On Wed, 15 Nov 2006 00:21:08 -0500, "David" <this@is.invalid> wrote in
<NoqdnXzfWfgHPsfYnZ2dnUVZ_sGdnZ2d@comcast.com>:

>"David" <this@is.invalid> wrote in message news:RuSdnVAzfYzTSszYnZ2dnUVZ_s2dnZ2d@comcast.com. ..
>
>-snip-
>
>Thanks for the earlier replies. I read them all and decided to give the
>WRT54GL a try, reporting back on what I found. I'm pleased to say
>that the E1505/Intel 3945 and WRT54GL/stock firmware combo was
>up and running quickly. I think I have all the security bases covered
>and then some, sanity check welcome...
>
>- Changed default wireless router IP & DHCP starting address

No need or point.

>- Max length, strong SSID, went ahead and disabled broadcasts since it
> was easy

Bad idea. Turn SSID back on. Just make it unique. Length is
irrelevant. There's no (zip, zilch, nada) "strength" in the SSID.

>- WPA2 Personal, TKIP+AES, max length strong WPA shared key

Good. Enterprise would be better.

>- Went ahead and enabled MAC filtering

Bad idea. Won't do any real good, likely to cause problems.

>- AP Isolation on

Good.

>- Blocking anon net requests, filtering multicast and idents

OK.

>- Max length, strong admin username & password

Good.

>- Admin access via HTTPS, remote management off, wireless access on
> for convenience at least for now

OK.

>- No holes opened for local network servers

Good.

>The Intel wireless software reports 4 or 5 bars out of 5 for signal strength
>regardless of where I am and so far I haven't had any connection problems
>that I'm aware of.

The bars are only truly meaningful when the network is under load.

>Speed tests via wireless are coming in around 7Mbps
>no matter where I am. Which is about half of what I get through the router
>via hardwired LAN. The wireless performance sounds low to me but I
>need to do some more research into that.

That is low. With good signal you should be getting about 22 Mbps
wireless to wired, or about 11 Mbps wireless to wireless.

--
Best regards, FAQ for Wireless Internet: <http://Wireless.wikia.com>
John Navas FAQ for Wi-Fi: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi>
Wi-Fi How To: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi_HowTo>
Fixes to Wi-Fi Problems: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi_Fixes>