Computer Question

[Ballygrl]

Hoping someone can give me some info.

How do I check my computer to see if someone is using my internet? I called the cable company and they said they couldn't help me, I googled asking that question and I couldn't figure it out.

Also, and not sure if this is related or not. Hubby likes to watch youtube on the weekend, playing music videos, he was using it last night and it constantly stopped and was buffering, so he went to an IP proxy and youtube played great when he was using the proxy. Can anyone tell me why? and could that somehow be related to people using our wireless internet? or are they unrelated?

Thanks!

[CID_0687]

I don't know how to find out how someone is using your internet...but as far as the youtube issue goes, here's what works for me....I usually have to do this once a week.

Unplug your wireless router's power supply for a couple of minutes, then plug it back in...it will reset itself, and your wireless speed will be faster.

[Gray]

Unless you are using an unsecured wireless router, I doubt that you have a problem.

When you use a "Proxy" it is like taking a different path. You may have went a route that had lower traffic.

[Ballygrl]

I don't know how to find out how someone is using your internet...but as far as the youtube issue goes, here's what works for me....I usually have to do this once a week.

Unplug your wireless router's power supply for a couple of minutes, then plug it back in...it will reset itself, and your wireless speed will be faster.

Well that's interesting, so how does resetting it help with the speed? I never heard that before but I'm willing to try it.

[Ballygrl]

Unless you are using an unsecured wireless router, I doubt that you have a problem.

When you use a "Proxy" it is like taking a different path. You may have went a route that had lower traffic.

Not sure if it makes a difference, but we use Linksys Wireless G.

[notluzn]

Stay away from Linksys wireless. I've seen more people hack those than anything. Belkin is one of the best IMO. For some reason someone kept getting into my Linksys wireless network and I had to change PW and Boot them manually.

Also go with the N plus :)

[CID_0687]

Well that's interesting, so how does resetting it help with the speed? I never heard that before but I'm willing to try it.
I don't know exactly how it works...I was having issues with slow internet for a couple of weeks, called a friend of mine that does IT work...He said unplugging the router or the router and the modem should fix it, if not I'd need to contact my ISP...Sometimes I can go with just the router other times I have to unplug the modem as well, and then I've got high speed again.

[oakleaf98]

Stay away from Linksys wireless. I've seen more people hack those than anything. Belkin is one of the best IMO. For some reason someone kept getting into my Linksys wireless network and I had to change PW and Boot them manually.

Also go with the N plus :)

Yeah,stay away from Linksys,one time i tried streaming music through winamp or SAM Broadcaster to another computer i have,every song played for 5 seconds,then got cut off,and the linksys router died ,so i had to buy a Belkin N+ wireless and it's much faster.

Yeah,Linksys is junk,stick with N+ Belkin.

[Ballygrl]

Stay away from Linksys wireless. I've seen more people hack those than anything. Belkin is one of the best IMO. For some reason someone kept getting into my Linksys wireless network and I had to change PW and Boot them manually.

Also go with the N plus :)

Can you tell me how to find them then boot them? I know my wireless is being stolen.

[OldBuzzard]

Can you tell me how to find them then boot them? I know my wireless is being stolen.

Re-booting a WRT54G is very simple. Just unplug the power cord, wait for 30 seconds or so, and then plug it back in. You will have to wait a minute or so for it to re-connect to your modem. It's also possible that you need to re-boot the modem as well, and you re-boot it the same as you do the router. The only difference is that some modems and routers have on/off switches. If you modem has a switch, just turn it off and then back on

There's nothing wrong with the Linksys wireless routers. If you would have said that you had a Netgear, or Belkin, or <insert any other name here> wireless router, there would be people that would say "Stay away from <insert name> because I had one that didn't work".

I've been using a Linksys WRT54G for years with no issues.

Now, regardless of what wireless router you are using, if it's unsecured, someone could very well be using your internet.

Here is a web page that will give you info on how to secure your network. It's especially convient for you since they use a Linksys router interface in explaing how to do some things.

http://compnetworking.about.com/od/wirelesssecurity/tp/wifisecurity.htm

You wouldn't have to do everything that they suggest. I would suggest that you do #s 1, 2, and 3. Anything after that is just "icing on the cake". The first 3 are the most important, and will keep most people out of your network. Also for #2, choose WPA as opposed to WEP encryption as it's much more secure. There are tools available that make 'cracking' WEP encryption very easy.

[Lee Kington]

Can you tell me how to find them then boot them? I know my wireless is being stolen.

In your browser address bar type:
192.168.0.1
and it enter.

Log into the admin on your router.

You can....

tell who is / was connected via your wireless net

set up your wireless net security

[ThrowCop]

Go to http://192.168.1.1 on your computer connected to your Linksys router.

Sign in. User/password should be admin/admin if it's still the default.

Go to DHCP connections & check the number of connections & see if there is something extra there. Mine has my laptop, my printer, my PDA & my TIVO (but you will not see their names, just an assigned IP address like the above [192.168.2.2 or something similar).

You can also make sure only your router and one computer are hooked up, have no downloading or browsing going on & double-click on the network connection icon on the running programs part of your taskbar & see the amount of data uploading/downloading. If it is moving fast & your computer is not currently doing it, then you might have someone using your connection.

There are ways they can hide their presence, but most bandwidth bandits take the easy route.

Just make sure you have security enabled on your router & you should be fine.

[Samm]

Can you tell me how to find them then boot them? I know my wireless is being stolen.

Why don't you just password your router? :eh:

[ThrowCop]

Why don't you just password your router? :eh:Many of the Linksys routers (The WRT54G for instance) default to no protection. You have to set it up for WPA or other security manually. And that includes after a hard reset.

I don't think they do so now but that was standard practice for some time.

[Samm]

Many of the Linksys routers (The WRT54G for instance) default to no protection. You have to set it up for WPA or other security manually. And that includes after a hard reset.

I don't think they do so now but that was standard practice for some time.

Can I get back to you tomorrow? I need to get my daughter's boyfriend over here to interpret what you said. ;)

[MrShotShot]

Is there a guy sitting in front of your house in his van with a laptop?

[Ballygrl]

Thanks guys, I'll try all these suggestions when I boot the main computer tonight.

[Ballygrl]

Is there a guy sitting in front of your house in his van with a laptop?

No, but my next door neighbor was honest with me and told me her nephews were visiting and that they had built in wireless and they were on the internet because of our connection. I told her it was OK. But we've had a bunch of new neighbors move in and our connection has become a crawl at times, so I get the feeling that others are using my connection.

[WorldWatcher]

>


http://compnetworking.about.com/od/wirelesssecurity/tp/wifisecurity.htm


This link was previously supplied and it has some good points. Item title is a link to a little more information.


If you have the instructions for setup of your wireless most are pretty easy.



#1 - Change Router Default User/Password.
Very important, you can set up security all day long but if you leave the system open for someone else to go in it defeats the purpose of trying to secure your system.

#2 - Turn on Encryption
This "scrambles" the information between the computer and the wireless router. This is very important especially if you use your wireless computer for banking and other confidential transaction and it prevents someone snagging passwords. Make sure an use WPA encryption as it is newer and more secure than the older WEP encryption. With WPA you have to enter the "key code" into each wireless device that will connect to the network.

#3 - Change Disable the SSID
The router will "broadcast" the name of your network so it's a good idea to change it from the default. In addition you can disable it's broadcast also, it's like still being able to carry on a conversation in your house without having someone standing on the roof shouting to the world that there are people inside talking.


#4 - MAC Address Filtering
Each device that communicates over a network has a hard coded serial number assigned to it from the manufacturer. This code is known as the MAC Address. If you check in your instructions you can tell your wireless Router to reject any device whose MAC Address you have not registered with the Router to accept. The MAC Address Filter does not have any impact on any devices you are connected to the Router though a regular Ethernet (computer network) connection, they will work fine either way.



************************************************** *****


Whatever you do, I highly recommend making detailed notes about your network and keep them in a safe place.

I just keep my network notes in a Excel file and keep a copy on my laptop and my backup external drive (you could do just as well with Word).

I keep information such as manufacturers, model numbers, serial numbers, etc...

I also keep the default IP address I set up to be able to log into the Router (I mean for a non computer geek whose going to remember 192.168.1.1 [or what every you may change it to]) in addition to the Router User Name and Password and the WPA key code that I need for each device.

I keep track of each wireless device that I register with the network and the MAC Address used in the Router's filter.



Let's be realistic, if you were a spy and someone really needed to hack your system I don't think any of these things would stop them but for your casual freeloader looking for a free ride on the Internet Express? They will go somewhere else.



>>>>

[Hoobeedoo Bejesus]

Name your SSID "Department of Homeland Security"

[Hoobeedoo Bejesus]

There is nothing better about D-Link over Linksys.

You must educate yourself on wireless security and configuration to get the most out of your connection.

Set up security and isolate your router to it's own channel and your are golden.

If you use VOIP or other similar streaming services, you might want to configure priority rules with QoS or similar.

[Gray]

No, but my next door neighbor was honest with me and told me her nephews were visiting and that they had built in wireless and they were on the internet because of our connection. I told her it was OK. But we've had a bunch of new neighbors move in and our connection has become a crawl at times, so I get the feeling that others are using my connection.

Someday when someone hacks something important like your bank account you may want to set your security.