Modern modems also include router functionality, so you can use a single device to connect multiple different devices at home. Routers have become extremely easy to configure and are often already "ready to use" as soon as we connect them to the network; but if we want to have more control and greater security over wireless connections, we will necessarily have to enter the router settings and change some items, so that we can navigate safely within the home.
In this guide we will show you how to correctly configure a wireless router to create a safe and fast Wi-Fi network, so that you can connect any type of device using the wireless network provided.
For ease of understanding we will show you all the steps to follow as if we had recently opened the router and wanted to place it in the house; the guide is valid both for routers supplied by telephone operators and for third-party routers purchased in electronics stores or on e-commerce sites.
READ ALSO: Configure the modem for TIM, Fastweb, Infostrada, Tiscali connections
Article Index
- Cable connection
- Access to the control panel
- Internet connection configuration
- Change wireless settings
- Other wireless features
- Conclusions
1) Cable connection
The first thing to do obviously is the connection of all the cables of the router, so you can start using it immediately.
Before connecting the power cable, connect the telephone cable to the appropriate DSL socket on the back of the router, then connect the Ethernet devices close enough to take advantage of the cable connection.
If we use a modern fiber optic router, we will have to connect the fiber cable in the appropriate port or use an Ethernet cable to connect the Internet output of the wall converter (called ONT) with the Ethernet port of the router identified with the word WAN .
On modern telephone lines we will also have to connect the landline phone to the router, since the calls all pass through the Internet: in this specific case we connect the landline phone cable to the appropriate TEL port on the back of the modem.
After connecting everything we supply electricity with the power supply cable and press (if present) the power button, so you can start using the router.
READ ALSO -> Best WiFi Routers to connect your home wireless devices
2) Access to the control panel
Now that the router is on, we will have to immediately access the control panel to see if the Internet connection is configured correctly and to access the Wi-Fi settings.
For this step, we always recommend using a laptop connected via Ethernet to the new router, so that you can configure everything without having to connect to the default Wi-Fi network offered by the device (often supplied without an access password and with a strange name).
Once a notebook is connected via Ethernet cable, we access the operating system, open any browser (also Chrome or Edge is fine) and type one of the access IP addresses in the address bar (above):
- 192.168.1.1
- 192.168.0.1
- 192.168.1.254
If we are unable to access with one of these addresses, we advise you to check the router user manual to identify the access IP address.
After typing this address, we press the Enter key to get to the login screen of the router.
The username and password to access the router administration panel found under the router shell or in the user manual.
Usually the username and password is admin - admin but if it doesn't work we can consult the default login and password list for routers .
Some routers also choose the personal password at the first start, so that we can generate a more secure one instead of the simple "admin": we choose a password that is long enough but that we can easily remember (since to reset it a total reset of the router is required, with loss of all customizations).
After entering the correct credentials, the welcome screen of the router configuration panel will welcome us.
3) Internet connection configuration
If our router is not provided by the operator, we will have to manually configure the Internet connection parameters, so that we can browse.
In the router configuration panel we click on Quick Setup, so we can start the wizard for configuring the Internet (very simple to apply).
Once the right screen is open, we configure the initial settings (such as Country and Time Zone ) and choose, when required, the telephony operator we are using for our landline.
We confirm all the next steps by clicking Next, we perform a quick connection test and finally we click Finish to finish the configuration.
These steps should work in 90% of cases without any problem: if the line is still absent, we try to open any browser to verify that the connection is present and that there is no need for a further step such as entering the ADSL credentials or the tax code (depends on the operator in use).
If our router is connected via Ethernet cable and with the WAN port, the connection will be automatic without having to configure anything: in this case the Internet is managed by the modem supplied by the operator or by the ONT converter for optical fiber present as a wall socket.
4) Change wireless settings
Now that the Internet connection is active, we need to configure Wi-Fi networks in order to offer the right degree of security and speed for wireless connections.
Let's go back to the router configuration panel and identify the Wireless or Wi-Fi menu; if necessary we can also go to the Advanced section or activate a similar item ( Expert mode ), so as to have all the device options available.
If we have a fairly modern router we will have to configure two wireless networks: the 2.4 GHz one or the 5 GHz one; usually there is a selector in the upper right corner or two separate tabs to configure the two networks, otherwise a single menu for combined configuration may be available (which we always recommend deactivating for greater control).
Let's go step by step and configure the 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi network: choose a sufficiently robust password (at least 8 characters with capital letters and special symbols @, &, $, % ect.), Set a name as you like for the network ( SSID ), choose the WPA2-PSK version and AES encryption, choose the mixed network ( 802.11b / g / n ) as the mode, choose the channel with the least interference as the channel and finally choose the 20 MHz bandwidth.
If the modem allows you to adjust the transmission power, be sure to always set it to the maximum if we have a house larger than 60 square meters, otherwise we use lower powers to limit the extension outside the walls of the house ( Medium or Low Power ) .
Now we also configure the 5 GHz network: we open the appropriate menu, set a password (which can also be identical to the one used for 2.4 GHz), set a network name very similar to that for the 2-network, 4 GHz (we recommend adding the suffix -5G to the name used before to recognize it immediately), we set WPA2-PSK as the version, we use AES as the encryption system, we set the appropriate mixed network mode ( 802.11 n / ac ) and we leave all unchanged the other points.
Compared to 2.4GHz networks we can leave the management of channels and bandwidth to the router, since the 5GHz network is much less subject to interference.
At the end of the configuration, click on Save or OK at the bottom and we restart the router as a precaution, so as to immediately have all the settings active.
5) Other wireless features
Now that wireless networks are ready too, let's use the configuration panel to configure (where possible) other settings to increase the security of Wi-Fi connections:
- Disable WPS : the WPS functionality is convenient to connect devices without having to enter the password, but can be used by hackers to connect without permission to our router; if the latter allows, it is better to completely disable the functionality.
- Activate Guest Network : we can create another Wi-Fi network to be reserved for guests who come home, so that they can connect them in a separate network from private devices.
- Mac Address block : to increase security we can also apply a MAC Address filter to connect only authorized devices.
- Invisible network name : from modern routers we can also disable the sending of the network name (i.e. the SSID) which therefore allows you to not show your network outside (only those who know the name of the network will be able to enter it manually to connect ).
6) Conclusions
We saw together how to configure a new Wi-Fi network and how to take the right countermeasures to be able to access in total security.
In another guide we showed you the main Options on the Wifi Router: web access and configuration that we can use to improve the browsing experience.
In another article we talked about free programs for network diagnostics and to solve problems and how to manually solve the configuration errors of a home network .
READ ALSO: Speed up the router and optimize the Wifi network
