By Lysis
A Linksys wireless router is a popular brand used in the home for networking several machines. The routers provide Internet access for several home machines, including wireless computers such as laptops. Whether it’s your first time setting up the machine or you suddenly lose connection, there are some basic steps used to troubleshoot and identify the issue.
Reboot Your Router
The easiest way to fix some problems is rebooting the router. Similar to rebooting a machine, rebooting the router refreshes the memory and removes any intermittent data corruption issues. The Linksys router has a power cord connection at the back of the device. Remove the power cord for five to ten seconds and place it back into the router. Wait approximately a minute and attempt to connect to the router again.
Check Wireless Settings
The Linksys router has a configuration console that can be used from a web browser. Open a web browser on your machine and enter “192.168.1.1” into the address bar. Enter your administrator user name and password. By default, the router is configured with a blank user name and the password is “admin.”
Click the “Wireless Settings” tab at the top of the window. This displays your current wireless settings. If your router runs on the same channel as a neighbor, interference may be an issue. Change the router’s channel in the drop-down labeled “Channel.” You can also change the wireless router’s access point. If your computers have older network cards, change the “Radio Band” drop-down box from “Wide – 40MHz Channel” to “Standard 20MHz Channel.” This provides connectivity with older network cards.
Remove Any Filters
Click the “Security” tab in the router’s console. This tab provides a list of any filters you have configured on the router. Filters restrict access for some computers, so they are unable to connect to other areas of the network or the Internet. Remove filters to ensure you are not inadvertently blocking your own machine from the rest of the network.
Reset the Router Settings
The last resort for any Linksys router user is to reset the device’s configurations and start over. This means that the settings are reset to factory defaults, and you need to reconfigure the Linksys. A red reset button is located on the back of the Linksys. Press and hold it for several seconds. The router is returned to factory defaults, which eliminates any unknown settings that are causing the data blocks.
These few troubleshooting steps are useful for basic identification of typical router issues. If your Linksys router has faulty hardware, a new one needs to be purchased. However, troubleshooting allows you to fix issues and can save you money from purchasing a new device.
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