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Is 802.11ac faster than gigabit Ethernet?

Dave Farquhar Servers and Networking May 9, 2017March 13, 2021cat5e

If you’ve been shopping around for 802.11ac gear, you might wonder about the print on some of the boxes. Is 802.11ac faster than gigabit Ethernet?

Yes, sometimes it can be. But it’s probably not hurting you too badly just yet.

Dave Farquhar

David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He has written professionally about computers since 1991, so he was writing about retro computers when they were still new. He has been working in IT professionally since 1994 and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He holds Security+ and CISSP certifications. Today he blogs five times a week, mostly about retro computers and retro gaming covering the time period from 1975 to 2000.

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Netgear vs TP-Link

Dave Farquhar Servers and Networking May 5, 2017October 22, 20221990s, 3com, cisco, FCC, netgear, TL

If you’re looking for the pros and cons of Netgear vs TP-Link, I have experience with both and I’m glad to share it.

Netgear is a well established brand, having been on the market since 1996.

I don’t blame you if you’ve never heard of TP-Link. They were founded in 1996 but if you were buying their stuff before 2005, you’re well ahead of me. But I like them a lot.
Read more

Dave Farquhar

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Gigabit card only connecting at 100mbps? Here’s the fix.

Dave Farquhar Hardware, Servers and Networking April 24, 2017April 1, 2024Broadcom, cat5e, IEEE, intel, network cables, networking equipment, PCI-X, pcie, Windows 10

I finished a modernization project where I replaced all of my 100-megabit gear with gigabit-capable gear, including my cabling and router and access points. But after I replaced my last 100-megabit switch, I found we had two Windows desktops refusing to speed up. Here’s how to fix a gigabit card only connecting at 100mbps.

First, if you know you’re not connecting at gigabit, you probably already know how to do this. But if not, here’s how to check your network speed in Windows 10. Then here’s how to fix it. After all, you want to enjoy the advantages of a gigabit LAN if you have the hardware.

Dave Farquhar

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Configure a Netgear R6300 as an access point

Dave Farquhar Servers and Networking April 18, 2017August 1, 2017AES, AP, netgear, SSID, TL

I picked up a used Netgear R6300 cheaply last week to use as an access point. Here’s how to configure a Netgear R6300 as an access point.

Dave Farquhar

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Linksys vs TP-Link

Dave Farquhar Servers and Networking February 21, 2017August 1, 2017belkin, cisco, FCC, firewall, linksys, TL, wrt54g

If you’re looking for the pros and cons of Linksys vs TP-Link, I have experience with both and I’m glad to share it.

Linksys is a well established brand. From 2003 to 2013, they were Cisco’s consumer products division. Since 2013, they’ve been part of Belkin. Prior to Cisco buying them, they were an independent company, founded in 1988. Linksys was the first company to sell 100 million routers.

I don’t blame you if you’ve never heard of TP-Link. They were founded in 1996 but if you were buying their stuff before 2005, you’re well ahead of me.

Dave Farquhar

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D-Link vs TP-Link

Dave Farquhar Servers and Networking January 5, 2017March 13, 20211990s, d-link, FCC, linksys, TL

If you’re looking for the pros and cons of D-Link vs TP-Link, I have experience with both and I’m glad to share it.

D-Link is a well established brand. Founded in 1986, it started doing business as D-Link in 1994. It’s been around a long time. If you’ve been involved with computers for any length of time, you’ve probably heard of it.

I don’t blame you if you’ve never heard of TP-Link. They were founded in 1996 but if you were buying their stuff before 2005, you’re well ahead of me.

Dave Farquhar

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Asuswrt-Merlin vs Cisco

Dave Farquhar security, Servers and Networking December 16, 2016December 13, 2021asus, best buy, cisco, linksys, vulnerability

I recently saw advice to buy a Cisco RV130W instead of buying an Asus router such as an RT-AC66U and souping it up with Asuswrt-Merlin. I can see both sides of the argument but in the end I favor the Asus solution when I consider Asuswrt-Merlin vs Cisco. Here’s why.

Now, if you’re arguing business vs personal use, there’s no contest. In a business setting, buy the Cisco.

Dave Farquhar

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How to set up and optimize an Asus RT-AC66U

Dave Farquhar Servers and Networking December 5, 2016March 7, 2018AES, asus, malware, NVRAM, SSH, Universal Plug and Play, vulnerability, WAN, wi-fi

Consumer routers drive security professionals like me crazy. I’m happy to say I finally found a router that doesn’t drive me nuts. I want you to buy an Asus RT-AC66U. I’m going to tell you why, and I’m going to tell you how to configure it. Here’s how to set up an Asus RT-AC66U and how to optimize an Asus RT-AC66U.

Dave Farquhar

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TP-Link TL-SG1008D vs TP-Link TL-SG108

Dave Farquhar Servers and Networking September 16, 2016September 13, 2023

TP-Link has two inexpensive 8-port switches aimed at the consumer market: the TP-Link TL-SG1008D and TP-Link TL-SG108. If you’re wondering about the TP-Link TL-SG1008D vs TP-Link TL-SG108, I can sum it up pretty easily.

Who you’re asking for makes a big difference. If you’re asking for yourself, you probably want the TL-SG108. If you’re asking for a friend, the TL-SG1008D may be worth considering. Read on to see why.

Dave Farquhar

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Check your network speed in Windows 10

Dave Farquhar Servers and Networking, Windows September 15, 2016April 3, 2018cat5e, command prompt, network cables, Task Manager, wi-fi, Windows 10, windows 7

Sometimes you need to check your network speed in Windows 10. The information buried a bit but you can get there in about three clicks. When you need to know the raw specs of your network connection, here’s how to do it. Microsoft seems to have moved this recently, sometime in 2018, so I’ve updated this for the current builds of Windows 10.

Depending on your network driver, it was sometimes easier to get this in previous versions of Windows. Sometimes all you had to do was hover over your network connection icon. But this method also works in Windows 7, even if you have a featureless network driver.

Dave Farquhar

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