Connecting a second wireless router as an access point via powerline adapter problem.

[JazzHolmez]

Hey,

I recently connected a second wireless router to use in another room by using a powerline adapter. Now I've used help from other threads but still seem to be getting the same problem. I have managed to connect everything up correctly, and I am getting a connection in the other room. The problem that arises is when I'm trying to connect sometimes, my laptop or xbox will try to connect to my 'master' router in the living room, and the signal is terrible. I have set up the 2 different routers to be on different channels, the 'slave' access point is on channel 6 and the 'master' router is on channel 1. If I manage to get any of my devices onto channel 6 then the connection is perfect. But most of the time it just goes straight to channel 1.
Hope I've explained this ok and really appreciate any help!

Thanks.

 

[BigBlueHouse]

Hi,

To use a router as a Switch or Wireless AP you will need to turn off DHCP on the router, having this enabled on two routers will cause problems on your network.

What is the IP address of the router you want to use as an AP?

 

[Flying-Q]

channel 6 is the most commonly used chanel so you may find that your neighbours are using it. If that is the case then when your equipment is hunting for a clear signal it may choose a less cluttered band of lower power (main) than a more cluttered but higher power signal (slave). Try setting the channel manually to 7, 8 or 9, or if you are in the UK try 13.

 

[JazzHolmez]

Thanks for the reply guys, yeah I've disabled the dhcp settings, and it does work as an access point, just it's trying to connect to a weaker signal. I've tried changing the channels but still no luck, it's still trying to connect to the furthest away router.

 

[BigBlueHouse]

What are the IP addresses of the two routers? Are they on the same subnet?

Alternatively, why not put the second router in the same room as Xbox and use it as a switch.

 

[JazzHolmez]

Well they are on different IP addresses, one is 192.168.0.1 and the other is 192.168.0.5.
Not sure what the subnet is? Still learning.
Yeah I was thinking of just putting it in the same room as the xbox, but I wanted it to work with my laptop and phone when I'm there.

 

[bill001g]

The PC will pick the device it thinks it has the best signal with and stay with it even if there is a better signal. Sometimes as you have found the software is really stupid.

Best solution is to put the 2 wireless units on different SSID as well as different channels as you have done. With different SSID now you must manually select which to connect to. It is a trade off you take the automated approach which is easier when it works or you deal with it all yourself and make sure you always have the optimum connection.

 

[RealBeast]

I suggest that you use different SSIDs on the router and AP so you can select where you connect. As far as radio channel, the router and AP should use different non-overlapping channels (1, 6, 11), but you should download and run inSSIDer home free version (a wifi analyzer) from HERE. Run it and check the network tab to see what signals you find by strength and channel.

I would also put the AP in the same room as the router turned AP and attach to an AP LAN port by cable.

Note that it is best if your AP has its static address entered in the main router static address table (and you will need its MAC address to do that).

edit: LOL, bill001g types faster! But I totally agree with him. 😀

 

[JazzHolmez]

So I've changed the SSID and the connection is is working perfectly on my phone and laptop, connects immediately and stays connected without a hitch, so thank you very much for the help. Only thing is the xbox isn't connecting, when I try to connect it says there is an IP address error and that it can't obtain an IP address from my router. So I dunno if it's the xbox not playing fair or if I've not done something correctly. But thanks again for your help guys!

 

[RealBeast]

You might try giving the XBOX a static address just like the AP (when you enter it in the main router static table you will need the MAC address of the XBOX just like with the AP). And make sure to exclude those addresses from the main router DHCP range.

 

[tklives]

So I've changed the SSID and the connection is is working perfectly on my phone and laptop, connects immediately and stays connected without a hitch, so thank you very much for the help. Only thing is the xbox isn't connecting, when I try to connect it says there is an IP address error and that it can't obtain an IP address from my router. So I dunno if it's the xbox not playing fair or if I've not done something correctly. But thanks again for your help guys!

Very late to the party here, but glad I stumbled upon this thread!

I'm just curious, in the end, did you end up actually using the powerline adapter to run a second router as an AP? If so, how did things end up working out?

I'm about to embark on a very similar journey, and want to try and make sure it isn't a bust, so I really appreciate you posting your progress about the situation

Thanks!
TK

 

[RealBeast]

@tklives, this is a pretty old thread so I will close and you can make a new one specific to your situation.

I install lots of wireless and when it is not possible to run an Ethernet cable to the AP, the next best thing is a pair of AV1200 MIMO powerline adapters. The generally get around 250Mbps, so plenty for most uses and more importantly are low latency. Thus you can use the wireless of the AP (router configured as AP) and the other three LAN ports that are not being used for a low latency connection for stuff like gaming.

HERE is a good site for comparing units, I generally use the TP-Link 8010 kit, which is the same as the 8030 but $25 cheaper.