How do I stop devices from using my old unfiltered Wi-Fi connection?
Some steps in this article can get a little technical, so you might want the help of a tech-savvy friend or family member to help you out.
Once you have set up your new Safe Surfer Wi-Fi Lifeguard network, any devices that were connected to your old unfiltered Wi-Fi provided by your main home router might still use that connection. Because of this, it is important to perform at least one of the following steps:
Forget the old connection on each device previously connected to the old unfiltered Wi-Fi
Change the SSID password(s) of your main home router
Turn off the SSID belonging to the main home router
SSID stands for Service Set Identifier. It is the technical term for a discoverable Wi-Fi network name. If you are not sure what the SSIDs of your main home router are, you might be able to find the original factory-set SSIDs on a physical sticker placed somewhere on it by the manufacturer. This sticker can usually found on the bottom or back of the device.
We recommend going through all three steps to ensure that each device is properly disconnected. This ensures that devices at home are only connected to the Wi-Fi Lifeguard network. If you have limited time, the most important step is Step 3: Turn off the SSID belonging to the main home router.
This step differs slightly depending on what kind of device you have. If you are configuring an Apple phone or tablet device, you are using iOS (or iPadOS). If you are configuring a phone or tablet that is not an Apple device, it is probably running Android.
Windows: right-click the Internet icon on the bottom right of the taskbar > select Open Network & Internet settings > click Wi-Fi > click Manage known networks > click each network you wish to remove and click the Forget button
macOS: click the Internet icon on the menu bar > click Open Network Preferences > in the Wi-Fi menu, click Advanced > click the network you wish to remove and click the minus (-) button
iOS (or iPadOS): tap the Settings app > tap Wi-Fi> tap the i icon next the the Wi-Fi network you wish to forget > tap Forget this Network
Android (the exact steps may differ slightly per device): tap the Settings app > tap Connections > tap the Wi-Fi menu > tap the three dot icon and tap Advanced > tap Manage Networks > tap the network you wish to remove > tap Forget
If your device is not connected to the Wi-Fi Lifeguard network, now is a good time to connect by selecting the SafeSurfer-XXXX SSID in the Settings app or Wi-Fi configuration pane and typing in the password.
To change the SSID password(s) of your main home router, you will need to log in to the web configuration page belonging to it. The easiest way to perform this is by using a laptop running Windows that is connected only to an SSID belonging to the main home router.
Press both Win + R on your keyboard at the same time. The Run program should open. Type in "cmd" to open up the Windows Command Prompt program. Type into the Command Prompt "ipconfig". Look for the wired or wireless adapter that you are using for Internet for that device. For the appropriate adapter, in its Default Gateway value, you should be able to find an IP address that looks like 192.168.1.1, or 192.168.1.254. Remember the address that the adapter is using (as per the example below, circled in red):
Open up a web browser and enter into the URL bar the IP address stated previously in the 'Default Gateway' listing. Enter the username and password for the router. Your router might have a physical sticker on it with the web configuration panel credentials. The default values for many routers are the following: Username: admin / Password: admin OR Username: admin / Password: password.
Once you have logged in, you will need to find a page that hosts the settings for SSID, Wi-Fi, or Wireless broadcasting. There should be a textbox section to change the password for each SSID that the main home router hosts. Once you have changed the password(s), apply the settings. Your main home router might reboot while it performs this operation. You should check your other previously connected device to ensure that they cannot connect to the main home router anymore if they were previously connected.
WARNING: This section involves disabling the wireless bands of your main home router. If you need to enable wireless bands again, you will need to use a laptop or desktop that has an Ethernet port, and use an Ethernet cable to plug into a rear LAN port of your router. LAN Ethernet ports are typically found as four or five ports in a group, often coloured yellow. WAN Ethernet ports are typically found as one port by itself, often coloured blue or red. Do not use the WAN port as an Ethernet port to connect the laptop to your main home router.
This step is very similar to the previous step. Once you have reached the web configuration section in your main home router for SSID, Wi-Fi, or Wireless broadcasting settings, there will likely be a checkbox or section to disable broadcasting 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz bands for the router. Once you have deselected wireless broadcasting, apply the settings. Your router might reboot while it performs this operation. You should check your other previously connected devices to ensure that they cannot connect to the old router anymore.
Once you have set up your new Safe Surfer Wi-Fi Lifeguard network, any devices that were connected to your old unfiltered Wi-Fi provided by your main home router might still use that connection. Because of this, it is important to perform at least one of the following steps:
Forget the old connection on each device previously connected to the old unfiltered Wi-Fi
Change the SSID password(s) of your main home router
Turn off the SSID belonging to the main home router
SSID stands for Service Set Identifier. It is the technical term for a discoverable Wi-Fi network name. If you are not sure what the SSIDs of your main home router are, you might be able to find the original factory-set SSIDs on a physical sticker placed somewhere on it by the manufacturer. This sticker can usually found on the bottom or back of the device.
We recommend going through all three steps to ensure that each device is properly disconnected. This ensures that devices at home are only connected to the Wi-Fi Lifeguard network. If you have limited time, the most important step is Step 3: Turn off the SSID belonging to the main home router.
1. Forget the old connection on each device previously connected to the old unfiltered Wi-Fi
This step differs slightly depending on what kind of device you have. If you are configuring an Apple phone or tablet device, you are using iOS (or iPadOS). If you are configuring a phone or tablet that is not an Apple device, it is probably running Android.
Windows: right-click the Internet icon on the bottom right of the taskbar > select Open Network & Internet settings > click Wi-Fi > click Manage known networks > click each network you wish to remove and click the Forget button
macOS: click the Internet icon on the menu bar > click Open Network Preferences > in the Wi-Fi menu, click Advanced > click the network you wish to remove and click the minus (-) button
iOS (or iPadOS): tap the Settings app > tap Wi-Fi> tap the i icon next the the Wi-Fi network you wish to forget > tap Forget this Network
Android (the exact steps may differ slightly per device): tap the Settings app > tap Connections > tap the Wi-Fi menu > tap the three dot icon and tap Advanced > tap Manage Networks > tap the network you wish to remove > tap Forget
If your device is not connected to the Wi-Fi Lifeguard network, now is a good time to connect by selecting the SafeSurfer-XXXX SSID in the Settings app or Wi-Fi configuration pane and typing in the password.
2. Change the SSID password(s) of your main home router
To change the SSID password(s) of your main home router, you will need to log in to the web configuration page belonging to it. The easiest way to perform this is by using a laptop running Windows that is connected only to an SSID belonging to the main home router.
Press both Win + R on your keyboard at the same time. The Run program should open. Type in "cmd" to open up the Windows Command Prompt program. Type into the Command Prompt "ipconfig". Look for the wired or wireless adapter that you are using for Internet for that device. For the appropriate adapter, in its Default Gateway value, you should be able to find an IP address that looks like 192.168.1.1, or 192.168.1.254. Remember the address that the adapter is using (as per the example below, circled in red):
Open up a web browser and enter into the URL bar the IP address stated previously in the 'Default Gateway' listing. Enter the username and password for the router. Your router might have a physical sticker on it with the web configuration panel credentials. The default values for many routers are the following: Username: admin / Password: admin OR Username: admin / Password: password.
Once you have logged in, you will need to find a page that hosts the settings for SSID, Wi-Fi, or Wireless broadcasting. There should be a textbox section to change the password for each SSID that the main home router hosts. Once you have changed the password(s), apply the settings. Your main home router might reboot while it performs this operation. You should check your other previously connected device to ensure that they cannot connect to the main home router anymore if they were previously connected.
3. Turn off the SSID belonging to the main home router
WARNING: This section involves disabling the wireless bands of your main home router. If you need to enable wireless bands again, you will need to use a laptop or desktop that has an Ethernet port, and use an Ethernet cable to plug into a rear LAN port of your router. LAN Ethernet ports are typically found as four or five ports in a group, often coloured yellow. WAN Ethernet ports are typically found as one port by itself, often coloured blue or red. Do not use the WAN port as an Ethernet port to connect the laptop to your main home router.
This step is very similar to the previous step. Once you have reached the web configuration section in your main home router for SSID, Wi-Fi, or Wireless broadcasting settings, there will likely be a checkbox or section to disable broadcasting 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz bands for the router. Once you have deselected wireless broadcasting, apply the settings. Your router might reboot while it performs this operation. You should check your other previously connected devices to ensure that they cannot connect to the old router anymore.
Updated on: 09/04/2021
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