Home network questions

[phph]

Hello, i'm in proccess of making some changes in my home network and i 'd like some advices.

I live in an appartment that has 2 areas. Area A with 3 rooms and area B with 2 rooms. The areas aren't really isolated, but there are some brick walls and furiture that make the wifi communication between them difficult.

What i have now:

In area A exists a pc, a printer and an ip camera, all connected through ethernet cables to a cheap modem/router that my isp provides. An external HD, that holds my backups, is connected through usb3 to the pc. There are 2 ethernet over power adapters that connect area A with area B. In area B exists another pc connected through ethernet cable to the ethernet over power adapter. Several other devices (laptops, tablets, phones and a game console) move around and connect wirelessly mainly in area B. Until recently some of my devices could connect through wifi in both rooms in area B, some in only 1 and some could not connect at all. But after we made some changes (moved some big furniture around), only our phones and 1 tablet can connect in 1 room in area B. Everything else fails to connect completely.

I tried to extend the range of wifi with a wireless range extender i borrowed, but if i put it in area A the signal in area B is not strong. If i put it in area B the signal it gets from modem/router is not strong.

The speed i get through powerline adapters is just good for printing, web browsing, some small downloads and watching 1 youtube video. It doesn't worth to use it to extend the range of wifi.

What i plan to do:

Firstly i will buy a new router (maybe https://www.tp-link.com/us/products/details/cat-9_Archer-C9.html or something similar). That's not only for the wifi range, but i want to be able to remotely wake my pcs (so i need support for no-ip or similar ddns services that the cheap modem/router doesn't offer), some kind of parental control for the devices my kids use and faster access to my external hard disc.

I expect to have better range, but if i don't, i plan to connect the 2 areas with a cat6 cable to create a gigabit network.

Questions:

a) I will buy a dedicated router and connect it to the outside world through my isp's cheap modem/router. Will i be able to connect to my home network from the outside world if only the dedicated router supports ddns services? Or my modem/router should support them too?

b) What other harware would i need? For area A i think the 4 gigabit ports of the router should be enough even if i replace my usb3 external hard disk with an ethernet connected nas. What about area B? A gigabit 4 port switch and wifi extender that will conect to it maybe?

c) What if i get another router? I think it can work as a switch and as a wifi extender at the same time with only 1 device instead of 2. Plus i will have an instant replacement if the other router fails. And if i get a different model/make i can choose which one i will use for main router based in their features. But will it work that way?

I know i might find the answers if i google enough, but some opinions, from people that have much more knowledge than me, would be much appreciated.

 

[VirtualLarry]

It really sounds like you need wireless coverage for "Area B", and wire that router or AP into "Area A", where the ISP modem / router is.

If powerline won't cut it, for the wired link, then yes, you should lay a gigabit cable between the two areas, or better yet, two of them, so that you have a backup cable in the future.

You can easily set up a router as an Access Point in Area B, once you have it wired up to Area A.

As far as a secondary router handling a DDNS provider, probably, but easier if you can put the ISP router into "Bridge Mode", so it's just a pass-through. (That allows the secondary router, which handles DDNS, to get the public IP address.)

 

[phph]

Thanks for you reply.
I need wireless coverage in both areas. The main router, that will be in area A connected to the ISP modem/router, will cover area A. The 2nd router, that will be in area B connected through ethernet cable to the main router, will cover the area B. The ISP modem/router will be in bridge mode of course. (PPPoE Pass Through: Enabled is the option i think).

I think the above are clear to my mind. What is not clear is: I want to be able to remotely wake 2 pcs. One will be connected to the main router, the other to the 2nd router. I think it's possible to have the main router handle the DDNS services and wake the first pc. What about the 2nd? Will the fact that it will be connected to the 2nd router create problems? Will i be able to wake it with magic packet?

And what about the 2 wifi networks? How will they cooperate? Will i have conflicts? What will happen if i move a device from area A to area B? Will it connect to the other router automatically? What will happen if in some place both networks have good signal? Will it connect to the strongest automatically?

 

[JackMDS]

One Router (the one connected to the ISP Bridge Modem) should work as a Wireless Router.

The second one should be configured like this.

Using Wireless Routers (or Modem/Wireless Router) as a Switch with an Access Point - http://www.ezlan.net/router_AP.html

Giving your environment two of this would suffice.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01K1JJUNW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[phph]

From the link you gave me, i understand that:
The 2nd router must have an ip different than the 1st but in the same subnet.
The 2nd router's ip must outside the 1st router's dhcp server range.
The 2nd router must have off its dhcp server and other options (like nat, firewall etc).
All these are straight forward.
I have no idea what crossover cable, straight patch and uplink port are, but i will google them.
What about 2nd router's wireless? Same or different SSID, channel, password and other settings?

I suppose the router you suggest is an example of a decent low cost option. There is no problem if i get some other or if the 2 routers are of different make/model. Right?

 

[JackMDS]

From the link you gave me, i understand that:
The 2nd router must have an ip different than the 1st but in the same subnet.

Yes different IP same subnet

The 2nd router's ip must outside the 1st router's dhcp server range.

It dependent on how it set if you use IP reservation in the DHCP of the main Router, then it can be set as reserve IP within the DHCP.

The 2nd router must have off its dhcp server and other options (like nat, firewall etc).

Yes NAT DHCP Firewall should be Off in the second Router.

I have no idea what crossover cable, straight patch and uplink port are, but i will google them.
What about 2nd router's wireless? Same or different SSID, channel, password and other settings?

These were important in the old day with Ca5 and old hardware.

If you current hardware and usin CAT5e and or CAT6 ignore it.

I suppose the router you suggest is an example of a decent low cost option. There is no problem if i get some other or if the 2 routers are of different make/model. Right?

Yes it can be done with any pair of Wireless Router.

 

[phph]

Yes different IP same subnet
These were important in the old day with Ca5 and old hardware.

If you current hardware and usin CAT5e and or CAT6 ignore it.

Good to hear it. In the biggest e-shop in my country, between over 2000 network products of which about 600 were ethernet cables of various lengths, colors, types etc, i found only 2 crossover adapters and no cables.

I think i can go now to buy the main router.