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WiFi Interference Problems in Urban Environments?
EagleEyez asks: "We're running a wireless network (802.11g) in our apartment: four computers connecting to a Linksys wireless router. But living in a high-rise building in a major city (NYC) there are at least 3 other wireless networks nearby, plus numerous microwaves and cordless phones in the apartments around us -- all of which make the wireless network less than stable. We've pumped up the signal strength on our router, but we lose the connection from time to time disrupting our internet connection and LAN games.
What other options are there to help ensure a consistent and reliable network connection? We've tracked the channels the other networks use and chosen one that doesn't conflict, but there's little we can do to prevent the interference from cordless phones, in other people's apartments. As more and more people go wireless, especially in denser urban areas, there has to be some sort of solution..." If you've run into this problem before, did you find any way to solve (or at least mitigate) the outside interference?
This "troll" makes an excellent point. Wireless has its benefits and drawbacks, and especially in an urban environment the drawbacks are enormous. Something as stupid as a neighbor's leaky microwave oven can drive one to tears. A wired ethernet connection is faster, more reliable and more secure.
"We've pumped up the signal strength on our router, but we lose the connection from time to time"
Quite probably other people are doing the same. All of a sudden the spectrum becomes unusable because a couple people decide to blast the hell out of it with excessive power. It's quite easy to pack in a good number of WiFi devices if you follow proper WiFi etiquette
The best course of action is to only use the least amount of signal necessary to get a stable connection & use directional antennas. Directional antennas cause less RF pollution and interference with the rest of the spectrum and when properly aligned give you much better signal to noise ratios. Errant signals from sources not in line with the antennas are rejected much better and your signal should have much less interference.
Using amplifiers isn't the way to a better WiFi world.
Channel 13 is even better, and in the US at least you're basically guaranteed to not get interference from other wifi points, either. It is a bit of a hassle to update the firmware on some cards, though.
I've had this sig for three days.
One solution might be to build power control into these devices. My CDMA cell phone constantly adjusts its transmit power level to the minimum needed to maintain the RF link at an acceptable BER (bit error rate). Besides prolonging battery life, it allows more cell phones to operate in a given area.
Mea navis aericumbens anguillis abundat
work with your neighbors. Find out who has these devices, have everyone lower their power, and configure the same security. Then use roaming (ipv6 does roaming better than ipv4) for your needs, no matter where you are.
And get everyone to drop their power, so long as every part of the apartment is covered what do you care which network you reach.
As for the phones: unless you can knock them off there isn't much to do. Suggest to everyone who has on that a cell phone is easier to use, and perhaps you can solve the problem the easy way.