Do I need to directly connect my AX to my TC?

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Do I need to directly connect my AX to my TC?

I currently have a Time Capsule which provides a wireless network for my house. The TC is tucked in a computer cabinet at one end of the house. For the most part it has worked well...until recently when I noticed some degradation in wireless connectivity I believe due to the number of devices connecting to it. I now have 1 iMac, 1 Macbook, 4 iPhones, 2 iPads, 1 Apple TV, 1 Airport Express (as a connected device), and 1 Sony TV using the wireless network. Not all devices are on and connected at all times. Anyway, I wanted to extend my wireless network to the other end of the house and was not sure of the best method. The 2 options I am considering are:

1. Use an Airport Express or Extreme on the other end of the house to create a completely new wireless network that uses a different SSID and force some of my devices to connect to it. This will 2 do things - provide better coverage to the other end of the house (its not really that bad with the single TC) and also allow me to take some of the load off of the TC's wireless network. Question is - will the 2 networks (using auto channel negotiations) exist well in the same house or will there be interference? My assumption is all will be fine since I do have other wireless network visible from my neighbors already.

2. Use an Airport Express to "extend" my wireless network. I do not want to do this wirelessly. I want to connect the Airport Express to the Ethernet network. I have read where I need to connect to the Airport Express to an Ethernet port on the TC. Question - does the Airport Express have to be directly connected to the TC or can that connected be through a switched network? If it does have to be connected directly...option 1 becomes the answer. Question 2 - assuming I can connect the Airport Express to the TC over a switched network, will "extending" the network using the Ethernet network still reduce my overall wireless bandwidth?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Posted on Jul 13, 2011 6:23 AM

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Answer 1

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Bob Timmons

Community+ 2024

Level 10

159,326 points

Jul 13, 2011 6:50 AM in response to GoHerdIBG

Question is - will the 2 networks (using auto channel negotiations) exist well in the same house or will there be interference?

Things will be fine since the AirPort Express or AirPort Extreme will automatically search for a good wireless channel. If you assign a separate name for the wireless network, then devices will need to log in separately to this network. The extending device will need to be configured in Bridge Mode.

My suggestion would be to configure what is known as a "roaming" network in your question #2. In this case, you would assign the same wireless network name, security and password settings to the extending device and configure it in Bridge Mode.

The advantage to #2 is that you will be able to walk your laptop from a location near the Time Capsule and as you move close to the extending device, the laptop will automatically switch to pick up the stronger signal from the extending AirPort.

You are actually creating a separate network in #2, so you have the advantage of maximum bandwidth for both the TC network and the AirPort network.

Question - does the Airport Express have to be directly connected to the TC or can that connected be through a switched network?

I'm assuming that you are asking about an Ethernet switch here, correct? The AirPort Express or AirPort Extreme can connect to the Ethernet switch, or directly back to a LAN port on the Time Capsule, whichever is easier to setup.

Question 2 - assuming I can connect the Airport Express to the TC over a switched network, will "extending" the network using the Ethernet network still reduce my overall wireless bandwidth?

Connecting the remote device using Ethernet is by far the best way to extend a wireless network because it maintains maximum bandwidth on the network. This is the way that any good commercial network is designed.

Post back if you need any tips to get things setup.

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