Wireless Router as Access Point

Question

So here's a fun little non-dell question.  Current setup is as follows: at college in a building with a router and a giant switch or two.  all IP addresses are real (not NAT).  switch is wired to ethernet ports in different rooms in the house in question.  IP addresses are dynamic but based on MAC addresses -- they usually stay constant for periods of a term to a year.   I want to make at least part of the building wireless, but I don't really want to pay $150 for an entry level access point.  I can get a dlink DI-524 802.11g router for $20.  Can I set this up to be just an access point (as I'd prefer not to use NAT if I don't have to)?   My current thoughts for setup go something like this:  connect a LAN port to a PC.  then connect the router's WAN port to an ethernet jack in a room and see what IP address it is given, then disconnect the router from the wall.  I would then access the router's setup page via the PC and change the lan IP address of the router to match what it would be assigned.  I would then connect a lan port of the router to an ethernet wall jack (not sure if I should use a crossover cable or not?).   So, my basic concerns and questions are:   1) All the descriptions on how to make a router into an access point that I've seen assume that the router has a static LAN  address and does not use DHCP.  Can I make this work given my college wants all devices to use DHCP?  Will setting the router's LAN address to what it would be assigned be an adequate work around or will this not work at all as the DHCP server can not successfully assign it?   2) Do a need a cross-over cable or not when connecting the lan port to the wall?   3) will this work?  does anyone know how to do it better short of buying an acess point?   Thanks

johnallg · Answer

Why not register the MAC of the D-Link as your 'new' computer, then let the D-Link use MAC filtering and DHCP on a different network IP range.  All traffic would appear as your computer.  Of course then you are responsible for the content of all traffic.  They might also frown on losing control of their network integrity no matter what you do.

NemesisDB · Answer

That's definitely doable, I was just trying to avoid having to set up a NAT and looking for a way to still use the college's DHCP service if possible

jmwills · Answer

I think basically what you want ot do is subnet the network and it can be done with a router. Turn off the DHCP function on the router so that it is now an Access Point.

Note the IP Address of the point at which you connect and give your new access point that address as a static address or at least within that subnet. See if you have an address conflict, if not, then you are good to go.

Limit access to the wireless access point by MAC filtering and you could potentially create your own network within the school's LAN. Oh, and all means, turn off SSID broadcasting.

VBdotNet · Answer

Go to the MFG support page of the routers/APs that your considering and pull down the manuals to see what NAT and DHCP options are available to you - before you make your purchase.

NemesisDB · Answer

THanks, I think I may pick it up from Best Buy or somewhere and just return the thing if it doesn't work -- I don't think there's a good way to see if the static IP will work until I try it

johnallg · Answer

The DI-524 can take a static IP on it's WAN, and it can have DHCP disabled.  I got my daughter that router.  Go to the D-Link page for that and get the manual - it is all explained in that.  Good docs.

volcano11 · Answer

Nearly all wireless routers can be run in access point mode (turning off DCHCP and assigning a static IP address). I know for a fact that this can be done with Linksys routers because I have done it. It can be done with my Belkin router, but I've never used my Belkin router in this mode. If you want to use a static IP address like 129.170.239.x, it will have to be assigned by the IT department of your institution.

Steve

NemesisDB · Answer

yeah, i know it can take a static wan address, but with any luck I won't be using the wan port at all -- if I do, I'll probably just let me school shoot it a DHCP address.

i'm just trying to figure out if I can change it's LAN address to something like 129.170.239.x , and things don't look promising in that regard. I really need an acess point and not a router, which is annoying as they are $100 more expensive.

NemesisDB · Answer

right, i just didn't know if there was a difference between my device recieving a dynamic (but unchanging) IP address and me assigning the same address as static

jmwills · Answer

You said the IP Address was not changing that often so why the stress, just keep tabs on it and a pattern will develop.  When I had Charter Cable in the states, my so called dynamic address didn't change but once a month, here in Italy, my address gets renewed every morning at 5:15 am.

jmwills · Answer

None whatsoever.  Now, if the external address changes and you are not monitoring it, then there will be an IP Address conflict on the LAN.

NemesisDB · Answer

thanks, that was all the info I needed ...  well almost, did people ever decide if I needed a crossover between the wall and the LAN port on the router?

johnallg · Answer

D-Link routers and switches auto adjust for either connection, so no.

NemesisDB · Answer

thanks to everyone that replied, you've all been very helpful

jmwills · Answer

No croosover cable.  Just normal CAT5 connection.

Networking, Internet, & Bluetooth

Wireless Router as Access Point

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