Extending WIFI range by connecting two EX2700 (N300) routers ?

[Aeolus0]

Please excuse me if this has been asked and answered previously; I have read all posts remotely similar but do not understand the solutions.

Put simply; Can I plug in two EX2700(N300) extenders and connect them to my Sky Router?

The problem I see is the automatic _EXT naming.

Please keep it simple.

[michaelkenward · Accepted solution]

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@Aeolus0 wrote:
Adding two more of these wonderful little blighters would be ideal but I am concerned about the automatic _EXT naming.  Will they see the first one and come up as _EXT1 etc. or will I need to rename them? 

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It will probably pick something different. But you can rename them easily enough.

Try it on the one you have.

Our megavolts were on massive fusion research projects that could eat megawatts. We had all manner of interlocks that we had to use to get access to the kit.

[michaelkenward]

What are you trying to do?

Create two new separate wifi sources from two EX2700s?

Create one wifi source that extends the wifi ramge by putting two EX2700s in a row?

There is a manual and other stuff for the DM200 somewhere at the end of this link:

>>> DM200 | Product | Support | NETGEAR <<<

[Aeolus0]

Michael;

Thanks for taking an interest so quickly.

In a nut shell I have oneEX2700 (N300) fitted and set up using WPS doing exactly what I primarily wanted; extending WiFi to garage and garden.

However,I also have a minor need for a couple of ethernet cabling connections to devices, in separate areas, that do not have the facility to connect via WiFi.  I have tried for years to use PLAs but this is very hit and miss because, I believe, the separate power rings involved.

It would be great if I could could use a couple more of the EX2700 (N300)s to facilitate this.  From what I have read it should be possible but if it involves using EX2700 (N300)s as access points I would need very simple and explicit instructions on how to do this.  The Quick Start guide supplied looses me afterpage 10.

FYI I am a retired avionics engineer who left the industry shortly after the ZX chips took over and I have never dealt with WiFi connectivity.  If you wnt help with water cooled glass triode valves I'm your man.

[michaelkenward]

It should work.

The EX2700 gets its wifi from your main modem/router. Do you plan to add access points that also run on the back of the main modem/router? If so you'll have a couple of different wifi networks, but that is hardly rocket science.

Are these Ethernet clients near to each other? In other words, can they feed off the same source?

If so, there are other options available. I have used an older generation one of these for example:

WN2000RPT | WiFi Range Extenders | Networking | Home | NETGEAR

It has four LAN ports.

Have you experimented with moving the EX2700 to one of these LAN devices to see if that will work? It will prove that your idea is sound.

One point about both of these devices is that they have 100 Mbps LAN ports. That's true of all the smart devices, TVs and stuff, that I have seen, but some stuff, like PCs, can run the LAN at 1000Mbps.

They also do wifi at 2.4 Ghz only. If you have newer kit that can work at 5 GHz, you might want to find something that does that along with the LAN.

More stuff here:

WiFi Range Extenders: Boost Your WiFi Range | NETGEAR

Pity you can't use Powerline Ethernet. That's what I use for a smart BluRay player. The technology has come a long way in recent years.

In my early days as a research physicist I spent many a happy hour in a Faraday cage messing around with megavolt power supplies. Much more complicated than messing around with access points.

[Aeolus0]

Thanks again for the input.

Positioning is the problem.  The Sky router is in my upstairs "office" and I have two WiFi dumb devices that do have ethernet capability, one in another bedroom and one downstairs but remote from my first EX2700 (N300) router.  Adding two more of these wonderful little blighters would be ideal but I am concerned about the automatic _EXT naming.  Will they see the first one and come up as _EXT1 etc. or will I need to rename them?  Simplicity is my driving force.  I'm more than happy to live with additional networks, after all, once registered on a device they are "remembered".

I take your points about ports, speed and frequency but I don't game or stream much.  If it is necessary I will upgrade to one of the 5 GHz/1000mbps ones that you suggest. (Might do this anyway if multiple extenders are a go.)

Nice to hear about the FC.  Only used one to prevent transmission in sensative areas/frequences.  As for megavolt systems I never found them too complex; just B dangerous, but it's the current that kills! 

[michaelkenward · Accepted solution]

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@Aeolus0 wrote:
Adding two more of these wonderful little blighters would be ideal but I am concerned about the automatic _EXT naming.  Will they see the first one and come up as _EXT1 etc. or will I need to rename them? 

---

It will probably pick something different. But you can rename them easily enough.

Try it on the one you have.

Our megavolts were on massive fusion research projects that could eat megawatts. We had all manner of interlocks that we had to use to get access to the kit.

[Natey2]

All those EX2700s will use the same WiFi channel (some specific channel from 1 - 12, I believe) as your primary router's 2.4GHz channel (somebody correct me if I am wrong).

Won't there be "collision"  with all that additional traffic on that specific channel with all those EX2700s?

I live in close proximity to many home WiFi networks, and every time somebody reconfigures their router, etc I find I have to find another channel for myself using a WiFi spectrum analyzer, or face poor connection 😞

[michaelkenward]

Good point. Interference can be a beast.

Where possible, 5 GHz can help. Not for the speed but because it has a shorter range.