Does anyone here still use 802.11a?

[Special K]

Here is the situation: I am in an apartment and have cable internet running into a Linksys WRT54GL router. I have a D-Link DWL-G122 USB wireless adapter in my PC. I have been getting intermittent disconnects ever since I moved to this place. It always requires either rebooting the router, rebooting my PC, or both. The D-Link software is showing no less than 11 other wireless networks in range. I suspect the problem is due to interference.

Would I be able to solve this problem by getting one of those tri-mode routers (a/b/g) and running on 802.11a? Does anyone here do this, and do you have any comments on the setup?

 

[spidey07]

in business environments it is actually preferred to run A. Well better put, you normally run both.

It is faster than G. So if you are having RF problems (the big problem with G), then do A.

 

[cross6]

I prefer A actually. Living in an dense apt building, it's hard to get G working either from channel conflicts or 5 close neighbors with 2.4ghz phones.

 

[nweaver]

We use A at work as well. We run 6 wireless test labs, so G gets pretty nasty. We also have wireless form several neighbors. THink I see 27 unique beacons sitting at my desk (if the cages are all open)

 

[n0cmonkey]

I've been thinking about switching to A, but I'm not having problems with G really. At my apt. I see 5-8 wireless networks (including my own). All except one are sitting on default channls (I can't remember which 2 are the typical defaults, someone else can post them).

 

[Special K]

Originally posted by: n0cmonkey
I've been thinking about switching to A, but I'm not having problems with G really. At my apt. I see 5-8 wireless networks (including my own). All except one are sitting on default channls (I can't remember which 2 are the typical defaults, someone else can post them).

1, 6, and 11 are the defaults, but all of the others besides those 3 overlap with more than one, so for minimal interference, you should theoretically pick the least used of either 1, 6, or 11. I am on 1 right now, which only has 1 other network, and am still getting just as many disconnects as before.

EDIT: A quick search turned this up:

Wireless Channels

 

[n0cmonkey]

Originally posted by: Special K

Originally posted by: n0cmonkey
I've been thinking about switching to A, but I'm not having problems with G really. At my apt. I see 5-8 wireless networks (including my own). All except one are sitting on default channls (I can't remember which 2 are the typical defaults, someone else can post them).

1, 6, and 11 are the defaults, but all of the others besides those 3 overlap with more than one, so for minimal interference, you should theoretically pick the least used of either 1, 6, or 11. I am on 1 right now, which only has 1 other network, and am still getting just as many disconnects as before.

EDIT: A quick search turned this up:

Wireless Channels

I think mine is on 9, and I have minimal interferance.

 

[spyordie007]

Most of the companies we've been working with lately do both. A lot of good APs are capable of running both simultaniously so the extra costs to support both is minimal.

Extra flexibility with clients as well as with frequency bands is going to help improve your QoS.

he D-Link software is showing no less than 11 other wireless networks in range.

Brutal, does it also show which channels they are on? As was mentioned there are really only 3 non-overlapping channels so when the density gets that high you are going to run into interference problems (assuming those other networks are active).

One of the nicest things I like about the Cisco Airespace infrastructure (which I frequently do deployments of for work) is that it can dynamically adjust the channel and power of the transmitters to help minimize the interference. Unfortunetly this isnt really going to be an option in your appartment...