Setting up a wireless network

One of the common questions that I get is how can someone install a wireless network at their home and keep it secure. The concept of securing a home wireless network is an excellent one. It is common for someone to purchase a Wireless Access Point (WAP) or wireless router and plug it in, place it on a shelf and never think about it again. The problem is that the access point (typically) comes with NO security enabled. This makes it easy to install and access....for anyone who can pick up the signal.

The problem is not only can someone potentially monkey around with your network and computers (by accessing your unsecured wireless network), they can also use your network to commit less than legal acts (downloading and uploading copyrighted materials, hacking, etc.). The solution is to secure your network.

If you go to any search engine (like www.google.com), you can run a search for "Secure a Home Wireless Network" and you will get a lot of great articles about how to do this in a general sense. You will also need to consult the manual that came with your wireless router or WAP, each unit is a little different and needs to be configured differently (but, I find that they are fairly easy to configure).

The general tips that I have are:

1. Change the default admin password used to access and configure the WAP (your documentation will tell you what the password is). If you don't do this, anyone can access your WAP and change whatever settings they want and potentially lock you out of your own network.

2. Change the SSID (broadcast name)

3. Enable WPA (or at least WEP, but WPA is much better), this will add a password (that you will set) to your network so people won't be able to access the network without it.

4. Change the channel that WAP will use (if possible). A larger number of WAPs will use channel 6 by default. I usually try to change this to 1 or 11 depending on the number of access points around me (this is more of a geeky thing).

Should you run into a problem where you secure your WAP and down the road forget the password or you can't access it, your documentation will have instructions on how to reset it to the original configuration when you first got it. From there you can reconfigure it, plus most companies that manufacture these have a tech help line that you can call to get help setting a WAP up.

James