wireless connection questions

hello,

I just got a wireless adapter for the first time.. i changed my wep key from the default 64 bit on the sticker on the router to the 128 bit, 26 character code i made up. But I was wondering how to get a wpa key? do i make it up on my own, and if so how long is it? is there info on this anywhere?

I have the Verizon MI424WR wireless router.

In the advanced security settings it asks for a "pre-shared key" for wpa.. but i don't know what this is. Do i just make up a number with 10, 20, or 64 characters like the wpa generator site does? I can provide more info if needed. I'm new to this.

Also do we have to enter the key every time we connect to the internet?

Thank you for your time.

Accepted answers

Justin46

The "D" refers to the hardware revision of the Actiontec router. D is the latest available as far as I know. You can check which level you have by logging into the router and clicking on the System Monitoring icon. The resultant display will show the Hardware Version on the 3rd line.

If you click on Wireless Settings, the default is for WEP. But if you click on Advanced Security Settings you should find you can choose between WEP, WPA, and WPA2. If you click on the WPA (or WPA2) button, you will see a screen where you can specify the

a) authentication method (Pre-shared key is what you want, all that means is that you specify on each device, router and each wireless device, the same key)

b) The actual key, in ASCII (text) or Hex (don't waste your time) - you can simply specify in normal text a value for the key, the longer the better, mix of upper and lower case and numbers and special characters will be the most secure - for example, you could key in "The inauguration of the New President will be on Jan. 20, 2009!!!" and that would become your key. The limit is something like 64 characters I think, my key is only 15 characters, a mix of upper and lower case and special characters.

c) The encryption algorythm, which should be TKIP.

So, set up the WPA (or WPA2) on the router first, and save the info, which if I remember correctly will cause a reboot of the router. Then, when you try to connect with any wireless device (your computer), it will ask you for the key the first time you try to connect, and you must enter the exact same text key that you entered into the router. Once you succesfully connect, you will not have to enter the key again, unless you change it in the router.

Hope this helps.

__________________________________
Justin
Verizon FiOS TV, Internet, and phone
IMG 1.6.0, Build 06.89
Keller, TX

Message Edited by Justin on 01-16-2009 10:17 PM

All comments

avemaria92

how do we determine if we can use wpa or wpa2? i heard someone say the router has to be "D".. but i dont know what that means

Justin46

a) authentication method (Pre-shared key is what you want, all that means is that you specify on each device, router and each wireless device, the same key)

c) The encryption algorythm, which should be TKIP.

Hope this helps.

__________________________________
Justin
Verizon FiOS TV, Internet, and phone
IMG 1.6.0, Build 06.89
Keller, TX

Message Edited by Justin on 01-16-2009 10:17 PM

avemaria92

thank you, that's very helpful information

the last thing i was wondering about is how long, if at all, to set the group key update interval when i go with wpa? the default is 15 minutes.. does this mean it's going to disconnect for a bit every 15 minutes? how long do you have yours set for?

Justin46

Mine is set to the default, 900 seconds.

I have no idea what the "group key" is. I did a quick Google search on the phrase and came up with a good number of references, looking at a few did nothing to explain what it is, or what effect changing the value has. I have no problems with any disconnects, etc., so I suggest you just leave it as it is.

You are making progress I hope.

__________________________________
Justin
Verizon FiOS TV, Internet, and phone
IMG 1.6.0, Build 06.89
Keller, TX