• We’re currently investigating an issue related to the forum theme and styling that is impacting page layout and visual formatting. The problem has been identified, and we are actively working on a resolution. There is no impact to user data or functionality, this is strictly a front-end display issue. We’ll post an update once the fix has been deployed. Thanks for your patience while we get this sorted.

Simple networking issue...expanding the ethernet using WIRELESS!

M

MatthewF01

Senior member
Alright. I guess this will turn out to be a long story.


Now, our current network goes like this.

BASEMENT:
-my computer. USB ADSL modem, connects to the Internet, DHCP server, hands out IP's to other pcs and shares out the Internet connection.
-my dad's computer. gets Internet from me.
-my dad's linux box. gets Internet from me.
***all of these pc's are in one room, and they all plug into a 10/100 hub. Then theres an ethernet cable that goes from the hub, into the wall, and all the way up to...

UPSTAIRS (Floor 1):
-a 'family computer'. Resides in the kitchen, DIRECTLY BELOW MY BEDROOM. Connects to the internet right into the LAN port in the wall. Gets internet from me.



Now, here are a few little kickers before we get down to things.
-I want to remain in control of connecting to the Internet, because Im a bit of a gamer, and I like to be able to disable the LAN and shut off the other pcs from recieving internet late at night, if someone left Kazaa running or something and is sucking up bandwidth... 😉
-The modem my ISP (Bellsouth) sent is an Alcatel SpeedTouch USB modem. I have yet to find a router that accepts a USB modem.


So, what the next step is, is to get the Network up one more floor to my room. I have found that running Cat5 up there is sort of impossible. The electricians looked at it when they wired up to the kitchen. The place in the walls where theres supposed to be a clear shot up through the center of the house, has a plank of wood or something in the way. Likely cant be done. Even if it could id then have to shell out for an electricians bill 🙁

Now, I have looked at wireless casually, but I have no idea what the hell to look for, and what I really need. I'm pretty much up for any form of connectivity to a wireless solution (ethernet, usb, etc), so its just whatever will do me good. I figure that I dont even need to go wirelessly from my bedroom (floor 2) to the basement, I could just go to the kitchen.

So I guess it would be like, I have an entire wired network from the basement to the kitchen, then I could take a cheap hub, plug a wireless device into there, then beam it up to my room? Is that referred to as a bridge? Would that work?

Ideas anyone? Id really appreciate some help.


🙂
 
bumpity bump bump 🙂



it seems like such a simple task, and its upsetting that i cant understand all this wireless tech.
 
Incidentally, my initial inclination would be to (a) get a switch for the kitchen (b) plug the current computer and a wireless access point into that switch, and (c) get a wireless card for your pc in your room. Hopefully, range wouldn't be much of a problem then.

If wireless reception was problematic, if I could find them cheap (they are often on EBAY) I would buy 2 Netgear PE102 Ethernet to Phoneline Bridges. Connect one to a router and a phone jack, the other to your computer and a phone jack (same phone line).
 
hmm, well if i did phoneline networking, my computer would be the one connecting to the internet, so the phone jack is already taken (for some reason, my pc connects to the net at the fastest speed 🙂). wouldnt that be a problem?

But I dont think thered be any reception issue.

My dad and I sometimes do a few file transfers, so I'd want to be able to get pretty decent transfer times, whats all this 802.11g business?


In regards to your 'initial indication', thats along the lines of what I was thinking. I could do that for pretty cheap, yes? What'd be the best devices to use, and save a few bucks, but still have good quality components? For my desktop, I was thinking of using a wireless USB device, is that the right way to go (rather than the dumb PCI cards)?




thanks so much for your response! and i will check out the anandtech FAQ
 
Phone jacks wouldn't be an issue with HPNA (devices usually have 2 jacks so they can act as a pass through). But, you probably only want to go phoneline (or powerline) if reception is a problem.

802.11g is supposedly 5 times as fast as 802.11b and not that much more expensive. The final specs for 802.11g have not yet been finalized, but supposedly devices sold today will be firmware upgradeable to the final specs when they come out.

For my own part, I've had good luck with Netgear equipment. DLink and Linksys also have their fans. Whatever you get, it is a good idea to make sure it is easily returnable in case you do have reception problems.

Yes, I would buy USB rather than PCI, mostly because you can get better antenna placement with USB.
 
Incidentally, is this bedroom computer a whole new computer, or is the idea that you relocate your current computer that is located in the basement? That might affect your strategy a little bit. And given that you don't have a router, are you using ICS, or what?
 
Yes, the idea is that I want to take my computer and completely relocate my setup upstairs to my bedroom.

And 802.11g sounds really nice, and if a firmware upgrade will get them up to spec, im all for that! Any good devices I could use via 802.11g? If I'm going short distance, at most like 25 feet up through a floor, so I imagine I could get pretty nice speeds?

Netgear and Dlink do make nice products I hear, and their prices arent so outrageous. Its not like I'm on any tight budget here or anything, I make quite a bit of money for someone my age, so no problems there. I just dont want to have to spend more than needed for something pretty straight-forward.

And yes, given that I am the Internet server, I use ICS in WinXP to share out the Net, as well as hand out network IP's (DHCP server, yes?)

 
The fact that you are relocating the pc changes my suggestion a bit. Now, you want the WAP to be by your machine. Either get a router (ideal) or get a 2nd NIC for your PC that you can plug the WAP into.

Then, on kitchen floor, get something like a LINKSYS Wet11 or a WAP that can be configured as a client. So, for example, you might get two Linksys WAP11s; the one in your room is configured in AP mode, the one in the kitchen is configured in client mode.

In other words, if this was a new pc, the challenge would be getting the internet up to you. You would do that by attaching an AP in the kitchen and a client card in your machine.

But, since you are the source of the internet, the AP has to be with you. A client device (either a WET11 or an AP configured as client) has to be in the kitchen so the rest of the machines can get your internet feed.

This discussion of the WET11 might help. In particular, see this diagram.
 
Theres a phonejack in my room, just for clarification. 🙂

Thats sounding good. Ive looked at those Wet11's. So Access Point mode would be like a central place that feeds out to multiple sites, and Client mode is the mode these 'sites' operate in?

Im not sure I want to have a router, given the fact that i will have to either buy a new modem or buy that one you linked to. But taking into consideration that my modem is USB, I wouldnt need the second NIC you suggested, no? Modem goes to USB port of computer, then I go from my NIC to the AP.


Would any basic access point do me fine? I dont really need anything special thats like a router/access point, I really need just something with at most 2 ethernet ports and then the whole wireless deal.
 
Correct, you would not need to buy a 2nd NIC, since your current NIC is not being used. You would connect the AP to your PC via a crossover cable.

In a nutshell, your problem is that you need something to take the place of the 25 feet of cat5 cable that you don't have. There are various ways to do that. I'd probably buy 2 WAPs, same brand, which have the ability to be configured in both AP and client mode. Alternatively, a wet11 will supposedly work with any brand, but isn't as flexible as a WAP.

If you want 802.11g, check out the Linksys Wap54g. On p.19 of the Users guide, it says you can configure 2 aps in wireless bridge mode. Bridge mode is another option, but note that a freestanding laptop or other devices with wireless cards could not communicate with the WAPS then. Maybe these devices will become more flexible once firmware upgrades become available.

Incidentally, keep in mind that 2 wireless devices could cost you in the $150-$200 range -- are you sure that an electrician couldn't get you that 25 feet of cat5 that you need?
 
well supposedly its not as simple as that. theres quite a bit of crap theyd have to do to get cabling up there. but ill get then out here and get an estimate...


but i will definitely keep your wireless options in mind. thanks so much for your help. gonna have to see whats the best choice for me...
 
heh update:

so im sittin home on my day off from school, and I get an email from dad at work, with a link to buy.com, and what product displays itself upon my monitor, in all its blue-plastic glory? The Linksys 54G Router!

Apparently he is having the same idea as I. So I tell him to check out this thread.


Now, theres one thats a router, and one thats an AP. If I want to avoid buying an Ethernet-cabled modem, should I just go AP? Or can the router act as AP, while my PC still serves out the internet, and maybe I can get some future options if one day we DO have an ethernet modem?


Whats best?


One reason he suggests wireless to me now, is because my mom is a teacher and her school gave all the teachers laptops. We could get her a wireless card so she can be on the network without cabling.

To avoid conflicts with .11g and .11b, would it be best to have a PCMCIA 802.11g card?

And as far as the kitchen goes, to take advantage of an 802.11g AP, what could I use to connect to the AP?



🙂 thanks again
 
I may be wrong, but I don't think you can have everything you want. In order for the Linksys 54g devices to replace those 25 feet of missing cat5, they both have to be configured in bridge mode; unlike the wap11, they apparently don't have the option of being configured in client mode (at least not yet). BUT, in bridge mode, they would not communicate with a laptop the way you want, they would only talk to each other and any devices that were connected to them via switch or hub.

Now, if you would just give up late night control of the routing, life would be simpler. Let a router or pc in the basement handle the routing chores, put an AP in the kitchen, put a USB client card on your pc. Your ideal setup (54g, laptop, routing from your room) requires a client device in the kitchen, and that is what is hard to do.

Other alternatives: (a) settle for 802.11b, buy two WAP11s, configure one as AP and the other as client (b) buy 3 wap54gs, configure 2 as bridges and the 3rd as AP (c) see if somebody besides Linksys has a 54g device that can be configured in both client an AP modes.

Whatever you do, I'd get a router into the mix. Either buy a draytek or replace your current USB modem with an ethernet one. ICS is flakey, and you don't need any additional problems with everything else you need to do.

Everybody else -- if I am horribly misleading Matthew, feel free to chime in! RW
 
Hey, it looks like Dlink may let you have it all:

DWL-2000AP

According to the product description, it can operate as an AP, a bridge (either point to point or point to multi-point) or as a wireless client.

So, you put one of these up in your room, configured in AP mode, another in the kitchen, in client mode, and hopefully you are set.

If you can replace the USB modem with an ethernet one, you could instead buy one dwl2000ap (configured as client) and one DI-624 802.11g router.

Just remember, we're talking theory here! How well this will work in practice, I don't know. Also, you'll be a trailblazer if you go 54g. But if it works ok, it could give you everything you want. Wait a while, and you might have a few more choices.
 
Yup, i got a TigerDirect.com catalog today and saw on their cover, a Dlink 54G router and AP! I was pretty psyched, but unsure of the modes it could run in. But thats good news, you claim they will do both!


if i went by way of DLink 54G router, and had to buy a modem, would any ol' ethernet DSL modem do, or do I need prime quality stuff there? It just seems like something that can be a little laid back on how much youve gotta spend to get a decent product.


Only problem Ive heard with 802.11g is inoperability issues with 802.11b devices. If im using all 54G, and all same brand for that matter, how likely am I to have issues?


I can hold off and see how this product fares in the wireless market. But its good to go in with a nice game plan like Im building up now, ya know?
 
You might start a separate thread on ethernet DSL modems (I think everybody else stopped reading this thread a long time ago!) If it was me, I'd just call my dsl provider and buy from them, or at least see what brands and models they use.

I've heard the same thing about 802.11g not always working with 802.11b -- a problem that will supposedly be fixed with firmware upgrades. I think at least for now, sticking with same brand stuff is probably a good idea. At least then you know who to call if something isn't working. Your main problem would be if your mother's laptop didn't work in other locations, but if so that would hopefully be only a temporary problem.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Back
Top