I have a server on a totally wireless network. PCs frequently disconnect and access to the server such as SQL query's and file transfers are painfully slow.
Wireless to Wireless
PCs <-wireless-> WIRELESS_ROUTER <-wireless-> SERVER
I have a cheap Hauwei wireless router but my guess is that the 'Wireless to Wireless' configuration is a terrible idea.
My plan is to buy decent router and connect that router to the server via cable:
Wireless to Cable
PCs <-wireless-> WIRELESS_ROUTER <-cable-> SERVER
Note: PCs must be wireless because they sit on carts and in constant movement.
I am not knowledgeable in networking but using the server to cable model should mean a 50% reduction in WiFi traffic, which should translate to:
- less latency (higher speed)
- less network errors (greater reliability)
I am really hoping to get some thoughts from someone with experience in networking/wireless before I go through the expense of having wire laid out and buying a new router. Maybe there is a better way to accomplish this. Please keep in mind that the stand-alone server does not require access to the internet or to other devices other than the PCs.
P.S. I read that TCP is a 'stateful' protocol, meaning that it keeps a connection alive. Software on the PCs is TCP based. What happens is that they frequently disconnect from the server and sometimes it is a pain to re-establish connections, e.g. server software must be restarted in worse case scenarios. I also read that TCP was originally designed for wired networks and that on wireless networks, 'random bit error' rates are high. The fact that I am dealing with double wifi (wireless to wireless) is probably the root of my problems. Does this seem like a logical analysis?
UPDATE
I connected to the server via telnet and ran some queries many times. There is a noticeable but acceptable network latency. After about 100 queries, I got the following error (via telnet):
The semaphore timeout period has expired
I am quite convinced that this 'wireless to wireless' configuration is a bad idea overall. Next week I will have the server wired directly to the router. My guess is that this will cut latency by 50% and decrease network errors by even a greater margin.