What wireless access point am I connected to?

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I was setting up multiple wireless access points with the same security and the same SSID. I had no way in windows to tell which AP I was connecting to. I needed to know because as I moved through the office I needed to ensure the computer was jumping onto the AP with the strongest signal in that area.  One of my IT staff found a great tool that would tell me this information. This tool is called inSSIDer 2. We loaded inSSIDer 2 then walked around with a laptop and sure enough the tool highlighted the AP we were connected to. This gave me confirmation that the setup worked as planned. inSSIDER 2 is an alternative to Netstumbler and works well on Windows Vista and Windows 7. It can be used for much more then what I used it for. Here is a list of uses from the makers website:

  • Inspect your WLAN and surrounding networks to troubleshoot competing access points
  • Track the strength of received signal in dBm over time
  • Filter access points in an easy-to-use format
  • Highlight access points for areas with high Wi-Fi concentration
  • Export Wi-Fi and GPS data to a KML file to view in Google Earth.
  • Filter through hundreds of scanned access points.

    • You can download the tool here: http://www.metageek.net/products/inssider/

    Another good tool when working with Wireless networks is Wifi Analyzer. This for an Android phone and is free.

    You can learn more about this tool here: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.farproc.wifi.analyzer

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