Need help building a home network

Pratyay67 · Apr 11, 2016

I want to build a home network (a hybrid of wired and wi-fi) for my home, which is 3 stories high, each floor approximately having an area of about a 1000 square feet. I want to connect about 4 PCs ( 2 in the 2nd floor, and 1 each in 1st and 0th floors), a television in the 1st floor, a home theater in the 2nd floor, and there are wireless devices scattered throughout the home.
We have CCTV cameras installed in our house, which upload the feed to a hard drive.
And, I am working on to automate my room ( like switching fan, lights and AC in my room on/off through my smartphone over the network).
The ground floor has an office which has a printer, and my 2nd floor computer has a printer too, which I want to connect over the network so that I can print from any printer from any computer or device I want.
I also want constant backup of all my documents, files, videos bla bla blah, and I also want the CCTVs to connect to my home network.

How can this be done? My best bet is to probably use a home-server, but I'm unsure of what type of server to use and how to connect all the components so that they work flawlessly. I'm not really on a budget here, though I don't want to spend on redundancies.

P.S. I already have two Netgear AC750s and one TP-link single antenna router (I have it in storage and forgot the name) respectively for the two top floors and the ground floor.

I'd really appreciate a connection diagram.

Ralston18 · Apr 11, 2016

My sense is that you will need to be more proactive with respect to the design.

There are many home network plans/diagrams on the internet plus a variety of applications that may even help you draw out the design.

Doing an initial design yourself will help you solidify the requirements and overall layout. Plus you need to determine wire runs etc. that no generic high level diagram can truly address. Do not forget the need for power connections.

My suggestion is work up your design and post that for review. Include device information, make & model, and connectivity details.

Then solicit comments accordingly.

ComputerSecurityGuy · Apr 11, 2016

A general starter would be a wired router with multiple access points, but I agree. Come up with a plan and ask for advice on it, you will get better results.

jsmithepa · Apr 11, 2016

Pratyay67 :

You need a designer/contractor.

Pratyay67 · Apr 11, 2016

ComputerSecurityGuy :

Okay I'm posting the design which I have in mind. Please do have a look at it.

Pratyay67 · Apr 12, 2016

Here's the diagram that I have in my mind. I'm not a knowledgeable guy in networking, so pardon any mistakes of mine in the diagram that may seem ludicrous.
I would like to know if my diagram is at all plausible, or do I have to make major/minor changes?

I do intend having a home server, which will provide me NAS, media player and VPN services (i.e. so that I can access the files on my server when I'm away).

Help me out, please.

HERE'S THE IMAGE: http://imgur.com/vJ8eOSn

ComputerSecurityGuy · Apr 12, 2016

That looks pretty solid. You are probably going to have to play around with a bit of virtualization, though. You will need something to act as a gateway and VPN server, I personally like pfsense but there are other options out there. You probably need a FreeNAS VM if you want a NAS included as well and maybe a VM to run a media server. The basic outline looks solid, though.
Edit: I hope you can put those in access point mode, serving seperate networks is a bit trickier.

Pratyay67 · Apr 12, 2016

ComputerSecurityGuy :

I do plan on connecting the 2nd floor router in router mode, and the 1st and ground floor routers in AP mode.

ComputerSecurityGuy · Apr 12, 2016

I'd recommend putting them all in access point mode if possible. It will provide easier management.

Pratyay67 · Apr 12, 2016

ComputerSecurityGuy :

Well can you provide me a complete and whole idea on how to do this? I don't get all the terms you are throwing, as I'm not a knowledgeable guy as I said earlier.
I mean, what software to use, what software to put in the server? And other hardwares.

Please, I would really appreciate it if I get an outline from you techies.

ComputerSecurityGuy · Apr 12, 2016

Well, how to set the router in AP mode, if possible, depends on the router. As all image sharing websites are blocked by the network I'm on, I can't help much with that at the moment. As for the server software, I would recommend perhaps a custom system with VMs and such. I'll just outline the steps for now if you want a media server, NAS and VPN all on one box. Google is your friend, but if you need more detail just ask.
1. Build a home server. Doing it yourself is the best option.
2. Install Debian on the server. There are plenty of guides out there. There are other sorts of Linux but Debian is what I prefer for servers due to being lightweight and very, very stable.
3. Install VMware Workstation.
4. Install pfsense on a VM.
5. Configure the network.
6. Install FreeNAS on another VM.
7. Install a media server on the host.
Congratulations, you now have a home server ready for the configuring.
Anyway, that's my brief summary. Later when I have more time I'll see if I can find explanatory articles, and explain it in more detail.

Ralston18 · Apr 12, 2016

Nice diagram.

In full agreement with ComputerSecurityGuy.

One suggestion that I will offer:

Preplan and add the internal IP addressing scheme to your diagram. I.e., identify what devices will be DHCP and which devices will be static. Then set up the DHCP range, subnetting, static IP assignments, and reserved IPs etc. applicable to each device.

Better to face the IP requirements head-on and establish the settings in detail beforehand. VPN/virtualization etc. can get tricky...

It will be much easier to understand the overall configuration and help resolve any configuration related problems. E.g., some IP duplication, subnet mask typo, not enough DHCP addresses being available.....

Especially with such a mix of products (models and manufacturers). Very likely that some default settings will conflict so as each device is brought on to the network you will know in advance its role and the necessary configuration settings.

You will always be able to see the big picture with respect to your network and that can and will save you a lot of time and effort. Especially with respect to future troubleshooting and expansions.

Pratyay67 · Apr 12, 2016

Thank you!
But that's a lot of things being said at once, enough to sound perplexing to me.
I have done some research and have broken down my queries into types.
Firstly, I'd ask about the addressing ( Static or DHCP).

1) Will the central home server itself have an IP address?

2) Can the routers be configured to assign both static and dynamic IPs to the end users?

3) How will the whole addressing process be done?

I guess the connection will have to go through a number of devices to reach the end user from the server. Like SERVER --> SWITCH --> ROUTER --> AN END USER.
I'd really like to have static IPs for a number of devices I use in my home, like the wire connected end products ( TV, desktops, home theater, DVR) and I want all the wireless devices (laptops, cellphones and guest users) to have DHCP addresses. Is it possible for the routers to provide these mixed addresses? And that being said, how should the routers be assigned an address each? Will the 8-port switch have an address too?

Edit: I have drawn an addressing diagram as you had told me to do.
HERE'S THE ADDRESSING DIAGRAM: http://imgur.com/7mJfNcK

Ralston18 · Apr 12, 2016

1) All devices on your network will have an IP address. And they must also have the correct subnet mask. For most home networks the subnet mask for all devices is 255.255.255.0 As I understand it, you plan to have your home server do the routing.

2) Only one router is permitted to assign IP addresses. And you can allocate both static and dynamic IPs. You set up a range of IP addresses for DHCP use. You then assign specific static IP addresses that are outside of that DHCP range to the appropriate devices. Static IP addresses are reserved for a specific device via that device's MAC. You can limit the number of allowed devices (either way) as well.

3) You do the addressing part. At least you set up the responsible DHCP router with the desired DHCP IP ranges and static IP reservations. The router then handles the assignment of DHCP addresses to requesting devices and notes the online presence of static IP devices as they join the network. Each of the routers beyond the switch will have static IPs and no DHCP function. Multi-options can come into play with respect to the overall network requirements and design. (That is why advance planning is, in my mind, very important. Mistakes on paper are much less expensive.....)

E.g., Access Points in Access point mode per ComputerSecurity Guide - best to check the User Manuals for the detailed set up instructions....

The DHCP router has a default IP. That router is the DHCP Server/Default Gateway for your network

And the more common path would be something like:

ISP (Internet) ------> MODEM -------> ROUTER ------> SWITCH --------> Server, static devices, Access Points,NAS, other routers and other direct connects. (Note: devices, server and NAS for example could be directly connected to the ROUTER between MODEM and SWITCH.

Key is the Home Server's overall role....

And your expressed plan for IP addressing is not at all uncommon. The only problem tends to be that some devices when "upgraded" via the manufacturer will revert from your assigned static IP to a default value or maybe even DHCP again. Some devices (TV's) like to "phone home" and thus get updated via firmware....

Routers are assigned their IP via a direct connection to a computer and using the computer's browser to log into router's administrative screens via the default (factory) set IP address. Commonly factory set (by manufacturer) to 192.168.1.1 or 10.0.0.1. with subnet 255.255.255.0. You also need the default login name and password. Specific information and defaults are in the User Manual/Guide for the router. (The login name and password can be changed during the initial log in and configuration process.)

The 8 port switch should be unmanaged - no IP. However, there may be other viewpoints on that matter.

Making sense of it all can be a bit overwhelming. But if you start with your diagram and the user manuals for your devices you can start fitting things together. It will get easier as you climb the proverbial learning curve.

And, hopefully, there will be other posters looking over our respective shoulders. No problem with that for me - been known to go off track once in awhile.

Pratyay67 · Apr 12, 2016

Ralston18 :

1) All devices on your network will have an IP address. And they must also have the correct subnet mask. For most home networks the subnet mask for all devices is 255.255.255.0 As I understand it, you plan to have your home server do the routing.

2) Only one router is permitted to assign IP addresses. And you can allocate both static and dynamic IPs. You set up a range of IP addresses for DHCP use. You then assign specific static IP addresses that are outside of that DHCP range to the appropriate devices. Static IP addresses are reserved for a specific device via that device's MAC. You can limit the number of allowed devices (either way) as well.

3) You do the addressing part. At least you set up the responsible DHCP router with the desired DHCP IP ranges and static IP reservations. The router then handles the assignment of DHCP addresses to requesting devices and notes the online presence of static IP devices as they join the network. Each of the routers beyond the switch will have static IPs and no DHCP function. Multi-options can come into play with respect to the overall network requirements and design. (That is why advance planning is, in my mind, very important. Mistakes on paper are much less expensive.....)

E.g., Access Points in Access point mode per ComputerSecurity Guide - best to check the User Manuals for the detailed set up instructions....

The DHCP router has a default IP. That router is the DHCP Server/Default Gateway for your network

And the more common path would be something like:

ISP (Internet) ------> MODEM -------> ROUTER ------> SWITCH --------> Server, static devices, Access Points,NAS, other routers and other direct connects. (Note: devices, server and NAS for example could be directly connected to the ROUTER between MODEM and SWITCH.

Key is the Home Server's overall role....

And your expressed plan for IP addressing is not at all uncommon. The only problem tends to be that some devices when "upgraded" via the manufacturer will revert from your assigned static IP to a default value or maybe even DHCP again. Some devices (TV's) like to "phone home" and thus get updated via firmware....

Routers are assigned their IP via a direct connection to a computer and using the computer's browser to log into router's administrative screens via the default (factory) set IP address. Commonly factory set (by manufacturer) to 192.168.1.1 or 10.0.0.1. with subnet 255.255.255.0. You also need the default login name and password. Specific information and defaults are in the User Manual/Guide for the router. (The login name and password can be changed during the initial log in and configuration process.)

The 8 port switch should be unmanaged - no IP. However, there may be other viewpoints on that matter.

Making sense of it all can be a bit overwhelming. But if you start with your diagram and the user manuals for your devices you can start fitting things together. It will get easier as you climb the proverbial learning curve.

And, hopefully, there will be other posters looking over our respective shoulders. No problem with that for me - been known to go off track once in awhile.

If only one router is permitted to assign IP addresses ( say, I use the 2nd floor router for that), then how will the hosts on the 1st and ground floor be assigned an IP?
Can that be done by subnetting?
And I gotta have wireless access on all three floors, that's why I have bought 3 wireless routers beforehand, because I don't want to compromise that for anything else.

Pratyay67 · Apr 12, 2016

And if I use a router between the modem and the switch to assign DHCP and static IP reservations, then how am I going to use the server for doing the routing ( as you have also understood that I want that ) ?
And let's say I'd use that router on the 2nd floor. Then I have 2 routers left for the two remaining floors. As you have said, those two routers can't be used for DHCP reservations, I'd assign all my wireless devices a static IP.
But how will guests and new temporary devices connect to the network, if the router in that floor doesn't allow DHCP?
I figure that connecting to the 2nd floor router wirelessly from the 1st and ground floors is almost impossible in our house, as the walls are thick enough to block the signals entirely if 2 or more of them work in unison. :-D

Pratyay67 · Apr 12, 2016

ComputerSecurityGuy :

I have no knowledge in Debian. Will that be a problem in configuring the server? I'm a quick learner though.
And according to your suggestion, I figure that you are advising to break the server virtually(?) to a number of parts, each being assigned a particular task i.e. pfsense on one part, and freeNAS on another. What I know until now is that pfsense and freeNAS both are independent networking server softwares; so what does Debian do here in the first place?
I'm sorry but I'm confused.
And what about that VPN service ? According to the knowledge in networking that I have, how little it might be, I know that VPNs come in handy when I want to access the server's files from the internet when I'm away.
Given that I want to access the files on my server when I'm away, will having a VPN do the trick? And how to set up VPN in the same server? And what configurations are recommended for the server PC that I will build. I have an old Pentium III somewhere in storage; can that be put to use here?

I know it's a lot of questions being asked at once, but it's better to have all the questions in one place as long as I can remember them all, rather than asking each of them in different comments when each comes in the mind.

Ralston18 · Apr 12, 2016

At this point I am going to "redesign" your network. Mostly for my own sake but also to support the general configurtion you have in mind.

Internet (ISP)----> Modem ----->Ground floor Router -------> Eight port switch ----------> wires to 1st and 2nd floor routers.

The Ground Floor Router could use its remaining ports for the home server, print server and office desktop. Or those devices could connect to the Eight Port Switch. Or some mix in between. (I like to keep a "spare" port handy on routers, etc. whenever I can.)

Ground Floor Router would be the DHCP Router with an IP of 192.168.1.1. The 1st and 2nd floor routers would be statically assigned 192.168.1.2 and 192.168.1.3 respectively. Subnetted 255.255.255.0 for all.

192.168.1.1 will be the DHCP router - all the other routers and devices will look to that router for their DHCP assigned addresses. The router will also know who is who with respect to the assigned static IPs once those are assigned and configured on each applicable device.

Reserve static IPs for the Home Server, the DVR, the Home theater, and the print servers. Try to minimize static IP use as that is just more to keep track of and administer.... IP conflicts can be quite maddening - especially in a mixed environment.

Set a DHCP range for something like 192.168.1.12 to 192.168.1.24 or wider depending on the expected number of wireless devices.

For the most part I would have DHCP addressing for everything else. Not sure about your CCTV setup and management - 16 channel DVR? How many cameras? They will need addresses I think.

And I am also setting aside any virtualization/VM/VPN requirements.... You need to have the basic network structure in place beforehand in any case.

To get this all sort of "back into your hands" take a look at the manuals for your routers. There are also tutorials about cascading routers and setting up Access Points within this forum and elsewhere.

Google "home network diagrams". Many, many examples with all levels of complexity. Look for those showing IP addressing - schemes can vary so keep that in mind.

"Build" your ground floor first. Then expand to the first floor and finally the second floor.

As you lay it all out you will learn and maybe revise backwards a bit.

ComputerSecurityGuy · Apr 12, 2016

Basically in my setup Debian is the host that runs the VMware client, there are purely VM oriented OSs out there like EXSi but I wouldn't necccesarily recommend it for beginners. However for any VPN or media server I would recommend Linux as Windows just doesn't work well in those environments. The NAS doesn't have to necessarily be FreeNAS though if you want to buy a commercial one. Anyway, in sum I suppose I can boil it down to four things.
1. Having a router do the job as opposed to the server is a good idea, but I might get a seperate wired one if you are willing to spend the money- Ubiquiti sells some good ones. Or use the PIII box with a networking OS.
2. Your home server will probably have to boil down to running some sort of Linux, Debian or Ubuntu are my personal favorites. Probably Debian in this case, but Ubuntu is easier to learn.
3. Unless you want to buy seperate physical hardware, you are probably going to have to run a VM on the home servers host OS.
4. Fortunately all this stuff is insanely well documented. If you're a good learner it should be pretty easy. Unless you are dealing with some obscure issue usually somebody else already had it and found a solution.
Oh, and the PIII box might actually come in useful if you want to fiddle with a VPN. A quick Google search revealed people running OpenVPN on PIII successfully.

Pratyay67 · Apr 13, 2016

Ralston18 :

Well, let's say that I will do the same what you advised on the 2nd floor instead of the ground floor, since the 2nd floor is the most inhabited one in our house. Our local ISP says that the internet connection that will be provided doesn't need a modem (?), it can be directly input into a router through LAN cables.

That being said, let me make the diagram in my mind clear, in accordance with your suggestion.

HERE'S THE DIAGRAM: http://imgur.com/xeIZV89

I think that's largely in accordance with your suggestion, the only difference being the choice of floor to be 'built' first; you advised to work from the bottom to the top, but I'm preferring the other way around because I stay most of the day on the top floor, and having the server and main components there would be convenient for me (not to mention that the other members of the house have no idea even what a router is; so that's completely on me).

That being said, the connections for the 1st and ground floors come to this:
WIRELESS
^
|
From 8-port switch --> ROUTER --> ALL WIRED DEVICES

So, will the 1st and 0th floor routers be able to provide wireless connections? If they can, then I'm done with the hardware connection part I guess, and will be ready to move on to the addressing part. But if they can't then, umm, I think you'll have to help me out again. :-(

ComputerSecurityGuy · Apr 13, 2016

That'll work just fine. And yes, I would get the network set up before fiddling with a media server, NAS, VPN or anything like that. But as long as you have only the main router assigning addresses with the other two in access point mode you should be fine. Oh, and yes they will be able to provide WiFi in AP mode, that's sort of the entire point.
Addressing should also be much easier. If you have a 192.168.1.X setup for LAN addresses, you just have to configure a range for static IP addresses. 192.168.1.100 and 192.168.1.200 are both good. (It maxes out at .255, as it goes down to .0 but I doubt you have 256 devices.)

Pratyay67 · Apr 13, 2016

That pretty much answers all my hardware questions.
One last thing, how should I connect the two 'slave' routers to the main master router? Should it be a LAN - LAN or a LAN to WAN connection?

An article on TH describes a 3 router set up. It says to turn off wireless and disable DHCP for the master router (it'll have a static IP), and enable wireless and DHCP on the two slave routers, the connection being a LAN to WAN connection.

Will the two routers in AP mode be able to provide wired connections as well?
What could I be missing here?

ComputerSecurityGuy · Apr 13, 2016

It probably will be a LAN-WAN connection, but your router may differ. However, I would say almost certainly a LAN-WAN.

Ralston18 · Apr 13, 2016

I like the "build from the second floor plan" and it does help keep track of things.

My one suggestion is that you now add the IP addressing (following ComputerSecurityGuy's postings) to your diagram using green ink or some other color just to get that planning on paper. Plus any other related notes. Again that will really help maintain the "big picture look". Really helps with troubleshooting, maintenance, and future expansions.

Two questions just out of curiosity: 1) The 9 CCTV cameras do not need IP's - is that correct? Maybe just one IP for the DVR?

2) What are you using to sketch out the diagrams - a whiteboard that copies to PC? Or sketching on paper and scanning in? Thanks.

Pratyay67 · Apr 13, 2016

1) I did think just like that. I think it'd just suffice to assign the DVR an IP address, assigning each camera an IP would be pretty redundant.

2) I am sketching on a paper and scanning in to upload to imgur.

I'll be back with a detailed colorful diagram for you to check and for me to finalise after that.

Need help building a home network

Honorable

Titan

Admirable

Polypheme

Honorable

Honorable

Admirable

Honorable

Admirable

Honorable

Admirable

Titan

Honorable

Titan

Honorable

Honorable

Honorable

Titan

Admirable

Honorable

Admirable

Honorable

Admirable

Titan

Honorable

Share this page