Using a switch on before a 2nd Router

[rumblefish]

My internet line in my den come in to netgear router 1 (Netgear R6300). Those Ethernet cables go out from there  to:

1. PC #1
2. PC #2
3. cat 6 cable running into Net gear Router # 2(Net Gear Night Hawk AZ 1750) in my living room. From there NetGear router #2 goes into my Appte TV 4k, Samsung TV, and an Apple TV in another room all on cat6 line.

Questins/Issues?

The Problem is the following, Apple TV won’t pick up my itunes library and I believe it’s because it’s not on the same router. If I put a switch on the cat 6 line before it went into router #2, then would everything on the switch be considered to be part of router #1?

Would something like NETGEAR GS105NA 5-Port Gigabit Ethernet Network Switch do the trick?

Does using a switch slow down my Ethernet line?

[antinode]

> 3. cat 6 cable running into Net gear Router # 2(Net Gear Night Hawk AZ
> 1750) in my living room.

   "AZ 1750" ("AC1750"?) is a speed, not a model number.  Ever
helpful, Netgear product packaging emphasizes speeds like "ACxxxx", but
that's not the model identifier.

> [...] Apple TV won't pick up my itunes library and I believe it's
> because it's not on the same router. [...]

   Where is "my itunes library"?  How would it know where to find "my
itunes library"?

> f I put a switch on the cat 6 line before it went into router #2, then
> would everything on the switch be considered to be part of router #1?

   Not "part of router #1", but on the LAN of router #1.  I don't know
enough about how an Apple TV finds an iTunes library to say whether that
would matter.  I'd expect a device on the LAN of router #1 to be
visible to a device on the LAN of router #2 (but not the other way
around, unless a suitable static route were added on router #1).

> If I put a switch on the cat 6 line before it went into router #2,
> then would everything on the switch be considered to be part of router
> #1?

   Part of router #1's LAN, yes.  If you want the wireless capability of
router #2, then it might be simpler to configure router #2 as a wireless
access point.  That would make everything part of router #1's LAN
(without adding more hardware).  I'm not sure what that would do to the
more exotic features of router #2 (ReadySHARE, for example).

> Would something like NETGEAR GS105NA 5-Port Gigabit Ethernet Network
> Switch do the trick?

   Sure, but if you've see one cheap-Chinese gigabit Ethernet switch,
you've pretty much seen them all.

> Does using a switch slow down my Ethernet line?

   It would add a tiny bit of latency, probably unnoticable.

   Visit http://netgear.com/support , put in the model number of router
#2, and look for Documentation.  In the User Manual, look for "Wireless
Access Point".  Or, perhaps, in the web interface: ADVANCED > Advanced
Setup > Wireless AP

[rumblefish]

thanks for the info. i am check into the wireless access point. I like the sound of that concept. 

[rumblefish]

Thanks Antinode. That did the trick. I set up router #2 as WAP and now my apple tv sees my library on pc#1.

Besides the readyshare, did i loose anything by makin the router number #2? 

with regards to to wifi, is router number 2 just a continuaion of my wifi setting from router 1? ie if i change my wifi name, router 2 will pick it up.

appreciate the help! THanks. 

[antinode]

> [...] That did the trick.

   What could go wrong?

> Besides the readyshare, did i loose anything by makin the router
> number #2?

   I don't know that you _did_ lose ReadySHARE on the wireless access
point.  It might still work, for all I know.  (With my (very) limited
experience, and a flock of complaints which I've read here, I wouldn't
trust my valuable data to a scheme which seems to be so poorly tested
and, hence, unreliable.)

   Features which are part of the router functionality are lost when you
stop using the router function of router #2, and make it a WAP.  For
example, the DHCP server, port forwarding, parental controls, static
routes, and so on.  In essence, a WAP acts as a simple network switch,
with just enough extra complexity to handle wireless connections.

> with regards to to wifi, is router number 2 just a continuaion of my
> wifi setting from router 1? ie if i change my wifi name, router 2 will
> pick it up.

   No.  The wireless credentials (SSID, passphrase) on the WAP can be
the same or different.  You're on the same LAN as the main router, but
how you get connected to it can be different.

   One thing which you might want to do would be to reserve an address
on router #1 for (the WAN interface of) the WAP (router #2).  Perhaps:
ADVANCED > Setup > LAN Setup : Address Reservation.  That should make it
easier to find/access the management web interface on the WAP (which now
will _not_ be at 192.168.x.1, because that's where router #1 is).
You'll need the MAC address of router#2 for that, but it should be the

one on the label (or on the BASIC > Internet page).  Something like,
say, 192.168.x.100 or .200 might be memorable.

[rumblefish]

follow up quesion, 

I tried to change the wifi names on router number two. just like i did when i designated it to be a WAP, i plugged it into my power near my pc and connected my internet into router number two then to my pc. unfortunately i could not log on.

is logging in to router #2 different now that its set up as a WAP??

Much Thanks,

[antinode]

> [...] i plugged it into my power near my pc and connected my internet
> into router number two [...]

   You don't need an Internet connection to configure one of these
devices.  And removing router #1 from the situation is likely to do more
harm than good.

> [...] then to my pc. unfortunately i could not log on.

   "I could not" is not a useful problem description.  It does not say
what you did.  It does not say what happened when you did it.  As usual,
showing actual actions with their actual results (error messages, ...)
can be more helpful than vague descriptions or interpretations.

> is logging in to router #2 different now that its set up as a WAP??

   It probably has a different IP address.  Now that it's on the same
LAN as router #1, it certainly can't have the same IP address as router
#1 has.  As I explained before:

>    One thing which you might want to do would be to reserve an address
> on router #1 for (the WAN interface of) the WAP (router #2).  Perhaps:
> ADVANCED > Setup > LAN Setup : Address Reservation.  That should make it
> easier to find/access the management web interface on the WAP (which now
> will _not_ be at 192.168.x.1, because that's where router #1 is).
> You'll need the MAC address of router#2 for that, but it should be the
>
> one on the label (or on the BASIC > Internet page).  Something like,
> say, 192.168.x.100 or .200 might be memorable.

   In the mean time, you may be able to find its address from an
Attached Devices report on router #1.  After you put the equipment
connections back to a working configuration, that is.