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Setup WiFi on the Cisco Linksys EA4500

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Setup Router Staff
(Last Updated: ) | Reading Time: 4 minutes

The Cisco Linksys EA4500 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

Have you considered using a VPN when you connect to the internet? A VPN is a great way to increase your security and anonymity while surfing.

We use and recommend NordVPN because not only is it the fastest VPN, it includes a new feature called Meshnet that makes securely sharing your home network super simple. 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.

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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 EA4500 Guides

This is the wifi guide for the Cisco Linksys EA4500. 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 EA4500

To get started configuring the Cisco Linksys EA4500 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 EA4500, follow our Cisco Linksys EA4500 Login Guide.

Find the WiFi Settings on the Cisco Linksys EA4500

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

router setup
This is the setup page from your Cisco Linksys EA4500 router.

This guide begins on the Setup-Basic Setup page of the Cisco Linksys-EA4500 router. To configure the WiFi settings click the choice at the top of the page labeled Wireless. A new menu appears below this, click the choice of Wireless Settings.

Change the WiFi Settings on the Cisco Linksys EA4500

wifi wireless
This is the wifi setup page from your Cisco Linksys EA4500 router.
  1. Configuration View - Tick the dot labeled Manual. We strongly advise against using Wi-Fi Protected Setup. To learn why, read our guide titled What is WPS.
  2. Network Mode - This is basically asking how old are the devices you are plan on using to connect to the internet. Most of us use a range of devices, so click the link title Mixed.
  3. Network Name (SSID) - This is the name you give your wireless network so that you can identify it later on. When creating this name, don't use personal information. For more on this topic, click the link titled Wireless names.
  4. Security Mode - There are several different choices in this drop down list. To learn the difference, click the link titled WEP vs. WPA. Our recommendation is the option of WPA2 Personal.
  5. Passphrase - This is the password you use to access your network. This password should contain at least 20 characters and at least on symbol, capital letter, and number. Your password should not contain any personal information or words that can be found in a dictionary. To learn more about creating a strong password, clcik our guide titled Choosing a strong password.
  6. Channel - Be sure you are using channel 1,6, or 11. These three channels are the most you can get out of the spectrum without overlap. Overlapping channels causes a lot of interference. Read our guide for more information, WiFi Channels.
  7. SSID Broadcast - This is the last thing you may want to change is the broadcasting of your network name. If you want to hide your name from surrounding devices click the dot labeled Disabled. Remember that even though you might be hiding this from your neighbors, a hacker can still find your network if they really want to.
  8. Save Settings - Click this button at the bottom of the page before you exit.

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 EA4500 Info

Don't forget about our other Cisco Linksys EA4500 info that you might be interested in.

This is the wifi guide for the Cisco Linksys EA4500. We also have the following guides for the same router: