Is a Wireless Extender / Router What I Need?

MrHyde on 11/10/2017 - 12:44
Last edited 12/10/2017 - 11:01 by 1 other user

I'd like to tap in the brain trust here to see if I am thinking the right thing.

I am currently in a shared office space where we all use the WiFi provided by the office. What I've seen is that I cannot ping or connect to any other machine on the network. It seems to be something in the wifi network because if I try the exact two machines on my home network; I can connect one to the other no issues.

Since we can't ask the office providers to modify their config; I am thinking of getting our own router that I'll connect up to their wifi. So, all our machines will connect to our router and then through there connect to the wider network. In this way, we can then control which machines and computers connect to the network as well as each other.

To do this, would something like this be suitable?

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  whooah1979 on 11/10/2017 - 12:56

  Right click and share this pc.

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    MrHyde on 11/10/2017 - 13:22

    Doesn't work. I believe the office has set up isolated ports, which makes sense. You don't want others in a shared office to know who else is on the network.

    Edit: To be clearer - sharing PC or folders does not work in the office. Works fine at home between the same two PCs with no other changes other than the network they are connected to.

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  etronicsworld on 11/10/2017 - 13:28

  I just bought this for my office,
  http://www.msy.com.au/viconline/peripherals/16656-tp-link-tl…
  for the same reason & also to allow for a range extension and it worked a treat.

  Its good as its geared for when we upgrade our router to 5ghz connection as well.

  good luck

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  ESEMCE on 11/10/2017 - 13:40

  +1

  An extender is not going to do what you need a router will, but you'd be double NAT-ing yourselves and the Office owners might not like it.

  Why can't you ask the office providers to change their config?
  Your machines would connect on a VLAN (identitied by MAC Address) or a separate VLAN'd WiFi SSID to allow a shared network across your machines?

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  Cabrinha on 11/10/2017 - 14:19

  If this is Windows environment your machine/s sound like they are not on the same domain as the rest of the office machines, at home you are probably using the same workgroup in this scenario they can talk to each other. When you connect to the office wifi you may only be using their router to access the internet and not the other machines on the network.

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  salrock on 11/10/2017 - 17:22

  http://www.msy.com.au/viconline/peripherals/4757-tp-link-tl-…

  1-Buy above router or any other normal router
  2. configure it with your shared office network via Ethernet or via wireless bridge (geeks pls confirm)
  3. all your laptops can connect to your new router and will have your own network .

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    ESEMCE on 12/10/2017 - 10:59

    Wireless Bridge will likely require Custom firmware…
    Stock firmware "Wireless Bridge" tends to use WDS which requires modification at both transmitter and receiver and I'm guessing the OP doesn't have access to alter the setup of the transmitter.

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      salrock on 12/10/2017 - 17:23

      then i am afraid OP is F%^*ed :D