Re: recommend me a long range access point

nz666 <nz666.2udrum@no-mx.wirelessforums.org> hath wroth:

>I want to connect a friend's pc that is 200 meters away from me.
>This is a residential environment and most of the houses (including
>mine and my friends) have solid cement walls.

You must have line of sight. The concrete walls will probably block
any 2.4GHz signal. Before you spend any money, I suggest you BORROW
an access point and a wireless laptop, and check for coverage. Use
Netstumbler or some other application that shows signal strength.
Setup the access point or router at one end, probably in a window with
a view. No need for an internet connection as you're only trying to
talk to the router. Try it at your end.

If you have any manner of even marginal signal at the endpoints, you
can improve things with better antennas or reflectors. However, if it
looks like zero, give up.

>I am thinking of an access point who can do the job but don't know
>which.
>
>Any recommendation? BTW my budget for this access point is around
>$200.

--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

"Jeff Liebermann" <jeffl@cruzio.com> wrote in message
news:n46ka3148668pfj1kl48g62vgoj5028po1@4ax.com...
> nz666 <nz666.2udrum@no-mx.wirelessforums.org> hath wroth:
>
> You must have line of sight. The concrete walls will probably block
> any 2.4GHz signal. Before you spend any money, I suggest you BORROW
> an access point and a wireless laptop, and check for coverage. Use
> Netstumbler or some other application that shows signal strength.
> Setup the access point or router at one end, probably in a window with
> a view. No need for an internet connection as you're only trying to
> talk to the router. Try it at your end.

Jeff, do any of the low-end APs sold by the likes of WallyWorld have the
innate ability to serve as wireless bridges? I've got two buildings at work
separated only by 90', but with a plethora of plumbing and underground
wiring between. I'd rather not trench.

LLoyd

"Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" <lloydsp@mindspring.com> hath wroth:

Any particular reason you didn't start a new topic?

>Jeff, do any of the low-end APs sold by the likes of WallyWorld have the
>innate ability to serve as wireless bridges? I've got two buildings at work
>separated only by 90', but with a plethora of plumbing and underground
>wiring between. I'd rather not trench.

I don't have a local Walmart so I have no idea what they stock. I've
given up on the Linksys WAP54G and Dlink DWL-2100AP+. They work, but
they don't stay up. The big problem is that many such bridges do NOT
support WPA-PSK encryption with bridging. Check on this before you
buy.

Another mal-feature that always causes problems is the number of MAC
addresses a transparent bridge is expected to pass. Many of the
bottom of the line bridges will only do 32 MAC addresses. Even the
best of the bottom of the line bridges will do no more than about 200
before running out of RAM for table space. Most crash and hang
instead of expire old table entries gracefully. If your network has
more than 32 devices total on both sides, start thinking of something
better than junk.

You can check on Linksys and Dlink features using their emulators:
http://www.linksysdata.com/ui/
http://support.dlink.com/emulators/
If it has a PTP bridge mode or PTMP bridge mode, it *MAY* work if it
supports WPA in these modes. Note that a client bridge mode is NOT
suitable.

I don't have a recommendation because all I know is that you're trying
to bridge 90ft. No clue on antenna position, interference, bandwidth
requirements, number of MAC addresses, traffic mix, QoS?, feature
list, management requirements, and price range.

If you're looking for a Polish Army knife that can do anything, for
90ft, I suggest a Buffalo WHR-HP-54G running DD-WRT v23 SP3 firmware.
This is certainly overkill but will work for up to about 64 MAC
addresses. (I'm not sure of the limit and too lazy to check).

If you've got wiring between buildings, think about phone line
networking and power line networking.

--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

Thanks... good tutorial.

The 'remote' building has two MAC address, and the 'local' one fifteen.
There is no direct electrical or phone service between them, and they're
serviced by separate pole transformers, so unless carrier-current stuff has
much improved, I don't think that'll work in this application.

I have a clear under-eaves line of sight between the two, but only about 8'
off the ground.

I think you gave me enough to get this done. ('cept maybe the 8' isn't high
enough.... and even at 90', I might need higher-gain antennae than rabbit
ears.)

LLoyd


"Jeff Liebermann" <jeffl@cruzio.com> wrote in message
news:4j7ka3trdern05s5r12opl7rqiq9mk5iok@4ax.com...
> "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" <lloydsp@mindspring.com> hath wroth:
>
> Any particular reason you didn't start a new topic?
>
>>Jeff, do any of the low-end APs sold by the likes of WallyWorld have the
>>innate ability to serve as wireless bridges? I've got two buildings at
>>work
>>separated only by 90', but with a plethora of plumbing and underground
>>wiring between. I'd rather not trench.
>
> I don't have a local Walmart so I have no idea what they stock. I've
> given up on the Linksys WAP54G and Dlink DWL-2100AP+. They work, but
> they don't stay up. The big problem is that many such bridges do NOT
> support WPA-PSK encryption with bridging. Check on this before you
> buy.
>
> Another mal-feature that always causes problems is the number of MAC
> addresses a transparent bridge is expected to pass. Many of the
> bottom of the line bridges will only do 32 MAC addresses. Even the
> best of the bottom of the line bridges will do no more than about 200
> before running out of RAM for table space. Most crash and hang
> instead of expire old table entries gracefully. If your network has
> more than 32 devices total on both sides, start thinking of something
> better than junk.
>
> You can check on Linksys and Dlink features using their emulators:
> http://www.linksysdata.com/ui/
> http://support.dlink.com/emulators/
> If it has a PTP bridge mode or PTMP bridge mode, it *MAY* work if it
> supports WPA in these modes. Note that a client bridge mode is NOT
> suitable.
>
> I don't have a recommendation because all I know is that you're trying
> to bridge 90ft. No clue on antenna position, interference, bandwidth
> requirements, number of MAC addresses, traffic mix, QoS?, feature
> list, management requirements, and price range.
>
> If you're looking for a Polish Army knife that can do anything, for
> 90ft, I suggest a Buffalo WHR-HP-54G running DD-WRT v23 SP3 firmware.
> This is certainly overkill but will work for up to about 64 MAC
> addresses. (I'm not sure of the limit and too lazy to check).
>
> If you've got wiring between buildings, think about phone line
> networking and power line networking.
>
> --
> Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
> 150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
> Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
> Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

Jeff Liebermann wrote:
> I don't have a local Walmart so I have no idea what they stock.

Bummer...and I always thought you lived in the lower 48 states. :)

DTC <no_spam@move_along_folks.foob> hath wroth:

>Jeff Liebermann wrote:
>> I don't have a local Walmart so I have no idea what they stock.
>
>Bummer...and I always thought you lived in the lower 48 states. :)

The nearest Walmarts to the Peoples Republic of Santa Cruz is about
40-50 miles away. Too far to drive.
<http://www.walmart.com/storeLocator/ca_storefinder_results.do?sfsearch_city=santa+cruz &sfsearch_state=CA&sfsearch_zip=&x=41&y=17&=Contin ue&continue=>
However, we're not totally uncivilized here. We have a local Costco
and a soon to open Home Depot available to ruin the local small
businesses. Costco carries some really odd Dlink bundles, which keeps
me in business doing updates, setups, and replacements.

Ummm... Looks like the Linksys brand might be going away:
<http://www.uberpulse.com/us/2007/07/cisco_to_kill_linksys_brand_to_move_agressively_in to_consumer_markets_video.php>


--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

"Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" <lloydsp@mindspring.com> hath wroth:

>The 'remote' building has two MAC address, and the 'local' one fifteen.
>There is no direct electrical or phone service between them, and they're
>serviced by separate pole transformers, so unless carrier-current stuff has
>much improved, I don't think that'll work in this application.

Well, if you like spending money, they're also FSO (Free Space
Optical).

>I have a clear under-eaves line of sight between the two, but only about 8'
>off the ground.
>
>I think you gave me enough to get this done. ('cept maybe the 8' isn't high
>enough.... and even at 90',

Naw, you're find. Fresnel Zone clearance for 90ft is:
http://www.terabeam.com/support/calc...esnel-zone.php
only 2.5ft at midpoint. I would be more worried about the eves than
the ground.

>I might need higher-gain antennae than rabbit
>ears.)

I'm sure the rabbits might not that think it's a good idea. A rabbit
foot is always useful for wireless installations. I'm not sure about
rabbit ears.


--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558