Share Your Wi-Fi With Holiday Guests Without Killing Your Connection

Enabling Other Features to Boost Performance
There are some other features you can turn on within the router’s settings to maximize performance and security. Just be aware that not all routers have these features but many of the newer, dual-band routers do. For instance, you can enable a feature called Guest Networking. It’s usually enabled by just selecting it and then saving the setting in the management interface. Guest Networking will create a separate network just for your guests that will only allow them to share the Internet connection and not connect to other devices or access files on your home network.

Another feature you can enable is QoS (Quality of Service). QoS is a feature in many routers that acts as a traffic cop. It will seamlessly manage Internet traffic that comes in and out of the home. You just have to set it up first. You can tell most routers to give the highest priority of bandwidth to the type of Internet traffic that’s most important to you.

So if you plan on playing a lot of Netflix movies when the relatives come to visit, you can set up QoS to give priority to video traffic. QoS helps to keep the network performance balanced and well-managed.

Good practice dictates that you should also ensure you are running the latest firmware for your router. Updating to the latest firmware ensures that the router has all bugs or issues fixed that may be causing performance or security issues.

Also, remove any potential sources for wireless interference if you are going to have many connected to your Wi-Fi. These include cordless phones, baby monitors, microwave ovens, and Bluetooth devices.

Finally, for devices that allow the option of connecting via Wi-Fi or Ethernet, try and connect as many users to Ethernet as possible using the LAN ports on the back of your router. Some handheld games have USB adapters that support Ethernet connections. For the kids who may come over with handheld games, ask their parents if they have Ethernet adapters for the games and connect the consoles to the LAN ports on the router; this takes some of the load off the Wi-Fi environment. Plus, it ensures the kids stay in one spot.

Happy Thanksgiving!