HOWTO: Use Linksys WRT54G as a wireless ethernet bridge

[dthalman]

So I used the freeman basic 1.0.4 on a WRT54G router. I got the bridging to work, but it seems to only "see" the signal, and not amplify it at all. I still have a weak signal at the house, but I am connecting to my router for sure. I am getting a 192.168.2.x address. Also, it doesn't redistribute wireless. I have to plug in. Is that normal?

 

[JackMDS]

Welcome to AnandTech's Networking Forum.

What you need is a working WDS ( http://www.ezlan.net/Wireless_Modes.html ).

Using a Laptop loaded with ith Netstumbler, do a Wireless survey in the house, http://www.netstumbler.com/downloads/

According to the Netstumbler's signal strength reading, identify spots that have strong signal. and spot with weak, or No signal.

Evaluate how you can cover the space and start placing WDS units.

Additional Wireless Routers in WDS Mode (Wireless Network - Configuration Modes. ) has to be placed in spots were the signal is good about Half way to the dead spots.

How many WDS units are needed? It depends on your specific environment (that is a good the reason to buying WDS units one at the time, try it, and decide on the Next step).

Otherwise.

Extending Distance - http://www.ezlan.net/Distance.html
Wireless Router as an AP - http://www.ezlan.net/router_AP.html
Wireless Modes - http://www.ezlan.net/Wireless_Modes.html
Wireless Bridging - http://www.ezlan.net/bridging.html
Hi Gain Antenna - http://www.ezlan.net/antennae.html

 

[t3h l337 n3wb]

Alright, I have a slight problem. I followed all the instructions and everything seemed to be working fine yesterday. My main router is a WRT54G running default firmware (192.168.1.1). It's getting a connection via cable and is sending the connection via DHCP to my other WRT54G (Alchemy, 192.168.1.129). I wanted to turn DHCP off, but I didn't know how else to send my internet connection to the Alchemy WRT54G. I entered a static IP of 192.168.1.130 on my desktop that is wired to the Alchemy WRT54G, used OpenDNS, and my internet connection is currently working just fine. I entered that Telnet command, and I could ping my desktop with my laptop (192.168.1.105, static) that was connected to my first router's wireless network just fine. I also forwarded my Azureus port to 192.168.1.129 and 192.168.1.130, and turned UPnP on on both routers, allowing me to us Azureus with no problem. However, after getting home today, I discovered that Azureus was giving me a "Firewalled NAT" error, and I can't ping my desktop anymore. What do I do?

 

[narzy]

02/07/2005 11:00 AM :Q

 

[slipping]

I went through the first post following the guidelines. What I did wrong was download TailsmanBasic v131g instead of the Alchemy firmware. So I flashed my Linksys wrt546 v2 with the TailsmanBasic firmware and now when I do anything to change the settings - from reseting the firmware to changing the ips to security- it comes up with "the values you entered are invalid" and then has a continue button which when pushed takes me back. any thoughts on how to get around this? have i lost my router? thanks for your time!

 

[anonkneemass]

10. To enable PCs attached to the main router to be able connect to PCs attached to the wrt54g: Login into the wrt54g using telnel or ssh by running the command "telnet 192.168.0.129" and use same root/passwd as for the web interface. Then type this command (copy it exactly):

# echo 1 > /proc/sys/net/ipv4/conf/`route | grep default | awk '{print $NF}'`/proxy_arp

Now you should be able to ping/telnet to any PC attached to the wrt54g from any PC attached to the main router. Btw, this assumes that the subnet mask of the main router is the default 255.255.255.0.

I have several days but I still can NOT ping computer behind my client router from computers behind my main router. I followed the instructions on step 10 of the first post. I copied and pasted the command into the terminal onto the client router via the terminal, but it did not work.

I had to use "Client Bridge" mode in order to ping my client router from a computer behind my main router. Otherwise, I followed the instructions per the first post. If I put it in "Client" mode, I can't ping the client router from a computer behind my main router any more.

Also, a note of interest. When I ping a computer behind client router with a computer behind main router. It doesn't "return" any messages. It is like the packets are lost or something.
Here is an example:
150 = computer behind client router
121 = computer behind main router
$ ping 192.168.1.150
PING 192.168.1.150 (192.168.1.150) 56(84) bytes of data.
But if i disconnect the ethernet cable between the client router and the computer, I get messages:
$ ping 192.168.1.150
PING 192.168.1.150 (192.168.1.150) 56(84) bytes of data.
From 192.168.1.121 icmp_seq=144 Destination Host Unreachable
From 192.168.1.121 icmp_seq=145 Destination Host Unreachable
...

I don't know if this fact is relevant or not. It looks like that the icmp_seq 1 through 143 were sent and recieved. Just that nothing came back. But when I disconnected the cable, that disconnected it from the network. Therefore it was unreachable. I think if I can get the computer behind the client router to respond, I can ping it. Update: I installed wireshark on the computer behind client router and according to the logs, 150 (computer behind client) sees 121's (computer behind main router) ping requests.

Other notes:
STP (spanning tree protocol) has been disabled on the setup page.
"Assign WAN Port to switch" has been checked on setup page.
SPI Firewall has also been disabled on the security page.

I would appreciate any help. Thanks in advance.

 

[caterpirla]

Hi, first of all cheers to user1234 starting this thread and writing down the tutorial.

I'm trying to use the main wifi router, connected to internet, a Prestige 650H-E1, with the second, an USR9111, wired to a desktop PC. I have to say that I cannot configure the Prestige, because I'm not its owner. It has an unprotected SSID so I could use it as is.

Though I tried to follow the procedure explained in the first post, I couldn't bridge this two AP/routers. I configured the USR9111 with the parameters suggested by user1234, but I can't understand if must use/configure a NAT on USR9111 or not.

Could you please suggest me the procedure to setup the USR9111? Here is the user guide... http://www.usr.com/support/9111/9111-ug/index.html

I would appreciate any help.

 

[stuman74]

I just replaced my trusty WRT54G v2 with a DIR-655 to serve as my main router in the house. Finding this great thread, I thought I'd try playing with turning the WRT54G into a wireless bridge and it seems to work great! Here's what I did.

Main Router:
Cable Modem->DIR-655->[ethernet] Vonage PAP2, TiVo, Slingbox
->[wireless] wife's laptop, kids PC, another Tivo
Bridge:
WRT54G->[ethernet] my main pc

DIR-655 settings:
I added the MAC address of the WRT54G to my MAC filter list (I use this for added security to only allow wireless access to specific MAC addresses). No other changes made to my DIR-655 settings.

WRT54G settings:
- using Tomato 1.19 firmware
- added the MAC address of the DIR-655 to my MAC filter list.
- changed the wireless setting from access point to bridge
- set the IP of the WRT54G to be within the range of addresses given out by the DIR-655
- set the gateway to the IP of the DIR-655
- set the SSID to the same as the DIR-655
- re-booted and my main PC was then connected to the internet!

Signal strength seems to be pretty good. I also have a draft-N wireless adapter hooked up to this main PC (which I toggled enabling and disabling with the ethernet to bridge connection for comparison purposes). My real-world speed tests through the internet seem to be the same. Streaming from my slingbox to this PC seems to be the same (though the draft-N adapter leads to slingplayer reporting a better bitrate).

So as I understand it, this bridge is basically now an extra wireless adapter that can connect via ethernet to up to 4 wired PCs or devices, correct? Is it any better or worse than a standard wireless adapter? Also, if I add the MAC address of my wife's laptop to the WRT54G (so it is then listed in both routers) and she is physically closer to the WRT54G, will the laptop then automatically switch from the DIR-655 to the WRT54G and if so will there be any performance impact?

Thanks!

 

[Madwand1]

Originally posted by: stuman74
So as I understand it, this bridge is basically now an extra wireless adapter that can connect via ethernet to up to 4 wired PCs or devices, correct? Is it any better or worse than a standard wireless adapter? Also, if I add the MAC address of my wife's laptop to the WRT54G (so it is then listed in both routers) and she is physically closer to the WRT54G, will the laptop then automatically switch from the DIR-655 to the WRT54G and if so will there be any performance impact?

Yes, client bridge mode lets you use the router as an adapter for multiple clients simultaneously. You can also go beyond four by adding another switch, but of course all the clients would be sharing the same limited wireless bandwidth (as always), so there would be a performance impact if many clients were transferring significant amounts of data across the bridge simultaneously.

Client bridge mode very rarely includes repeater support, so Tomato will not host additional wireless clients from the bridge. That is, wireless clients would only connect to the main router. DD-WRT v24 has wireless repeating in addition to client bridge mode, which is cool, but as all repeating modes have a performance impact, it's better to avoid such things unless you really need it.

In addition, MAC address filtering is unreliable from a security standpoint. You should be using WPA at minimum, WPA2 if possible, with a long randomized key. This should not have a significant performance impact.

 

[stuman74]

Originally posted by: Madwand1


In addition, MAC address filtering is unreliable from a security standpoint. You should be using WPA at minimum, WPA2 if possible, with a long randomized key. This should not have a significant performance impact.

Interesting. Why is it not reliable? Wouldn't it lock out any device that is not on that list? I also don't broadcast my SSID so I had figured that those two "barriers" would be sufficient. I will also look into the WPA and WPA2 (I'm not too familiar with either).

 

[Madwand1]

Originally posted by: stuman74
Interesting. Why is it not reliable? Wouldn't it lock out any device that is not on that list? I also don't broadcast my SSID so I had figured that those two "barriers" would be sufficient. I will also look into the WPA and WPA2 (I'm not too familiar with either).

Search around -- there's lots of information on both, and this is not really the right thread for going into it again. Briefly, MAC addresses are really easy to spoof, and as they're transmitted over the air, also easy to pick up. Similarly for SSID hiding. So many people can crack these, and they shouldn't be considered sufficient security. This is also true for WEP encryption. WPA/WPA2 are the more modern replacements, and they stand up provided that you use a long randomized key. This goes well beyond just theory. I've personally seen an intruder online at a location I set up using SSID hiding and WEP-128 encryption; since then I don't use anything less than WPA with a long randomized key.

 

[JackMDS]

From the weakest to the strongest, Wireless security capacity is.

No Security
MAC______(Band Aid if nothing else is available).
WEP64____(Easy, to "Break" by knowledgeable people).
WEP128___(A little Harder, but "Hackable" too).
WPA-PSK__(Very Hard to Break).
WPA-AES__(Not functionally Breakable)
WPA2____ (Not functionally Breakable).

Note 1: WPA-AES the the current entry level rendition of WPA2.

Note 2: If you use WinXP and did not updated it you would have to download the WPA2 patch from Microsoft. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/893357

The documentation of your Wireless devices (Wireless Router, and Wireless Computer's Card) should state the type of security that is available with your Wireless hardware.

All devices MUST be set to the same security level using the same pass phrase.

Therefore the security must be set according what ever is the best possible of one of the Wireless devices.

I.e. even if most of your system might be capable to be configured to the max. with WPA2, but one device is only capable to be configured to max . of WEP, to whole system must be configured to WEP.

If you need more good security and one device (like a Wireless card that can do WEP only) is holding better security for the whole Network, replace the device with a better one.

Setting Wireless Security - http://www.ezlan.net/Wireless_Security.html

The Core differences between WEP, WPA, and WPA2 - http://www.ezlan.net/wpa_wep.html

 

[stuman74]

Ok, I have my router set to allow WPA/WPA2 (depending on the adapter).

One weird thing I am noticing. My draft-N adapter is only connecting at G speed at the moment since I added the security. Does N not work with this or is it just a coincidence at the moment? Usually it says it's connected at 117-130 mbit in N mode (I know I know, it's all just "draft-N" and not N).

 

[stuman74]

Allright, the N mode is back working again after a reboot of the PC. I've also got the other wireless PCs, laptop, and a wireless connected TiVo connected using WPA2.

NOW, the only thing I can't connect...the WRT54G bridge! I can't even get the ethernet connected PC to see it after I set it back up as a bridge. I have the security enabled to match the settings of the DIR-655. Even after holding the reset button on the back for 15 seconds and setting it back up, no luck. I'll keep investigating. Any tips?

 

[Madwand1]

Originally posted by: stuman74
NOW, the only thing I can't connect...the WRT54G bridge! I can't even get the ethernet connected PC to see it after I set it back up as a bridge. I have the security enabled to match the settings of the DIR-655. Even after holding the reset button on the back for 15 seconds and setting it back up, no luck. I'll keep investigating. Any tips?

1. Reset -> revert to defaults, out of bridge mode; DHCP enabled.
2. Connect to router, supply wireless parameter including security. Suggest WPA or WPA2, not combo WPA2/WPA. Suggestion: Temporarily disable wireless on main router, and confirm client adapter can connect to WRT.
3. Re-enable wireless on main router.
4. Enable bridge mode -> lose DHCP on WRT.

If WRT connects successfully, then wired clients will get DHCP off main router & you're done.

You should give it a minute or so to establish connection, and perhaps re-boot the client.

If you still can't connect, you need to manually set the IP on a client in order to re-connect to the bridge and try different settings.

 

[stuman74]

Just to follow up on the MAC filter...is it even worth doing if I have WPA2 security set on all of my clients?

 

[Madwand1]

Not really -- it wouldn't keep out a minimally competent hacker, but it could be a minor pain for yourself from time to time as you add new devices or change adapters, etc., and need to alter the filter list.

 

[stuman74]

Thanks. As I am getting all of my PCs connected using the WPA2 security, I'm having trouble with one PC. It has WinXP Home on it, SP2, and the update from Jack's post on 5/24. I can't get WPA2 to work with a Linksys WUSB54G or a Netgear WG111. Perhaps these two adapters are not compatible?

 

[pnmerk]

Hi guys i have the same problem than demenion"Wireless bridge seems to be working (internet being shared)
but I can't seem to connect my xbox 360 to my PC to share media."


i have my xbox 360 connected to a linksys wrt54g running tomato 1.9 as a wireless bridge it can connect to the internet just fine, but for some reason it wont connect to my Windows Home server where i have all my music and videos. after a while it just times out. if some one has the solution or any ideas on how to acomplish this i would greatly appreceate it

 

[oog]

I hope someone can help me out here. My basic problem is that while I think I have my WDS set up mostly correctly, I cannot access the outside world from my laptop. I can only get as far as the main router (WRT54GS).

Here is my set up:

<---> means a wireless connection
<==> means a wired connection

(cable modem)<==>(Linksys WRT54GS)<--->(Apple Airport Express)<==>laptop

The WRT54GS is running DD-WRT v24 (05/24/08) mega - build 9526. I configured the WRT54GS to add the Airport Express' AirPort ID as a LAN option on the Wireless | WDS tab, and set Lazy WDS and WDS subnet to disable. I turned off Loopback on the Administration | Management Tab, and I turned off "Block Anonymous WAN Requests" on the Security | Firewall tab. This was based on instructions I found here: http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/ind...#Apple_Airport_Express

I then set up the AirPort by checking the "Enable this base station as a WDS remote base station" and entered the WRT54GS' MAC address as the Main Airport ID. I turned off DHCP on the Internet tab. I configured a static ip address on the Airport of 192.168.1.56, subnet mask of 255.255.255.0 and router address of 192.168.1.1 (which is the LAN IP of the WRT54GS).

The laptop received a DHCP address of 192.168.1.149 from the WRT54GS. I can resolve names to IP addresses, and I can access the configuration page of the WRT54GS by going to 192.168.1.1 with my browser. I cannot connect through to sites like www.google.com though.

Any suggestions for additional information I can provide to help solve this problem? Any ideas what else I need to check?

Thanks!

 

[nakedgolf99]

user1234 - I have a wrt54gp2 that I had for Vonage that I no longer use. I would like to use it as a bridge to my TV for DVR/slingbox, etc... I have an Apple Airport Extreme Base station for my wireless AP and a standard "wired" linksys router you get from Vonage. I tried your method, but the firmware install keeps asking for my userid and passwd during the upgrade. It never finishes. Do you have suggestions?

Thanks!!!

 

[JackMDS]

Log to the DD-WRT site and find there is your devices are supported and if there is a specific instructions to flash them.

http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page

 

[varaganti]

User1234

I will explain my present setup first.

I have a Linksys WRT54G router, following are connected to it:
1. Desktop Computer- Wired Connection
2. VOIP- Wired Connection
3. Linksys NAS- Wired Connection
4. WII- Wireless Connection
5. Laptop 1- Wireless Connection
6. Laptop 2- Wireless Connection (N)
7. Laptop 3- Wireless Connection (N)
8. Desktop Computer 2- Wireless Connection
9. iphone- Wireless Connection
10. Windows Media Center Extender- Wireless Connection (N)

I Ordered a Netgear WNR834B-100NAR as the connection is slow from my Media Center Laptop (Laptop 2) to Windows Media Center Extender; WRT54G is 50 feet from the Extender and laptop.

My Question is how I should connect the Routers:

Option 1: Keep the WRT54G as it is and Install the WNR834B near Extender and Laptop and connect them wirelessly as you explained in the TOPIC ?HOWTO: Use Linksys WRT54G as a wireless Ethernet?. (Wireless N Router on Wireless G Router)

Option 2: Install the WNR834B in the place of WRT54G and connect all the above which was connected to WRT 54G before and install the WRT54G near the Extender and Laptop. (Wireless Router G on Wireless N Router)

Please suggest me what to do. Let me know if you need more info.

 

[Goddard]

I have a interesting setup I wanted to go over and see if you could help me out.

I am currently connected to Comcast via a D-Link 704 and it connects me to the internet then I also have my WRT54G router connected to the hub picking up wifi acces. I need more configuration options then provided. Since I have two internet connects coming in through one Ethernet port how do I fix conflicts that may arise.

DI-704 connects my two computers through the comcast modem
WRT54G connects to my DI-704 and acts as the wireless bridge

I would rather set everything up statically then configure it with DHCP and I also plan on setting up a gateway later on for fun. What do you think?

 

[varaganti]

Goddard how do you connected DI-704 and WRT54G Wired or Wireless, If Wireless can you please explain me how did you do it.