Wireless Networking 101

Setting up and maintaining a home Wi-Fi network can be a daunting task for a PC newbie. These four how-to guides will run you through some of the basics.

By Patrick Miller, PCWorld    Nov 26, 2011 7:30 am

Wireless Networking 101

A collection of basic tips and tweaks to get your Wi-Fi network running better than ever.

1. Why You Need a Router »
2. How Safe is WPA2-Secured WiFi? »
3. How To Lock Down Your Wireless Network »
4. Router Tips to Make Your Wireless Faster »

How to Forward Ports on Your Router

Your router can sometimes get in the way of your favorite multiplayer games or chat programs by inadvertently shuttering certain network ports. To fix that problem yourself, follow our simple guide to port forwarding.

By Justin Phelps, PCWorld    Nov 29, 2011 1:14 am

Are you having trouble getting your favorite multiplayer games or chat program to connect to the Internet? Does your tablet's Web browser fail despite being connected to a Wi-Fi network? Your problem may be a blocked port on your router, and that's easy to fix.
Your router stands between your devices and the Internet, making sure that data coming in and going out is directed properly. Imagine your router as a wall that keeps out unwanted and harmful traffic while opening ports to permit useful traffic such as Web pages, games, and file-sharing programs. Ports are like doors in the wall reserved only for useful traffic, and your router does a good job of automatically configuring most of the ports you need to safely use the Internet. In some cases, however, you need to tell your router to open up a certain port so a program won’t be blocked. This is called port forwarding, and here’s how to do it.

Windows Home Server 2011: What It Is and How to Use It

Windows Home Server 2011 is here. Find out if it's right for you--and how to set it up.

By Loyd Case, PCWorld    May 26, 2011 6:30 am

Microsoft's original Windows Home Server was both crude and groundbreaking. When it debuted, it had limited hardware support, no 64-bit version, and weak built-in capabilities beyond file and app storage. On the other hand, it offered robust backup, reasonable security, and drive extender--a feature that simplified the tasks of adding and pooling hard drives.

Do I Have a Freeloader on My WiFi

Chris Beck wants to find out if there are unauthorized users on his wireless network.
If strangers successfully get onto your Wi-Fi network, they may be stealing more than bandwidth. After all, they have access to your computers. Your home network should be more secure than the café's down the street.
The first thing you need to do is make sure that no one can get into that network easily. That means setting up your router to use WPA--or better, WPA-2--security.
Because I don't know what kind of router you have, I can't tell you exactly how to do that. Check your router's documentation. Generally, you enter a particular IP address into a browser, which will take you to an HTML-based configuration program located inside the router's firmware.

How To Lock Down Your Wireless Network

Securing your wireless network is a simple process that costs nothing and could save you from a disastrous network breach down the road.

By Alex Wawro, PCWorld    Nov 11, 2011 7:30 am

Wireless Networking 101

A collection of basic tips and tweaks to get your Wi-Fi network running better than ever.

1. Wireless Networking 101 »
2. Why You Need a Router »
3. How Safe is WPA2-Secured WiFi? »
4. How To Lock Down Your Wireless Network »
5. Router Tips to Make Your Wireless Faster »

5 More PC Upgrade Mistakes (And How To Avoid Them)

Upgrading your computer can be easy enough for most people. But it's not without its pitfalls. Here are five common upgrade mistakes that even experienced users make.

By Robert Strohmeyer, PCWorld    Jul 28, 2011 6:32 am

As PCs get more powerful and easier to use, the challenges involved with upgrading them have remained about the same. For the novice, a hard drive upgrade can appear downright daunting. For more experienced tinkerers, the upgrade itself may be easy, but it's easier still to overlook factors that could streamline the whole process and better protect both the hardware and the data stored on it.
Last month, in "5 PC Upgrades Almost Everyone Does Wrong," I explored some common upgrade mistakes. Since so many PCWorld readers -- including a lot of seasoned upgrade veterans -- liked that collection of tips, I thought I'd follow it up with some tips that I couldn't fit into the first article. In this piece, I'll take a look at several of the most commonly

How to Fix Your Family's PC Problems

Are you the first line of tech support for your friends and family? Here's everything you need to troubleshoot for the not so tech-savvy.

By Rick Broida, PCWorld    Apr 9, 2010 6:31 am

When the phone rings in my house, there's a 50/50 chance it's a call for help--tech help. Maybe it's my sister trying to figure out why her wireless mouse no longer works. Maybe it's Dad wanting to know why virus warnings keep popping up on his desktop. (Uh, oh.) Or it could be Aunt Judy looking for the file attachment she knows she saved--but doesn't know where.
Sound familiar? The curse of being even a little tech-savvy is that you automatically get elected Tech Support for friends, family members, and maybe even your coworkers.