Wireless Transfer Speeds

[dave111]

I have a Netgear DG834GT and 2xIBM thinkpads both with pcmcia cards in(1 is 11Mb/s, other is 54Mbs).
What speeds should I get when transferring files. (ie copy and pasting from HD to 'Shared Docs on other laptop)
Checking with DU meter I was getting around 450Kbs
Cheers.

[joeka]

It will be as fast as the slowest part of the network. So in your case in won't be any faster than 11Mb/s. And that is only a theoretical bandwidth - in reality it'll be slower than that..

11Mb/s equates to about 1.3 MegaBYTES per second (11,000,000 divided by 8 = 1375000 Bytes). That will be your absolute maximum, but as I said it'll be slower than that. You should expect about 500 - 600 KB/s

[gman1981]

Joeka is right about the speed you should be getting, but you also have to take into consideration any interference you may have on a wireless network. As it is running on a 2.4Ghz frequency, normal household items like microwaves, cordless phones, and also other wireless networks can cause problems. As well as that any walls that are in the way can also cause problems, especially pre war houses as they tend to have thicker walls. So the speed you get may well be slower than that depending on the circumstance of the wireless network.

[dave111]

My 450kb/s sounds ok now.
What is the best way to transfer files between pc's on network?
I have tried goshifty.com which also has chat function - anything else like this?

[mrwacko]

What is the best way to transfer files between pc's on network?

I'd always use FTP to send a large numeber of file over a network. Windows file sharing (samba) is good for real-time access to files, but not for transfering a large number of files at once.

[dave111]

how do you use ftp over a network.
i have filezilla on both pc's

[Funkstar]

youd have to set up an FTP server on the desination machine. You can use IIS, but i don't think it is the most reliable or easy to setup. Have a look at some of the free software sites (download.com and tucows.com) there are loads of shareware and freeware ones out there.

[dave111]

what ftp do you recommend - can be commercial

[Funkstar]

to be honest i haven't used any, so can't really comment

[gman1981]

Filezilla also has a FTP server program: http://filezilla.sourceforge.net//

I have not used it but I use the client and find it very good.

[joeka]

If your looking for a client, then I'd recommend SmartFTP - http://www.smartftp.com
I've been using it for years - the best thing about it, is that it's free! (For non-commercial use.)

With regards to a FTP Server. I've always made do with IIS, which comes with Windows XP Pro.

[Steve B]

bearing in mind they are laptops, and easily portable, id say the quickest option would be to get a crossover cable and just patch them together, that way u get upto 100MBits

[dave111]

thats a bit boring isn't it. the best solution is always the most complicated!
will i also get 100Mbit speed if i connect the 2 laptops to the router via network cable?

[gman1981]

Yes as long as your router and laptops NIC are 100Mbps and you are using cat5e, which I would think you probably are.

[Firebar]

crossover cable and just patch them together, that way u get upto 100MBits

I think you get reduced speeds over crossover cable.

[dave111]

is that the case?