Wifi range extender coupled to a router help please

Tempus said:
1 - The Pico/Bullet needs to be set as DHCP, so this hands out IP addresses etc. If you don't do this you won't be able to get onto these devices later to select your network
Click to expand...

Small point but...with this set-up isn't the problem that you have to have your Bullet powered up to use your internal network? I recognise that some "home routers" may be restricted in how you can set them up (e.g. their dhcp servers not allowing you to specify another router) but with increasing use of IP networks for nav data, you might well want your internal network powered up when not needing to waste power on (potentially non-existent) external connectivity.

In other news: I'm considering a bullet: how have others mast mounted these? None in shops for me to look at and I'd like to consider how I'm going to attach it before ordering it.
Obviously I intend engraving my name on it before putting it at least 15m away from me...
 
laika said:
Small point but...with this set-up isn't the problem that you have to have your Bullet powered up to use your internal network? I recognise that some "home routers" may be restricted in how you can set them up (e.g. their dhcp servers not allowing you to specify another router) but with increasing use of IP networks for nav data, you might well want your internal network powered up when not needing to waste power on (potentially non-existent) external connectivity.

In other news: I'm considering a bullet: how have others mast mounted these? None in shops for me to look at and I'd like to consider how I'm going to attach it before ordering it.
Obviously I intend engraving my name on it before putting it at least 15m away from me...
Click to expand...

That's why I prefer to use my Picostation in transparent bridge mode so it can be switched off leaving the router on. I use Navmonpc as a NMEA TCP server on the Acer nav notebook so can pickup the data on all laptops wirelessly (again, using Navmon as the client) and use Belfields Chart Plotter on 2 laptops (1 Dell XFS outdoor viewable 'rugged' laptop in the cockpit and a Samsung NP350 down below).
 
laika said:
Small point but...with this set-up isn't the problem that you have to have your Bullet powered up to use your internal network? I recognise that some "home routers" may be restricted in how you can set them up (e.g. their dhcp servers not allowing you to specify another router) but with increasing use of IP networks for nav data, you might well want your internal network powered up when not needing to waste power on (potentially non-existent) external connectivity.

In other news: I'm considering a bullet: how have others mast mounted these? None in shops for me to look at and I'd like to consider how I'm going to attach it before ordering it.
Obviously I intend engraving my name on it before putting it at least 15m away from me...
Click to expand...

That's why I prefer to use my Picostation in transparent bridge mode so it can be switched off leaving the router on. I use Navmonpc as a NMEA TCP server on the Acer nav notebook so can pickup the data on all laptops wirelessly (again, using Navmon as the client) and use Belfields Chart Plotter on 2 laptops (1 Dell XFS outdoor viewable 'rugged' laptop in the cockpit and a Samsung NP350 down below).
 
ianj99 said:
That's why I prefer to use my Picostation in transparent bridge mode so it can be switched off leaving the router on.
Click to expand...

I'm trying to understand your set-up from your post #20. Would I be correct in thinking you need to physically unplug the picostation from the router and connect it to the laptop to reconfigure it for a new network before reconnecting it to the router?

What happens if the remote AP is handing out dhcp addresses in heh 192.168.1.0/24 range? Does that cause a few security or possibly operational worries re: the picostation in bridge mode with the fixed IP address it has?
 
laika said:
I'm trying to understand your set-up from your post #20. Would I be correct in thinking you need to physically unplug the picostation from the router and connect it to the laptop to reconfigure it for a new network before reconnecting it to the router?

What happens if the remote AP is handing out dhcp addresses in heh 192.168.1.0/24 range? Does that cause a few security or possibly operational worries re: the picostation in bridge mode with the fixed IP address it has?
Click to expand...

Yes the disadvantage is that you do need to remove the cable from the router's wan input and connect to the laptop so could be a pain if you marina hop.

Security may well be an issue but many marinas have unsecured wifi anyway so its something to consider when you choose how to set it up.

You can change the Picostation's ethernet IP to whatever you want to avoid a conflict.
 
I would have thought routed mode would have been easier: Leave your picostation with a fixed IP address so that it can be configured from any tablet, phone or laptop on your network. If you want to reduce triple nat (assuming the bar's AP is already doing single NAT) to double nat, turn off NAT on the internal router and simply add a static route (which the AirOS manual says are supported) on the picostation to your "internal" network via the wan interface on the router. Would probably opt for one of the more obscure RFC1918 addresses to minimise routing conflicts in either this or your bridged scenario
 
With the Alfa R36 and Tube(n) solution, you can access the different wireless hotspots by logging into the R36 using a web browser and scanning for new hotspots and then selecting them The only time you need to 'hard wire' via an ethernet cable is the initial configuration of the R36 router. The router takes care of managing the Alfa Tube (or asw36 devices) and also supports quite a good list of 3G USB devices as shown here http://www.alfa.com.tw/products_show.php?pc=35&ps=140


Agree with an earlier post that the Alfa units are perhaps not as robustly built as other solutions, but then again, I have a complete wifi system with concurrent users for less than £100.
 
laika said:
I would have thought routed mode would have been easier: Leave your picostation with a fixed IP address so that it can be configured from any tablet, phone or laptop on your network. If you want to reduce triple nat (assuming the bar's AP is already doing single NAT) to double nat, turn off NAT on the internal router and simply add a static route (which the AirOS manual says are supported) on the picostation to your "internal" network via the wan interface on the router. Would probably opt for one of the more obscure RFC1918 addresses to minimise routing conflicts in either this or your bridged scenario
Click to expand...

I did use AP router mode when I had a pico at the other end plugged into the home dsl router and yes, I did use a static IP and plugged the boat Pico into the router's wan interface.
Ian
 
Each to their own but aside from the exceeding max USB spec thing, one thing I like about an ethernet-connected solution (e.g. picostation/bullet) is that I'm happy chopping off an RJ45 connector and re-crimping it. Less so with a USB connector. Yes I know I can just drill a bigger hole and put a slit through the side of the deck gland rubber but somehow I feel less comfortable with that than drilling a hole just big enough for the cable. I'm avoiding the issue with my current dodgy set-up of manually deploying the USB thingy and feeding the cable through a hatch (which is mostly closed when it's raining) but it's all a bit of a faff.
 
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