Wired Networking Basics
ByThe traditional way to connect computers and routers is with Ethernet cables. These are very secure and reliable but can be inconvenient (and expensive) when the computers on the network are located in different rooms.
Wi-Fi, by comparison, lets you connect throughout the home and garden. It’s not quite as fast or secure as Ethernet, but you’ll only notice the speed difference if you’re moving large files between the various computers on the network.
It’s perfectly possible to combine Wi-Fi and wires on the same network, and sometimes this is the most sensible thing to do. Let’s say, for example, you have a desktop computer in the corner of the living room only metres away from the wireless hub that your ISP provided. Let’s also say that your household boasts a couple of iPhones, a laptop and perhaps a games console – that’s a lot of traffic for one Wi-Fi network to deal with, and you may well find that adding an Ethernet connection from your router to your desktop machine both improves the desktop machine’s networking performance, and also frees up the airwaves for all the other Wi-Fi-capable devices in your home.
Most wireless routers offer Ethernet ports as well as a Wi-Fi signal. As for computers, most recent models have Ethernet and Wi-Fi built right in. For machines that lack one or both, inexpensive adapters are available in USB, PCI or PCMCIA formats.
Powerline networks
If the computer that you want to connect to your router is in a distant corner of your home, then Ethernet cables may well not be a practical option – they are untidy when visible and expensive to have wired into the walls. A seemingly futuristic, but very practical, alternative is powerline networking, whereby you connect your router to the electrical wiring system of your home and distribute the network signal by exploiting the miles of copper wires already hidden away within the fabric of the building. A pair of powerline adapters (like those pictured opposite) cost around £70/$140, connect to your computer and router via Ethernet cables, and then plug directly into the regular power sockets on the wall.
As with Ethernet, you can expect to achieve faster data rates than you will with Wi-Fi, and you can add multiple adapters to the same electrical system to tap into the signal from as many electrical sockets as you need to.
Related posts: