Please God - One network to rule them all!!!!

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mikepeppers

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Nov 30, 2016
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My greatest wish is to have a single network available anywhere in my house so that I can:

a. not have to switch networks on my laptops/phones/tablets everytime I change rooms and
b. have the ability to print on a network printer from anywhere in the house
c. all the other benefits of network/cloud based work / storage / sharing

I was hoping to solve the problem by buying a good wireless router that would be able to reach every room in the house. I bought the Linksys WRT 1900 ACS. But even with that, around 1 corner, speed drops from 28mbps down to 3. I must have thick walls or something.

Previous to the attempted solution, I've used powerline adapters to create wifi/LAN points throughout the house, which work with the annoying intermittent drop-outs that PA's come with.

I'll list entire network specs below, but for the most part, all my devices are a bit dated, which can affect performance I realize, but that's secondary to my main problem which is just having a singular network in the entire house.

Can anyone offer a solution? I would greatly appreciate it.

Keep in mind, all of the powerline adapters / secondary routers below are broadcasting on a unique network, causing me to switch networks everytime I move around the house. And often the device automatically selects a network from another room which is even more annoying.

Thanks,

Mike

Complete Network Specs

ISP: BT Openreach
Advised max speed is 28-30 mbps (copper line leading into house)

PRIMARY ROOM WHERE INTERNET ENTERS HOUSE

Modem:
BT Openreach HG612 DSL Modem
feeds into:
BT HomeHub 3.0
feeds into:
TP Link Powerline Adapter
TLPA4010

SECONDARY ROOM POWERLINE POINTS

LIVING ROOM
TP Link Powerline Adapter
TLPA4010
feeds
Apple Airport Extreme 2014
feeds
Sky+HD Box
PS4
GLI AR--300M router running openVPN feeding an Apple TV

KITCHEN
TP Link Powerline Adapter
TLWPA 420 (transmitting wifi)

OFFICE
TP Link Powerline Adapter
TLPA4010
feeds
iMac 2012 via LAN

BEDROOM
TP Link Powerline Adapter
TLPA4010
feeds
Airport Extreme 2005 (flying saucer type)

ADDITIONAL ROOM
TP Link Powerline Adapter
TL WPA 281 (broadcasting wireless)

FLOATING DEVICES
iphone 5 x2
ipad 4 (wifi only)
ipad 2
macbook pro 2007 x2




 
Solution
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Obviously if the wired network is ok all hosts will be on the same segment. To roam without hand-off isn't possible with consumer grade equipment, you would need to heavily invest in a solution from Ubiquiti or Ruckus. Without a controller it is the client that decides which AP to connect to, it will hang on regardless of signal quality until the connection drops, only then will it associate to a different AP. With a wireless controller the controller itself will move you between APs.
Ubiquiti APs and edge switch will achieve this or a Zone director from Ruckus, the Ubiquiti equipment is far less expensive that the Ruckus but Ruckus is completely bullet proof.
Obviously All your Wifi equipment should just be in AP mode and the powerline...
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nigelivey

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Dec 6, 2011
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Obviously if the wired network is ok all hosts will be on the same segment. To roam without hand-off isn't possible with consumer grade equipment, you would need to heavily invest in a solution from Ubiquiti or Ruckus. Without a controller it is the client that decides which AP to connect to, it will hang on regardless of signal quality until the connection drops, only then will it associate to a different AP. With a wireless controller the controller itself will move you between APs.
Ubiquiti APs and edge switch will achieve this or a Zone director from Ruckus, the Ubiquiti equipment is far less expensive that the Ruckus but Ruckus is completely bullet proof.
Obviously All your Wifi equipment should just be in AP mode and the powerline adapters that also transmit Wifi won't be of the best quality, the wifi is generally an addon to the powerline itself.

I think you main issue here will be PL adapters, (They are a poor solution but sadly sometimes necessary) there really is no substitute for wiring the whole home in Cat5e/6.
 
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Solution
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mikepeppers

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Nov 30, 2016
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Hi NIgel. Thanks so much for the reply.

Firstly, I don't think I know what you mean by hosts being on the same segment. And whether or not that's beneficial.

Also, regardless of the handoff issue, is it possible for me to at least have a common network (in name and connectivity) that can be shared through the whole house?

I suppose that would require setting my in-room routers / TP Link transmitters in some sort of bridge mode. But I didn't think that was possible. Especially when you're mixing apple/non-apple routers and PL adapters.

Let me know your thoughts. But in any case I'll check out the Ubiquiti / Ruckus stuff you mentioned.
 
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nigelivey

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When you break up a network into different segments you use different IP schemes for the different segments (or Vlans but again they would have different IP schemes per Vlan) This is done because on top of your data there is overhead on the network such as routing protocols. Back to the point, do all you devices receive an IP address from the main router? They would normally be on an address such as 192.168.0.2----192.168.0.254 or 192.168.1.2 ---192.168.1.254 with a subnet mask of 255.255.25.0? You would generally find the router itself would have the first address (192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1).
If all your client devices fall within the same range they are on the same segment or subnet.

You can set the SSID and password the same on all your devices that are APs as long as you separate the channels mentioned above.

Why would you want to bridge anything? What do you mean I might be able to clarify.
 
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mikepeppers

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Yes it appears that the TP link Powerline adapters are giving out local addresses from the main router as they are mostly prefixed with 192.168.xx. The only exception being the old apple airport extreme that's giving a 10.0.x.x address.

So it seems as though they're on the same 'segment.' And all of the local IP addresses they're providing seem to be unique. If that's the case are you suggesting that if I name the all the same with the same password that this will solve my problem? Or will there still be a 'handoff?' causing me to have to switch networks all the time? And in that case wouldn't it just be more confusing, as I would find it hard to distinguish between the weak version of the network being broadcast from another room and the strong version being broadcast from the room I'm in?
 
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nigelivey

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OK to be clear the ONLY device operating as a DHCP server should be the primary router. All APS should have a fixed address on the same subnet, 192.168.0 or 1.x the only digit that is different is the last one (x) All devices use your primary router as gateway and dns server address.
Make sure the only firwall is the primary router. The only device doing NAT is the primary router. Let's get the network right before worrying about SSIDS! Let me know if that makes sense.
 
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mikepeppers

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Nov 30, 2016
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Yes you're right, only the last number in all the addresses is different. Only the old Apple AE is giving out something different, but I'm guessing that can be set differently.

I've looked into the Ubiquiti stuff today, and to be honest it looks like that's a really great solution. I'm going to return the linksys I bought, and get the ubiquiti APs which aren't much more. The way they use cloud management is pretty nifty. It sounds like I can just use powerline adapters in conjuction with the PoE adapters to create coverage around the entire house with 2 or 3 units.

As you can guess, I haven't been a networking specialist by any stretch, even though I'm learning.

But thanks so much for pointing me in the right direction.
 
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nigelivey

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NO!! You need to point the Airport at the default gateway (192.168.x.x) and also disable the DHCP server on the Airport. The Airport needs to operate as a simple AP, not have any routing function, anything on the 10.x.x.x subnet is on a different network.
 
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