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LeoNatan
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Location: Ramat Gan, Israel 🇮🇱
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 Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 00:48 Post subject: Need help setting up a wireless network |
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Hey guys!
I need some help setting up a wireless network at home. What I have now is my (wired) internet cable modem is connected directly to my PC. What I want to set up is to be able to connect with my laptop and another PC needs to connect to the internet. As a total noob when it comes to wireless network, I need to know what exactly I need to set all this up. Hardware advices would be nice as well. Obviously security is important, don't want my neighbors stealing my bandwidth, so I need to be able to encrypt the connection. All PCs are running Vista.
Thanks in advance!
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| Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 00:58 Post subject: |
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If i understood it right, all you need is a decent wireless router.
You connect the cable modem directly to the router (RJ45), the router has one or more ports for wired connections (again RJ45), so you connect the PC directly to the router and it's nearly it.
When it comes down to security, most routers have their own system, it's internal to the hardware and programmable via PC, normally through an IP adress, acessible on the entire network. It's pretty straightforward, you won't need NASA encryption so your neighbours won't steal your bandwidth, read the manual and you'll figure it out.
About hardware, i use a really cheap Belkin router, it cost about 30€, but has great range, it's small and very functional.
It's this little sucker:
http://www.ptchip.com/lojainf/images/t_00032830.jpg
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LeoNatan
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Location: Ramat Gan, Israel 🇮🇱
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| Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 01:06 Post subject: |
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Cheers, thanks for the help! I was thinking of doing it in a different fashion, connecting the router to the PC as well, and sharing the connection on this PC, I know it's a hassle to deal with all the port forwarding and whatnot.
What about the other PC? Is a simple w. network card enough?
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| Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 01:17 Post subject: |
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I'm a bit confused... you wanted to skip the router? Connecting the cable modem directly to the PC and sharing the connection through an internal wireless board or something?
I don't think it cost and hassle efective.
In case i got it wrong, this was what i was suggesting:
http://www.oreillynet.com/wireless/2003/03/21/graphics/image007.jpg
Anyway, once you set up a wireless network, any wireless gadget can connect to it, USB Wireless Pens, PCMCIA cards, PCI cards, the level of difficulty depends on the manufacturer's software, if you choose to use it. I've had an US Robotics Access Point, the interface was damn simple, but connecting to a secure network was chaos.
EDIT: I misread something, you got two desktops and one laptop to share the connection, it's all the same, it the router has several wired connections and it's viable, connect the two desktops wired, or then, wire one and install a wireless card on the other (assuming the laptop already has wireless card)
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LeoNatan
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Location: Ramat Gan, Israel 🇮🇱
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| Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 01:52 Post subject: |
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This is a mock up of what I meant: 
I prefer my PC would be in charge of the internet, not the router.
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LeoNatan
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| Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 03:00 Post subject: |
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Hey, thanks! Any particular reason not to do it the way in the image?
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| Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 03:07 Post subject: |
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Leo, you could pull that kind of setup with wireless adapters in ad-hoc mode.
But there will be cons. Performance and range of such wireless network will suffer greatly. You will have to manage all port forwarding / mapping manually. But as long as you will use wireless devices for web surfing & mail there shouldn't be any problems.
 Spoiler: | | Quote: | On wireless computer networks, ad-hoc mode is a method for wireless devices to directly communicate with each other. Operating in ad-hoc mode allows all wireless devices within range of each other to discover and communicate in peer-to-peer fashion without involving central access points (including those built in to broadband wireless routers).
To set up an ad-hoc wireless network, each wireless adapter must be configured for ad-hoc mode versus the alternative infrastructure mode. In addition, all wireless adapters on the ad-hoc network must use the same SSID and the same channel number.
An ad-hoc network tends to feature a small group of devices all in very close proximity to each other. Performance suffers as the number of devices grows, and a large ad-hoc network quickly becomes difficult to manage. Ad-hoc networks cannot bridge to wired LANs or to the Internet without installing a special-purpose gateway.
Ad hoc networks make sense when needing to build a small, all-wireless LAN quickly and spend the minimum amount of money on equipment. Ad hoc networks also work well as a temporary fallback mechanism if normally-available infrastructure mode gear (access points or routers) stop functioning. |
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Regarding router setup. All modern routers now support UPnP. To simplify things UPnP allows "UPnP ready apps" to negotiate the needed ports and forwarding rules automatically. The same restrictions applies as in manual port forwarding / mapping - only one host can request the same ranges. So unless you are going to use torrents from more than one host at the same, there shouldn't be any problems and you will never have to manage port forwarding / mapping manually. Unless you do multiplayer games as they are usually non UPnP. Also but I can't be sure about that, Windows have UPnP service that detect UPnP devices and manage all port forwarding / mapping for all non UPnP apps what have registered with Windows Firewall service.
Also regarding torrents and routers. SOHO routers are usually slow and have low numbers of concurrent connections - your speed will suffer.
For that reason I have the following setup.
Cable from ISP in first NIC in PC --> PC with two NICs --> Internet sharing by means of ICS of Windows XP --> LinkSys WRT54G wireless router to the second NIC in PC --> MacBook Pro and other devices are on Wireless LAN with DHCP setup.
And here some general warning regarding SOHO routers, by default and / or by means of auto setup wifi network remains totally unprotected aka no password, no MAC filtering, network name is visible.
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LeoNatan
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Location: Ramat Gan, Israel 🇮🇱
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| Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 03:20 Post subject: |
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Hey, thanks for the informative post!!
I think this:
| WhiteBarbarian wrote: | | Cable from ISP in first NIC in PC --> PC with two NICs --> Internet sharing by means of ICS of Windows XP --> LinkSys WRT54G wireless router to the second NIC in PC --> MacBook Pro and other devices are on Wireless LAN with DHCP setup. |
is exactly what I'm after as well. I too have two NICs, so shouldn't be a problem. So this WRT54G, is it recommended?
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Phluxed
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Location: Oakville, Ontario, Canada
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| Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 03:23 Post subject: |
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I recommend it as well Leo. I've got one and it's stable and good.
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LeoNatan
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Location: Ramat Gan, Israel 🇮🇱
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| Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 03:34 Post subject: |
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I've been reading, and I think I'll go with a WRT54GL. I read they run linux firmware and are hackable... 
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| Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 03:58 Post subject: |
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| LeoNatan wrote: | | I've been reading, and I think I'll go with a WRT54GL. I read they run linux firmware and are hackable... |
Yep, they are  Now I would get myself WRT54GL one or would go for 802.11n compatible routers, according to wiki they are still linux based.
WRT54G is recommend if you happen to find early revisions 2.0 - 4.0 they have more RAM and FLASH, so they are compatible with custom firmares(linux based ).
And with custom firmwares you could pull some crazy stuff, software vpn-tunnnels, load balancing, remap physical ports aka convert one of the four switch ports to the WAN one and have two WANs ports and do more crazy stuff and of course common stuff running web, ftp servers, connecting external hdd and running any more servers serving more content 
Lots of useful information regarding revisions ans customs firmwares.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WRT54G
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linksys_WRT300N_series
But in order to have such fun you will need to put router directly beyond your cable modem and your whole LAN is going to be beyond the router. So here comes the port forwarding / mapping whatever manual or UPnP based little annoyance
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LeoNatan
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Posts: 73196
Location: Ramat Gan, Israel 🇮🇱
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| Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 04:04 Post subject: |
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Yeah, was looking into that WRT300N, but it's too pricey, plus what do I need 400+Mbit traffic for anyway? There's WRT150N, but still don't think I need it. Plus, quality 802.11n network adapters also cost more than I'm willing to shell out. The laptop's I think 802.11g, so that's a limiting point already. The other desktop will be used for printing (network printer), internet and xvid movies. Maybe for the occasional temp storage for my PC.
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LeoNatan
☢ NFOHump Despot ☢
Posts: 73196
Location: Ramat Gan, Israel 🇮🇱
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| Posted: Fri, 25th Jul 2008 15:22 Post subject: |
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Cheers, guys! Thank you all very much! Got WRT54GL and flashed it with DD-WRT firmware, much much much much * 10^6 times better than the shitty Linksys interface. Everything works great for now.
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