Separate WLAN from wired LAN?

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- Ben - Melbn
  
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posted
15 years ago

Tue, Jul 1, 2008 3:59 AM

I'm sure this is a FAQ but I've been trying search queries all morning trying to get a clear answer... I just want to let my wife's iPhone access our internet connection unfiltered while keeping our wired LAN segregated. The iPhone does not need to communicate with anything on our wired network, and I don't want anyone from the outside world being able to hack into my server or any of the desktop PCs!

Currently we're trying to give the iPhone access via a Mac Mini, bridging/sharing its WiFi through its wired connection, but A: this doesn't seem to let the iPhone's Email work reliably (even with the Mac's software firewall turned off), and B: I need to physically unplug my file server from the LAN while the WiFi is turned on, for peace of mind...

So I'm considering the purchase of a WiFi router, such as the Linksys WRT54G series, but I'd like to confirm that I can thoroughly separate WAN from WLAN (whether with its default capabilities, or using open- source firmware) before I spend the money. Thanks in advance for any advice!

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posted
15 years ago

Tue, Jul 1, 2008 5:34 AM

I was curious myself. I have a Buffalo WYR-G54. The configuration page allows you to restrict access by wireless devices to just the WAN, and not the LAN. I had never tested that before, but I tried it and it seems to work. I'll be very surprised if the Linksys doesn't have the same feature. I'm sure someone will tell you specifically.

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posted
15 years ago

Tue, Jul 1, 2008 5:44 AM

I should clarify here - I HAVE found some things, like

formatting link

- along with a number of posts by people who say it doesn't work! Also, since posting the above I discovered using the search term "isolate" instead of "separate" leads to a lot more relevant results, but still nothing clear and straightforward - most of it seems more about maintaining two simultaneous WLANs.

My grasp of networking terms and concepts is barely enough to follow some of the explanations I've read, and since I lack the knowledge to fully test the results, I'm trying to find a straightforward and understandable process to do what ought to be a straightforward thing. For instance, un-bridging the WLAN and setting a static IP makes sense enough to me, but after that most of the discussion threads I find turn into more complicated debates over what will or won't work under various circumstances, and/or how to do things I don't need. I guess I'm just surprised this question hasn't been easier to find an answer for. Maybe I'm having a bad Google-day...?

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posted
15 years ago

Tue, Jul 1, 2008 6:08 AM

I've tried repeatedly to get the PDF user manual for Linksys WRT54G from the website, but the download keeps stalling for some reason. And I can't find the product model# you mention for sale on eBay, nor in Froogle! I HAVE found some $300+ routers with this feature explicitly mentioned, but that's more than even my wife wants to pay after dropping so much on the iPhone itself.

In years past, this would've been an excuse to dive headfirst into learning everything about the topic until I could write my own how-to, but I'm old and tired now and I just want a little checkbox to click. I don't plan on paying $250 extra for that checkbox, however, when I should be able to do it for around $50 and some script-editing. But even wading through the various versions of DD-WRT to determine what runs on which model router is exhausting my appetite for learning! Maybe the wife will just have to settle for coffee-shop WiFi... I mean, I can cook my own dinners for a couple weeks, eh?

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