WLAN - LAN Questions
Hello!I have a few questions about WLANs...
1.First of all,can a router work as a hub?i mean if i don't use it as a router can i use it as a hub?
2.If i have an Access Point(Levelone) and a wireless router(linksys) at the same place with the same SSID, but both use a different channel,will i have any conflict problems?
3.I have a levelone AP.Though i enter the configuration webinterface via ethernet,through wireless is not accessible(even if it is connected).why is that?And i don't either have wireless Internet.what's going on with that also?
That's all for now...i have a few more but we will move step by step...!
Thanx...any help would be aprecciated!
1.First of all,can a router work as a hub?i mean if i don't use it as a router can i use it as a hub?
2.If i have an Access Point(Levelone) and a wireless router(linksys) at the same place with the same SSID, but both use a different channel,will i have any conflict problems?
3.I have a levelone AP.Though i enter the configuration webinterface via ethernet,through wireless is not accessible(even if it is connected).why is that?And i don't either have wireless Internet.what's going on with that also?
That's all for now...i have a few more but we will move step by step...!
Thanx...any help would be aprecciated!
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Comments
Hey QCH2002
Could you explain in more detail how you're doing this? I have extra wireless routers I'd like to put some use to. Do you mean you're essentially using the 2nd wireless router as a hub? Did you have to bring an ethernet connection to it from your main router? If so, what port did you plug into on the 2nd router - the WAN port??? One of the LAN ports? Did you have to use a cross over cable? Can you do this w/ a 2nd router if it doesn't have an AP option?
Usually I don't go wondering from one point to the other with the laptop but when I do, it noramlly switches over without problems :thumbup
Cool! Thanx QCH2002. I wanted to do that here but the problem was running the patch cable from router A to router B. I had to do it wirelessly.
I ended up setting up repeaters. I don't like having to use them, though because it kills my wireless security. I usually lock down my router by MAC address, etc. This is undone, however, when using the repeaters because I have to set the repeaters as "allowed" by their MAC addresses. The security on the router can be circumvented by simply accessing it via one of the repeaters instead.
In addition, I have to set the wireless security to the lowest common denominator on my LAN which is WEP. I know that's not very secure and would like to increase the security but I don't see how. Others in the house and one of my systems only have WEP as an option on their wireless NICs.
Do you have any ideas how I might set up the wireless network more securely in this situation????
Also... what type of encryption are you using on the wireless? WAP, WPA, WPA2? Are you broadcasting your SSID?
The way I look at it... Don't broadcast SSID, use the highest encryption that you can (WPA, please), MAC filtering... that will keep all but the true diehard hackers out.
Anyone else have a suggestion?
Thankyou QCH2002
The WEP passphrase is 16 completely random characters. No special characters, though. I can change it to add that. However, I thought there were sniffers out there that could pull the PWD off of every so many packets making WEP essentially useless (at least as far as the hard core hackers are concerned).
All the repeater does is grab the signal from the router and boost it so that other wireless devices can connect to it. It then relays that traffic to the router. Other than that it's pretty dumb.
As for not broadcasting the SSID, I haven't done that before. How do you connect to the router (wirelessly) if you don't have an SSID to choose from?
More importantly, how do I keep users on the LAN from trying to connect to other nearby wireless radios instead. I know they'll do that if they don't see our wireless radio/router to choose from.
As for how to keep users from connecting to other wireless networks.... user education/ training. Do you have control of the PC's, as in as an administrator of the PC's. Do the users have admin rights?
Integrated Intel wireless has the ability to have the local admin account create a global profile that all users get regardless. This allows you, the admin, to make it seamless to the user. Dell installer does not install the necessary components but you can re-install the Intel wireless through the "Add/ Remove Programs" and select "Modify".
Unfortunately the Netgear wireless utility that came w/ one of the NICs is buggy. I had to disable it and use the Windows Wireless Utility which is very limited as far as configuration goes. (e.g. cannot configure profiles)
I couldn't agree more. But, as hard as I try, it's an uphill battle. In all fairness to the users, these are difficult concepts for them to comprehend. Because of this they are easily confused which leads to frustration...which in turn leads to yours truly w/ a fair amount of finger pointing and not so friendly demands to fix it! In short, No. The computers belong to my extended family/roommates. I am the "go to" person for both repairs and blame when it comes to anything computer-related around here. (If they only could comprehend how many times I've bailed them out and what it took to do it!
The wireless lists is "number" (SSID) to whomever is within the coverage area. Anyone can "try" to attach to it. If your network was unsecure, they would just connect.
When you turn off the SSID Broadcast, the wireless is still there, it just "unlisted". A average Joe doesn't see it. The wireless card knows that there something out there but has no idea what it is or what its called and decides to not tell you. Average Joe can manually enter the SSID and suddenly, the wireless card goes "OH... that mysterious signal is really this SSID!!!, OK, you can try to connect now."
(Paraphrasing the actual dialog between the user and the wireless card... some discussions may vary based on language, politeness of the user and mode of the wireless card.)
Thank you!