Wifi extender suggestions

[n1ckst1ck]

Hi all

 

Trying to set up my home network as I recently moved to a new appartment.

 

I have one ethernet port at the bedroom floor where my home office will be. (ethernet port is in the office room).
Looking to somehow extend the wifi signal to the bedroom, as the reception there is very bad at the moment, while also keeping a ethernet port for home office/gaming.

 

The current wifi extender I'm using has 2 ethernet ports, one for input Ethernet and one for output Ethernet. This is perfect, as I have a good source of internet straight from router to be broadcasted wirelessly AND I don't lose the Ethernet port for the extender as I can connect to the second port on the extender.

Problem is that I'm renting the extender from my ISP and will have paid as much as a new extender in less than two years.

 

Any suggestions on which extender offers the same functionality as the one I have now?

- Ethernet input for clean wireless signal straight from router

- Wireless network capability to have connection all over bedroom floor

- Ethernet output to connect to PC

 

I don't really want to put a network switch if it's possible to have it in a all-in-one device.

 

Thanks for your replies!

 

Kind regards

[Falcon1986]

1 hour ago, n1ckst1ck said:

I don't really want to put a network switch if it's possible to have it in a all-in-one device.

Any wireless router that can run in AP mode will do this.

[n1ckst1ck]

1 hour ago, Falcon1986 said:

Any wireless router that can run in AP mode will do this.

Thanks for your feedback!

 

One question though, wouldn't the router host a different network than the one I already have then?
Or can it also just extend the wireless network I would already have from my original router?

[Falcon1986]

3 hours ago, n1ckst1ck said:

wouldn't the router host a different network than the one I already have then?

No.

 

AP mode turns off the DHCP server and causes the router to act as a "passthrough device", similar to an unmanaged switch. Unlike a dedicated switch, however, you can also use the WiFi as you please, giving you both wireless and wired access to your network.

 

The upstream primary router will handle DHCP and other routing functions.

 

3 hours ago, n1ckst1ck said:

Or can it also just extend the wireless network I would already have from my original router?

You can configure the AP with the same SSID and wireless security settings as the primary wireless router. However, place broadcasts onto a different non-overlapping channel.

 

You can also tune the antenna output power so that it just barely overlaps the fringes of the primary wireless router's signal, so your roaming devices can transition easily without getting "stuck" on the previous signal.

 

All of these things try to mimic seamless roaming that other WiFi systems do much better (e.g. mesh, SDNs). But if all you want is to have your laptop have wireless connectivity in two separate locations as you move and don't mind the transient disconnect/reconnect, doing it this way works for many people, without having to deal with expensive hardware.