What's required to make wireless reliable?

[Mark Knecht]

On Fri, 25 Mar 2005 19:29:27 -0600, Otto Haliburton
<ottohaliburton at comcast.net> wrote:
> 
> 
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Mark Knecht [mailto:markknecht at gmail.com]
> > Sent: Friday, March 25, 2005 7:01 PM
> > To: Otto Haliburton
> > Cc: Getting started with Red Hat Linux
> > Subject: Re: What's required to make wireless reliable?
> >
> > On Fri, 25 Mar 2005 18:24:33 -0600, Otto Haliburton
> > <ottohaliburton at comcast.net> wrote:
> > >
> > >
> > > > -----Original Message-----
> > > > From: Mark Knecht [mailto:markknecht at gmail.com]
> > > > Sent: Friday, March 25, 2005 6:14 PM
> > > > To: Otto Haliburton
> > > > Cc: Getting started with Red Hat Linux
> > > > Subject: Re: What's required to make wireless reliable?
> > > >
> > > > > > I've moved the router to all the convienient places. It got
> > > > > > significantly better, but not nearly good enough.
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Thanks Otto!
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Cheers,
> > > > > > Mark
> > > > > >
> > > > > I don't think it has to be metal to work, in fact I am sure it does
> > not
> > > > and
> > > > > move it vertical also, I mean to a higher location and I also have
> > heard
> > > > > that some brands are not as good as others so you might use the old
> > Frys
> > > > 15
> > > > > day money back thing and try a different brand to see if it is
> > better.
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > > > I'm trying to set up my laptop with ndiswrapper so I can run around
> > > > the house and do some tests. How do I change the default routes to
> > > > stop it from using the eth0 as the default route and make it use
> > > > wlan0?
> > > >
> > > > I.e. - currently uses eth0 to get to the gateway and I want it to use
> > > > wlan0?
> > > >
> > > > Thanks,
> > > > Mark
> > > I think you go to either system or system utilities and there is a
> > network
> > > device under there and you can change it there.  I am currently under xp
> > and
> > > I can't tell you exactly, but you will see it in the menu and you can
> > use
> > > its help to see how to use it.  Better still just google wlan0 it might
> > help
> > > better with the problem you are having.
> > >
> > >
> >
> > Well I figured out that I can do
> >
> > ifdown eth0
> > route del eth0
> > ifup wlan0
> > route add default gw Netgear
> >
> > I can switch to wlan0 and it works. Actually I'm sending this from the
> > laptop using wireless.
> >
> > However it's sort of strange but the results from iwlist wlan0 scan
> > are not valid unless I do ifdown wlan0 ifup wlan0. Unless I do that
> > the value stays the same no matter where I am in the house.
> >
> > -13db 12" from the router
> > -36db here at my desk
> > -50db in my son's room
> > -63db in my wife's office
> > -63db in the kitchen
> well, I am surprised that there is that much difference in the values, I
> would have expected them to be approximately the same because of the
> relative small distance from the router, but you are getting some type of
> interference from something in your house.  To me the relative signal
> strength should be approximately equal since there should be nothing
> interfering with the signal.  If you were outside then it would be a
> different situation, cause the signal can ride on electrical wires and other
> stuff so it would be stronger in certain areas than others.  What would be
> curious if you left your laptop do the processing you were doing in the room
> with the router and see if it ever dropped reception.  If you assume that
> the router is always putting out a signal at the same level then everything
> that is 15 feet from the router should have the same db level then if you
> move to 25 feet then those should be the same etc.  in a perfect world, but
> obviously something is causing a drop depending on where you are in your
> house, unfortunately you don't have the equipment to locate exactly what it
> is.  But now that I look at the figures the relative strength in your son,
> wife's office and kitchen are actually pretty close and your office is
> obviously closer to the router.  Now that I look at it I don't see a
> problem, probably something for Rick or a wireless forum to discuss.
> 

-13db 12" from the router
-36db here at my desk
My desk is in the same room as the router but on the other side of the
bed. Approximately 14 feet east of the router.

-50db in my son's room
This machine is 14 feet east and 10 feet south of the router. Go
through 1 wall to get to this machine.

-63db in my wife's office
This machine is approximately 35 feet south of the router. The signal
either goes through 3 walls or goes outside through a window and then
back in through another window to where my wife's desk is.

-73db in the kitchen  
This is 14 feet east and 55 feet south of the router. The signal most
probably goes through 4 or 5 walls to get here.

Keep in mind that power drop on any signal from a point source drops
as r-cubed. There is nothing between the 12" measurement and the 14
foot measurement.

- Mark