Adding another router
Discussion
Complete luddite here, so bear with me.
I have 4GEE at home (no broadband available) and use it with an EE router.
I need to get wifi into the building next door (a barn) and there is already a cat 5 cable from the house into the barn.
Is it as simple as plugging the Cat 5 into the EE router and another router at the other end in the barn, or will I need to configure stuff?
Thanks
I have 4GEE at home (no broadband available) and use it with an EE router.
I need to get wifi into the building next door (a barn) and there is already a cat 5 cable from the house into the barn.
Is it as simple as plugging the Cat 5 into the EE router and another router at the other end in the barn, or will I need to configure stuff?
Thanks
Yes, you need a WiFi Access Point (AP) rather than a router. Something as simple as this will work as long as you have a CAT5 to the router.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-LINK-TL-WA801ND-Wirele...
You will need to set it up, ideally give it the same SSID and password as your main WiFi, then you should be able to 'roam' between the two.
Some routers can be put into 'AP' mode.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-LINK-TL-WA801ND-Wirele...
You will need to set it up, ideally give it the same SSID and password as your main WiFi, then you should be able to 'roam' between the two.
Some routers can be put into 'AP' mode.
Edited by megaphone on Wednesday 5th June 12:38
Most decent 3rd party routers (like netgear or d-link, etc.) all support running as an access point (AP). However they need to be configured as such first, otherwise when you first turn it on it will act like a proper router with a DHCP server and you'll get all sorts of issues if you plug it straight into your existing network. Setup the new router as an AP first by plugging your laptop direct into the new AP, get it setup as an AP with no DHCP and a fixed IP address from your existing network (or set it to be a DHCP client), then plug it into the existing network.
heisthegaffer said:
With my set up I have the AP in my bar connected by cat cable but with a different SSID and password. If I change it to the same one in the house will it be more seamless?
Obviously you need them on different wifi channels to the main/other routers/access points but I guess you are probably aware of that so no newbie insult meant In theory yes and in practice often
But...…...
There can be issues with some devices not "handing over" to the stronger signal.Ive had that with a couple of Android phones in the household. Wife had it with her I pad but not with her I phone
It was rather odd and just checking with one of my daughters she still has that issue now as when she comes home she comes in via the back door and goes upstairs and her phone logs to the access point that's in the hall next to her bedroom. When she comes down to the lounge it still sometimes doesn't swap over
Easy stuff. Any WiFi router I'll do. Don't get obsessed with looking for WiFi access points. Nealy ALL access point are routers anyway, unless you want a CPE. More often than not, when you do find a wireless access point that is not also a router, it'll cost more!
Most routers have an "access point mode". All that does is disable DHCP server " the server part is important" .
I use a £17 tplink WiFi router for my workshop. Works a charm, and you get a 4 port switch included!
If you do it manually, I do, then
A) reserve an IP address on your existing router - you'll need the new routers MAC address probably, which will be in its label.
B) boot up new router connected direct to a laptop or PC.
C) disable it's DHCP server
D) assign it the IP address you reserved above.. you'll now lose access to it
E) plug it into your main Lan and reboot.
With modern routers you can usually do the IP reservation after you've configured the new one and plugged it into your Lan.
Ssid. I keep mine the same. Can be handy to keep them unique if you want to know what router your are connected to.
It's all very easy and works well.
DHCP server - the reason it is important to disable this is because you can only have one of these one one Lan. A DHCP server is what every single device on your Lan says hello to when you switch it on, and then gets given an address. Having two of these causes chaos :-)
Most routers have an "access point mode". All that does is disable DHCP server " the server part is important" .
I use a £17 tplink WiFi router for my workshop. Works a charm, and you get a 4 port switch included!
If you do it manually, I do, then
A) reserve an IP address on your existing router - you'll need the new routers MAC address probably, which will be in its label.
B) boot up new router connected direct to a laptop or PC.
C) disable it's DHCP server
D) assign it the IP address you reserved above.. you'll now lose access to it
E) plug it into your main Lan and reboot.
With modern routers you can usually do the IP reservation after you've configured the new one and plugged it into your Lan.
Ssid. I keep mine the same. Can be handy to keep them unique if you want to know what router your are connected to.
It's all very easy and works well.
Edited by anonymous-user on Thursday 6th June 08:58
DHCP server - the reason it is important to disable this is because you can only have one of these one one Lan. A DHCP server is what every single device on your Lan says hello to when you switch it on, and then gets given an address. Having two of these causes chaos :-)
Edited by anonymous-user on Thursday 6th June 09:01
techiedave said:
But...…...
There can be issues with some devices not "handing over" to the stronger signal.Ive had that with a couple of Android phones in the household. Wife had it with her I pad but not with her I phone
It was rather odd and just checking with one of my daughters she still has that issue now as when she comes home she comes in via the back door and goes upstairs and her phone logs to the access point that's in the hall next to her bedroom. When she comes down to the lounge it still sometimes doesn't swap over
Mobile devices are designed to hang onto a signal for as long as it can see it. There can be issues with some devices not "handing over" to the stronger signal.Ive had that with a couple of Android phones in the household. Wife had it with her I pad but not with her I phone
It was rather odd and just checking with one of my daughters she still has that issue now as when she comes home she comes in via the back door and goes upstairs and her phone logs to the access point that's in the hall next to her bedroom. When she comes down to the lounge it still sometimes doesn't swap over
The minute you get out of range of the AP then and only then will it search for another nearby signal.
A way to overcome this, if your AP has the settings, is to turn down the power of each access point so they don't transmit so far. If you can make the zones just touch each other rather overlap then your device should move from one to the other.
Switching the the device WiFi on and off will also make it default to the strongest network
Using an app like WiFi analyser can help, but you may still find issues as some devices have better WiFi than others.
bristolracer said:
techiedave said:
But...…...
There can be issues with some devices not "handing over" to the stronger signal.Ive had that with a couple of Android phones in the household. Wife had it with her I pad but not with her I phone
It was rather odd and just checking with one of my daughters she still has that issue now as when she comes home she comes in via the back door and goes upstairs and her phone logs to the access point that's in the hall next to her bedroom. When she comes down to the lounge it still sometimes doesn't swap over
Mobile devices are designed to hang onto a signal for as long as it can see it. There can be issues with some devices not "handing over" to the stronger signal.Ive had that with a couple of Android phones in the household. Wife had it with her I pad but not with her I phone
It was rather odd and just checking with one of my daughters she still has that issue now as when she comes home she comes in via the back door and goes upstairs and her phone logs to the access point that's in the hall next to her bedroom. When she comes down to the lounge it still sometimes doesn't swap over
The minute you get out of range of the AP then and only then will it search for another nearby signal.
A way to overcome this, if your AP has the settings, is to turn down the power of each access point so they don't transmit so far. If you can make the zones just touch each other rather overlap then your device should move from one to the other.
Switching the the device WiFi on and off will also make it default to the strongest network
Using an app like WiFi analyser can help, but you may still find issues as some devices have better WiFi than others.
I put it back to different names just yesterday and its working out ok for us.
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