Wireless networking question (1 Viewer)

[DavidAM]

I use a wireless router and card for my laptop around my house. I want to go wireless at my office to get broadband to 6 PC computers. I'm curious on the equipment I need. Obviously I need a wireless router, but do I just need a wireless PCI card for the PC's? I've seen those PCI cards with an antenna sticking out of the back. If I swap out my ethernet card on a PC with one of those, is that all I need to get broadband to all the computers in the office?

 

[Jeff Savage]

Yup. I use several of the PCI based wireless cards for PC's at my house to connect to my Wireless Access point that is connected to my router that is connected to my cable modem. Of course these days you can get all-in-one equipment so you wouldn't need a separate WAP/Router/Modem.

Do you already have a network running in the office or are you trying to build one from scratch?

Laters,
Jeff

 

[Chris Hovanic]

If you already have a wired network it would be much better to stay with that. Faster file transfer speeds more reliable and secure.

If you dont then make sure you go 802.11g and during setup enter the PCI Wireless card(s) MAC address and only allow them to connect to your WAP. You should also make sure you are running WEP.

Good luck!

 

[DavidAM]

Thanks for the replys. We are moving offices, so instead of running ethernet to share the cable modem like we do now, I will hook up a wireless connection. It will be much cleaner and easier to do than to run ethernet throughout the building.

 

[Keith Mickunas]

Just be sure and secure it like Chris suggested, you don't want to give all your neigbors free access to your bandwidth, as well as your computers.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

It will be much cleaner and easier to do than to run ethernet throughout the building.

I assume you'll have telephones by each of these PCs? If so, it's not really much more expensive to have the extra cat5 cables pulled along with the telephone cabling. You'll get a more reliable, secure and faster connection with 100Mb switched ethernet than either 802.11b or 802.11g -- both of which are shared instead of switched media.

 

[DavidAM]

Should I stick with brand name PCI cards (D-Link, Netgear,etc) or would this be fine?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...category=45001

 

[JamesHl]

I would stick with some sort of brand name, or do research on whatever off-brand card you want to buy to make sure it isn't junk. I would buy a card that's of the same brand as your router.

 

[Chas_T]

I'd agree with Scott on the issue of staying wired for obvious reasons. However, it sounds like you want to go wireless, which is a personal decision of course.

Also, my suggestion as James's, is to stay with the same manufactuer and try not to mix and match cards/routers/switches.

Much luck,
Charles