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Home networking issues with multiple users conncected through wired and wireless---Please Help

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  • Wireless
  • Networking
  • Cable
Last response: in Networking
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October 14, 2014 8:13:13 AM

We recently built a new home and were excited to have it hard wired, via Cat5e cables to most rooms. Upon moving in, we chose Comcast for our cable and internet provider. I have purchased the Blast package allowing up to 50mb download and 10mb upload speeds. I also purchased a new Asus RT-AC87 dual band wireless router to make sure I had a future proof network ready to go. After moving in and getting everything set up, I have been experiencing very frustrating issues. I am using a Motorola Surfboard Cable Modem 6121. I have this hooked in to a 8 port hub Netgear gigabit switch model GS608 which is then hooked into the Cat5e cables going to the different rooms in the house. I have my Asus RT-AC87 hooked in to the living room through the Cat5e port at the wall. I have my desktop hard wired into the Cat5E ethernet port in my office. Trying to keep this post short but still provide the necessary information in it my issue is as follows:

In the evening, I am usually playing online computer games. If I am playing and my wife tries to connect to the wifi on my alienware laptop, she experiences very slow if any connectivity at all. We have also noticed if she is simultaneously watching TV it causes me to have severe lag spikes when I am playing. We have several Ipads and laptops in the house that all seem to be able to connect to the wifi during other times of the day without issue.

Yes, the simple solution is to not watch TV when someone is playing computer games, but truly feel my set up should allow for multiple users to be using the wifi, and hard wired network, and watch TV at the same time. I have called Comcast who says they cannot help me with the issue as they show the signal being good. They also will not assist since I am not using their networking equipment.

Asus simply told me to relegate the 2.4G channel to 20 and the 5G channel to 40. This has not helped in the least. My wife has said this needs to get fixed or I will not be able to play my online games in the evening as she would not be able to use her laptop or the TV at the same time. Unacceptable!!! So please help.

More about : home networking issues multiple users conncected wired wireless

a c 146 F Wireless
October 14, 2014 8:29:32 AM

If I understand correctly you have the modem connected to a switch. This switch goes to the living room where the router is and your office where your PC is. Is your PC getting a IP from your router or is it getting it from the ISP. Most ISP only allow a single device to have a IP in your house so either your router or your PC can be active.

The normal layout is ISP----modem----router----switch....pc.

This of course requires you put the router in the cabinet where all the patch cables come in which is not a good wireless location but I will defer that discussion to later.

Unless you posted the wrong part number for your modem and it is actually a router I would suspect your problems are related to the ISP only allowing a single IP address to be active.
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October 14, 2014 9:51:11 AM

Your assessment is correct in the placement for my set up...comcast ISP to Motorola Modem to 8 port switch then off to the various hard wired CAt5E ports around the house. Thus, my PC and wireless router are attached to separate Cat5e ports in the house off of the switch. So it looks as if I will need to move my wireless router to the cabinet as you suggest, which unfortunately sits in the basement, and then try to extend it's wireless range to the 1st and 2nd floors? This will hopefully solve my issue.

With that being said and following up on the bad location for the cabinet, did I buy a router that i will not truly get all the benefit out of since it appears as though I will need to use additional equipment to extend it's range?
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a b F Wireless
October 14, 2014 10:08:30 AM

@bill001g is 100% correct in what the set up should be.

And if you move the router to the basement, that is the absolute worst plce in the house to propagate a WiFi signal from.
But you DO need a router in the chain, right behind the modem.
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a c 146 F Wireless
October 14, 2014 10:42:31 AM

Your best bet is to buy a inexpensive router...unless you need fancy firewall or something and place it in the basement. You can then place your better router in any room but you will want to run it as a AP just to make things simpler.

Now if you happen to have 2 lan cables running from the basement to the same room you can run one cable form the modem to the routers wan port and then hook the lan port to the other wall jack and run it back to the switch. You have in effect put your router between the modem and the switch with a very long lan cable. It will go 100 meters so distance should not actually be a issue.
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