Re: Possible to setup multiple wireless AP's under same SSID with no disconnect/connect?

Devin -

Get Linksys wrt54g routers. They're cheap at Amazon 
(http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00007KDVI/qid=1116913663/sr=8-1/ref=pd_csp_1/102-0242317-0708106?v=glance&s=pc&n=507846). 
Then google wrt54g WDS. Get the Sveasoft firmware. Don't be afraid of 
the 3rd party firmware. I has a good GUI. Any questions thereafter, 
please write back.

" The WRT54GS can also be configured for WDS repeater mode, in
which case it will connect wireless to your AP and will also
connect wireless to other client mode units. In that
configuration the WRT54GS will also route to its LAN ethernet
ports, so both wireless and wired network connections can be
used.

Note that the throughput in WDS repeater mode is about half the
throughput in client mode, but in either case is almost
certainly some multiple of the througput to your Internet
connection. Which simply means that as long as Internet
traffic, as opposed to file or process sharing between local
hosts, is the only use for the wireless link, you really don't
care that the througput is half for one mode as opposed to the
other.

Lets say you have a 1.5Mb/s DSL modem (probably faster than
average), and your wireless network has no WDS link, so you get
something like 24Mb/s throughput, max. Fine, except if that
traffic is gatewayed to the Internet via the 1.5Mb/s DSL, you
don't get more than 1.5Mb/s. And if you use *four* WDS links in
series, each of which cuts the throughput in half... the
wireless network is still just as fast as that 1.5Mb/s DSL, so
the overall bitrate is *still* just 1.5Mb/s!

Therefore, one might expect some degradation if there are *five*
WDS links in series! (And given the actual bitrates available
for most DSL modems, that's probably more like 7 or 8 WDS
links.)

All of which is to say that *if* (and *only if*) there is no
local traffic other than that gatewayed to the Internet, using
WDS is not going to degrade performance. If the local network
actually does have significant traffic, such as for file or
process servers, then yes the use of WDS will be significant. "

Best,

Ian Gordon

Devin McBride wrote:

> Hey all,
> I'm looking to increase our wireless coverage using multiple wireless 
> AP's (or similar devices).  We obviously need to keep the same SSID 
> for all devices and the main goal is to allow people to roam without 
> having disconnect/connects constantly when they switch from one to 
> another and at the same time have a much extended overall range for 
> the wireless.
>  
> I'm fond of Linksys devices as I currently have a WAP54G and am quite 
> happy with its durability and stability; though am not bound to it if 
> something else would work better.  I was given a budget of $400, and 
> am planning to use between 3 and 5 devices in all.
>  
> I'm hoping someone can lend some advice with this as I'm a bit unsure 
> what hardware I definately should or should not be using as well as in 
> what modes...does repeating allow this functionality?  If so, can I 
> use Multiple APs to repeat from the same source?  If not, what should 
> I be looking at?
>  
> Thank you in advance,
> Devin
>
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>
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