Why does wireless kill my home network?

[jerryhung]

My home has router home network

The problems are
1. If I use wireless router (NetGear WGR614v5), if I use wireless on laptop, network is dead (very very soon)

2. If I use just router (SMC7004ABR, no wireless), plug in Wireless Access Point = internet dies RIGHT AWAY

Anybody have any clue to why this happens?
It happens with either Rogers or Sympatico, so probably not their problem
and no 2.4Ghz phone at home either.

[Vinsanity1379]

My home has router home network

The problems are
1. If I use wireless router (NetGear WGR614v5), if I use wireless on laptop, network is dead (very very soon)

2. If I use just router (SMC7004ABR, no wireless), plug in Wireless Access Point = internet dies RIGHT AWAY

Anybody have any clue to why this happens?
It happens with either Rogers or Sympatico, so probably not their problem
and no 2.4Ghz phone at home either.

are you downloading? heavy downloads and uploads put a strain on most common basic routers; both wired and wireless.

[v00d00]

Umm gotta configure the router to connect to the internet instead of the PC.

You can't really just plug in a router and everything will magically work.

[jerryhung]

Umm gotta configure the router to connect to the internet instead of the PC.

You can't really just plug in a router and everything will magically work.

HUH? The router WORKS (both router), internet works fine
............. UNTIL I either
1. Connect another Wireless AP to the router port
2. Use the wireless network from laptop (if I'm using the NetGear wireless router)

btw, I was NOT downloading or uploading anything
Was watching Yankees on Fox this afternoon, tried to surf in the living room, so hooked up the wireless AP, and the internet is instantly dead
Of course, after I disconnected the cable to the wireless AP, internet & network is back alive

[Cafe_333]

Make sure the cable going into your wireless is in not in the 'internet' port if you have one. Just a regular port will do. Then disable DHCP in your wireless router. Done. I have the same setup and it works flawlessly. Can't have both routers acting as a DHCP server. That's why your internet dies. If you still have problems try firmware updates.

[jerryhung]

Make sure the cable going into your wireless is in not in the 'internet' port if you have one. Just a regular port will do. Then disable DHCP in your wireless router. Done. I have the same setup and it works flawlessly. Can't have both routers acting as a DHCP server. That's why your internet dies. If you still have problems try firmware updates.

Yeah, it's into one of the 4-ports, not the WAN/Internet port of course

Disable DHCP? You mean set every computer to manual IP with Router's IP as gateway? DHCP+Wireless kills the router? Why though... so strange

And how does extra wireless AP kill the network the moment it's connected, still haven't figured this one out yet...

[Cafe_333]

sorry, i should have been more clear in my last post.
I have all my machines set to auto grab an IP. And it works fine in the same setup.

Basically you want to have the one router do all the actual 'routing', and your wireless router to not have any routing capabilities. You want it to just act like a hub/switch. To answer your question in a nutshell:

When you are using just your wired router, this acts as the 'dhcp server'. Basically...it hands out IP addresses to everyone in your lan, and it's what the computers look for when trying to 'receive' the internet. This 'dhcp' in all routers are turned on by default. So...when you stick in your wireless router, all of a sudden you have two DHCP servers trying to hand out IP addresses and claiming themselves as an access point for internet. And this confuses all the machines on your lan because they don't know which DHCP server to 'receive' internet from. So you will have to log in to your wireless router and disable DHCP in the router's settings. Once you do that, your machines will once again know to only grab an IP and receive internet from your wired router, and not the wireless.

This way your wireless router kind of acts like a hub/switch instead of having any routing capabilities for internet. So just think of it as a hub/switch with virtual ethernet cables connecting your wireless machines.

[jerryhung]

Ha ha, now my turn to make it more clear (sorry)

1. my wireless AP is NOT a router, just a simple wireless hub so that you can plug in any network and you'll have a wireless network to use
It's ASUS WL-330
so that's probably not why it kills the network (DHCP)

2. My NetGear is a wireless built-in router, and still goes dead if I use the wireless network on it.
I can turn it on, encrypt it fine and no problem --- until a laptop starts connecting to the wireless network

[Cafe_333]

Hmm... i just looked up the Asus WL-330 and it still seems like a DHCP problem. According to the Asus website, it can be in set in different modes: Pocket Access Point, Wireless Bridge Network Range Extension, and more.

In AP mode, it does act as a DHCP server:
http://usa.asus.com/products/communication/wireless/wl-330/access_chart.jpg

Try disabling DHCP in that first if possible, or set it in Bridge mode since this will act as a range extension of your first router (which is the netgear with built in wireless). Hope this helps, good luck!

[wesleyw]

I'm planning to buy a Linksys wireless router. Do I simply plug it into my modem, and then my PC into the router, and setup wireless from my laptop, and its done? Or are there other things I gotta do?

[Cafe_333]

Just the one router? Yep, your instruction is correct. That's pretty much as easy as it gets. :D You'll be fine.

Oh, and if you are going with Linksys, I recommend the WRT54GS (with speedbooster). The initial cost is about $20 more than the non 'S' version, but from what I've read the return in speeds is worth it. You'll need Linksys 'S' wireless cards to take advantage of the speeds though. Which is fine because these type of cards only cost $3 dollars more than the non 'S' ones.
I'm planning to buy a Linksys wireless router. Do I simply plug it into my modem, and then my PC into the router, and setup wireless from my laptop, and its done? Or are there other things I gotta do?

[discumax]

this reminds me back in high school when I used windows ME (what a piece of junk) and was still on dial-up. Everytime the phone rings, my computer would freeze. My dad told me to be courteous and pickup the phone (cuz I often ignore them), so I picked up the next time. Now both the phone and the PC died. Hahaa... lol...

[wesleyw]

Just the one router? Yep, your instruction is correct. That's pretty much as easy as it gets. :D You'll be fine.

Oh, and if you are going with Linksys, I recommend the WRT54GS (with speedbooster). The initial cost is about $20 more than the non 'S' version, but from what I've read the return in speeds is worth it. You'll need Linksys 'S' wireless cards to take advantage of the speeds though. Which is fine because these type of cards only cost $3 dollars more than the non 'S' ones.

I already have a built in wireless card for my laptop, and since I'm planning to plug my PC directly into the router, would it still be wise to get the "S" version?

[Cafe_333]

oh, in that case save yourself the $20 bucks of going with the 'S' version if that's all you're ever going to use. But if you think you will ever upgrade, add other wireless machines with the option to go 'S' (or simply want to be prepared), the $20 dollar investment isn't so steep to fork out either. So your call on that one!