angusdc1
Level 1
(0 points)
Q: Airport Extreme as router(main) and time capsule as wireless....
Hello, I need some help with my setup. I have fiber to the home, so no modem. Internet comes in via ethernet to a OnQ panel in my laundry, then I send it to my den where I have a time capsule to create a wireless network. I then send another ethernet from a LAN back to the pannel where I have a switch to send to family room and bedrooms. In the Family room, I have another switch for multiple devices (apple tv's, smart tv, connected receiver etc.) Same in master bedroom (apple tv, tv). I think that stacking one switch on top of another switch is causing periodic poor performance. I only have 2 ethernet lines running from the panel to the master and family room, which is why I am using a switch at the end. It is a 2600 square foot single story house, but I want the reliability and performance of a wired network as much as possible as I also have many wireless clients (iphones.....ipads....macbooks....wemo light switches etc)
What I thought would be better is to put an airport extreme in the panel as the main router, assigning DHCP/NAT, but not be wireless, and then connect the time capsule through the current ethernet run to the den to act as the wireless access point for iPads etc. Also, my main iMac, printer, and a few other things would connect LAN to the time capsule. The airport express in the panel is now the direct LAN run to the master/family room switches, which hopefully improves performance.
My thinking for wanting to set up this way is I don't know how well the wireless network would work if the Airport Extreme was also the wireless source "inside" the metal OnQ cabninet. I also considered a roaming network, but the house is not huge, and I do not want the wireless signals to conflict, or have my wireless devices constantly switching between the time capsule and extreme because it senses both signals.
I am by no means a network expert, so I would appreciate some advice on the best way to set this up. I am currently running the most recent versions of iOS 7, Mavericks, and both the extreme and time capsule are the most recent "tower" versions 802.11 AC.
Dan
Mac OS X (10.7.5)
Tesserax
Level 9
(54,874 points)
I have considered this, but I am unsure how the security works on a wired internet router as I have never set one up before.
Think of a wired router as wireless router without the Wi-Fi. Prior to Wi-Fi, these were the only ones you could get. Setting up security is pretty much the same.
1. How do you set up security/firewall for devices such as appletv's or Smart TV's that would be connected directly to it?
By default the wired router's basic firewall would be enabled ... just like the AirPort's. Any device connected to the wired router's LAN ports would be "behind" this firewall. That would also include the AirPort base stations.
There would only be two differences: 1) Since there is no Wi-Fi, you won't need to set up wireless security on the wired router. You would still do this using the AirPort Utility for the AirPort base stations, and 2) Most, if not all, non-Apple routers use a web-based Administrator interface. In other words you wouldn't use the AirPort Utility, but use Safari (or your favorite) web browser to access this router.
2. Can this device be used to assign DHCP/NAT?
Yes. Again this is a full functional router. By default, both DHCP & NAT would be enabled.
3. Can the wired router be set up through Airport utility, even if it is a cisco or other brand? Or do you use it's own software?
As I mentioned earlier, you would use a web browser to access this router.
4. Finally, how then do you configure the time capsule as a wireless access point and LAN, with wireless security, yet the wired router be the main?
This is the basics of a roaming network. Only the "main" router would be configured to provide DHCP & NAT services. All other routers (your AirPorts in this case) would be reconfigured as bridges, i.e., DHCP & NAT disabled. All of your AirPort would be connected back to the main router by Ethernet. Each of your AirPorts would broadcast their own wireless network, but (most importantly) they all would use the same Network Name, wireless security type (WPA or WPA2), and wireless password. To a roaming wireless client they would all appear to be just one network.
