How not to build your wireless network. Be considerate

Omnia hardware Omnia HW tweaks
1

I have the same Mikrotik R11e-2HPnD wifi card installed. But I can’t set a higher output power:

   		Frequencies:
   			* 2412 MHz [1] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2417 MHz [2] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2422 MHz [3] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2427 MHz [4] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2432 MHz [5] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2437 MHz [6] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2442 MHz [7] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2447 MHz [8] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2452 MHz [9] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2457 MHz [10] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2462 MHz [11] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2467 MHz [12] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2472 MHz [13] (20.0 dBm)
   			* 2484 MHz [14] (disabled)

Has someone a hint for me? The card should be able to provide me with 30dbm.

Thank you very much in advance.

2

You want someone to help you to break the law? :frowning:
And you want to screw up everybody’s wireless connectivity in the neighborhood…not good…

Also, keep in mind that dB is logarithmic unit and cranking up transmit power on router end, does not mean better wireless coverage.

3

To have a good coverage in your own home, you need to KEEP the 5 dBi antennas or in that range. Higher dBi is not really gonna give you that.

Do think about to LEAVE the crowded 2.4 GHz (802.11bgn) as your wifi-network. I am very itchy to tell you how to crank it up, but on the other side @Etz is right. In the end especially 2.4 GHz is going to give your neighbors more trouble and i have a philosophy that your neighbors have rights over you that you do not harm them by any means. So my hands are tight on this. Sorry.

4

I just think and believe that everybody has right to use wireless, not only some guys with devices which have 1W or greater transimit power.

2,4Ghz band is already screwed up badly enough these days.
So unless you live in the middle of Atacama desert or Greenland, I personally will not tell you how you could do it and recommend others doing the same.

Also cranking up only transmit power on the router would not improve coverage, as your router can “scream” louder, but your receiving end (laptop) cannot, so unless you crank it up too, it would be practically useless.
As your laptop can “hear” your Router, but your router would not “hear” your laptop, as it cannot “scream loud” enough to be heard from the same distance.

Using higher gain antennas would be more beneficial, but it has drawbacks on its own.

5

Agreed, but also cranking up the power on 2.4 GHz is not really fixing the cause. The cause is already known (2.4 too crowded). if it is too crowded in a room, we human beings aren’t going to shout to hear each other. That is just rude. Rather you go to another room and talk. In this case…time to make the step towards 5 GHz.

That is the BEST solution there is.

Tips to other guys who want to have a good coverage.

  • Place your Omnia somewhere in the middle of your home and a bit high.

  • Keep the antennas vertical. That way straight beneath the antennas you will have bad coverage and straight above the antennas you will have bad coverage…like a donut

  • Keep in mind that walls block most of the signal, while doors and windows block less signal.

If you follow this, this is going to fix a lot of your problems.

6

I absolutely respect your attitude and opinion. I think the concept of airtime fairness is right in crowded places. I live nearby the forerst and my next neighbor is about 1 km away from me. So it is not Greenland but maybe somehow comparable.

Regarding the antenna. I have 3 dbi antennas because I have many floors (4) - so I need connectivity upstairs and downstairs.

7

I’ll leave this to @Etz , he knows more and i respect his view and opinion. I leave the choice to him.

8

More transmit power would not help you with multifloor coverage, remember dipole antennas emit donut shape field, so only technically correct solution would be, second AP on another floor.

Even higher gain antennas won’t help, as they would squash donut even more…

What I would personally do first, is experimenting with antenna positioning…as you can tilt that donut, by tilting antennas :wink:

If that does not help, I would buy somekind of cheap 20$ dumb AP and just extend my coverage in proper way. Trust me, result would be far better.

4 floors is lot to cover, so most likely your best option would be additional AP’s.

9

I had a mesh setup. One of the reasons for Turris was the open design and the ability to tune my setup. I know that it can not replace my 802.11s mesh but I do not want to use 3 AP’s up 24h 365d. Thank you for your hints - It is appreciated. But then I have to tinker myself - I think it is not a big deal :slight_smile: Thanks anyway.

10

Please consider your clients have to cross the same distance, as it is a bi-directional communication, unlike tv or radio. :wink:

11

Thanks quietsche. Yes I know :slight_smile:

12

Actually, I think that those last posts (~11) should be moved into separate topic…
Maybe some of the moderators could us help with this?

13

conversations like this would better be held on irc, else everyone will max out the tx power (yes guys, there’s an irc channel hint :wink:

14

Well, I still think, that this conversation should be preserved, as it has multiple explanations why you should not actually do it…

Or at least should think twice, before you ever do…

15

I am sorry. Next time I will consider

16

Is there a irc-channel? Did not know that. Although i haven’t been on a irc like 6-7 years or so :laughing:

17

i agree (i live in a city where i can “see” hundreds of APs around - and i keep the output power at a bare minimum), but in some corner cases… i still tend to help people :wink:

18

I would gladly help him, but where from I should actually know, if he indeed lives in the middle of nowhere or in an High rise appartement building, owning 4 middle floors of it?

Decisions…decisions… :stuck_out_tongue:

Also if I write it down here in the board, everyone (who has somekind of problem with coverage) will most likely do it, as they all will think that it would cure all problems they have, when it would actually not.

So your idea about doing it privately or on IRC is pretty appropriate…

It is just my 2 cents about wireless and radio etiquette (it is shared resource), if someone else thinks otherwise…be my guest…

19

Yes, there is. On freenode #turris

20

irc is still a thing… especially opensource projects are still using it… i mean, there are newer and fancier approaches for team communication, like slack e.g… but irc feels still most robust and open for everyone