it is seeming to make better progress now on channel 1 as opposed to 6. I'm not getting great speeds, but they are good enough for now. My current problem is that my downloads keep erroring. For example I was just downloading a file (around 50/kbps), and around 50% all data froze (data rate/% done/estimated time remaining/etc). The internet works fine (as I'm using it right now without problems) but this is very annoying. Obviously I will have to find a download manager to use to resume these broken downloads. But what is the reason for this? I'm not losing connection? Any other easy tips that help connections through walls and/or around corners? The room that this computer is in is only about 20 feet away from the router...just around the corner or through a couple walls.

Thanks!
Thanks!

No_Strings

join:2001-11-22
The OC

No_Strings

Reception that poor (unusable at 20') is usually the result of a couple of things:

- Interference (you're working on eliminating that variable, although some sources will be difficult to see like wireless security systems)
- Crap hardware - poor build quality, especially some vendors, means that you can get a lemon unit.
- Faulty drivers (not to be confused with Fawlty Towers, but that's another story) Make sure you have the current router firmware and adapter driver.
- Power saving - I mention this a lot, but when network devices are configured to take advantage of low-power modes, they will sleep or otherwise flake out after a period of time.
- Bad power (rare, but it happens - you'd likely notice it messing up other things.
- Difficult physical environment - metal reflects, water absorbs. Hidden duct work or plumbing had caused hair loss before.

Try other router chennels besides 1.
Make sure it's secure so that someone else isn't using the bandwidth.
Change the position of the router and the antenna.
Try a reflector - www.freeantennas.com
Make sure that the antenna connections on the router and the adapter are properly tightened.

Florida Dan
Premium Member
join:2001-07-06
Boynton Beach, FL

Florida Dan to Entelligence

Premium Member

to Entelligence
FWIW...I was having big time problems with the wireless connection to my wife's fairly new PC one flight up and diagonally across from the router. I don't know if one, several, or all of these steps did the trick but here's how I fixed things:

1) Disabled the USB adapter's software and switched to XP's network connection wizard.

2) Adjusted the PC's MTU from 1500 to 1492.

3) Switched the router channel from 6 to 1.

4) Repositioned both the router antenna and USB adapter (dongle?) so their lengths were roughly parallel to each other, albeit a good 50 feet apart. Sounds goofy but this alone made a significant improvement.

All has been well for several weeks now and apparently my marriage is once again secure. HTH

cacroll
Eventually, Prozac becomes normal
Premium Member
join:2002-07-25
Martinez, CA

cacroll to Entelligence

Premium Member

to Entelligence
said by Entelligence:

I have done a lot of reading lately and tried a lot of different things, but haven't been able to fix the problem . I have two computers running wireless (zonet 802.11g). One is right next to the router, and the other is in another room. The one in the separate room is getting dial-up speeds (I have comcast). I downloaded NetMeter and have been doing some testing but can't seem to get above 20kbps! I also tried download the same rapidshare link on each computer (at separate times) and the one right next to the router downloads around 100kbps, while this one runs less than 10kbps! Both say 'excellent - 54Mbps', sometimes this one in the separate room says 36Mbps but still...


Do you know for sure that the router isn't defective (what make / model?)?

Have you done a site survey?
»nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2 ··· ent.html

Have you tried similar downloads on the other computer? Have you tried attaching either computer by Ethernet, and making sure that Comcast isn't involved in the problem?
»nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2 ··· ial.html
»nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2 ··· ing.html

Entelligence
Ek Lite
Premium Member
join:2002-04-24
Santa Barbara, CA

1 edit

Entelligence

Premium Member

said by cacroll:
Do you know for sure that the router isn't defective (what make / model?)?

Have you done a site survey?
»nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2 ··· ent.html

Have you tried similar downloads on the other computer? Have you tried attaching either computer by Ethernet, and making sure that Comcast isn't involved in the problem?
»nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2 ··· ial.html
»nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2 ··· ing.html
It works fine on a computer right next to the router. Also, I took my computer out yesterday and plugged it into the monitor and keyboard next to the router...wireless speeds were great. I'm still trying to pinpoint the problem step by step

Does anyone have any suggestions for pinpointing? For example I've unplugged all the phones in my house. What about the other network i'm picking up (in my screenshot posted above). Is that a neighbors network for sure or could it be something else? I will post some pictures of my setup tonight (hopefully) or tomorrow so you can see the exact range/obstruction/etc that i'm dealing with and see if you guys can notice any obvious problems. Also the updated driver from the manufacturer's site still doesn't work. I can install it and view the networks, but it will never connect past 'acquiring IP address'. I uninstalled and put the old driver (that came with the card) on and it works just fine (1/2 ass I should say). Any ideas on this?

Thanks again!
LLigetfa
join:2006-05-15
Fort Frances, ON

LLigetfa

Member

Did you try also unplugging your neighbor's cordless phone? Maybe they have other wireless gear like stereo speakers or a baby monitor.

Maybe you need better antennas or better positioning of antennas. There may be disparity in power between the AP and the client.

cacroll
Eventually, Prozac becomes normal
Premium Member
join:2002-07-25
Martinez, CA

cacroll to Entelligence

Premium Member

to Entelligence
said by Entelligence:
said by cacroll:
Do you know for sure that the router isn't defective (what make / model?)?

Have you done a site survey?
»nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2 ··· ent.html

Have you tried similar downloads on the other computer? Have you tried attaching either computer by Ethernet, and making sure that Comcast isn't involved in the problem?
»nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2 ··· ial.html
»nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2 ··· ing.html
It works fine on a computer right next to the router. Also, I took my computer out yesterday and plugged it into the monitor and keyboard next to the router...wireless speeds were great. I'm still trying to pinpoint the problem step by step

Does anyone have any suggestions for pinpointing? For example I've unplugged all the phones in my house. What about the other network i'm picking up (in my screenshot posted above). Is that a neighbors network for sure or could it be something else? I will post some pictures of my setup tonight (hopefully) or tomorrow so you can see the exact range/obstruction/etc that i'm dealing with and see if you guys can notice any obvious problems. Also the updated driver from the manufacturer's site still doesn't work. I can install it and view the networks, but it will never connect past 'acquiring IP address'. I uninstalled and put the old driver (that came with the card) on and it works just fine (1/2 ass I should say).


Are you "Workgroup"? Or "06B4..."?

How about something more objective than "It works fine on a computer right next to the router."? The Wireless Network Connection wizard is pretty, but doesn't tell you a lot. Netstumbler might give you a more complete picture, including some useful statistics.

Run Netstumbler at your normal location, then plugged in to the monitor and keyboard. Compare the readings. Eliminate the unknowns, one unknown at a time.
»nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2 ··· ial.html

Entelligence
Ek Lite
Premium Member
join:2002-04-24
Santa Barbara, CA

1 edit

Entelligence

Premium Member

Click for full size
I am 'Workgroup'. This is what I came up with from NetStumbler. I noticed that some of the fields ('SNR', and the 'signal's) flickered on and off sometimes. I also noticed that my beacon interval is only 1/10 of the other network, and the 'Flags' field is much higher than the other. As noted in the screen shot, the signal was flickering between 65 and about 85 every few seconds. Notice anything that really stands out as being a problem?

Thanks again!

No_Strings

join:2001-11-22
The OC

No_Strings

Ask your neighbor what brand of wireless he's using - you're getting a better signal from his than from yours.
LLigetfa
join:2006-05-15
Fort Frances, ON

LLigetfa

Member

If your neighbor is overdriving his with an amp on channel 6, he can actually overlap you regardless of whether you go on channel 1 or 11. It is a common misconception that channels 1, 6 and 11 do not overlap. See »en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IE ··· tibility

You might try to get him to move to one end instead of the middle and you move to the other end.

cacroll
Eventually, Prozac becomes normal
Premium Member
join:2002-07-25
Martinez, CA

cacroll

Premium Member

said by LLigetfa:

If your neighbor is overdriving his with an amp on channel 6, he can actually overlap you regardless of whether you go on channel 1 or 11. It is a common misconception that channels 1, 6 and 11 do not overlap. See »en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IE ··· tibility

You might try to get him to move to one end instead of the middle and you move to the other end.


No speed indicated for neighbour. Isn't that what a 108M SuperG AP might look like on NS?
SipSizzurp
Fo' Shizzle
Premium Member
join:2005-12-28
Houston, TX

4 edits

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The fact that the connection works fine when you are near the router, and the fact that the neighbors signal is so much stronger than your own is very clear evidence that your client radio is suffering from interference, and possibly the access point as well. Like cacroll points out, this neighbor of yours is probably running a new MIMO device that is hogging all 11 channels. I have encountered a few installs where there was an enormous amount of high power traffic that eclipsed my signal enough to keep it from working all together. A simple remedy for this is to put an amplifier on the access point and one on the problem computer. Since doubling the distance from the antenna divides the field intensity by a factor of four, the neighbor seems to have a lot more juice than than he needs, and would not suffer a bit if you solved your problem by adding a pair of these little jewels here ;
»www.provantage.com/hawki ··· W02E.htm
They have 3 power settings that will allow you to pump it up only as much as you need to take back control of your wireless system. I have 7 of them in operation for various reasons, and they will indeed put your signal on the offense, not the defence, and will clear up your bandwidth and interference problem. If you happen to have firmware on the access point that allows power control, do not exceed 50 Mw drive into the hawking. The Hawking's output power saturates with about 70 Mw input drive, but they work very well with 20 or 30 Mw drive. Over 60 Mw drive makes my bandwidth drop from 27 Mb to about 12 Mb throughput, which would be counter-productive for lan to lan file transfers or streaming video content. (Most Wi-Fi devices are 25 - 35 Mw, which is perfect). Part of the problem is also due to the fact that his access point cannot hear yours, and is transmitting with-out regard to your signal. Wi-Fi protocol is designed not to transmit when the access point detects other traffic. By amplifying your signal, his access point will begin to hear your access point and will start to share the frequency nicely, as it is designed to work, thereby fixing the problem in another way, in addition to your radios having a better signal from each other. Google for "Hidden Node" and you will find more detailed explanations of the synchronizing element of the protocol. Since your access point has plenty of signal from next door, there is no danger of it transmitting over his. They will both begin working together by inter-meshing the transmit and receive times and share the frequency equally as they are designed to do.

Edit - If you want to test this theory out before the amplifiers arrive, put your system right on channel 6 like his is. This will increase the chances of his radio hearing yours, and may if fact do a lot to help your problem.

Edit 2 - Just noticed that you had been on Ch 6 already. It really looks like amplifier time.

Entelligence
Ek Lite
Premium Member
join:2002-04-24
Santa Barbara, CA

Entelligence

Premium Member

Man, that sucks I need to deal out more cash just because of my neighbor . I would talk to him but I don't know which neighbor it's coming from. I wouldn't suppose there's any way to avoid this problem without spending $80 on an amp?
SipSizzurp
Fo' Shizzle
Premium Member
join:2005-12-28
Houston, TX

SipSizzurp

Premium Member

It would be good if you could try the amps or maybe a newer higher performance router before buying it. Do you have any friends that could loan you anything like that to try ? You may also try some better antennas like LLigetfa suggested. A pair of directionals pointed at each other may provide a solution as well. The bad thing about the amps is that you will probably need two, not one. The good thing about them is that they are your most likely solution. You would also need to verify the type of antenna connectors on the router and the computer card. The AMP is rp-sma type, but there are adaptors to change to any type of connector.

No_Strings

join:2001-11-22
The OC

No_Strings to Entelligence

to Entelligence
I mentioned this earlier, but consider building a reflector: »www.freeantennas.com/

With some inexpensive materials, you can focus the energy of your wireless devices in the desired direction. Depending on the direction of the offending interference, a reflector may also help block it.

cacroll
Eventually, Prozac becomes normal
Premium Member
join:2002-07-25
Martinez, CA

cacroll to Entelligence

Premium Member

to Entelligence
said by Entelligence:

Man, that sucks I need to deal out more cash just because of my neighbor . I would talk to him but I don't know which neighbor it's coming from. I wouldn't suppose there's any way to avoid this problem without spending $80 on an amp?


This may be a problem that requires more diplomacy than technology.

The easy part will be putting NetStumbler on a laptop, strolling around your block, and triangulating the neighbours signal. NetStumbler was designed for this, the name "NetStumbler" has a reason.

The hard part will be discussing this with your neighbour. Having spent a couple hundred extra dollars on his custom high power LAN, he's not going to be terribly interested in muting it.

But you'll have to start here. If you have one neighbour with WiFi, I'd bet that next year, you'll have a second. The merchandisers of America won't rest til you do. What happens when you have to crank your system up because of a second neighbour too?
»nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2 ··· ifi.html

The FCC used to police the airwaves, but that was for large, commercial operations. These little radios are unlicensed. And you can buy them in any Walmart yet.
LLigetfa
join:2006-05-15
Fort Frances, ON

LLigetfa

Member

Even if you don't have the luxury of a laptop to "stumble" around with, there are still some things that can be done from a desktop. Any large metallic object held between your receiving antenna and the offending neighbor will show a change in signal level and help to narrow down which neighbor is the culprit. If your AP and your neighbor's are in different directions you can fashion a reflector for the antenna that improves your signal and degrades the neighbor's.

Try talking to the neighbor to avoid an escalating war of the amps. You could always move. I'm glad I chose to keep my neighbors at a distance by building my home on 18 acres.