Let's be honest here: digging through network settings is a truly Sisyphean task. You'll go in and fix a few, but to go through every setting on every device and reach the most optimal setup is something that's reserved for networking pros, if that.
In reality, a lot of network settings, be it those tied to your router, DNS, or your PC, aren't that consequential, so there's no need to go wild and adjust each and every setting you find. It's always worth it to try and optimize your Wi-Fi , though.
In my quest to improve my internet connection, I've gone through just about every network setting possible. These four settings I'll introduce you to below are the only ones I wish I had changed sooner.
DHCP reservations
Give important devices a permanent address
DHCP is the system your router uses to hand out local IP addresses to devices on your network. That's all well and good, and most of the time, it's perfectly fine, because most of the devices that live on your network don't need to keep the same IP addresses forever. For instance, I don't mind if the IP address on my phone or tablet changes; I doubt I'd ever even notice.
However, this can still become a problem if you have an important device that needs to stay super predictable. You don't want the router to keep rotating the IP address on things like your NAS, Plex server, Raspberry Pi, or any other device that you often access over the local network. In those cases, giving them their own reserved IP addresses makes life so much easier.
The router still handles the address, so you don't need to fiddle with static IP settings on the device itself. It's just that it won't be handing those IP addresses out willy-nilly, basically.
To change this, open your router's admin page or app and look for something like DHCP reservation, address reservation, static lease, or LAN IP reservation. Pick the device from the connected devices list, assign it an IP address within your router's local range, and go ahead and save.
Router-level DNS
Stop adjusting it one device at a time
Patrick Campanale / How-To Geek
DNS is the system that turns website names into the addresses your devices can actually use. In practice, it's one of those things most people never fiddle with, and those who do will just do it once and call it a day. It's more likely that you'll run into private DNS settings on a particular device and try to adjust those instead.
The problem starts if you choose to get adventurous and change DNS settings on a per-device level. You might end up with entirely different settings across multiple devices, and if something goes wrong, you'll be stuck in troubleshooting purgatory for the foreseeable future. No one likes that.
That's why I prefer setting DNS at the router level instead. It keeps most of the devices on your network using the same DNS provider by default, which really cuts back on that annoying troubleshooting time.
To change it, open your router's admin page or app and look for DNS, WAN DNS, Internet Settings, or DHCP server settings. From there, swap the automatic DNS servers for the ones you want to use, such as Cloudflare, Google Public DNS, Quad9, NextDNS, or AdGuard DNS. Save and reboot.
Guest or IoT network
Your smart devices don't need VIP treatment
Bertel King / How-To Geek
A separate guest or IoT network is one of those things that sounds way overkill until you remember just how many random, often not-so-protected devices are mooching off of your Wi-Fi. Smart bulbs, plugs, speakers, a Roomba here, an Amazon Fire TV Stick there … you get my point. They all want internet access, but they don't need the full VIP access the way your PC or your NAS does.
A lot of smart home gear only needs to reach the internet and maybe talk to its own app; it doesn't need to poke around the rest of your local network. Keeping those devices on a separate network can help reduce how much they can see.
Changing this means having to open the router admin page and look for Guest Network, IoT Network, Smart Home Network, or something along those lines. Create a separate network name and password, then move devices that only need internet access over to it. Just be careful with devices you use for casting, printing, local file sharing, or smart home control, because isolating them too aggressively can stop them from talking to the devices they actually need to work with.
WPS and UPnP
Convenience is not always your friend
Bertel King / How-To Geek
WPS and UPnP are both super useful, but they each carry some major caveats that are hard to overlook.
WPS is the setting that lets you connect devices to Wi-Fi without typing the password the normal way, usually through a button press or a PIN. UPnP, meanwhile, lets devices and apps request network access automatically, which can be handy for consoles, multiplayer games, voice chat, and certain peer-to-peer apps.
The problem is that I don't want my router being that helpful, not unless that's actually my intention. WPS is the easier one: if you're not actively using it to add new devices, turn it off in your router's Wi-Fi or security settings. UPnP is a little trickier, because turning it off can break things like game matchmaking or remote access, but it's still worth checking under Advanced, NAT Forwarding, Port Forwarding, or WAN Settings.
The best network upgrades are sometimes the easiest ones to tweak
A better home network doesn't mean you have to spend upward of $500 on a high-end router (although that certainly won't hurt). It's more about making the most of what you already own. There are some hidden treasures to be found within networking settings, so I encourage you to explore them, but tread carefully: if you're not sure, look it up online first.
