Large house - Sky Broadband - low signal upstairs

Channel Hopper

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It's a three storey property as well.

My client has the SKy broadband router on the ground floor but even when I move it to the ceiling it won't run a laptop anywhere on the top floor.

I know there is little chance of getting a single box to work well in all locations, so has anybody experience of joining two routers (bridging) when it comes to the Sk y system ? I can run any cable from ground to third via the riser on one size so Cat5e or telephone really isnt a problem.

I have a number of spare routers doing nothing here and since the main one at the telephone socket will be Sk y's own, I am hoping there will be no conflict with passwords / access .

Thanks in advance
 

rolfw

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I'd use something like this _http://www.transparent-uk.com/tp-link-300mbps-wireless-n-access-point.html
 

aceb

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AFAIK neither the Netgear or Sagem Sky routers will support bridging in their branded software, it's also specifically against their TOS to use anything other than the supplied router although many people do it but their have been reports of accounts being terminated if they discover it. The Skyuser forums may yield more answers. I ended up removing the lid of my Netgear and fitted a BNC socket so I can use a beam pointing up the garden, fortunately BT in their wisdom fitted the master socket in the loft.
 

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Sk y installed the satellite system (though they did screw up on two sets of cables out of the three boxes, hence the customer calling me to put right), and the router was supplied after they had been so somebody at Sk y would have known where the master socket was and just how large the property is.

Why would it be against the TOS ? It's not as though the client is trying anything apart from getting the paid for broadband to function throughout the house.
 

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Channel Hopper said:
Why would it be against the TOS ? It's not as though the client is trying anything apart from getting the paid for broadband to function throughout the house.
It's just a manifestation of their total control paranoia. And I've also seen stories of people using their own gear, or even $ly's gear after it's been flashed to remove their constraints, being disconnected. They just won't allow it.
 

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Plus it means they can, and do remotely update the firmware from time to time, I think the most recent one changed the connection type. With only about four versions of two models of router it also makes their tech support much easier.
 

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I can understand that, but since the official router would be the one accepting signals from the BT socket, there's no chance of a bridged unit screwing up any firmware update.

Does the Sk y broadband routers not allow WEP encryption maybe, as (for wireless bridging anyway) WPA is not available.

The Yahoo answer for bridging wired stuff is as such, which sounds easy enough


Here is what I would do

You only want one active router. So let's make the router near the cable box the active router.
Connect to that router using a cable and a computer. Access the router setup pages. (see your manual) The address should be 192,168.1.1 and the user name and password admin/admin

Once in the router, get the following information and write it down

Router LAN Address - in this example 192.168.1.1
Router DHCP Pool - In this example 192.168.100-150

Exit the router

Now on the second router connect your computer to the router. Do not connect the router to the main router
Access the setup pages as before
In the WAN setup - select a fixed IP address for the router. Use an address outside the DHCP pool. Here we will use 192.168.1.50
In LAN setup - Turn DHCP off
In the wireless setup - select a different SSID name from the main router
Select a different WPA password
Write them down
Save your settings
restart the router and connect it to the main router. Plug the cable between the two routers into the WAN Port
You should now be able to use the second router as a wireless access point, and/or switch with the network being controlled by the primary router

Have Fun


_http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080817121536AATrWjf
 

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Try a Cable (virginmedia) router

Take a lead from one of the lan sockets on the sky router and plug it into the wan (yellow) socket on the virgin router

You may have to fiddle with DHCP settings or turn it off all together on the virgin router and assign static IP addresses for the top floor but I can`t remember if I had that problem last time I ran 2 routers
 

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Our wifi router (D-Link DIR-615, originally supplied by VirginMedia, old now but still great) is currently hooked up to the ADSL modem-router in a similar manner described in that Yahoo answer above, though not to add a 2nd wifi network, but to outshine the cheap & nasty "Technicolor" thing we got supplied with for the ADSL that barely reaches the living room, which is pretty much directly below it, so the wifi router is set to act as the wifi bridge, I could enable the wifi on the technicrapper too for a 2nd network, but, for the same network but at a slower speed, it's not worth it... :)

I assume sky are still supplying Netgear hardware? If so, replace it with D-link, I wouldn't bother with a Netgear unless you were using it's 10/100 ports directly between it and the computer, otherwise it's a useless pile of plastic... :confused
 

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Since you said that running a Cat5e cable is not a problem, then Rolf's suggestion (an "N" access point) is -in my humble opinion- the best option around. It's also totally hassle-free, and straightforward. Whether you set it up as a signal repeater or as an access point, it's all very easy and it works great (that's what I did in my house, being faced with exactly the same issue). Bridging is unnecessary, really.
 

Channel Hopper

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I'm pleased you - and Rolf- said that. I have one of these in the shed.

_http://www.netgear.co.uk/business/products/access-points-wireless-controllers/access-points/WG302.aspx#

Not sure I want to fry the family (or local wildlife) though

Does the access point stuff simply connnect to the existing router with risk of Sk y - pulling the plug, literally, of no concern ?
 

AlphaOm

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Yes, using an access point is very straightforward. You'll connect the device to the original Sky Router via a Cat5e cable and, set up as an access point, the device will create a secondary wifi network in the house. This secondary wifi network should preferably be named differently from the first one - for example "Family Network 1" and "Family Network 2". Network 1 would be the network of choice downstairs and 2 would be the network of choice upstairs. All that needs doing is to set up the new network on all the mobile wifi devices in the house (laptops, phones...etc...). If there are any wifi dead zones in the house, the devices will switch automatically to the other network when they lose one of the signals. If there are no dead zones (only areas of very weak signal), the users will have to switch manually (which literally takes one click). But very likely, if you position the new access point strategically upstairs, its signal will probably flood the whole house, making the original wifi signal from the Sky router redundant. That's what happened in my house, which is larger than the average house. The Sky router only offers a very sub-standard signal, strength-wise.

Using the device as a repeater is a possibility as well - in this case you won't need to use any wired connection between the Sky router and the device. The device will pick up the (weak) signal and will repeat it, full strength. In this case, there is only one wifi signal in the house, so there is no need to set up anything on the laptops and other devices. The drawback of this method is that you lose half the wifi bandwith from the repeater (it gets a bit technical here, but just trust me on this). Also, if the signal coming from the Sky router is inconsistent and unstable where the repeater is set up, then you'll end up with a very unsatisfactory solution overall.

That's why I would suggest going down the access point route. It will not affect the Sky Conditions of Use or anything, since you will still be using their router to connect to their network. The access point will behave like a normal peripheral hooked up to the router, no different from a computer or anything else. Sky have absolutely no way to know that it is being used, and even if they did, it wouldn't bother them at all - it is just an access point, not a modem!

Besides, contrary to general belief, Sky care very little whether you use their router or not. They won't provide ANY support whatsoever if you are not using their modem to connect to their network - but if someone is using their own modem and it is set up properly, they won't pull the plug! What has been happening in the last few years is that Sky has been changing the access protocols to their internet network, slowly moving whole areas from standard PPPoA over to a modified version of MER. Those people in those areas using their own modem lost their connections - not because Sky pulled the plug, but simply because their modem could not handle a MER connection. There are very few compatible third party modems. But with a compatible modem, and provided the user knows their Sky internet access username, it is possible to connect - and Sky won't pull the plug.
Some areas, like mine, currently have the dual connection (both PPPoA and MER), which means that it is still possible to use any third party modem, or the Sky router. But when they remove the PPPoA connection, anyone not using the Sky router or a MER compatible modem will lose their internet.

I am not saying that Sky never disconnected anyone, but there is no reason to get paranoid over that issue. They just don't want Joe-Customer messing around with the internet settings and messing everything up. But for Mr Geek, there is no issue. They just won't help if things go wrong. But then you can always re-connect the Sky router... :)

To get back to your issue, note that -depending which Sky router they have- it might provide an N wifi signal (as well as G). The Netgear device you provided a link to, is G only. It is not a problem as such - it will still work well, but if the family use N devices (mobile phones, XBox, laptops...etc...) those won't get an N signal from the secondary network, only a G signal. It's not a problem, it'll still work, and likely they won't see ANY difference whatsoever, but it's worth noting.

Hope all this helps. Hope I didn't confuse you more than necessary! Have fun!
 

Channel Hopper

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Thanks, and I'm no more confused than I was when first called by the client, then saw what the Sk y monkey had done to their house and existing satellite system.
 
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