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Possible to connect a few computers together via switch

A

Alienwho

Diamond Member
My landlady lives above me and has a WAP that we all share. Since it is in her house, I do not have physical control of the switch/router.

For some reason, transferring files between my computer and server are SLOW over the wireless. I'm talking 100k/second which seems ridiculous to me. Both my computer and server have gigabit ethernet ports, so I figure why not use them? I'm always transferring files between the two.

When I tried to connect them together with the switch (WRT54G, old) I will remain connected to the wireless AP upstairs, but the internet will no longer work because it seems to be looking for it through the nic.

Is there anyway I can enable both? Or better yet, connect my WAP directly to the land lady upstairs (Also a WRT54G)? If that was the case that would free up two wireless USB devices I'm using on each one.

Any suggestion? I set up the wireless upstairs so I have complete control over that wireless router as well and can log in and change any settings. I would like to link both our WAP's together and simply connect through cat5 from my computer and server to the AP down here.
 
Flash a WRT54G (old is fine) with DD-WRT firmware, and then set it up in client mode.

This will let you connect the router wirelessly to the WAP, and then share that connection with any locally wired clients. You can also attach a gigabit switch to one of its LAN ports, and connect at least the clients with gigabit NICs to that directly -- that way you'd get even faster local transfer speeds.

See the DD-WRT web site for firmware version information, downloads, and installation instructions.

After that, you should be able to follow the instructions here for setting up client mode:

http://forums.anandtech.com/me...id=36&threadid=2207982

The difference between "client mode" and "client bridge mode" is that the former runs NAT/firewall between the wireless and wired sides. You can choose whichever you prefer. Client bridge mode is preferred when the entire network is yours; client mode when you might want some additional protection from the wireless side -- using it like a more conventional router.
 
That looks cool. My router is version 2.2 and it looks like all I can find is information on newer models. There is so much information there I'm not sure which to follow for my specific device.
 
Yeah, the DD-WRT info is a mess. That its lead developer calls himself "BrainSlayer" doesn't help much.

You should be able to use the standard generic versions. Just be patient and follow the instructions.
 
Ok I did the upgrade, easy enough and it worked fine.
Now let me see if I got this right.

My desired setup:
Internet--->WRT54G(broadcasting)

' ' ' 'broadcast ' ' ' '
server---(gigabit)-----[DD-WRT]--------(gigabit)------desktop


So upstairs we have the main WRT54G (named Optimus Prime) broadcasting on Channel 6 with WPA and a password

Downstairs I have my server to the left of my desk, connected through ethernet to the DD-WRT. To the right of my desk, my desktop, also connected through ethernet.

Now if what I am reading is correct, I can bridge the DD-WRT directly to my upstairs router and be able to connect both my server and desktop?

I followed your instructions in the other thread and my computers connected to the dd-wrt cannot get an IP. I have it setup so they have the same name, the same authentication and same password. Under the "Wireless Nodes' in status, I do see my Wireless acess point appearing.
Am I on the right track? This stuff is really cool.
 
Yes, you seem to be on the right track. Try power-cycling your router and the computer, and giving the router a minute or two to connect wirelessly.
 
You want your WAP connecting wirelessly as a client bridge to the upstairs WAP, this will essentially make it's WAN the wireless. Make sure DHCP is turned on your ddwrt router to essentially separate your LAN from the wireless (it will only receive internet through the wireless this way)
 
In DD-WRT, "Client Bridge" mode puts both the 4-port switch and the wireless connection in the same subnet. No need to run DHCP (in fact, that would probably screw things up). "Client" mode puts the wireless in the WAN and NATs it through.

The OP will want "Client Bridge" mode.

Set the SSID the same as the upstairs router, choose "Client Bridge" mode, set up the settings the same, and you should be fine. I use this in my home to get my network from upstairs to downstairs. It's cheap and it works beautifully.
 
I'm currently using a pair of WRT54G's with DD-WRT on them. I have the main router in the "office" and I have the second one set up as a repeater/bridge in my room (connects via hard line to my computer/360/HD-DVD player/PS3. I can tell you that I was not able to get the setup to work without flashing the main router with DD-WRT (was trying to originally do it with stock firmware when I first started playing with DD-WRT on my router). The main problem was that the stock firmware on the WRT54G was not able to correctly assign IP addresses through the repeater/bridge using DHCP - however flashing the router with DD-WRT fixed this problem (flawlessly).

If you can't get it working, talk to your land lady about flashing her router. If you screw something up, buying a new WRT54G won't set you back too much (or just buy a spare, flash it, and ask her if you can set it up to try it).
 
Originally posted by: Wuzup101
I'm currently using a pair of WRT54G's with DD-WRT on them. I have the main router in the "office" and I have the second one set up as a repeater/bridge in my room (connects via hard line to my computer/360/HD-DVD player/PS3. I can tell you that I was not able to get the setup to work without flashing the main router with DD-WRT (was trying to originally do it with stock firmware when I first started playing with DD-WRT on my router). The main problem was that the stock firmware on the WRT54G was not able to correctly assign IP addresses through the repeater/bridge using DHCP - however flashing the router with DD-WRT fixed this problem (flawlessly).

If you can't get it working, talk to your land lady about flashing her router. If you screw something up, buying a new WRT54G won't set you back too much (or just buy a spare, flash it, and ask her if you can set it up to try it).
Click to expand...

I was wondering if I would have to do this. I'll be able to flash her router.
 
It shouldn't be necessary to flash the main router. One of the main benefits of client modes is that they don't place any special requirements on the main router as they connect as standard clients. However, practice is not the same as theory, so it's possible that there are implementation/version specific issues in some strange cases.

Is there any MAC address filtering on the main router?

Which specific encryption options did you choose on the bridge?

Did you ensure that the client router's IP is compatible and non-conflicting with the main router's settings?

Perhaps if you published a bunch of these details one of us would be able to see a problem.
 
I figured it out. I think it didn't like the fact that I had a space in my wireless name. It works flawlessly now. This is AWESOME! And I suddenly have two spare USB wireless dongles on my hands!

Thanks
 
Hmmm, well it appears that after rebooting, I no longer can get the internet through this setup. Both server and desktop are networked through the ddr-wt and they can see each other fine, but no longer access the internet.

EDIT

Actually, I just went into the status>wireless>site survey>add network.

and now it works fine.
 
A few more questions though. Will it be necessary for me to open up ports on the bridge for something like torrents?
 
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