Help with Wireless Network Design and Equipment

[jdogg707]

I have a client that has asked me to install a wireless network at his business. He owns and operates a Marina, with a main office and a dock, about 400 feet apart, but have a straight line of sight between them. He would like to be able to share his DSL connection with the dock, to alleviate problems with the Dial-Up connection they are currently running to process boat licenses, fees, etc. I planned on a wireless router, using a high gain uni-directional antenna, to shoot the signal to the dock via a straight line of sight. At the dock a Wireless Access Point would be setup to receive the signal and then relay it to the computers at the location via wireless PCI cards in the machines themselves. My only interference issues would be the water of course and that there are telephone and power poles that sit at either side of the direct line of sight I have to the dock. I will also be encrypting the connection using WEP 128 bit, and will be using MAC address filtering as well. My question is, would this proposed setup work? And if so, what parts would you recommend as far as a high gain antenna, wireless router, and access point are concerned?

BTW, I do not have to have outdoor stuff, as the antenna, router, and access point will all be positioned in a way that can shield them from the elements.

 

[spidey07]

no problems. You've got a wireless bridge.

Just make sure the antennas have lightning protection on them (slips in line on the coax)

 

[jdogg707]

Would this this setup be pretty much everything I need? I could get the lightning arrestors for 69.99 for 2 from this place as well. Look pretty simple.

DSL Modem ---> WAP 1 w/Uni-Directional Antenna ---> WAP 2 w/Uni-Directional Antenna ---> Wired Switch ---> Computers on Dock.

Does that sound about right?

 

[spidey07]

sounds good. Just make sure you have a good ground (and ground cable...its green...solid 6 gauge I believe) for the lightning arrestor.

Although I'm not familiar with that product line or the power levels/reliability it should work ok.

Bridging two buildins is very straightfoward. Having a level helps.

Also make sure you can tune the antennas for max signal strength (getting them dead on pointed at each other) I'm sure some others have tips/tricks for this but I've always relied on the installers for the nitty/gritty.

 

[JackMDS]

Yeah that is what it takes.

Take into consideration that these are Access Point, if you need to use the DSL in two places, it should be:

______________Office Computer
_________________|
DSL Modem ? Cable/DSL Router ? Access Point -------------- Access Point ------- Switch -----Marina computers.

You can also play on variation of Wireless in both localities.

This page describes few scenarios:Wirelessly Bridging Network.

:sun:

 

[jdogg707]

Awesome guys, thanks! I will be most likely going with the setup I linked to in my earlier post. I will get some good solid ground cable for the arrestors, and make sure that they are in direct line of sight with each other. JackMDS, the DSL modem has built-in wireless router functionality. One office computer will be connected to it wirelessly, the other wired, and then I will have another wire that goes to the Access Point.

BTW, Thanks for the link!

 

[LOFBenson]

WEP should never be involved in any business enviroment. Ever. If they can't afford something better than WEP then they can't afford wireless. The price difference between WEP and WPA for a project this size is minimal. If the hardware is already purchased look into SSL/VPN tunnels or IPsec for your security.

 

[jdogg707]

Originally posted by: LOFBenson
WEP should never be involved in any business enviroment. Ever. If they can't afford something better than WEP then they can't afford wireless. The price difference between WEP and WPA for a project this size is minimal. If the hardware is already purchased look into SSL/VPN tunnels or IPsec for your security.

I just looked into it and the units that come with the bundle are WPA capable, so that can be used instead of WEP. I don't like WEP much, but in this location, with WEP and MAC Filtering, I am positive 99.9% of all potential threats would be neutralized. Nonetheless, I will look into it and see what advantages I will have using WPA.

 

[nweaver]

if it's available already, use WPA. I think WEP+Mac+No SSID+Other layered security (Password policy, f/w, etc) is ok for home, I do not think it is for business. What can I do if I gain access to your home network..free ISP, maybe find family pictures or banking info. If I get access to theirs...I can now register boats for free, get customer information, trash your machines causing downtime, etc.

 

[LOFBenson]

Originally posted by: jdogg707

Originally posted by: LOFBenson
WEP should never be involved in any business enviroment. Ever. If they can't afford something better than WEP then they can't afford wireless. The price difference between WEP and WPA for a project this size is minimal. If the hardware is already purchased look into SSL/VPN tunnels or IPsec for your security.

I just looked into it and the units that come with the bundle are WPA capable, so that can be used instead of WEP. I don't like WEP much, but in this location, with WEP and MAC Filtering, I am positive 99.9% of all potential threats would be neutralized. Nonetheless, I will look into it and see what advantages I will have using WPA.

It is far easier to protect your data from people outside your network than people inside. All it would take is a kid with a laptop on a boat at your dock to get inside your network with WEP & MAC if he wanted. But even without getting "inside" he could still sniff data being passed around unless it was encrypted with something other than WEP as well as WEP. Like Credit Card #'s.

 

[jdogg707]

Cool, WPA it is. If it is there, and better, then MAC Filtering+WPA it is.