Dear Ryan,
Ryan Marsh <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
There is a local here that sells D-Link wireless access points and routers. He's got B and G routers, and two different D-Link access points. One of the access points does load balancing. What that requires, or how best to effectively use an access point is new to me. I thought a wireless router basically did the same thing as an access point. I'm not sure which I should use in my situation.
Access Point (AP) for wireless LAN can be a router or a bridge.
The situation is about 50 (or fewer) guys with laptops, with D-Link WiFi cards or the card that came installed in their laptop, and one Airport Extreme card (mine). We are living in small temporary buildings about 15 meters long, about the size of a small trailer home and built out of most likely the same materials. That means, light metal on the outside, and possibly metal studs on the walls. There is no foliage to speak of where we are at. Just heat and regular dust storms (which I discovered in Kuwait doesn't hurt WiFi signals much). As a matter of fact, in Kuwait we could hear a network that the medics had put up at least 250 meters away, maybe further. The signal passed fine through canvas tent after canvas tent (probably 8 to 10 before it got to us). Maybe the less dense hot air helped. That gives me hope, but the metal in these buildings bugs the crap out of me. The buildings are spaced about two meters apart, with a road about the size of a small two lane separating the buildings into rows of two by five buildings. The buildings that we occupy probably take up an area no more than 200 x 200 meters. We are not evenly distributed though. There is another unit sprinkled in with us. In a map I've made we actually clump up in to two opposite corners of this grid.
Actually for 50 client of AP that we put at outdoor, we need to add with around 5dB external antenna, Omni should be OK.
To put the AP, we have to make a site survey and that's a must.
My suggestion is to use Proxim Orinoco AP2500 (or AP2000, AP4000) instead of DLINK, because Taiwanese product only can handle less than 20 client at one time.
So it has become apparent that I might need to put an access point at the two opposite corners of our neighborhood just to get a signal through these buildings. Has anyone worked with buildings like this?
Most of my experience regarding to put indoor unit at outdoor unit, in 200 x 200 meter its can be cover by only one AP with external antenna, specially if you can put on the right site.
How many of these temporary buildings can I expect the signal to penetrate? Can I have the AP inside and run a line to an antenna outside? If the AP is outside it's going to have to endure dust storms and 140 degree temps. Will elevating the antenna above the buildings help (they are only one story)? I can't give everyone a Yagi antenna and orinco card, that would be impractical and too expensive. I can at least run CAT-5 from the gateway/firewall to two AP/Routers.
For putting AP at oudoor, we have to buy a metal water resistant box, and you can add an extra fan to cool the AP unit.
I do this thing since the year 2000 in Indonesia.
My questions boil down to this: Should I use AP's or routers?
I think the question should be AP bridge or router. For one class IP address, you can use a bridge mode.
How far can I expect the signal to go in said terrain?
In their specification, 802.11 device can go up to 300 meter with 13dB gain, and if we add with 5dB small external Omni antenna, they can go up to 800 - 900 meter.
What kind of antennas should I use? How should I position them?
Omni antenna. You have to make a site survey to put your AP, and test several position for the best result.
Please keep in mind that this is being paid for by all of us with laptops so we can't afford alot. The satellite setup is already going to stretch us thin.
Becarefull with the satellite signal, sometime your wireless device can disturb your satelite signal.
BTW: If anyone can help me find a satellite provider they know or trust, I'd be open to the referral. I only get about an hour on the Internet every other day and it's very far away so trying to get info from these providers in the UK is going sloooow.
Internet connection is depend on how you pay them, because they are selling on a ratio base.
If you are interested in the war and politics, please email me off this list, I'd be happy to talk. I might surprise you.
Hope it will help you.
Michael http://www.sunggiardi.com/michael
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