[Leaplist] Another HW Q: Wireless Router?

[Kevin Korb]

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let me try to simplify that a bit....

The difference between a router and a bridge (access point) is what layer
they operate on.  

A bridge merges two networks together but does not operate on layer 3
protocols like IP.  It is a layer 2 device.  If the two sides of a bridge
are ethernet and wifi then the computers on both sides of the bridge will
act as if they are on the same network.  An ethernet switch is essentially
a many ported bridge.  A wifi bridge/AP has to be a little bit smarter
since it can do authentication and encryption on the wireless side but it
is essentially the same thing.

A router on the other hand connects two networks with different subnets
(IP ranges) together.  The router is a layer 3 device and will have an IP
address on each network interface that is appropriate for the network
connected to that interface.  Computers that wish to communicate with
computers on the other side of the router must be configured to
communicate through the router as either the default gateway or the
gateway to that specific IP range.  NAT (Network Address Translation) is
also a feature of a router even though it isn't true routing.

Many routers can also act as an access point by simply shutting off the
extra routing functionality.

Since you are already using IPCop which is a router/firewall/NAT you need
to give some thought to how you want your wireless integrated into your
existing infrastructure.

Do you want the wifi to appear as a new interface on your IPCop box?  This
would mean that the wifi would be on a different subnet and your IPCop box
would be responsible for routing and controlling traffic between the wifi,
the LAN, and the internet.  An AP is good enough for this.  This is how I
set mine up except that I use OpenBSD/pf instead of IPCop due to my
personal preferences.  This configuration also allows you to use computer
level security (like OpenVPN) instead of or in addition to wifi security if
you want to.

Do you want the wifi to appear as part of your LAN?  If this is the case
you get an AP and plug it right into your existing network switch.
Computers that authenticate to the AP using (hopefully) WPA2 will then
simply be part of your LAN with no further restrictions or routing.  They
would get to the internet via your IPCop box just like a wired desktop
would.  This is how most businesses would set things up except they would
probably add radius authentication so each user would have their own
password instead of just WPA2 with a single password for everyone.  Wifi
level security is an absolute must have here.

Do you want the wifi to be internet access only?
If so you would connect it directly to your internet connection device
(cable modem or whatever).  This is when you would want a router instead
of an AP.

As for which one to buy I don't know much about Rosewill so I can't
comment on that one but IMO the most important feature of an AP or a
router is the range of the signal.  No matter how far their range is you
will start losing signal before you get there.  Even my commercial grade
AP which cost about $100 more than the one you posted has difficulty
reaching the back of my yard.  It works but the signal sucks.  Another
thing to consider is how much overhead the WPA2 encryption is going to
place on the device.  It can be anywhere between unnoticeable and a 50%
performance decrease depending on the processing power of the device.
Unfortunately they never seem to provide any specs on this so you have to
resort to reading reviews.

Finally I should mention that if you ever want to play with the Linux
based wifi router firmwares (like tomato) you should verify they one you
are buying is supported.

On Fri, 18 Sep 2009 12:16:44 -0400
Bruce Metcalf <bruce.metcalf at figzu.com> wrote:
> Gang,
> 
> Me again. As promised (or threatened) last night, here's yet another 
> request for hardware advice.
> 
> I'm ready to go wireless at home. Already have an IPCOP box with a Blue 
> net, so that half's done. Now I need a way to connect that to the 
> various wireless devices -- securely.
> 
> I've read carefully the rants about the difference between routers, 
> "ritters", and access points, to very little constructive result.
> 
> Short question: Is this the sort of thing I want?
> 
> <http://tinyurl.com/nx8s8c>
> 
> 'Nother short question: Good price?
> 
> Long question: If this isn't what I want, what is?
> 
> Need to act by 4pm to grab this price, so quick replies are appreciated.
> 
> Thanks,
> Bruce
> 


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	Kevin Korb			Phone:    (407) 252-6853
	Systems Administrator		Internet:
	FutureQuest, Inc.		Kevin at FutureQuest.net  (work)
	Orlando, Florida		kmk at sanitarium.net (personal)
	Web page:			http://www.sanitarium.net/
	PGP public key available on web site.
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