How to find your home wifi network

[Reba]

If someone has a wifi router and a laptop in their home, and that person wants to connect to the wifi but doesn't know the name of the network or the password, what to do?

A friend of mine has a wifi router connected in the house but doesn't know the name or password. I looked at all the network names that were available but couldn't discern which one belonged to the friend's router. They were all pretty equal in strength (this was a town-home community, very close together homes). None of the names gave me any clues (no family name, no router brand name, no hobby or pet name, etc.). I asked the friend if any of the names looked familiar but nope. (Another family member, who is now gone, originally set up the system; friend has no documentation.)

We can set the friend up with Ethernet instead of wifi but it would be nice to have the wifi for mobility in the two-story home.

 

[Reba]

Side note:

I kinda-sorta had to hack into friend's email account so that the friend could access it. This friend wrote down the email address wrong, and the password wrong, so I had to try some logical (and illogical) combinations to get in for this very frustrated friend. Of course, this friend had been giving everyone the wrong email address, so the inbox was empty. Sigh....

 

[caz12]

mine got sticker with numberes on i think that my password or i hope so have you looked on the underneath of router
just had look and appear my neighbour on my computer but says password protected

 

[caz12]

forgot yahoo and google pass words need get into one to get the other not taking secret qestions so frustrating

 

[Reba]

mine got sticker with numberes on i think that my password or i hope so have you looked on the underneath of router
just had look and appear my neighbour on my computer but says password protected

Yes, we did look under the router but it didn't have the broadcast SSID, and it wouldn't be a place for the password that someone created.

 

[caz12]

I dont know what ssid mean so think i not best person give advice....passwords so frustrating

 

[Bottesini]

The provider should have a record of this. And the family member who created probably knows the password.

 

[caz12]

I would have thought that Bot

 

[Reba]

The provider should have a record of this. And the family member who created probably knows the password.

The family member set up the network (including naming it) after the router was installed by the family member. The provider doesn't do that. The provider (at least here) brings only the modem. The family member is no longer here to provide the information.

 

[JMH]

You could go in router's configuration and change SSID name (while you're at it, change password! ). It would show which is your friend's modem.

Going in router's configuration should be at http://192.168.0.1 and it's very likely that the router administrator username and password is on factory set and you may can find it online somewhere.

 

[metalangel]

If it's not on factory settings, there's the little pinhole in the back marked 'reset' that you can stick a pin or something else thin into to reset it to factory, if all else fails.

 

[caz12]

i turn mine off for five mins not sure why but i told it helps in situations like this

 

[Reba]

If it's not on factory settings, there's the little pinhole in the back marked 'reset' that you can stick a pin or something else thin into to reset it to factory, if all else fails.

I considered that but her VP is also on the system, and I don't want to do anything that might mess up its settings.

 

[JMH]

i turn mine off for five mins not sure why but i told it helps in situations like this

To reboot the WiFi to eliminate the weird issues - but it will not reset the modem setting.

I considered that but her VP is also on the system, and I don't want to do anything that might mess up its settings.

I doubt it would.

 

[Secretblend]

Does the wifi router have WPS? If so, you can press button and then it will set up and allow to connect automatically.

 

[Saavik]

Hold the reset button in for about 30 seconds, it will wipe the password, not sure how many networks the computer is picking up, but resetting it will make the name appear as the brand of router. I can help you more if I had any idea what brand and model router you have.

 

[Reba]

Hold the reset button in for about 30 seconds, it will wipe the password, not sure how many networks the computer is picking up, but resetting it will make the name appear as the brand of router. I can help you more if I had any idea what brand and model router you have.

It's not my router. I saw it a few days ago, and I'm trying to remember. It might have been Ubee? I'll have to check next time I go over there. Depending on how things to today, maybe I can go over tonight.

 

[caz12]

It's not my router. I saw it a few days ago, and I'm trying to remember. It might have been Ubee? I'll have to check next time I go over there. Depending on how things to today, maybe I can go over tonight.

all very frustrating and made to make life harder than it is....sometimes i could fling computer into garden i get so mad with it...everything go wrong i turn it off for few days and it back just mystery

 

[Ocie Denver]

Do your friend has a way to contact his family member for the information needed to access the WiFi network? Phone number or email?

 

[diehardbiker]

Wow, nothing mention key information?

Reba, when you see drop down list of available WiFi connections right? On the list, look at far right where it shows WiFi logo along with strength, do you see padlock next to the signal or no?

If there is no padlock on it, then it is open, unsecured connection available. That one, you can just log in and use right away. If it has padlock then it is secured and requires username and password.

BTW, this is one of chief reason why I am not crazy about WiFi, and why need so powerful WiFi when living in small apartment or condo? There is no point of having powerful WiFi router in this scenario.