The user who has Internet connection in single-family house, usually would like to have possibility of using the Internet in various parts of his home or even in the whole domestic premises, i.e. garage and garden. To reach that goal, the perfect solution is a wireless network (WLAN) in 802.11b/g standard.

In the case of difficulty with building cable installation in home, the wireless network can also solve the problem with connection of greater number of household computers to the global network. Depending on the way of providing the Internet to the house, as well as its internal distribution, we distinguish different variants of installations.

Variant I - Internet provided by cable television operator via cable modem with Ethernet output, or local service provider (ISP) using Ethernet cable.

In these cases we need a router with WAN input in the form of RJ-45 Ethernet port. It could be e.g. the routers:

These devices allow connecting 4 computers using cable and up to a dozen of computers using wireless connection.

Cable from the provider is connected to WAN port (Internet); we connect computers which should have wire connection to adequate ports of the switch. The rest of computers have to be equipped with wireless cards to make possible for them to be connected with the access point built into the device.

The Internet provided with the use of Ethernet

Variant II - Internet provided using ADSL technology (e.g. Neostrada tp and Net24 Netia in Poland, or most telecommunications operators worldwide).
We should use the devices:

It integrates ADSL modem, router, switch and access point.
Computers are connected analogically as in the above variant, i.e. with Ethernet cable to the switch and wirelessly to the access point.

The Internet provided using ADSL technology

Variant III - Internet provided wirelessly with the use of the set: directional antenna + wireless card in the computer.

At least two devices have to be used. Firstly, we have to connect access point working in client's mode (APClient) to directional antenna (instead of PC wireless card), e.g.

To operate at 5GHz we should use:

Then the Ethernet output need to be connected to a wireless router like:

As the final result we will get the situation similar to the first example.

The Internet provided wirelessly

Variant IV - Internet provided wirelessly. Some Access Points have been fitted with a very useful function named Wireless Routing Client, which enables us to configure wireless port as WAN port that is normally found in router. It means that the wireless connection can be shared with built-in router by available LAN ports. The advantage of such configuration is compactness - one piece of equipment that performs the role of two devices. The solution allows for creating our own configurable subnetwork that can be properly secured from unauthorized access.

Devices with Wireless Routing Client function:

Due to dual-band radio transceiver, Compex WP54AG N2520 can be used as Wireless Routing Client in both frequency bands: 2.4 and 5 GHz.

AP Compex WPE54AG in Wireless Routing Client mode

Internet service providers usually assign only one IP address to a user, and if the user wants to connect greater number of computers, he may either ask the provider for additional addresses (then any router won't be needed, but usually it means additional costs), or use a router with address translation feature - NAT.

As the provider not always has the ability or will of assigning additional addresses, the use of a router is frequently indispensable. Basic configuration of the router consists in WAN address setting - received from the Internet provider, the change of default coding keys, and MAC address setting for WAN port (WAN MAC Clone option), when it is needed, defining local address - the address of gate for the rest of home network computers. It is also required to configure access point: to choose adequate channel, to set SSID, encryption of transmission (the best in WPA standard) and to assign passwords. Each of models offers different additional functions, which can be employed as the user is familiarizing with the device.

The place an access point is situated strongly influences the range of home network within a house and its surroundings. An overall rule of radio network functioning in rooms says that a signal has usually useful level after it passes through 3 walls or 2 ceilings.

So, it may be optimal to place access point in the location where the wireless network is mostly used in home (i.e. drawing room, study or ... bedroom). If it has to be used in the whole house, it is better to place it in the geometrical center of the house. However, if we want also to cover garden with the signal, the device should be placed nearby window. In that situation, there is a possibility that in more distant rooms the signal will be low. Generally, it is impossible to estimate the range and level of the signal in concrete instance, without tests. Tests are the most authoritative way of finding optimal solution and give reliable answers instantly.

If we do whish to cover whole house and garden with the signal, but placing the access point nearby a window doesn't bring appropriate effect, we can try to do some trick with two antennas.

Some part of wireless devices is equipped with two stub antennas; the other has only one antenna. The device equipped with two antennas uses them in specific way to improve quality of transmission. It is so called collective reception (diversity).

It consists in checking by the receiver from which antenna the received signal is stronger, and only that signal passes for further processing. The same antenna is then chosen to send the data. Advantages coming from the use of that mode will be perceptible mainly in rooms, where radio waves are being reflected many times by walls, appliances, and people. When receiver has only one antenna, it may happen that radio wave coming to it will be overlaid on the other wave, which has been reflected and came to the receiver with some delay, traveling longer way. This situation may cause signal's fading and drop in bandwidth. However, when the device has two antennas, in similar situation, when in one antenna signal fades out, there is big chance that the other antenna will receive better signal and the quality of transmission will be retained.

It should be remarked here again that the access point checks every time which antenna receives stronger signal, and this antenna is used, so it is impossible to simultaneously utilize them as two independent antennas. However, the property described above, allows us to improve home network operation. Reverting to the example, when we want to cover whole house and garden with the signal we may place access point in the central point of the hose. We connect original stub antenna to one antenna output which will serve the home needs, and then we connect a panel antenna (e.g. the antenna ATK-P1 - A7130), using special cable, to the second antenna output.

We direct the antenna to the outside of house or install nearby the window towards the garden. With this configuration, we have possibility of using wireless network at home or in the garden or garage. According to what has been written above, it won't be possible to serve two wireless clients simultaneously - one at home and the other in the garden, because the access point will have to choose whether to use stub antenna or panel antenna. This kind of operation would be very unstable. Anyway, a few wireless clients inside the house can work simultaneously, because all of them are served by the same antenna. Similarly, there shouldn't be any problem with serving a group of wireless clients in the garden.

Configuration of wireless cards isn't difficult task. Following the instructions from manual we will install the right drivers. Then it is needed to set up correct IP address, gateway (of our router), infrastructure mode, SSID of access point, coding keys. Choosing cards, we should pay attention to their coding methods, whether they are the same as those of the access point. There are usually available cards with only older WEP, or with both coding modes WEP and better WPA. If both the cards and the access point have WPA coding support this system is highly recommended.

Wireless cards can also work in mode ensuring direct connection between them, without any use of access point. If you use Internet on single desktop computer, and occasionally you would like to have possibility of connection to network using laptop with wireless card, the cheapest solution for you will be installation of wireless card in the computer, configuration of it to ad-hoc mode, assigning adequate SSID, coding keys, right IP address (from other class then IP assigned by internet provider). Then you configure wireless card in laptop in the same way, and you run, on the desktop computer, "internet connection sharing" or any application working as software router. This way you build simple wireless network at little cost. Disadvantage of the solution is only the fact that the desktop PC must be turned on when you need internet connection on your laptop.

Example of application

We also recommend getting familiar with the articles WLAN installer's self-help book describing basic rules related to installation of WLAN networks and WLAN - the indoor installations.