Using Wireless Router as Wireless Access Point Only

Most(?) wireless routers can only act as access points when they are connected by RJ45 to the "other" router... You may find something about that in the docs for your router. I also don't think you want both routers to have the same SSID... I'll have to do some more reading on this, but that is my first suggestion of possible issues for you.

HTH

Kerry

Surely they wouldn't connect if they didn't have the same SSID... they wouldn't be able to find each other. As long as they are on a different channel, they should not conflict, just happily overlap.

The school I work in is set out in the same way with the Access Points, three of which have the same SSID so that laptops can connect to the same SSID without reconfiguration whereever they are in the school... I can't see why a home network should be any different.

The question would be can I route from one router to the other through IP addresses alone in the same SSID or not... if I need a cable, as it would not be possible wirelessly, then fair enough. That really is one of my questions.

Kerry Liles wrote:

Same SSID is fine, they just need to be on different channels like 1 & or whatever. unless your router supports WDS or something similar you'll need a physical connection to your new one

Adair

Ah I see... yes, of course you are right about the SSID. Thanks.

Excellent,

Thanks for that... makes so much more sense when others give their help. Sitting here trying to plan it all out in my head just gives me a headache.

Yes, I would need a backbone (a mini-one at least)... which means upping floorboards.. hmm, we will see.

Karl

Adair Witner wrote:

If the two routers are connected via RJ45, they're not connecting via wireless. In this scenario, you would need different SSIDs, to avoid your client getting confused when you roamed from one router to the other.

Yes, you need that too - but read up on how channels overlap, to pick an optimal pair.

This /can/ work but my experience (admittedly limited) is that sometimes it confuses the client. WZC will autoconnect to the nearest router anyway so there's no reconfig to perform if you configure each AP up on each client (they ought to have different WPA/WEP keys too...)

Are you trying to connect the two routers together wirelessly? This is called bridging as far as I remember, and requires specific hardware.

This is totally wrong... If you want to have a wired distribution system, with the fastest switch over between AP's, give hem the smae SSID. Just make sure you have a single DHCP server so you don't have to reassign IP addresses. I.E. make the wireless cloud its own IP subnet and the wired lan another subnet.

Thanks,

I know that giving them the same SSID is correct as it is very similar to Domain naming. If you call an SSID a Domain Name, for this example, you would have to log on to two completely different networks everytime you moved from upstairs to downstairs.

No, the SSID can be the same, for ease of use, as long as the signal does not have the same channel, as they can fight over who rules the space.

I know this as it has been tried and tested and confirmed at my current place of work. This was not the issue, so for anyone who wishes to argue with this idea, I suggest you try it yourselves.

The question was can I turn a Wireless Router into just a Wireless Access Point, by turning off DHCP, changing round a couple of IP Addresses, and do it all wirelessly... or does it need to be physically connected to a backbone, or similar idea, to connect with the Network.

If the answer is no, then fair enough... it's just I am going to be recieving an Orange Livebox anyway, and thought using my existing router as a booster might be more beneficial than leaving one or the other piece of equipment dormant in the corner of the room...

Has anyone used the Orange Livebox? How does it compare to a standard Wireless Router, such as my Netgear?

snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com wrote:

If you have to configure every client with every possible wireless connection... that is reconfiguring. If you only have one... no reconfiguring. You have just basically told me, for example only, that I would never have to replace any lightbulbs in my house if all of them were brand new and working all the time...

Of course I wouldnt need to reconfigure anything if everything was already configured for everything...

Damn.. but no ,the WEP/WPA is a matter of personal security. They can be different, they can be the same. They do not conflict. Windows Zero Configuration only connects to the nearest AP if the nearest one happens to be configured to connect. Thing is they would both be near, so one SSID makes more sense anyway..... otherwise my laptop would try to connect to two SSID's at once, if I were to go by what you just said... they are both near, and if I configured everything possible onto my laptop, which would be those two SSID's then it would try to connect to both of them!

But my original query still remains. Would my idea work wirelessly, or would it have to be cabled. It has been suggested it needs a backbone connection. Any one differ from that? See other posts for more information.

Hi. What you are considering is called "repeating" or using the Netgear as a "repeater"

Almost certainly won't work between these two boxes of a different brand, unless they both have the feature called "WDS". Doubtful.

You will need to run a cable to the Netgear to use it as a second "AP".

Cheers, Steve

No.

*shrug*. I have two APs, different SSIDs and roaming works fine thanks. When I gave them the same SSID, it failed to roam. H4C I guess.

Yes.

That doesn't follow from what you said about DHCP servers, and anyway theres no need to do it unless you really want to for some other reason.

No.

No, you'd be conneting to two different APs. This is a totally different layer in the protocol stack and doesn't affect what network you're connecting to.

Either way will work, but you may get different conflicts depending on the precise hardware and geometry. I've tried both.

Well, yes. Thats all it is - an AP plus a wired router. So turn off DHCP and don't use the WAN port, and presto! .

You almost certainly need a wired backbone.

Most APs cannot be both a client (ie connecting to another router) and a server (ie serving out connections to your laptop) at the same time. Those that can must be installed in matched sets from the same maker, and will suffer performance degradation.

I think you're looking for WDS.

I assumed you meant reconfiguring each time you walked round the house. No, you don't need to do this. Windows will silently swap between APs, even if they hve different SSIDs, WPA keys and channels. All you hve to do is configure everything once.

Que?

See elsethread for answer: brief version - no. Longer version - yes, but only with kit you don't have and loss of performance.

I honestly don't know why you are continuing to try to make the SSID thing an issue. As I have said in a previous post, I already know having one SSID and multiple AP's works... this is not in dispute. I'm not interested in arguments or discussions revolving around this.

However, in one of your responses you did answer my question... which happens to be the same answer as I got previously... so you have confirmed what I wished to know.

Thank you for your input. I would be interested to know, just out of curiosity, what your occupation is Mark, and what qualifications you hold in the IT world. This is not for anything but sheer curiosity.

Thank you for your time.

Karl

Mark Mc>

I'm not, I'm just clarifying that it is not "totally wrong" to have two differnt SSIDS, since my advice was called into question in that manner. If you're not interested in reading that part, just skip it.

My experience relevant to this group is that I've installed and maintain several home networks in wired/11b/11g environments, including printers, servers, desktops, laptops and handhelds. I'm currently experimenting with including Powerline in the mix, and am looking at AV distribution. I don't do any of that for a living - I'm a senior technology project manager in the City by day, specialising in complex multidomain multilocation projects - so Jeff Liebermann I aint.

It does follow what I say if you are using the routers as routers...connected the Internet connection into the WAN port of the

1st AP. This will get eiher a dynamicor static IP address from your Internet device (cable, DSL or Satellite modem). Use the first AP as the DHCP server if you want or have a DHCP server hanging off one of the LAN ports. Since an AP is a bridge between the 802.11 and 802.3 protocol all Lan ports and wireless clients are in the same broadcast domain so have to have the same IP subnet. Connect the 2nd AP to the first via a LAN port and all you have done is extented the broadcast domain and hence still need the same IP subnet and only need one DHCP server.

If you used the WAN port on the second to connect the two AP's you would need two DHCP servers... one for the broadcast domain on the first AP's LAN ports and Wireless clients with the default gateway being the ISP's and the second DHCP scope for the second AP's LAN ports/wireless clients with the default gateway being the IP address of the 1st AP. which in effect give you 3 IP subnets 1. ISPs on wan port of 1st AP, IP subnet for broadcast domain of 1st AP lan/wireless clients, and the third one being the IP subnet for the 2nd AP's wireless/lan clients.

Many ways to skin a cat.. but well away from the original question of whether or not he can connect two AP's wirelessly for a wireless distribution system, and that depends on the AP's in question..

Just an aside, and not exactly wireless, but I have one wap/router connected to the cable modem, and a powerline transciever at the house connected to the router, and in the garage and guest house (both about 1000ft from the house, but AC via underground cable from the house), and in each I have another wap/router with another powerline transciever.. Use the same ssid/different channel/no dhcp server/change ip address on them, and can plug em in at either (or anywhere else where there is power) and have both wired and wireless connections to both the internet and my home network...

See

any electrical outlet into a Home Network connection and share the Internet with PCs in different rooms with no new wires at 14, 85, or 200 Mbps. depending on speed, $89 to $149 (per pair of transcievers)