Troubleshooting When the Network Is Slow

To optimize and increase the bandwidth of 802.11 dual-band routers and APs, either:

• Upgrade your wireless clients - Older 802.11b, 802.11g, and even 802.11n devices can slow the entire WLAN. For the best performance, all wireless devices should support the same highest acceptable standard.
• Split the traffic - The easiest way to improve wireless performance is to split the wireless traffic between the 802.11n 2.4 GHz band and the 5 GHz band. Therefore, 802.11n (or better) can use the two bands as two separate wireless networks to help manage the traffic.

There are several reasons for using a split-the-traffic approach:

• The 2.4 GHz band may be suitable for basic Internet traffic that is not time-sensitive.
• The bandwidth may still be shared with other nearby WLANs.
• The 5 GHz band is much less crowded than the 2.4 GHz band; ideal for streaming multimedia.
• The 5 GHz band has more channels; therefore, the channel chosen is likely interference-free.