Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[hyetech]

Hey all,
We have a large plot of land, mostly outdoor space, and want to extend our wireless N connectivity throughout.  What I was thinking of doing is buying 3 DIR-655 routers and create the following setup:

Router 1: main router, close to and connected to DSL modem, used as Wireless, DHCP and standard GigE switch for some hard-wired devices.

Router 2: connects to Router 1 by long cable through LAN ports on both.  Turn off DHCP, WAN, etc. on this one.  Make the Wireless SSID the same as Router 1 (want a single wireless network).

Router 3: connectes to Router 2 by cable through LAN ports on both.  Turn off DHCP, WAN, etc. on this one.  Make the Wireless SSID the same as Router 1 (want a single wireless network).

Is this setup possible using 3 DIR-655s?  Can we chain/link them together like this?  I'm wondering if Router 3's wireless will properly get IP addresses from Router 1 since it's going through another "AP."

Also, is the DIR-655 the right router for this?  How is the outdoor range on these?  Is there a better router to use within the same price range?

Thanks!

[FurryNutz]

These routers are best used as stand alone routers and connecting other devices like dedicated APs to it.

The APs can usually be set up for extending and relaying WiFi so that they can reach farther distances.

I would recommend using 1 router and getting dedicated APs for extending and or relaying range.
Take a look at the DAP line for Dlink.

[alien]

The best routers for handling WDS are still the ddwrt routers or really accespoints, but note, wireless bridging will  cost some bandwith.

[FurryNutz]

You maybe want to check out networking over power devices too.

[hyetech]

These routers are best used as stand alone routers and connecting other devices like dedicated APs to it.

The APs can usually be set up for extending and relaying WiFi so that they can reach farther distances.

I would recommend using 1 router and getting dedicated APs for extending and or relaying range.
Take a look at the DAP line for Dlink.

Yeah, I had looked into proper APs a while ago, but they were more expensive than the router at the time.  But it seems there might be some in our price range now.  Do you recommend any particular APs that work well with the DIR-655?  Will the DAP-1522 do the job?

We need something that will extend the WiFi as you said (using a wired connection to the router).  But one AP would have to connect to the other, or we'd need an additional switch, I guess, at the first AP (to have both APs connect to the single router).  It would also be nice if we could create a separate WiFi network on one of them for guest access.

[FurryNutz]

You may want to check out the:
http://amplifi.dlink.com/products/DAP-1525
or
http://www.dlink.com/products/?pid=697

The DAP-1525 is new and I have not been able to test one out yet.
I'm waiting on the new 657 router to arrive.

if your really wanting some range using one device, there is a 1 watt AP that has great coverage. Most AP devices are regulated on the wattage they put out so they only put out minimal or up to regulation states.
Check out the DIR-825 forum:
http://forums.dlink.com/index.php?topic=38838.0

Let us know what you figure out.

[hyetech]

I like the 2553, but the 1522 has a 4-port switch on it, which I was hoping to use to connect 2 of them together.  Do you think a 2553 and buying a separate basic switch would provide better range?  Not sure I want a separate switch taking up more power if I can avoid it.

The PL-APN seems really nice, though not a lot of reviews/data on it.  It's not a GigE switch (only 100), but otherwise, it seems like it's got a huge amount of power.

How bad do you think the 1522 range is?  It seems like the safer bet for my needs, but maybe we should take a crack at the PL-APN for the range.

[FurryNutz]

Haven't had any experience on the DAPs yet. Ya having the switch is good and IF your entire network is CAT6 and gigabit...then I might go for that aspect.

From what Patrick said, I guess that 1watt AP is pretty good.

Might try to find a place where you can get one that has a refund policy. Test one out and see if it works. If it doesn't then you can get your money back.

Would be very interested in your experiences with the new DAP-1525. 

[Penge58]

I am interested in the same solution as described here only that I also need some LAN connections on the distance AP and as I understand, an AP is for wireless only.
So what kind of solution (boxes) would you recommend to give me both AP and LAN connection on the distance point ?

[RolF2]

1W AP will do almost nothing if wireless client still will be using 50 - 100 mW wifi equipment ... To extend coverage you need power in both ends, so in your situation i think better antenna will do more than transmitting power of AP ...

[FurryNutz]

I think in most cases the 1watt AP would do some good and it would be able to broadcast the radio signal farther then standard. Getting the radio to go farther is the case here. The receiving client HW wouldn't make any different if using a 1 watt AP. It would be able to pick up the radio signal in that range.

Agreed though, possible antenna might work to help extend the range, however I have tried this as well and range wasn't really better then using OEM antennas. I think in some cases, maybe power over antenna is preferred. Good  ideas here though.

[RolF2]

don't forget, that comunication is going both ways , so if client can receive 1W signal transmited by AP, does not mean that AP will receive 100 mW signal transmited by client ....

[FurryNutz]

Of course...and agreed. Don't forget all the stuff in between the host and client too. 

[hyetech]

OK, so now I'm a bit confused   I don't have any expertise in this area, just wondering what the best solution would be for range extension.  Should I go with this 1watt AP or should I just get a couple of 1522s?  Or maybe a different AP plus long-range antenna attached to it?  So many options

What's going to provide good wireless range in our situation for normal/standard PC/laptop wireless cards?  Again, most of our space is outdoor, not indoor.  Not sure that helps with range.  Unfortunately, I don't know the distances at the property, that would probably help - it's a few acres for sure.

I'm not sure we have the budget to try out a few different things, and we're not in a country where we can simply return stuff (this is for a place in Nicaragua, not really shipping friendly), so I'm trying to get the "safe" advice.

Thanks so much, the discussion is actually quite helpful, though I'm not sure what to do yet.

[FurryNutz]

Ya, some distances would be good to know so we can get a better idea of what kinda of coverage your trying to maintain. It would help if you could find a place near by that has hw you could buy an or test out if they have a refund or return policy. Another idea if we can get you a good solution here might be to see if there is someone local in your area that maybe does this kind of work to help setup users with specific WiFi needs.
I would recommend you get ahold of Patrick533 in the 825 forum directly and see what his experiences are and ask him what his coverage is and how that 1 watt he's using is working out for him.

I don't have any experience with the new DAPs as of yet. I'm hoping to at some point however you need info now and understand that. I would also call up Dlink and see what kind of ranges the new DAPs can do and if they would work well for you. Again, I think you need to get some distance information here then we can better give you some options. Let us know.