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I'm looking for a utility that runs on Vista to monitor the different wifi access-points in the neighborhood.
Inssider is nice, but it doesn't seem to show which AP I'm connected to, and neither does it support connecting to another AP by double-clicking on an item in the list.
Does someone know of a similar utility that has those missing features?
Thank you.
OverTheRainbow
Posted 2009-09-15T13:24:18.363
Reputation: 5 153
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WirelessMon will do this, but why do you want to connect to other AP's? Connecting to an AP that is not yours is illegal.
joeqwerty
Posted 2009-09-15T13:24:18.363
Reputation: 5 259
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What's wrong with the one built into Vista? If you show the system tray icon, you will be notified of available wireless connections, and the interface is very convenient/simple to use.
Noldorin
Posted 2009-09-15T13:24:18.363
Reputation: 700
I'd like something more comprehensive that Vista's tray applet, eg. one showing signal strength and updated every minute or so. – OverTheRainbow – 2009-09-16T08:34:02.083
Vista's feature does show signal strength. Not sure about the update frequency, however. – Noldorin – 2009-09-16T10:01:38.410
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Recommended by Gizmo's freeware:
NetStumbler is a free packet sniffer utility used to locate Wi-Fi networks. It's one of the first tools of its kind and arguably still the best. So much so that it is the standard product used by war-drivers in their perpetual search for free bandwidth via unsecured Wi-Fi networks as well as road-warriors looking to connect their laptops back to the office.
harrymc
Posted 2009-09-15T13:24:18.363
Reputation: 306 093
But does it still support new(er) WiFi cards? I remember it as kind of selective. – Henk – 2009-09-15T19:01:26.053
Yes, it looks a bit selective. Funny, normally Gizmo's has good recommendations. – harrymc – 2009-09-15T19:47:56.850
Thanks for the tip, but NetStumbler doesn't seem to run on Vista and support connection to 802.11n
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You may try Xirrus Wi-Fi Inspector, which does:
harrymc
Posted 2009-09-15T13:24:18.363
Reputation: 306 093
Thanks for the tip, but forgot to say that I'd rather a regular application, not a Vista widget. – OverTheRainbow – 2009-09-16T08:34:38.557
1This IS a regular application, which is also available in widget format. – harrymc – 2009-09-16T12:12:33.280
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I've used the free Wireless Net View from nirsoft for ages now, works on XP, Vista, Windows 7 absolutely fine (works on my Win7 64 bit), and needs no installation you just run the exe file, so it's a great one to keep on your USB key of utilities
AdamV
Posted 2009-09-15T13:24:18.363
Reputation: 5 011
It's legal to connect to my ISP's access-points anywhere (per the contract, each modem shares part of its bandwidth for use by any customer.) – OverTheRainbow – 2009-09-16T08:33:03.193
More than happy to help. – joeqwerty – 2009-09-16T11:14:47.313