Microsoft - collect Wi-Fi diagnostic connection info

Problem

When encounters prpoblems with Wi-Fi receptoin you may wish to collect further information about the Wi-Fi recepction data.

Detail

The principles described in this document can be applied to any make of Windows laptop to help with resolving Wi-Fi problems.  

Reoslution

Please find below information that may help with collecting information and diagnosing Wi-Fi reception problems.

Measurements

Two measurements are of interest here RSSI and Noise. The RSSI will be the most useful unless the case is marginal and there is also a lot of noise in the RF environment.

RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indication)
Measured in decibels (dBm -120 to 0 dBm). A figure closer to 0 is best and -120 weakest.

RSSI signal levels and indicative comment:
• RSSI < -90 dBm: signal extremely weak, at the edge of what a receiver can receive.
• RSSI -67dBm: moderate signal level.
• RSSI > -55dBm: very strong signal.
• RSSI > -30dBm: excellent signal, probably right next to Wi-Fi transmitter.

Noise
Noise can be defined as any signal (interference) that is not Wi- Fi traffic such as cordless phones, microwaves, radar, etc. This is also measured in decibels (dBm -120 to 0 dBm) a figure closest to -120 represents the least amount of noise, therefore the higher the negative figure the less noise is present in the signal.  Typical environments signal range: -90db to -98db.

Collecting data using the netsh status command

1. Click Start menu and search “Command Prompt”, right click it and choose “Run as Administrator” and click “Yes” if asked to authenticate.
2. At the command prompt type the following and press ENTER:
   netsh wlan show interface
3. The report will show similar to below:
   

You will notice in the above report that RSSI and Noise figures are given directly but instead Signal measured as a percentage. In this example wireless signal is only 17 percent which is very poor.

Colecting data using WifiInfoView (third party downlaod)

If the netsh command is not enough then you can download WifiInfoView further info here:
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/wifi_information_view.html

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