Boosting range of wireless router with a second unit.

[Jlagreca]

Hey everyone,

I have a question about linking two routers together. Although I've seen questions other people have asked on it before, I'm not quite sure I understood the explainations.

Anyway! I'm using a WRT54G linksys router to provide signal for my house. Unfortunately it's in the office downstairs and my computer in my room is about 50' away, and between about 3 walls and a celling. I've added 7dbi antennae to both my router and my ethernet card with only slight increase in signal. As of now the signal ranges from "very low" to "very good". However almost any online gaming (especially FPSers) are almost unplayable.

Before spending any more money on repeaters or any new gadgets, my co-worker had told me that it was possible to add a second wireless router into the network. I could link this router as another computer in one of the 4 ports in the back of the primary router. I could then be able to wire this router to a better spot in my house, closer to my computer upstairs to achieve a better signal...

To me this doesn't seem like it could work, but I don't see any harm in trying. I have the extra router, which I only use at school when there was no wireless. I'm just in the process of crimping a longer cable once I get the tool from a friend.

Would this work? Or am I going to spend hours trying, once I get all the equipment only to find out it doesn't?

Thanks for any help!

[Tkey]

I don't see why not. Im personally a NETGEAR user and you can do it with netgear!

A quick google search yeilded this result from about.com:

You or your family may be considering purchasing a new home network router to upgrade from an older one. Or perhaps you have a very large home network already and are wondering whether a second router can improve performance.
A. It is technically possible to utilize two routers on the same home network. The benefits of a two router network include:
supports more devices - if your first router is a wired Ethernet router, it supports only a limited number of connected devices (typically only four or five). A second router provides more open ports allowing additional computers to join the network.


can simply hybrid network setups - if you have a wired home network and want to connect some new WiFi devices to it, installing a wireless router as the second router allows those devices to connect while allowing the rest of the network to remain on Ethernet.


wireless range / reach - adding a second wireless router to a WiFi network can extend the reach of your network to accommodate far away devices.


network isolation - If you heavily utilize the network connection between certain computers (such as frequent large file transfers, or LAN gaming), installing those computers to use one router, isolates the network traffic from affecting the other router and all of its attached devices.
Installing a Two Router Network
Installing a router to work as the second one on a home network requires special configuration. Do the following on the second router to ensure it (and the devices attached) function properly:
1. Connect as local device or bridge - If connecting the second router via Ethernet cable, plug it into one of the LAN ports on the first router. If connecting the second router wirelessly, ensure the second router is set for client mode. Note that some home wireless routers do not support client mode; these must be connected by cable. Check your router documentation for details on its client mode configuration support.

2. Check / change IP address - Most home network routers use a default IP address setting. Often, these default IP addresses will not work in a two router environment. Check the second router's IP address value and reset it if necessary to work within the valid address range of the first router (and to not conflict with any other device on the network).

3. Disable DHCP - To avoid IP address conflicts between all of the devices on the home network, only one of your two routers should assign addresses via DHCP. All mainstream routers provide an option to disable DHCP as part of the router's configuration screens.


Instead of adding a second wired router to an existing network, consider adding a network switch instead. A switch accomplishes the same goal of extending the size of a network, but it does not require any IP address or DHCP configuration, greatly simplifying configuration.

[milen]

Hi, I have 1 x access point and 2 repeaters Cisco 1100, in my house
Very nice devices.
I still recommend you to use cables then wireless.
its cheaper and there is no "very low" to "very good" business...
I am sure if cables are your main network, there is no need of 2 router....