router and switch

[xmountainxlionx]

I was just wondering, but would it be possible to use a basic switch for my wired connections and use my wireless router for wireless connections at the SAME TIME? If it is would i be better off for this?

I need to find the best config for my setup which is currently; my desktop(wired) my server (wired) an upstairs computer which has to be wireless, and a laptop which is wireless.

right now all I have is a basic dsl modem and a wireless belkin router. I have a 3mbps connection.

 

[Squirrely]

Unless you want to segment your network, then nope.

Does your wireless router have a switch built in? (Like 4 ports for example like mine) If so, I would just use that, since it makes port forwarding much easier if you use it for your server.

 

[Mussels]

switches dont mess with a network at all, they are transparent. The key is your modem - if its a ROUTER, then it is compatible. If its purely a modem, then not.

My advice is always to get an all in one unit - get a modem/router/wireless combo unit, and you'll have no complications.

 

[xmountainxlionx]

ive always heard those are a bad route (no pun intented)

edit: yeah it was

 

[mrhuggles]

this is VERY easy to do, and any real router will REQUIRE you to do this,

you hook up a switch to your router, then you hook up a wifi AP to your switch, or if you have a router with mini pci ports you would just hook up a switch to your router, then hook up a wifi card in your router.

dont worry your good,

 

[Mussels]

this is VERY easy to do, and any real router will REQUIRE you to do this,

you hook up a switch to your router, then you hook up a wifi AP to your switch, or if you have a router with mini pci ports you would just hook up a switch to your router, then hook up a wifi card in your router.

dont worry your good,

the problem is that he says he has a DSL modem. a modem does not have a DHCP server, and therefore will not work with multiple systems on a switch.

He can either buy a new router, connect his PC's to other ethernet ports on the wireless router (if it has any) or setup a PC to do the same task (smoothwall/windows ICS)

 

[aximbigfan]

Why not just give everything static IPs?

Chris

 

[Mussels]

Why not just give everything static IPs?

Chris

because most ISP's only give you one IP for WAN. a router splits that and shares it - if he tries it that way, the network requests will simply get ignored.

(a modem gives you the WAN IP, a router is a bridge between WAN and LAN)

 

[mrhuggles]

a good router can load up multiple NATs and get multiple IPs and forward ports from each ip to wherever [this is why destination IPs instid of just assumeing that its the 1 ip that a router would normaly get]

 

[Mussels]

a good router can load up multiple NATs and get multiple IPs and forward ports from each ip to wherever [this is why destination IPs instid of just assumeing that its the 1 ip that a router would normaly get]

a good router can, a modem cant. The problem is that he has a modem, with a wireless router - he hasnt said if the wirelss router has ethernet ports yet.

 

[xmountainxlionx]

yeah my router has 4 ethernet ports. I have port forwarding setup. all my wired comps have static ip's. but would it not be better to have a swtich doing its job and have the modem do its job and have the router just do its job of dhcp+wireless access point

 

[Mussels]

yeah my router has 4 ethernet ports. I have port forwarding setup. all my wired comps have static ip's. but would it not be better to have a swtich doing its job and have the modem do its job and have the router just do its job of dhcp+wireless access point

the routers function is to share one WAN ip to several LAN ip's.

It has a switch built in (the numerous ethernet ports)

You will gain NOTHING merely moving it to a switch. The only reason to do so is to add more ports, or to upgrade to gigabit - there is no reason to do so otherwise.

 

[xmountainxlionx]

ok thank you. thats all i really wanted to know