What’s Messing with Your Wi-Fi? A Few Things May be Responsible

Wireless connectivity is a staple in modern business, which makes it all the more frustrating when you experience challenges connecting your devices to your business’ Wi-Fi. To help remedy this, we’ve composed a brief list of possible fixes to your Wi-Fi worries.

First, Is Your Wireless Actually the Problem?

So far, we’ve gone about this whole endeavor under the assumption that your wireless network is the problem. It is important, however, that we rule out other potential problems before we devote any time to solving the one we assume is the issue. Otherwise, we could very well waste time barking up the wrong tree. Maybe it isn’t your Wi-Fi infrastructure at all, and your Internet service provider is suffering from downtime. Cover your bases by checking in with your ISP, and running speed tests on both a wired and wireless connection to see how they compare.

Second, Make Sure Your Equipment is Up-to-Date

As time passes, it is important that you ensure that your wireless infrastructure has its internal software updated. If you haven’t been doing so, this could prove to be the source of your problems. Updating the drivers and firmware on these pieces of equipment should be your next troubleshooting step.

Third, Consider Where Your Router is Placed

Where your router is in the office can also have a significant impact on the strength and reach of your wireless signal. Walls, conflicting signals from other devices, and effectively everything else can potentially block some or all of your business’ Wi-Fi. We generally recommend that the router is placed in a central location in your office to equalize everyone’s experience, and to use more than one router if your business is large enough.

Fourth, Determine If There’s Just Too Much Traffic for the Network

Your business’ Internet connectivity is a finite resource—basically, the more people trying to get a piece of the pie, the thinner those slices are going to be. In terms of your network, the more devices you have on it, the less bandwidth each will get. Using a router that is compatible with multiple bands allows you to assign different devices to a certain band to optimize the speeds you can achieve. Devices that use more data should be assigned to the 5.4 GHz connection, while others that don’t necessarily need the speed or consistency can be assigned to other bands. You could also consider connecting some of your devices through a wired connection, which might work better for the device itself as well as leave more room on your wireless network.

Fifth, Consider an Investment in Updated Hardware

Like any other piece of your business’ IT, your networking equipment will gradually grow more and more out of date and wear down over the years. If it’s been a few years, it may be high time for a hardware refresh and therefore time to purchase a new modem and/or router.

We’re Here to Help!

XFER is Michigan’s best source for business IT support, and as such, we’re more than qualified (and happy) to assist you in getting what you need and expect from your business’ wireless network—not to mention the rest of its IT. Find out more about how we can assist you by calling 734-927-6666 / 800-GET-XFER.