Newb advice, is there a faq somewhere on testing signal/speeds??

[jhferry]

I am considering the jump to N. I see this forum filled with people who know how to test. I am looking for true signal strength and Dl speed. How can I accomplish this?

 

[stevech]

I am considering the jump to N. I see this forum filled with people who know how to test. I am looking for true signal strength and Dl speed. How can I accomplish this?

download speed limited by Internet Service Provider and kind of modem. Most often, 11g with a decent signal is faster.

11n's benefit is to those few that have really fast Internet Service and have found Internet Host Computers that will stream at that rate (few do). And, 11n is good for faster file transfers among your LAN's PCs.

 

[jhferry]

Hi Steve,

I am really talking about throughput. I am not talking about the actual DL speeds from the WAN. I guess I misspoke.

I do not have any competing SSID's but I am on another floor. I have one Buffalo G router and a Buffalo bridge which has my Xbox, Directv etc. I stream from my PC upstairs. From the Admin console it tells me what % my connection from the bridge to the router is but its BS. I move the thing a half an inch and it jumps 30%.

So I am looking at maybe having an N based router as an access point. I have a linksys that I flashed with DD WRT that I have in Bridge mode that would serve as my N bridge. The Buffalo Router would remain the FW and Wan router (I think) and all my Wife and kids can be on the G band and not slow me down.

Anyway, I am just trying to see If there are any tools I can load on my laptop that would tell me:
a) the true throughput between the laptop and Router
b) the true speed between the bridge and the router (I would plug the laptop into the bridge)
c) Is there anything interfering

I want to see where I am and see if its worth the investment.

 

[stevech]

Hi Steve,

I am really talking about throughput. I am not talking about the actual DL speeds from the WAN. I guess I misspoke.

I do not have any competing SSID's but I am on another floor. I have one Buffalo G router and a Buffalo bridge which has my Xbox, Directv etc. I stream from my PC upstairs. From the Admin console it tells me what % my connection from the bridge to the router is but its BS. I move the thing a half an inch and it jumps 30%.

So I am looking at maybe having an N based router as an access point. I have a linksys that I flashed with DD WRT that I have in Bridge mode that would serve as my N bridge. The Buffalo Router would remain the FW and Wan router (I think) and all my Wife and kids can be on the G band and not slow me down.

Anyway, I am just trying to see If there are any tools I can load on my laptop that would tell me:
a) the true throughput between the laptop and Router
b) the true speed between the bridge and the router (I would plug the laptop into the bridge)
c) Is there anything interfering

I want to see where I am and see if its worth the investment.

Quick way to test throughput is freeware called Qcheck.
iPerf is freeware but not easy to learn.

interference - I don't know of a freeware time-domain reporting tool for channel utilization measurements. That's what you need. AirMagnet is one not free. Perhaps someone knows. Most free stuff just reports on SSIDs in range which tells you nothing about how busy that SSID is. If the interference exists and is non-WiFi, you first change channels to see if you can get away from it. Otherwise, you'll need a spectrum analyzer tool. But interference is what it is and unless your home is the emitter (2.4 GHz non-WiFi things- cordless phone, analog security camera, baby monitor, etc), there's not much you can do except change channels.

 

[thiggins]

There are links to a couple of easy-to-use throughput measurement tools here 5 Ways To Fix Slow 802.11n Speed

Site survey tools here:How To Fix Your Wireless Network - Part 2: Site Surveying

As Stevech noted, the site survey tools won't tell you how busy the surrounding networks are, but you'll be able to see relative signal strength and channels

For non WiFi RF detection in the 2.4 GHz band, the $99 Wi-Spy 2.4i works well.

 

[jhferry]

That sounds like a good start guys. Before I think of upgrading let me see what I have first.