Trying to diagnose a wireless problem!

[Juan handed]

I have 2 laptops with 2 very different performance levels on the same wireless router.Here are the specifications:

Wireless Router:d-link DI-524, b/g,cable modem,5 years old

Computer#1:Toshiba Satelite,7 years old,XP,802.11g wireless card

Computer#2:HP laptop,3 months old,Vista Home Basic,802.11g wireless card

Computer #2 is a few months old and many times it is loading pages very slowly,I am trying to increase the performance.I have wired it directly into the cable modem via ethernet cable and it has performed fine. I ran a pingtest while it was wired and the performance was fine,no packet loss.
But wireless performance is another story.Pingtest on it wireless shows an average packet loss of 5%,regardless of proximity to the router.

Computer #1(the old one)performs fine on the wireless test.Ping test shows zero packet loss.


Please help me diagnose the problem on the new computerThank you!

 

[Celegorm]

I see this quite a bit at the help desk at school. If you go into device manager and uninstall the wireless card, then in the "action" menu click "scan for hardware changes". It will reinstall your wireless and 9/10 times wireless performance will jump.

 

[jmacavali]

^That is certainly an option. Also probably worth-while to see if there are any updated drivers while your at it.

 

[JogaBonito1502]

Update/reinstall the wireless software as stated above by Celegorm. This should improve speeds. However, the wireless speed will NEVER match the wired speed, especially if it's connected directly to the modem. The reasons behind that are many:

Wireless signals often have to compete with other wireless signals at your house, especially if you own Wi-Fi phones, iPods, and other items that communicate via frequencies. The most common solution to this interference problem is to use network cards and routers that operate at the 5GHz frequency.

Lastly, you have to understand that inside a wire, light gets reflected and it follows a certain path. With wireless, you have a signal being broadcast through walls and floors and what not. That will tend to slow it down a bit. Note that this bit is rather insignificant.

The less you have to forward information, the less room for mistakes to be made and information to be lost. However, speed losses from this should also be rather insignificant.

 

[Juan handed]

OK...I uninstalled and reinstalled as directed,checked for updates for drivers (I already had the latest update).

Ran Pingtest,the results were 8% and 4% packet loss.

I repeated the uninstall/reinstall...ran Pingtest and got 5% and 4% packet loss.

So, no improvement.

Just keep in mind that the other computer(the old one) still tests at 0% packet loss. (same wireless connection)

 

[mikazo]

Have you tried changing some of the advanced settings?

Device Manager > Right click wireless card > Properties > Advanced tab

 

[Celegorm]

Is the old computer closer to the router? Distance can add packet loss. Also, if the signal has to go around more corners (wifi isn't as capable of going through walls as most radio signals), over microwaves/cell phones/cordless phones/televisions they can all add interference with the signal.

To be up front and honest though, 5% packet loss over wireless is more than acceptable in most cases.

 

[Juan handed]

Have you tried changing some of the advanced settings?

Device Manager > Right click wireless card > Properties > Advanced tab

What settings would I play with in there?

@Celegorm: Believe it or not,there is not a lot of "interference" to deal with here,as far as other devices go in this house.But,yes,walls and distance could be a factor.

However,I have tried to run these comparison tests apples to apples.As in running the pingtests from the same location and distance,easy to do with laptops!

Obviously 5% packet loss will work for simple surfing and such,(I guess that is how you are receiving this message),but I have been frustrated with how long it takes for pages to load at times,and how I have to re-click many things to get things to load.Could packet loss be responsible for those problems?

 

[mikazo]

I'm not sure what options would be under advanced, it's different for every wireless card. Maybe compare it with your working wireless card.