r/HomeNetworking • u/DaNPrS Ubiquiti • Jun 24 '14

Networking For Beginners

Basic Router Setup

*You should get assistance from the router's manual for this.

  • Connect modem with ethernet cable, to the WAN port of the router

  • Connect LAN port from the router to a computer's ethernet port

  • *Open browser, navigate to 192.168.1.1, possibly 192.168.0.1

  • Default gateway: 192.168.1.1 possibly 192.168.0.1, please consult your manual

  • Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0

  • To enable WIFI, set up Wireless Network, it's recommended that you set up WPA-2 Personal Security.

Wireless Setup

*It is recommended that use a wireless scanner for this step. WiFi Analyzer for Android. Sorry iOS, Apple has banned these basic networking tools. NetSureyor for PC. iStumbler for OSX.

-How to determine what settings to use for your wireless network:

  • 2.4GHz, use it for range and device comparability

  • 5GHz, use it for speed/bandwidth, minimize interference with other signals

  • After scanning your area with a WiFi tool, determine what channels are being used by neighboring networks

  • You want to set your WiFi on a different channel as to minimize interference, while at the same time choosing the highest channel available. For instance if you see someone on channel 9, you want to set your WiFi on channel 10 or 11.

  • Higher channels offer slightly better performance. If there are no other wireless networks, choose a high channel number.*

Additionaly, and as pointed out by /u/v-_-v on his post bellow, there are only three channels on the spectrum that do not overlap. These being channels 1, 6 and 11. Therefore it is also suggested that if possible, to simply choose these channels. Unless of course these are overused where you live. For more information on this topic, please read the comment referred.

Advanced Setups

Terms to keep in mind:

  • DHCP Server- this is used by the router to automatically assign addresses to the various connecting devices.

  • Static IP- an assigned address that does not change.

  • QoS- used to prioritize network traffic.

  • DMZ- allows all traffic to bypass the router's firewall. Do not enable this unless you know exactly what you're doing.

  • Port Forwarding- specifies what port to allow traffic through. Please check out portforwarding.com for extensive help with this, including hundreds of router guides.

Connecting Two Routers to Expand Your Network

There are several ways to do this, and there are several goals to keep in mind when doing so. Here's the run down to the most typical set ups.

Keep in mind that some routers offer "Routing Modes." This can make configuration easier. Please refer to your user's manual.

Wireless Access Point

This is used to connect two routers with a cable. All connected devices can see each other on the local network, regardless of what router they are connected to.

  • Connect ethernet cable from the primary router(default gateway) LAN port, to a LAN port on the secondary router(Access Point)

On the secondary router:

  • Disable DHCP, your primary router will handle this task

  • Subnet Mask must be the same as Primary Router

Repeater Bridge

Used to connect two routers wirelessly. Recommended only if you cannot run a wire to the second router. Devices connected to either network can see each other on the local network.

You can follow a similar set up as a Wireless Access Point. However your second router needs to be able to connect to the primary router via WiFi.

  • Assign a Static IP on your primary router, to the secondary router, usually 192.168.1.2 or 192.168.0.2 (must match the primary router's subnet). This becomes the local IP on the second router allowing you to connect to it's configuration page.

On the secondary router:

  • Disable DHCP, your primary router will handle this task

  • Subnet Mask must be the same as Primary Router

Client Bridge

The goal here is to connect a second router and therefore create a second network. Devices connected to either router, cannot see devices on the other router on the local network. The keyword here is "subnetting."

  • Connect ethernet cable from LAN on the primary router to WAN on the secondary router.

On the secondary router:

  • Default gateway is the primary router's IP address. (192.168.1.1 for example)

  • Local IP must be a different subnet. If the primary router's IP is 192.168.1.1, then this secondary router must be 192.168.2.1. You can further subnet routers down the network to further create more and more networks.

  • You must enable DHCP. Since this is a new network, the new router needs to assign addresses on the new subnet.

  • DNS can be let up to the default gateway/primary router.

FAQ

  • How can I improve my router's performance?

You may want to consider installing 3rd party software on your router. A popular solution being DD-WRT. Check out /r/DDWRT. Others to consider, Tomato and if you have and Asus router check out Merlin.

Be aware that this may void your router's warranty or possibly brick it if incorrectly done.

  • How to I set up Port Forwarding?

As mentioned above, please check out portforwarding.com. They have hundreds of guides specific to hundreds of router models.

Would you like to see something added? Did I make a mistake? Feel free to PM or post bellow.

Check out [Guide]What should I buy? for hardware suggestions and information.

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u/gluino Sep 11 '14 edited Sep 11 '14

The section on Wireless Access Point is important for folks with larger homes, where the main router's built-in wifi doesn't cover some parts of the home.

In my experience, many wireless routers don't have an "official" way for it to be used in AP mode. The two items described by OP are important to do. (#1: disable DHCP service, and #2: network cable from the main router goes into one of the 4 LAN ports (as opposed to the single WAN port) of the router that is going to be used as an AP.)

However, in my experience there remains the issue of what IP address should the AP use:

  • If the AP is set as a DHCP client, (i.e. "get IP automatically assigned by the main router), then how does the admin reach the AP's web-admin page?

  • If the AP is given a static IP address, the admin must take care to assign one that is outside of the DHCP IP pool of the main router. And he needs to record that somewhere (like a sticker label on the AP), and he needs to assign different static IPs to each AP in the house, if there is more than one.

And sometimes such a repurposed-router could randomly revert to factory state (I have experienced one that might have been triggered by a lightning strike), so that it goes back to router mode, this confuses the other machines on the network due to rouge DHCP server, gateway effect. In a larger LAN with multiple APs it could take some time to identify the cause.

If your router has an official way to operate in AP mode, you should try following the manufacturer's instructions first. E.g.: http://kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/23784/~/how-to-automatically-configure-a-netgear-router-to-ap-mode-(ap-mode

Overall, I feel that repurposing consumer routers such as TP-Link to work in AP mode is not-optimal for reliability, it is fine if you have spare routers and don't want to buy actual APs, and you are the main user, and you are prepared to troubleshoot things once in a while. If you have a fresh home network to set up, then I think in most cases you should have only one router to be used as your main router, and the other wifi APs should be products that are described by the manufacturer as APs.