How to connect 2 different LANS

[whan714]

My company has two different networks. We moved our store into our warehouse cause we are going straight online. But Time Warner Business won't let us cancel one of our internet lines without a ridiculous ETF.

So the question is we have two networks at our warehouse.
Both have a modem and a router to each network. I need to be able to share files from each network but do not know how to connect it correctly. Also both sides have a static IP that was given to us from ISP.


One side IP is
MODEM: 192.168.0.1
ROUTER: 192.168.1.1

Other side IP is
MODEM 192.168.0.254
ROUTER: 192.168.1.254

Do i just take a cat cable and connect to a lan port on each router/modem so that we can share files between each network?

 

[jsmithepa]

What happened, the IT guy quit?

Do i just take a cat cable and connect to a lan port on each router/modem so that we can share files between each network?

Wow, that would be great isn't it, throw in a cable and BAM! Except there are about 50 questions to answer.

Notice both LANs are on the same subnet, to merge 2 subnets... 5 question from the top of my head:

1. Are the existing IP gonna crash?
2. How many LAN IPs are currently in use. If running out of host addresses, may have to re-mask.
3. Are you running Domain controllers?
4. Are you running duplicated services which maybe need to be merged into 1?
5. How far is this CAT5, if more than say 75 meter, need a fiber instead.

 

[whan714]

1. the existing IP's should not crash
2. One side has 16 IPs being used and the other side has around the same
3. no domain controller
4. No duplicated services.
5. cat6 cable will be running 30 ft at most.

The modems are just placed at the other sides of the warehouse.

 

[jsmithepa]

No duplicated services.

Don't believe you. If there are no duplicated DHCP, the LANs wouldn't work as they are.

OK, you sounds sure. Go for it.

 

[whan714]

No duplicated services.

Don't believe you. If there are no duplicated DHCP, the LANs wouldn't work as they are.

OK, you sounds sure. Go for it.

One DHCP starts 192.168.1.1
the other starts 192.168.1.100

is this what you are asking?

 

[bill001g]

It is so sad that you do not even understand why you can not have 2 dhcp servers even if the ranges do not overlap. There are likely other issues.

The question which there is no simple answer for is how do you expect each modem to assign IP to their devices when you hook it all together. The way dhcp works is a pc send out a broadcast message that says someone give me a IP address. Both modem/router will respond to the request and which IP the pc chooses is almost random. You have to find a way to get around this default method of operation. And again there is no simple way to do this.

This is likely your hardest issue but you may also have other issues with the file sharing part

 

[whan714]

well the DHCP on the modems are turned off. Only using the router to give out IP's.
I was thinking i could have a shared router in between both routers and just have the shared router act as a gateway. unless i have other problems

 

[Alabalcho]

There are relatively cheap dual-WAN routers:
- get one of these, plug modems into respective WAN port
- configure the router as you would configure every other router
- put existing routers onto the shelf, or use them as access points
If spending money is not an option - throw away one of the lines (or use it for guest network, employee' phones network etc), and connect everything into a single router (using switches, if necessary).