Wireless bridging - just bridge side needs capability?

[lifereinspired]

Hello,

I have used wireless bridging since 2004, when I had to hack into some Linksys WRT54 routers to share internet between our house and office which were next to each other but in completely separate buildings. Thankfully, the process is easier now and it's less of a fringe use. While I like tech stuff and muddled my way through that, and through the router systems we've had since, I'm no IT expert. So, as I'm looking at improving our current networking setup at home, and a travel solution, there's an answer that Google searches just don't seem to be able to provide.

I've realized that all the wireless bridge or bridge/repeater setups I've done the basic router/firmware/software running it was always "matching" for lack of a better word. In the first situation above I had Sveasoft on all three routers before switching to DD-WRT, then upgrading to two Linksys e3000s with DD-WRT then now to two Netgear R6300v2. (I was going to use DD-WRT or Tomato on that setup but the performance was much better using stock firmware and they had added native wireless bridge capability so I ended up with that.) Now, I'm considering upgrading my primary router but I'd like to be able to keep the existing router that I'm using as my bridge. In addition, as I learn about travel routers and their capabilities, I'm trying to make sure I have the answer to this one basic question: as long as the *bridging* device supports that feature, can it essentially attach itself to any router or network that I choose? As I think it through, it seems the only logical solution would be that the capability entirely lies with the bridge device and not the primary router - freeing me worrying about getting a router that's the same brand/software, etc. In reading that travel routers can attach to any wireless network then rebroadcast my own personal network for my devices, I can only conclude that (at least where we've progressed to now) the bridge connects to a wireless network and to the hosting router that it's connecting to...it simply looks like any other device. The fact that it gives me either wired ports or a personal wireless network would be irrelevant as far as the network it connects to is concerned. Is this correct? I can't see how the host router would have to support the bridge feature specifically or how could travel routers connect to public wifi, since the router itself or the person connecting it couldn't possibly have access to the advanced router settings of the host network.

If anyone could confirm that this is correct, I'd really appreciate it. If I have this completely wrong, I'd love to know that too - and also what needs to happen to make it possible for the bridge and travel router to connect to the host WiFi if the above assertions are incorrect. Thanks so much!

 

[sdifox]

Depends really. Usually you have to set a static channel on the parent router.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Read up on bridging and ad hoc networks. There are a lot of limitations and latency issues...none of them are good solutions if you can properly extend a network with wires (more permanent solution). The bridging devices usually just repeat the signal and they can be brand specific, but most of the tech is built on IEEE standards so they shouldn't be that picky. What you can hit though if you're dealing with higher capacity networks is DHCP load and firewall issues. DHCP on these weak routers is usually limited to a set number of clients....the firewall issues come when you get a few layers of NAT between you and the internet, some sites don't tend to work quite as well, or occasionally not at all.

I recently saw this product on slickdeals for under $30, which is what you're talking about in travel routers:
http://www.amazon.com/HooToo-Wireless-6000mAh-External-Battery/dp/B00DTPYRTI

Limitations of most devices are that they typically only have one radio, so when they're setup as a bridge.... Where these devices really shine is when you connect to the wired networks at hotels instead of the wifi and let them clone your system's MAC address to bypass the login. Hotel wifi bandwidth is usually maxed out due to the large number of clients. They say it pays to carry a cable if you don't have one of these in some of the cheaper hotels with all the people streaming video these days.

 

[matricks]

"Wireless bridging" is an abstract concept, and there are multiple ways to implement it. Some implementations require client-side capability only, others (e.g. WDS) require support on both sides.

See Client mode wireless on the OpenWrt wiki. The configuration instructions are specific to OpenWrt, but the various approaches and their limitations are relevant in general on any wireless device.

In the above article, the routed client using masquerading is supported on pretty much any client device, and does not require support on the other end. Its limitation that makes hosts on the client side unreachable by hosts on the master side is probably not an issue when the master side is a hotel guest network.

I believe DD-WRT uses the Broadcom wl driver implementation on devices with Broadcom radios.

 

[Ichinisan]

I've dealt with a few bridge devices before that worked as WiFi client devices.

One was a "Belkin Wireless G Gaming Adapter" (like this) -- which was shaped exactly like their tiny $30 routers at the time. Colored cream white. It was meant to be a cheaper alternative to the official Microsoft XBOX 360 wireless adapter, which was always severely overpriced. The Belkin kit included an AC power supply, but could also power itself from 2 USB ports. To use it with an XBOX 360 would occupy 1 USB connection on the back of the XBOX and another at the front -- not very elegant. I only used it with a PC and it was really useful to have a wireless bridge for PC that didn't require a power supply. To configure it, I would have to assign a manual IP address to my computer temporarily, then log-in to the configuration web page for the adapter. In the configuration web page, I could list nearby networks, select one, and enter the password. Once that was done, I'd have to un-do the manual static IP on my computer and allow it to pull an automatic address from my home network via DHCP. So, initial setup can be a hassle, but it works perfectly after that. It doesn't claim to support WPS, but it has a "connect" button that connects to an open network automatically.

The other bridge device I've used is a TiVo wireless-N adapter. That has its own power cord. You can pair by using a computer and a wired connection to the adapter, or use WPS push-button connection. It also supports N and 5GHz.

I've also dabbled with custom firmware routers (DD-WRT, Tomato). Yeah, it required "matching" (as you say) and the whole process just felt wrong.