Wireless access point question...

[VJ]

Here is the deal: my brother has a 100 Mbit network, and would like to add 1 computer for wireless access.

The first idea is to purchase this access point:

http://www.usr-emea.com/products/p-networking-product.asp?prod=net-22axs-pt&page=overview&loc=emea

(and a matching wireless network card) and connect it to one of the free ports of the 100Mbit hub.
Will this do the trick ?
Should it be connected to a free "computer"port, or to the uplink-port of the hub ?
How will adding this impact the speed of the other 100 Mbit network ?

Thanks !
(I'm new to this wireless stuff...)


Jörg

[VJ]

Re: Wireless access point question...

Originally posted by VJ
Should it be connected to a free "computer"port, or to the uplink-port of the hub ?

Well, I managed to find this in the online manual, but it still leaves the other questions...


Jörg

[SitFlyer]

Connect to free port, not the uplink.

Your just replacing a "wire" with a "wireless".

Only real effect to the network is shared bandwith.


Enjoy

[VJ]

Originally posted by SitFlyer
Only real effect to the network is shared bandwith.

Could you explain this in a bit more detail ? Does this mean the access-point sort of acts like a switch, thus only tranfers involving the wireless computers are affected ?

Thanks,


Jörg

[Byock]

Originally posted by VJ

Could you explain this in a bit more detail ? Does this mean the access-point sort of acts like a switch, thus only tranfers involving the wireless computers are affected ?

Thanks,


Jörg

You are exactly right, traffic on the 100m lan will not be affected at all, only traffic to the wireless NIC will be slower.

The Chicken

[VJ]

Ok, thanks !
(this all seems too easy )


Jörg

[Byock]

it is easy. You will be amazed. Plug and Play at its finest...

[R.Carter]

Is your existing Ethernet network device 10/100? Some hubs / switches are 100BaseT only.

So if your network is 100Mbps only then you will not be able to connect that wireless access point to it, since that AP only supports 10BaseT.

But, yes, it is as simple as plugging the AP into a free port on your switch / hub. That's usually the easiest way to do things. You shouldn't need to connect the AP using an inverted Ethernet cable or to a uplink port on the hub / switch.

Of course, once you've connected the AP you'll need to configure your AP. First thing you'll need to give it an IP addres that matches your network so you can talk to the AP remotely (assuming the AP doesn't use DHCP and your network has a DHCP server running). Then you'll want to enable WEP (security) and assign you network a unique SSID and also set a password on your AP so nobody can change the AP settings on you.

As to the channel to use try several channels to see which one has the least interference on it. Usually 1, 6 or 11 are good choices, but then most stuff seems to default to channel 6.

Then you'll need to configure your clients with the same SSID and WEP keys. I've run into problems in the past where WEP keys had to be entered using HEX numbers on the clients.

Since you have an AP you should set the clients network type to Infrastructure and not Ad-Hoc.

[VJ]

Originally posted by R.Carter
[B]Is your existing Ethernet network device 10/100? Some hubs / switches are 100BaseT only.

So if your network is 100Mbps only then you will not be able to connect that wireless access point to it, since that AP only supports 10BaseT.

I think the hub is 10/100, but I'll have to check.
How can you tell that this wireless accss point only supports 10BaseT ? (I have downloaded the specsheet and the manual, but can't seem to find any mention of this.°

Of course, once you've connected the AP you'll need to configure your AP. First thing you'll need to give it an IP addres that matches your network so you can talk to the AP remotely (assuming the AP doesn't use DHCP and your network has a DHCP server running).

The network is a simple TCP/IP between computers with static IP addresses. Euhm, this is something I have been wondering: you need to connect to the AP to change settings, but how do you do this the first time round ?

Thanks for the clear explenation (some things were clear, some others I was still doubting over).


Jörg

[VJ]

USR tech support reply:

I asked the question about the LAN-speed at the USR tech support mail, this is their answer:

Thank you for contacting U.S.Robotics. Your satisfaction is of the utmost importance to us.

The network will stay at the same speed. You can connect the Access Point to the HUB and the PC card to the laptop. The speed between the AP and PC card will be 22 Mbps. The rest will stay unaffected. It is just an extra mininetwork connected to the main network.
<snip>

So, this sounds like very good news...?
Any comments on this ?

Jörg

[R.Carter]

Originally posted by VJ

How can you tell that this wireless accss point only supports 10BaseT ? (I have downloaded the specsheet and the manual, but can't seem to find any mention of this.

I read it in the Wireless Access 11 Mbps, PC Card, PCI Adapter, and Access Point manual (24xx-unkg-Manual.pdf).

Specifically, the "Product Specifications for Access Point" on page 24. In the Ethernet section it indicates IEEE 802.3 10BaseT as the interface.

[VJ]

Originally posted by R.Carter

I read it in the Wireless Access 11 Mbps, PC Card, PCI Adapter, and Access Point manual (24xx-unkg-Manual.pdf).

Specifically, the "Product Specifications for Access Point" on page 24. In the Ethernet section it indicates IEEE 802.3 10BaseT as the interface.

That manual is for the 24xx series, which is a different product (an 11 Mbps wireless); the hardware I'm interested are the 22 Mbps Wireless access point (USR2249) and 22 Mbps Wireless access card (USR2210), the 22xx series.


Jörg