On April 5, 2014 at 14:26, Ernie Gilman said...
You really had to copy the entire first post to make those comments?
In response to highfigh, I don't have a set of answers. I'm asking questions that nobody seems to be asking. Maybe we'll develop a better approach by discussing this. That's my point.
I suggest that we don't blindly assign 1, 6, and 11.
True. How are wifi signals modulated? If it's FM, then "capture ratio" (yes, I remember tuner specs) predicts that your channel 3 will be received better than your neighbor's channel 3, as yours is, presumably, closer.
Why are three channels fine at one site? I need only one. Who needs three? I'm not implying that nobody does, I'm asking who does.
If you're assigning three in one location, are you ignoring what's happening in your area? If, somehow, channels 1 - 5 were full and even had more than one device on each channel, you'd do yourself better by using 11, 8 (or 9), and 6. A)There's channel separation, and B)you don't set up any direct overlaps.
You're doing this in the blind if you're not checking what channels are being used.
This is a discussion of theory, information, and how to go about deciding what to do. And why, if you have more than one to check, do they probably use the same channels?
Jeez, I had to name the spec to discuss the idea? Don't forget adjacent channel interference and adjacent channel selectivity.
Three channels would be needed if a wireless router and two access points are used. Not all equipment is able to roam well when they share an SSID, use the same channel and you're at a location where more than one could be chosen because the signal strength is equal/equivalent. If you only have one radio connection to the network, e.g., the wireless router, it's true that you only need one channel but one good reason to set it to Auto is when people in nearby buildings come home and fire up their WiFi, it may intrude on yours. If a clear channel is available, it moves to that. If not, it stays put AND you get to deal with the interference.
When I wrote that you should check for the used channels, I wasn't instructing you to assign it, only to check it. This kind of assignment should never be done without using a utility like Inssider or something that shows graphical representation of network traffic and settings. Also, you can make the decisions re: channel by looking at the signal strength- if the competing channel is lower than -75dB, you probably won't have problems. If it's -55dB and your WiFi is at -45dB, change it.
Any time channels are selected, it's only after finding out about the neighboring network traffic.
