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From: Bob Harris <harris@zk3.dec.com>
Subject: Re: Newbie Q: Network 2 Airports together?
References: <0001HW.BC16199D007E11F6F0080600@news.individual.net> <BC16340B.30575%gnarlodiousNULL@VOID.invalid.yahoo.com> <0001HW.BC165891008CD323F0080600@news.individual.net> <BC166B8A.305C7%gnarlodiousNULL@VOID.invalid.yahoo.com> <0001HW.BC16EB5400944CA2F0080600@news.individual.net> <fake-326BC6.11592730122003@news-60.giganews.com> <0001HW.BC1718D7009EF750F0080600@news.individual.net> 
Message-ID: <harris-FCB439.23051130122003@cacnews.cac.cpqcorp.net> 
Date: Wed, 31 Dec 2003 04:05:14 GMT

In article <0001HW.BC1718D7009EF750F0080600@news.individual.net>,
 DaveC <me@privacy.net> wrote:

> >> I realize ther Graphite model is limited. But can't most modern 10baseT 
> >> Ethernet routers do bridging? And can't this function be utilized, with 
> >> the Graphite simply doing the wireless-to-10baseT conversion?
> 
> > I have a Linksys WAP11 (~$70) wirelessly connected to a "Graphite" 
> > Airport, and the Linksys then provides wired ethernet LAN access to a 
> > small group of PC's. The wireless link is about 100 feet separation. My 
> > AP treats the WAP11 like another unit with an airport card, giving it 
> > one non-routable address.
> > 
> > I know that Graphite Airports won't "bridge" one to another, and I 
> > _thought_ that Snow AP's wouldn't either. I believe the AP Extreme will 
> > do this, and allow wireless and wired LAN connection at each AP.
> > 
> > This may not be bridging, or it may not be "imaginative", but I think it 
> > accomplishes what you envision...
> 
> So the Graphite is your WAN access point (the "transmitter"), and your WAP11 
> is the LAN access point (the "receiver")? 
> 
> It sounds like I may be able to use the Airports (1 Graphite, 1 Snow model) 
> to do similarly, after all. Or at the least, use the Airports to do simple 
> wireless-to-10baseT conversion and my Linksys BESFR41 router to do the 
> routing function... 
> 
> Others' experiences, observations, and comments welcome. 
> 
> Thanks,

What you can do is set up WiFi "Roaming".  Here is what I do at my house.

I have an Airport Extreme base station and an original Airport Graphite 
base station.  The Extreme and the Graphite are connected via an 
ethernet cable.  

The Extreme is setup as the Router, DHCP, and NAT box that makes the 
PPPoE connection via the WAN port to the DSL Modem.  

The Graphite is set to just bridge WiFi to the etherent.  The Graphite 
does _NOT_ do routing, and it does _NOT_ do DHCP serving, and it does 
_NOT_ do NAT, and it does not try to do any PPPoE.

Both the Extreme and the Graphite have idential SSID names.  They both 
have identical WEP passwords.  They both have identical lists of MAC 
addresses for systems allowed to use my WiFi network. 

The Extreme uses channel 1 and the Graphite used Channel 11.

What this allows me to do is stay seamlessly connected while I roam 
around my house, porch, and yard with my iBook.  The iBook automatically 
switches to which ever base station it needs to in order to remain 
connected.

And before I got the Airport Extreme base station, I did something 
similar using a D-Link Cable/DSL router, the Graphite base station, and 
an SMC Barricade base station.  The D-Link talked to the DSL Modem doing 
PPPoE, DHCP, and NAT services.  Both the Graphite and the SMC were set 
to just bridge the WiFi to the ethernet.  All three boxes were connected 
together via ethernet cables.  I would still be using this arrangment, 
but the SMC died after a lightning surge took it out, and I gave the 
D-Link to my Mom to front end her DSL Modem.

                                        Bob Harris

Take Control of Your Domain Names

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