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Clairifaction on Apples wireless infrastructure

I am thinking about scrapping my Linksys stuff an moving to Apple's wireless devices. The Linksys with the external directional antennas has a better reach than the Time Capsule which I plan to put at the heart of the network (located in the basement of a 3 story home). So as I understand it, I can place the Time Capsule in the basement and Airport Expresses in other areas of the home to get wirelss coverage throughout the house. I also understand through the implications on Apples site that a device going thru am Airport Express will still have access to the Time Capsule resources like backup disk and any external drives hanging off the time capsule. Is this correct?

Thanks!

Mini, MacBook, MacBook Pro, iTouch, iPhone, Mac OS X (10.6.3)

Posted on May 29, 2010 7:47 AM

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3 replies

May 29, 2010 7:58 AM in response to mleeber

mleeber wrote:
So as I understand it, I can place the Time Capsule in the basement and Airport Expresses in other areas of the home to get wirelss coverage throughout the house.


yes. however, wireless coverage can be impeded by many factors. distance to the main router, concrete walls, other objects, _*wireless interference*_ from e.g. other wifi networks nearby.

I also understand through the implications on Apples site that a device going thru am Airport Express will still have access to the Time Capsule resources like backup disk and any external drives hanging off the time capsule. Is this correct?


yes.

J GG

User uploaded file

May 29, 2010 9:00 AM in response to mleeber

+I can place the Time Capsule in the basement and Airport Expresses in other areas of the home to get wirelss coverage throughout the house.+

There are some big IFs here. Apple's "extend a wireless network" feature is designed to work like the hub and spokes of a wheel. The "main" router should be at the hub location and the "remote" devices are located at the ends of the spokes. Each "remote" communicates directly to the "main" router. The "remotes" do not communicate with each other or function in a "relay" manner.

With the Time Capsule located in the basement, the results you achieve may not meet your requirements. It would be much better to locate the Time Capsule at a central, or "hub" location. Then the system will work much more effectively to provide uniform coverage throughout your house. Walls, ceilings, etc. all cause a loss of signal, so you'll need to have the Time Capsule and remotes in as much of a line-of-sight situation as possible.

It's not possible to state specifics, but a good rule of thumb assuming that you have sheetrock walls, is that you will lose 15-20% of the signal strength if the wireless signal must pass through a wall. Ceilings and floors tend to be thicker, so plan accordingly.

The best approach is always to connect all devices using ethernet cables. If this is not possible, and you find that wireless does not deliver the performance you need, then the next best choice would be the use of ethernet powerline adapters to provide a pseudo-ethernet connection between the Time Capsule and remote wireless devices.

Message was edited by: Bob Timmons

Clairifaction on Apples wireless infrastructure

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