Lesson 1: Using the Network And Sharing Center to Configure Networking

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CAUTION

Choose a security-enabled wireless network

When you are connecting to a wireless network that is not your own, you should always choose a

security-enabled wireless network if it is available. If you connect to a network that is not secure,

someone with the right tools can see everything that you do, including the websites you visit, the

documents you work on, and the user names and passwords that you use.

If you have previously connected to various wireless networks, the list of these networks is

known as your preferred list. The wireless networks on your preferred list are your preferred

wireless networks. You can click Manage Wireless Networks in the Control Panel and view

saved wireless networks. You can change the order in which your computer attempts to con-

nect to preferred networks by dragging the networks up or down in the list. You can also

change preferences for the network by right-clicking the network and selecting Properties.

NOTE

Manage wireless networks

This icon appears in Control Panel only if your computer is wireless-enabled.

Exam Tip

If you are asked how to set up an automatic connection to a specific wireless network

in the 70-620 examination, one of the steps you need to take is to drag the network to the top of

the list of saved wireless networks.

Preventing Your Computer from Switching Between Wireless Access

Points

When you, or users you support, move around with a mobile wireless-enabled computer, the

computer will switch from one wireless network to another in order to stay connected. This is

normal behavior. However, problems can occur when the same location is within range of sev-

eral wireless networks and a computer tries to switch between these access points even

though the user has not changed location. This can cause temporary interruptions to the

user’s connection, or the computer might lose the connection entirely.

With 802.11b or 802.11g (or 802.11n) routers and access points, the maximum range is up

to 150 feet (46 meters) indoors and 300 feet (92 meters) outdoors. With 802.11a routers

and access points, the maximum range is 50 feet (15 meters) indoors and 100 feet (30

meters) outdoors. These ranges are in optimal conditions with no interference. If a wireless-

enabled computer is, for example, on a desktop that is 50 feet away from one WAP and 70

feet away from another, problems can occur. You can ask the user to move (usually imprac-

tical) or turn off automatic switching in one or both of the network profiles. Lesson 2 of this

chapter, “Using the Network And Sharing Center to Configure Networking,” discusses wire-

less network troubleshooting.