Wireless advice needed please.

[Clunk]

Hi,

im currently eyeing up one of those cheap Dell Inspiron laptops and the one im looking at has got a "Dell™ Wireless 1370 802.11b/g Mini PCI Card" with it.

never having had any form of wireless gear before (apart from keyboard and mouse), im not sure what ill need.

i want to be able to use the laptop downstairs. main pc is upstairs, as is the main tinternet connection to NTL cable.

i want to keep my main pc where it is, and preferably keep it connected with wires, but i would like to be able to share my cable connection with the wireless laptop, and be able to transfer files between the two etc.

the main pc is connected to NTL via a samsung set top box that has a built in cable modem via a rj45 cable.

so what gear will i need folks? i want it to be secure, but i dont want to spend a lot of money. so any ideas?

cheers

p.s. im on xp home sp2. i have no free pci slots if this makes a difference.

[cptwhite_uk]

You need a Wifi USB stick for the main PC. You set the main PC to "ad-hoc" mode (transmit mode to me and you)....this makes your main pc / internet connection and wifi usb transmitter effectively a large router capable of transmitting a wireless internet transmission. The laptop is set to "infrastructure" mode (receive mode to me and you) and away you go....

I have a 54Mbs (802.11b/g = 54Mbs) USB stick potentially up for grabs - I bought it unnecessarily from Ebuyer (it's Ebuyer value...SafeCom brand...but works a treat been using it a few days). If you're interested in taking it off me it's yours for £13 delivered (costs £16 delivered on Ebuyer).

PM me if you're interested.

[FatalSaviour]

A USB stick will certainly do it.
Otherwise, any cheap wireless router should also do the trick (Don't get an ADSL Modem/Router)- just a cable/broadband router, that has an RJ45 WAN Port.
That would then give you more flexibility, i.e. you wouldn't have to have the main pc on to use the internet on your laptop, but it depends on your requirements and budgets.
If you have any more PCs that you'd like to network, then Scan do a fairly nice bundle, http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Produ...oductID=318497
I'm bought 2 on Today Only very recently for just under £40.
Otherwise, as I say, any cheap W/less router should do they trick.

[FatalSaviour]

Had a thought....to make it secure....I'm not too familiar with how much security you can impose on Ad-Hoc Networks (after WPA), but if you were to use a router....you can use MAC address filtering, so only specified network adapters can access the network, and turn WPA/WPA2 encryption on. Then disable SSID broadcast once you've finished setting it all up to make it mostly invisible to prying eyes.

[Clunk]

thanks cptwhite_uk and fatalsaviour,

i was looking at some routers earlier, but wasnt sure what to look for really, mainly what brands are best avoided, good drivers/firmware etc.

the usb stick is interesting. so do these act like a transmitter and receiver, and then you use a software firewall with them?

lets see if ive got this right then. cable box->main pc using normal rj45 cable, then usb dongle into the main pc, which would then talk to the laptop via its internal wifi card.

or

cable box->router via rj45->main pc via rj45 (or wifi) and then the laptop via wifi.

does that look right?

also, am i right in thinking that the 802.11b/g internal card on the laptop must be matched with a router/dongle of the same spec for it to work?

and just as another idea....ive got a usb bluetooth dongle already, is it possible to get another and do it that way, or is that asking for trouble?

cheers

[FatalSaviour]

Right will try and answer all your questions.
1. USB Stick - it is, at the end of the day just a wireless communication device yes, it will transmit and receive data, it's up to the PC connected to the cable modem to do all the routing - simple stuff really, but it is worth bearing in mind that the PC does have to be on for this to happen. Essentially you're correct here.
2. cable box->router via rj45->main pc via rj45 (or wifi) and then the laptop via wifi - again, you're spot on.
3. All routers are not made equal as you say, and it's a right pain to say which ones are good, and which ones are not. Having said that, from my (and others) past experience, D-Link Routers seem to be some of the worst candidates (I accept this may not be a majority verdict, but this is my personal summation). Linksys routers are commonly accepted as fairly reliable, I haven't worked with them much myself, but they are a division of Cisco Systems...whether they're trading on the name or not I don't know. Things to look out for are the router's range, whether it can maintain a reliable wireless connection, ease of use, whether it gets overloaded if you make too many connections (P2P), etc.
4. I assume you're thinking that a 802.11b card must be matched with another 802.11b router/dongle, and that a 802.11g r/d wouldn't work? This isn't really the case. Wireless G works on the same protocols as Wireless B, but you wouldn't get any speed increase if you were using a Wireless G card with, say a Wireless B router.
5. With regards the Bluetooth dongle, personally, I would say it's way too much hassle.
It is possible, but if you're using Bluetooth functionality built into Windows XP SP2, you'll be severly limited. Windows has native support for Bluetooth Personal Area Networking (PAN), which isn't unfortunately isn't quite the same as Local Area Networking (LAN).
It is a lot more difficult to share an internet connection using a PAN, and although you can get it to work using different software (Widcomm or BluSoleil provide what are known as Bluetooth "stacks"), you must also bear in mind that Bluetooth has a somewhat limited range (10m on many dongles), and a maximum throughput of about 768kbps if memory serves...
I apologise if some things aren't as clear as they might be, it's quarter to 2 in the morning and I'm going to bed ...post any more questions and I, or any other wonderful Hexus people will help you out.

[Clunk]

thanks mate, ill get some reading up done over the weekend and post back

[Clunk]

ok, after some mind numbing research, i think i found the right thing.

one of these:
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Produ...oductID=178493

i think if i get one of those, i wont need a usb dongle for the main pc as i can plug it in via rj45 cable.

any thoughts anyone?

cheers

[mrbanana]

Let's see if I've got this right. Your pc and your cable internet connection are next to each other upstairs, and the laptop will roam around the house.

The router you chose seems fine. I know you're going through a set top box at the moment but if you ever upgrade to a cable modem and a 10mb connection you have to make sure that router can do 10/100 on the WAN. If it is only 10 you will not get speeds much higher than 7 or 8 mb

I went for the following MSI router, which is cheaper and has worked fine for 3 months now:
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Produ...oductID=279366
Unfortunately it's not in stock just at the moment.

If your pc and your internet connection are next to each other you don't need a wireless connection to your main pc, just a length of cat5 cable from the back of the router to the network card on the pc, which should come with the router you buy.

[FatalSaviour]

Either router should be fine Clunk. Might be worth giving Scan a ring and asking what the Estimated Lead Time on the MSI routers are....for £33 you can't go too wrong .

[Clunk]

@mrbanana, yep thats right. so the msi router will be ok if i ever change to a stand alone modem then?...but itll work with the set top box now?

@fatalsaviour cheers, ill enquire in the scan forum and see what they say

[mrbanana]

@mrbanana, yep thats right. so the msi router will be ok if i ever change to a stand alone modem then?...but itll work with the set top box now?

@fatalsaviour cheers, ill enquire in the scan forum and see what they say

If your settop box has an ethernet connection (rj45) it'll be fine.

And the msi router's turned up in Today Only a few times, I paid under £30 for mine.

[Clunk]

yep, rj45 or usb, although ive never used the usb.

going to order one of those msi routers now.

thanks for the help, no doubt ill be back meithering when i break it

[FatalSaviour]

Heheh, no problem mate, we'll help you to get a bit more confused if you need any more help with setting anything up for optimal performance/features.

[Clunk]

right, got the MSI router, and the dell laptop arrived ok as well.

i have managed to set it up so that i can use the internet connection from the main pc. the laptop is reporting the signal as "very weak" which is a bit dissapointing but cant grumble for 30 quid.

im trying to set up WPA, and i seem to have done it on the main pc, but now the laptop cant connect...it says it needs a certificate. when i set the wireless network up on the main pc, it was a choice of usb stick or manual, and as i havent got a usb stick, i chose manual and it then popped up with a text file to print out with the settings on, to enter into other computers....heres the text file

"Wireless Network Settings

Print this document and store it in a safe place for future reference. You may need these settings to add additional computers and devices to your network.


Wireless Settings

Network Name (SSID): network
Network Key (WEP/WPA Key): big long line of letters and numbers here
Key Provided Automatically (802.1x): 0
Network Authentication Type: open
Data Encryption Type: WEP
Connection Type: ESS
Key Index:


To enable File and Printer Sharing on this computer, run the Network Setup Wizard.

To set up your Internet connection, follow the instructions from your Internet Service Provider (ISP)."

do i enter that big long line of letters and numbers (network key) into the laptop somewhere?...if so where?

ill keep trying and check back later

cheers

[FatalSaviour]

Windows XP can sometimes be a bit authoritative with the way it tries to administrate Wireless Networks.
All administration should be done from the router side, with any settings that you need being entered into both PCs.

"i have managed to set it up so that i can use the internet connection from the main pc"
Have you plugged the internet connection directly into the router, or into the PC first?

Is there any reason why you're not using a wired connection from the PC to the router...this would be easier, faster, and more secure?

Have you actually got into the setup pages of the router itself, or just set up the network using Windows XP? PM me if you need help soonish....and I'll try to get back to u asap.