Networking Blog: Everything you need to know about networking

Tag: Home networking

  • A guide on how to set up your home network

    A guide on how to set up your home network

    Setting up your home network might be intimidating at first but if you follow some of the best practices and tips below, you should be able to set up your home network relatively quickly. Most routers and Wi-Fi systems will also guide you through the installation and setup process which will prompt you what to do next and give you information and hints what you need to do at each step.

    Best practices and tips on how to create a fast, reliable and secure network:

    1. Choose the right router or Wi-Fi system

    Consider a dual-band or tri-band router or Wi-Fi system (read more about Wi-Fi in my blog post about Wi-Fi standards) with Wi-Fi 6 or newer which also has a couple of Gigabit ethernet ports (or higher speeds depending on your use case) to connect devices like computers, TVs or game consoles via ethernet cable to have a stable connection. Wi-Fi should be reserved for devices like tablets, smartphones, laptops or smart home devices. If the ethernet ports are not enough, consider getting a switch to increase the number of ethernet ports.

    Other functions that you should consider include a firewall for network protection, parental controls if you want to block certain websites for your children and guest network or separate IoT networks so your guests do not have access to your main network and smart home devices can be separated from it as well.

    2. Placement of your router and Wi-Fi system

    For better Wi-Fi coverage it is important that the router or Wi-Fi nodes are placed in a centralised location and are not obstructed by walls or furniture. If you place your devices higher up, this usually provides better signal coverage, too.

    3. Network security

    Securing your network properly is important so no unauthorised person can get access to it. It is best practice to change the default username and password of the web interface of the router. Often this is just admin/admin which is easy to guess by attackers. Also change the default Wi-Fi SSID and password and make sure that the password is strong and not easy to guess. Do not reveal any personal information or the brand or model of your router or Wi-Fi system in the SSID. To encrypt your Wi-Fi, use WPA3 encryption. Make sure that this is supported by your devices. Some devices do not support it and you may need to choose WPA2 encryption or use the mixed WPA2/WPA3 mode if the router or Wi-Fi system manufacturer offers it.

    Lastly, turn off remote access or remote monitoring features if you don’t need them.

    4. Do regular firmware updates

    It is important to do regular firmware updates as manufacturers release new features, improve performance but also patch vulnerabilities. Do this on a regular basis or let the router or Wi-Fi system update automatically.

    5. Use ethernet connections

    As already mentioned, use ethernet connections instead of Wi-Fi for more stable connections for computers, TVs and gaming consoles. These devices will then receive the full bandwidth which they wouldn’t get over Wi-Fi because of signal loss over distance and overheads caused by the Wi-Fi protocols which lower the possible connection speeds.

    If you set up your home network according to these steps, you should be able to improve your network speeds and network experience. Getting the network set up correctly is especially important for working at home and for having reliable connections for streaming and gaming.

  • Understand the different Wi-Fi standards: What are 802.11ac, Wi-Fi 6 or 802.11be (Wi-Fi 7)?

    Understand the different Wi-Fi standards: What are 802.11ac, Wi-Fi 6 or 802.11be (Wi-Fi 7)?

    Wi-Fi has been around since 1997 and is a wireless protocol developed by the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) under the technical 802.11 name. Since the start of the first Wi-Fi generation there have been several improvements and enhancements made to Wi-Fi so there now is a range of different Wi-Fi standards and generations. The different Wi-Fi standards typically have a technical name such as 802.11ac or 802.11ax, with the newest one being 802.11be. Recently, more user-friendly names have been introduced to make it easier for users to distinguish the different Wi-Fi generations, for example Wi-Fi 5 for the 801.11ac standard, Wi-Fi 6 for the 802.11ax standard and Wi-Fi 7 for the newest standard.

    Wi-Fi uses different frequencies to carry the data wirelessly from the router or access point to the end device. Traditionally, only the 2.4 GHz band has been used which offers a wider range but lower throughout. Over time, the 5 GHz band has been added to increase the throughput, but this band has a lower range than the 2.4 GHz band. Most recently, the 6 GHz band has been introduced which greatly increases the throughput; however, the range is again a bit lower than on the 5 GHz band.

    Most improvements have been made in the following areas:

    • Speed: The throughput has been increased from Wi-Fi generation to Wi-Fi generation
    • Performance: The Wi-Fi performance has been improved
    • Improved technologies: New technologies have been developed to better handle multiple devices simultaneously, reduce latency, improve stability and new Wi-Fi bands have been introduced over time (5 GHz and 6 GHz)
    • Increased number of radios: Over time, Wi-Fi systems moved away from having only a single radio and many systems on the market are now dual-band, tri-band or even quad-band systems which greatly improves Wi-Fi signal strength and coverage

    Benefits of using newer Wi-Fi standards such as Wi-Fi 6, 6E (introducing the 6 GHz band) or Wi-Fi 7 include:

    • Faster speeds which lower the time it takes to download something or to complete a backup within your home network
    • Better quality for video streaming or gaming
    • Lower latency for video calls, gaming and AR/VR

    Number of radios

    Old Wi-Fi systems usually only had one radio, the 2.4 GHz radio, which only allowed for vey limited connectivity. Over time, manufacturers have added the so-called dual-band, tri-band and quad-band systems. These systems have more than one radio, for example, a dual-band system offers 2.4 and 5 GHz simultaneously, a tri-band system offers 2.4, 5 and 6 GHz simultaneously and a quad-band system offers 2.4, 2 x 5 GHz and 6 GHz simultaneously which allows end-devices to connect to the optimal frequency and greatly enhances the throughput. In mesh Wi-Fi systems, tri-band or quad-band systems often offer a dedicated backhaul which means that these systems have a dedicated radio for the communications between the different mesh nodes or access points so the radios used for end devices can still use all their bandwidth.

    Wi-Fi standards

    GenerationIEEE standardMaximum speedFrequency bandsYear established
    Wi-Fi 1*802.112 Mbit/s2.4 GHz1997
    Wi-Fi 2*802.11b11 Mbit/s2.4 GHz1999
    Wi-Fi 3*802.11a
    802.11g    		6 Mbit/s
    54 Mbit/s    		5 GHz
    2.4 GHz    		1999
    2003
    Wi-Fi 4802.11n600 Mbit/s2.4, 5 GHz2009
    Wi-Fi 5802.11ac6.933 Mbit/s5 GHz2013
    Wi-Fi 6
    Wi-Fi 6E    		802.11ax9.608 Mbit/s2.4, 5 GHz
    6 GHz    		2021
    Wi-Fi 7802.11be46 Gbit/s2.4, 5 and 6 GHz2024

    * These generation names are not official names. Officially, the generations are only named from Wi-Fi 4 onwards.

    Please note that Wi-Fi 1 to Wi-Fi 4 are now considers legacy standards and my recommendation is to get at least a Wi-Fi 6 system if you plan to buy a new Wi-Fi system now. Wi-Fi 7 devices offer a great amount of throughput but are extremely expensive. Also note that the speeds mentioned above show the optimal speeds. However, due to physical limitations such as walls or ceilings, the actual speed will be lower. Consumer devices also do not have the necessary high-end equipment installed to reach the maximum throughput.

    Understanding the different Wi-Fi standards with all their enhancements, speeds and frequency bands can help you to find a router, access point or mesh Wi-Fi system which suits your needs. Which Wi-Fi standard you need depends on various factors such as if you have a house or a flat, how many devices with which Wi-Fi standards you have, how many bandwidth you need, how fast your internet speed is and if you need high bandwidth within your home network for backups from one device to another or other bandwidth intensive tasks.

  • Which devices make up a home network?

    Which devices make up a home network?

    In today’s day and age having a home network is essential for everyday tasks and working from home. There are several different devices that make up your home network which can communicate with each other and with the internet. This allows you to connect your computer, tablet, smartphone, TV, smart home devices and other electronic devices together so you can share something on your own network like videos or files or you can enjoy external services on the internet like streaming movies, playing online games or simply access your emails or online banking.

    Your home network can be wired or wireless using Wi-Fi depending on your needs. There are several devices than can typically be found in a home network:

    • The modem

    This device is usually the first device in your network as it is connected to your Internet Service Provider (ISP) and converts the internet signal which comes into your home via DSL, coaxial cable or fiber, into another format that your devices can understand.

    • The router

    The router takes the internet connection from your modem and shares it with your devices in your home network like your computer or smartphone. This is either done via Wi-Fi or via ethernet cables. The router also includes a firewall and other security features to protect your home network from viruses and other cyber-attacks.

    Some devices are modem/router combo devices, so you only need one device instead of having a separate modem and a separate router.

    • Access points / Wi-Fi mesh systems

    These systems are designed to extend the Wi-Fi coverage to areas of your home where the Wi-Fi signal of your router cannot get to. You can place an access point or a Wi-Fi mesh system node on different floors of your house to be able to connect to your Wi-Fi. Access Points or Wi-Fi Mesh systems can be connected to your router using ethernet cables which allow for a higher bandwidth because if you connect access points via Wi-Fi, walls and other objects in your house cause interference and you have less bandwidth available for your devices.

    • Switch

    A switch allows you to expand the number of ethernet connections for wired devices like PCs, TVs or printers) if you need more ports than your router offers. There are various sizes of switches which offer different options and port speeds (e.g. 1 Gbps, 2.5 Gbps or 10 Gbps and higher) depending on your needs.

    • End devices

    End devices are the devices that are connected to the network devices like your computer, smartphone, tablet, gaming consoles, TVs and smart home devices to gain access to your local network or the internet.

    Router – Image by Tung Lam from Pixabay

    You can see that there are several devices in your home network that all work together so you can access the internet and make use of your network for filesharing, online gaming, streaming, working from home and much more. Understanding which devices make up a home network is important so you can build your own fast, reliable, secure network according to your needs. To help you even more, there will be more posts coming up about building your home network, the different Wi-Fi standards and much more.