How to Install a Wireless LAN

Mar. 3 -- Editor's Note: PC Magazine has partnered with Wiley Books to create a series of PC Magazine and ExtremeTech books. In PC Magazine's Guide to Home Networking Contributing Editor, networking expert and Crosstalk Communications founder Les Free offers a comprehensive guide to network connectivity in the home. Here, we reproduce his step-by-step primer on one of the most popular, and often most difficult, home networking tasks: installing a functioning wireless network.

You can purchase the complete book online at Amazon.com.

Before You Install

Before you begin to install your wireless network, you should have a good understanding of the capabilities and limitations of your wireless network hardware. In this chapter, I'll guide you through the process of installing and configuring your wireless network.

In this chapter, you'll see how toDetermine the best location for your wireless access pointInstall wireless adapters in desktop and notebook computersSecure your wireless LAN against intruders

You've read the book up to this point, you've gone out and bought everything you need, and you're ready to get started. For most people—myself included—your first inclination is to put the wireless access point or router where it is most convenient, hook it up, and leave it at that.

You can certainly do this, and your network may even work as well as you had hoped. But sometimes the most convenient location for your access point isn't the best location. Walls, wiring, and seemingly innocent nearby objects (including fish tanks, cordless phone base stations, and filing cabinets) can interfere with the signal path between the AP and your wireless laptops. Wireless networks use radio waves to communicate, and those radio waves are subject to the laws of physics. If there is a large metal (or water-filled) object between your AP and your favorite Web-surfing couch, the radio signal simply can't get through. If this happens, you will experience slow, intermittent, or no connection between the laptop and the AP. Unless you absolutely must install your AP in a given location, it is well worth the time and effort to determine the best location for your AP.

To do this, you need to perform what network professionals call a site survey. The survey will help you identify possible problem spots in your wireless coverage area so that you can place your AP in the best-possible location. The Surveying Your Wireless LAN section later in this chapter provides detailed instructions for conducting the survey.

Once you've determined the best place to put your AP, you'll need to decide how to connect the AP to the rest of your equipment. If you are adding a standalone AP to an existing Ethernet LAN, you'll need to run an Ethernet cable from the AP to your existing network switch. If you're installing a combination router/firewall/AP device that will connect to a cable or DSL modem, you can either run an Ethernet cable from the modem to the router, or you can move the modem so that it is close to the router.

Since you'll need to install at least one wireless client adapter to perform your site survey, I'll cover that topic first. In the following sections of this chapter, I'll guide you through installing and configuring the rest of your wireless network.

Installing Wireless Adapters

Each wireless computer on your wireless network must have a wireless adapter installed. As you learned in Chapter 4, wireless adapters are available in a variety of form factors, including PCI cards for desktop PCs, CardBus and PC Cards for laptop PCs, and USB adapters for both desktops and laptops.

There are hundreds of wireless adapters on the market today, so it simply isn't possible to give you detailed installation instructions for each one. But having installed dozens of wireless adapters myself, I can give you some helpful hints and tips that may save you some aggravation or a call to the vendor's tech support hotline. The number-one tip I can give you for all of these adapters is to READ THE INSTRUCTIONS packed with your card!

Note: Many wireless adapters come with driver software that must be installed before you install the hardware. If you install the adapter first, the computer will not have the proper drivers installed. The adapter won't work, and you won't be happy.

In the following sections, I'll describe the basic installation steps required for each type of adapter (PCI, USB, and CardBus). You'll also need to configure the software for your wireless adapter; these steps are the same for all wireless adapters.

PCI Wireless Adapters

PCI wireless adapters used in desktop computers can be difficult to install. You'll need to open your PC's case, identify an available PCI card slot, install the card, and put the case back together. This simple PC surgery is second nature to those of us who work with PCs every day, but if you're squeamish about opening up your computer, you may want to opt for professional installation.

To install a wireless PCI card in your computer, follow these steps:

Read the instructions packed with your card. Most cards require that you install driver software from a CD packed with the card. Some cards require that you install the software before you install the card; others require that the CD be in the drive after you install the card. Install the software if necessary, then shut down your computer. Disconnect the AC power cord from your computer. If you need to move the computer to remove the case, you may have to disconnect the remaining cables.

Remove the case or access door from your computer. Figure 7-1 shows a typical desktop PC with the access door removed.Locate an empty PCI card slot. Figure 7-2 shows two empty PCI card slots.Remove the blank cover from the rear of the PCI slot. Insert the card into the empty slot. Make sure the card is fully seated in the slot. You may have to push down firmly on the card, but you shouldn't have to force it.Replace the screw you removed in Step 4.

Close the case and reconnect the cables.Orient the antenna so that is vertical. See Figure 7-3.Install the driver software (if necessary), and configure the wireless adapter to operate with your wireless network. I'll cover this step in detail in the Configuring Your Wireless Adapter section.