Mark Shannon

Linksys SES (SecureEasySetup)

after you guys were successfully able to help me setup my new Linksys wireless router, I've been doing some researching, and will soon be upgrading the firmware. It seems the model I have (WRT54G) has a hidden button behind the Cisco Systems logo that, with the new version of the firmware, enables a secure encryption method that Linksys calls SES.

I'd love to take advantage of this, but I have just one question that I hope you guys can help me clear up. On the website, it has this explanation:



My question is: if my router didn't come with the installation CD or software for the SES, how and where do I get this. It mentions clicking the start button, but where do I find this start button to click? Is there software somewhere on the site that I can download (if so, I can't find it)?

Thanks.

My DVD\'s

Mike LS

It's probably accessed via the router firmware. Enter the IP address of your rounter into your browser, log into the router and see if you get the new choice for SES.

Keith Plucker

Hi again Mark,

SES simply automates the process of setting up a WPA encrypted connection between the client computer and the router. In addition to the router supporting the technology, the wireless card on your computer will need to support it as well. So, you will need to find out if your computer supports SES or can be made to support it with a driver update. This information should be available from the computer manufacturer.

However, if you computer doesn't support SES you can still enable the same security features by connecting to your router's admin page and enabling WPA manually. Of course the catch here is that the wireless card on your notebook has to support WPA (it probably does) and that you will have to configure it yourself (which shouldn't be difficult to do). If your wireless card doesn't support WPA it will probably at least support WEP, which is another encryption scheme. WEP is not as good as WPA but it is better than nothing. Again, WEP is enabled by logging into the router.

A couple of other wireless security tips...

-I assume you changed your admin password on your router already. If you haven't, do so immediately. If you reset your router via the reset button, the password would be set back to factory defaults.

-Turn off SSID broadcasting on the router's admin page. In your other thread you mentioned being able to see and use your neighbor's wireless connection. You were able to see his network because the SSID of the network was being broadcast by his router. By turning this feature off, your neighbors won't easily see your wireless connection.

-Use MAC address filtering to limit wireless access to your notebook only. Each computer has a unique MAC address. If you tell your router to only allow your notebook access by identifying it via its MAC address, all other computers will be locked out. This is also done via the router's admin page.

Now there are ways around everything, but with WPA or WEP encryption, SSID broadcasting turned off, and MAC address filtering you should have a reasonably secure wireless network. Anyone looking to borrow bandwidth will look for an easier target, such as your neighbor's connection.

-Keith