I spend a decent amount of time working with wireless internet, routers and WiFi. I actually started this blog as I’m seeing a very-real need for internet users to start using dual band routers. Beyond that, though, there are many, many different questions that people have and problems that they face with their WiFi, routers or wireless internet. That’s what this post is about: helping to provide answers to some of those questions.
SSH diffie-hellman-group1 Workaround
At my job I work with a mix of old and new wireless equipment. Some of the old stuff, such as Ubiquiti Nanostation2s, may not automatically let you ssh into them from newer workstations due these old devices using old / weak / outdated encryption algorithms, which newer operating systems tend to disable by default. If you’ve run into this, you’ll probably see a message along these lines:
MAC Address Vendor Lookup
I find myself looking up mac addresses semi-regularly, trying to find the vendor behind a device connected to our equipment at a customer’s house, or looking through logs and trying to identify devices attempting to connect to our wireless APs. I tend to default to using the MAC / OUI Lookup tool at aruljohn.com, but after a few failed attempts, I started looking for source lists after noticing they may not keep their database updated.
LibreNMS Permissions Resetting
We have three servers running LibreNMS where I work to monitor our various network devices. By and large, the software is fantastic, and we’ve built up over two years of data for hundreds of devices, which is exceptionally useful for troubleshooting. There are some quirks monitoring some of our hardware, but overall it’s been pretty good. Continue reading “LibreNMS Permissions Resetting”
Fix My WiFi: Router Placement
Your router’s placement within your home can make a night and day difference in how your WiFi performs, and thus your experience with your internet service. As someone who has seen, first-hand, router placement within hundreds of homes, I can say that far too many people are creating their own unnecessary WiFi problems.
WiFi’s Hidden Speed Limits
I hear it off and on and have experienced it myself more times than can be recounted: “My WiFi is too slow!”. Some people blame it on their internet service provider, and while internet service may be the sole culprit in slow WiFi performance, more often than not, in my experience, it’s either some other factor at play or a combination of factors that can seem to cripple WiFi speeds.