Seeking advice on router as a secondary AP behind a switch

kaichan91

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Jul 6, 2015
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I've been using a powerline adapter for extended Wi-Fi access in the corner of my home and had no issues for a good amount of time, but the adapter has stopped working properly and I've been thinking of buying a second router to use as an AP. I currently only have one Ethernet cable running through to my room from the router that is connected to my Desktop PC.

As the title suggests, I'm currently thinking of plugging in an unmanaged switch to the existing cable to expand attachable devices in my room, and then connecting both my desktop and the new router to the switch. Now here are a few questions:

1. Will this setup cause any conflicts between the desktop and the router? (I am aware of the need to disable DHCP/NAT on the secondary router)
2. If I wanted to use the same SSID/password on the secondary router, what drawbacks are there and are there remedies for them? Is a seperate SSID strongly recommended?
3. Can I get away with a sub-$60 ac router (ie. TP-LINK Archer C5) and not be hit with major performance issues?

Please feel free to give me any additional advice or alternative, better setups that you believe are feasible that don't come at a steep price hike. Thanks for the help!

I have a 400mbps connection (FTTP) and I am primarily concerned about stable wifi access to phones/tablets, but if gaming stability was somehow possible that would also be nice.
 
Solution
Ensure they are connected LAN to LAN
Running the same SSID is not always best.
Your devices will hang on to the first AP they connect to until the connection drops, only then will it connect to the the strongest signal. By running separate SSIDs you can at least see which AP you are connected to.
Ensure you are broadcasting on different channels on the two bands.
1. If it is correctly configured, no.
2. Make sure everything is set exactly the same. Including encryption type. Such as WPA2 or WPA+WPA2. Having them the same is my preferred setup. As your devices connect to the strongest signal.
3. The TPlink are excellent. I’d get one with gigabit LAN.
 
Ensure they are connected LAN to LAN
Running the same SSID is not always best.
Your devices will hang on to the first AP they connect to until the connection drops, only then will it connect to the the strongest signal. By running separate SSIDs you can at least see which AP you are connected to.
Ensure you are broadcasting on different channels on the two bands.
 
Solution