So say I have a two story house, modem and wireless router downstairs, not much of a WIFI signal makes it upstairs.

I'm planning on using powerline networking to get a live Ethernet port upstairs, and from there I'm not sure what to do. There are a couple devices upstairs in the powerlined room that I would like to connect via wired Ethernet, and I would like to distribute a new wireless signal upstairs. What device do I need to purchase to configure something like this, and are there any tips on configuring it?

Is it as simple as plugging the output of the powerline adapter into a switch, then one port of the switch to a wireless access point, then the other ports into the hard wired devices? Or is it more involved...


Secondly, if any of you have used powerline before let me know how it worked out for you Here's the one I'm trying: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833181127

3/22/2012 10:37:10 AM

just plug one of the LAN ports of the wireless router into the powerline downstairs. then plug the WAN port into the powerline adapter upstairs.

I use powerline adapters and they work really well. just don't plug them into a surge protector, then you run into signal loss issues.



[Edited on March 22, 2012 at 11:19 AM. Reason : ]

3/22/2012 10:56:40 AM

i have a powerline adapter from dish that cost $100, although i didn't pay for it. it works fine. just plug it in & go. never had a problem with it.

3/22/2012 10:59:07 AM

Quote :

"just plug one of the LAN ports of the wireless router into the powerline downstairs. then plug the WAN port into the powerline adapter upstairs. "

WAN port of what? Not a standard router right? Can't have two devices dishing out IP addresses can we?

3/22/2012 11:20:33 AM

actually...yes we can. but just set the upstairs router up as an access point and you wont have to worry about devices being on separate networks.

3/22/2012 8:51:05 PM

If you want a stronger wifi system, look at getting a better wifi product; something like UniFi from Ubiquiti

http://www.ubnt.com/unifi

It bridges the gap between consumer level products and commercial grade without having to spend bank, but the cool thing is that its very adaptable and up-gradable to handle commercial level traffic for a wifi network. Way more signal strength than consumer level products.

You can get away with one UAP device that has about a 400ft coverage (realistically about 200 for strong signal), but you can look at the UAP LR that increases to about 600ft (more like 250-350) or you can grab UAP outdoor model that has the antenna's separated so you can add your own, more powerful antenna if you need more signal strength, but even the AP model should be more than enough coverage for a 2 story house.

The cool thing is that it uses a pretty easy software based management software that doesn't require a crazy expensive managing switch/hardware that other types of commercial level AP's need. Just plug them in and configure like any consumer level router/AP, but it gives you much more control than typical crap products.

And its not that expensive either, inline with higher end consumer AP's. I do want to note that their AP-Pro models are going to be released soon that does simultaneous dual-band operation in 2.4 and 5ghz. The AP and AP-LR only does 2.4ghz, but its still fast. The AP outdoor supports 2.4 and 5ghz, but its not combined.

3/23/2012 1:13:57 PM

ubiquiti makes some solid gear

3/23/2012 4:02:25 PM

they are nice because they go head to head against the entry level cisco AP's that cost $$$, but you don't exactly need that many devices connected at once for a home network or the higher level of management needs. Even then, UniFi's software is pretty robust and laid out in a pretty GUI that any consumer should be able to access and setup; once done, you rarely have to go back and change it, unless you like to check and monitor your wifi network.

It's cool because you can upload a floor plan and place your AP's if you are running more than one for a graphical overview of the layout and what devices are connected to it. I'm gonna pickup the 3 piece set for a small neighborhood community center next month.

3/23/2012 4:33:51 PM

so with Powerline Networking do the wall outlets have to be on the same electrical circuit in the house? i played around with a pair of them recently and that's the way it appeared to me.

also has anyone used range extenders? how did it go? i'm giving this one a try: http://www.amazon.com/Diamond-Multimedia-Wireless-Extender-WR300N/dp/B005D5M136/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

4/16/2012 9:49:57 AM

yes, they have to be on the same circuit. also, the range extenders / repeaters work great.

[Edited on April 16, 2012 at 10:20 AM. Reason : ]

4/16/2012 10:20:10 AM

I'm going to try a MoCA adapter for ethernet-over-coax and see if it does better than Wireless-N: http://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-MCAB1001-Coax-Ethernet-Adapter-Black/dp/B001N85NMI/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1334595108&sr=1-1

4/16/2012 12:53:19 PM

when my current router/ap shits the bed, i'm going to get a UniFi

that setup looks pretty sweet

4/17/2012 1:31:04 PM

So when setting up a wireless bridge, don't you have to set your router into bridge mode for the wireless bridge to work?

5/16/2012 11:35:59 AM

Your AP router should be just as it always is ... then you need to setup a Client Bridged router, which is what your devices will plug into.

http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/Bridging

5/16/2012 2:33:32 PM

Client Bridged. Gotcha, thanks.

5/16/2012 2:57:26 PM