In case you haven’t noticed, everyone is busy moving around; and while people move about they feed their craving for data and information by connecting using mobile devices. If you have a small business that has a decent number of gadgets and mobile devices or have a healthy customer or client footfall, you will want to make sure that data is made available to these people from every part of your premises.
And so, how do you cater to this data-consumption-on-the-go?
You, of course, make sure you have a Wi-Fi network set up so that any one that needs it badly isn’t deprived of their data-addiction.
Now, while Wi-Fi networks do have the tendency of making your digital life a lot easier, they will also make you walk straight up a wall if you do not know how to install and administer them properly. Therefore, let us look at some of the common mistakes that are made when small businesses try to install their own Wi-Fi:
- Not Enough Access Points: when it comes to the number of access points on a Wi-Fi network it is always better to have an excess of access points than less of them.
Although you may have just a few employees working under you, you should remember that each of them will have at least two devices connecting to your network – their mobile phones and laptops for example. You can see the number grow as they bring in a second smart phone, a notebook… or more people join the company… or your client numbers increase…
Reduce the burden on your wireless network that will certainly be caused by bottlenecks that will surely be created if you don’t have enough access points.
- Misplaced Access Points: the whole purpose of spreading enough access points around your premises will be defeated if you do not know where to place the hardware. The one thing you need to remember about Wi-Fi networks is that they should always be in direct “sight” of the devices they are supposed to connect.
Therefore, avoid placing your access points near metallic objects, behind thick concrete beams or any such barriers.
As a matter of fact, whenever you are placing your access points, a simple way to see if they are in the right place is by visualizing a straight line between them and the devices that will use them. If there are any obstacles in between, move them or relocate the access points.
- Omitting Routers: the temptation to simply install access points and forgo routers can be quite irresistible, especially in a small business environment. As a small business owner you should always anticipate a growth in the number of devices that will be using your network.
Routers can greatly enhance your networking capabilities especially when your networking needs become more complicated, so make use of them today to make life easier tomorrow.
- Using Out-of-the-Box Configurations: in your rush to get your Wi-Fi up and running you will most likely be tempted to leave all configurations in their default modes. Things like default passwords, leaving remote management on, not changing frequency channels (especially in an environment where there are many access points, including those that belong to neighboring businesses), etc. can not only degrade your networking capabilities but also pose glaring security risks to your connected environment.
Use tools (there are many free ones out there) to analyze your network’s signals and figure out which channel you can use and makes sure you change all your passwords.
- Not Using Encryption: a big mistake (which is surprisingly common) is when you put a Wi-Fi network in place and forget to set up Wi-Fi encryption. This little mistake will allow anyone who wants to sniff your traffic, to do so with ease. And this, in turn, means that no data that leaves or comes into your network and devices is secure. With the right tools (mostly free) a hacker can easily grab all the information that passes through your network – including passwords and personal data.
Therefore, always make it a point to turn on encryption. While WEP is better than nothing, it is not the best (read “secure”) encryption option. Use WPA2 and couple it with a long and random password.
- Mixing the Old with the New: when making upgrades, you will implement newer standards with hopes of improving performance. But if you have older clients accessing the network, they will bring down the overall performance.
Using old smart phones and laptops will drag down the whole network’s performance because wireless systems work on the “lowest common denominator” principle, which means they set routers’ performances to the standard with the lowest possible speed.
Whenever you can, upgrade the client devices that will be accessing the network.
- Not Enabling 5.0 GHz Bands: if you have installed a dual band router make sure you can enable the use of both bands (5.0 and 2.4 GHz) so that laptops and similar devices that support the 5.0 GHz can offload to it and leave the 2.4 GHz for mobile devices that don’t.
This way, you will have all your devices accessing the network without fluctuating connections and deterrence to your working environment.
So, avoid these common – but easily avoided or remedied – mistakes and see your Wi-Fi connection boost your connectivity and productivity.
