Setup WiFi on the Cisco Linksys E3000

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Setup Router Staff
(Last Updated: ) | Reading Time: 5 minutes

The Cisco Linksys E3000 router is considered a wireless router because it offers WiFi connectivity. WiFi, or simply wireless, allows you to connect various devices to your router, such as wireless printers, smart televisions, and WiFi enabled smartphones.

Use a VPN Instead

Have you considered using a VPN instead of forwarding a port? For most users, a VPN is a much simpler and more secure choice than forwarding a port.

We use and recommend NordVPN because not only is it the fastest VPN, it includes a new feature called Meshnet that makes forwarding a port no longer necessary for most applications. With NordVPN Meshnet, you can connect to your devices from anywhere in the world, completely secure, over a highly encrypted VPN tunnel.

When shopping for a VPN, make sure that they meet the following criteria:

  • Your VPN provider should have a no-logs policy. This means that they do not keep any logs of any kind.
  • Make sure that your VPN provider has lots of exit nodes all around the world.
  • Check that your VPN will not affect your speed.
  • Verify that your VPN provider uses WireGuard as the underlying protocol.
  • Many people prefer a VPN provider that is not based in the United States.

This is the list of requirements that we used when we were shopping around for a VPN provider. There are lots of free, shady VPN providers out there that we looked at and dismissed.

Based in Panama, using diskless servers, and with over 6,100 servers in 61 countries, we can safely say that NordVPN satisfies all of these requirements.

NordVPN is the fastest VPN!

Once you've set up your NordVPN account on multiple computers and enabled Meshnet, you can seamlessly access all of your devices as if they were on the same network. You don't even have to log in to your router. It's very simple.

Every time you click on one of our affiliate links, such as NordVPN, we get a little kickback for introducing you to the service. Think of us as your VPN wingman.

Other Cisco Linksys E3000 Guides

This is the wifi guide for the Cisco Linksys E3000. We also have the following guides for the same router:

WiFi Terms

Before we get started there is a little bit of background info that you should be familiar with.

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Wireless Name

Your wireless network needs to have a name to uniquely identify it from other wireless networks. If you are not sure what this means we have a guide explaining what a wireless name is that you can read for more information.

Wireless Password

An important part of securing your wireless network is choosing a strong password.

Wireless Channel

Picking a WiFi channel is not always a simple task. Be sure to read about WiFi channels before making the choice.

Encryption

You should almost definitely pick WPA2 for your networks encryption. If you are unsure, be sure to read our WEP vs WPA guide first.

Login To The Cisco Linksys E3000

To get started configuring the Cisco Linksys E3000 WiFi settings you need to login to your router. If you are already logged in you can skip this step.

To login to the Cisco Linksys E3000, follow our Cisco Linksys E3000 Login Guide.

Find the WiFi Settings on the Cisco Linksys E3000

If you followed our login guide above then you should see this screen.

router setup
This is the setup page from your Cisco Linksys E3000 router.

Beginning on the Basic Setup page of the Cisco Linksys-E3000 router, click Wireless choice at the top of the page. Then beneath that, pick the option of Basic Wireless Settings.

Change the WiFi Settings on the Cisco Linksys E3000

wifi wireless
This is the wifi setup page from your Cisco Linksys E3000 router.

You should now be on the page you see above. First, click Manual. Do not use WiFi Protected Setup. To learn about this, click What is WPS.

You now have the option of choosing 5GHz Wireless Settings or 2.4GHz Wireless Setting. We recommend filling out the 2.4 GHz Wireless Settings.

First is the Network Mode. This is basically asking you how old are the wireless devices that you are using to access your network. Most of us have multiple devices that are a range of ages. We recommend clicking Mixed here.

Next is the Network Name (SSID). This is the name you give your network so you can identify it later on. We recommend not using personal information in this name. For more on this topic, read our guide titled Wireless names.

The Channel Width is next. Choose the option of Auto (20MHz or 40MHz.

Beneath that is the Channel. In 2.4GHz there is only room for up to three channels that don't overlap, channel 1,6, and 11. Overlapping channels cause a lot of interference. Be sure you are one of these three channels. For more on this topic, click WiFi Channels.

Finally, click the appropriate choice next to SSID Broadcast. If you don't want to broadcast your wireless name, click Disabled. Remember that while this may hide your name from scanning wireless devices, a hacker can still find hidden networks fairly easily.

Click Save Settings at the bottom of the page. Then, click Wireless Security in the blue bar at the top of the page.

router wifi security wireless
This is the wifi security page from your Cisco Linksys E3000 router.

On this new page, use the Security Mode drop down list next to 2.4GHz Wireless Security to choose WPA2 Personal. TO learn more about the differences in the security modes, click the link titled WEP vs. WPA.

The other thing on this page is the Passphrase. This is simply the password you use to access your network. This password should be strong, it needs to be at least 20 characters long. It should also contain one or more symbol, number, or capital letter. It should not contain any personal information or words found in a dictionary. For help in creating a strong and memorable password, click the link titled Choosing a strong password.

That's it, just click the Save Settings button and you are done.

Possible Problems when Changing your WiFi Settings

After making these changes to your router you will almost definitely have to reconnect any previously connected devices. This is usually done at the device itself and not at your computer.

Other Cisco Linksys E3000 Info

Don't forget about our other Cisco Linksys E3000 info that you might be interested in.

This is the wifi guide for the Cisco Linksys E3000. We also have the following guides for the same router: