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Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

Bilateral
Aspirant

Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

I already have a WNDR3800 N600 router, and I am thinking of acquiring a Netgear WNR3500L N300 router additionally.  Both of these routers have USB ports and use Readyshare.  My intention is to use the WNDR3800 N600 with WiFi turned on, but with DHCP turned off.  It's address on the network would be fixed as something like 192.168.1.101, and the WAN port is not used.  I already have it hooked up this way and it works--andI can see a USB drive attached to it via \\Readyshare.  It is connected to another router as DHCP via one of its LAN ports.

 

The WNR3500L also has a USB port.  My question is, if I use the WNR3500L as my primary router, with DHCP turned on, and WiFi turned off (WiFi comes only from the 3800), can I use the USB ports on both routers with drives attached to them, via Readyshare.  Will I be able to access both drives, and will Readyshare be available and distinct on each drive?  How will the drives be labled?

 

Thanks,

Michael

 

Model: WNR3500L|Open Source Wireless-N (Gigabit) Router
Message 1 of 14

Accepted Solutions
ElaineM
NETGEAR Employee Retired

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

The way you configured your router in AP mode is the old fashioned way we on how we would do it without the option "Enable AP".

Accessing it outside will not work since you cannot change the FTP port number on either of the two units, plus Port Forwarding is disabled if you set the router in AP mode.

 

View solution in original post

Message 12 of 14

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ElaineM
NETGEAR Employee Retired

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

Welcome to the community, @Bilateral

 

This should work as long as they both have the same range of IP address.

The distinction will be through it's IP addresses. You can call the drive using that fixed IP address.

Message 2 of 14
Bilateral
Aspirant

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

Okay, great--thanks, Elaine.

 

So it I were to have one router as 192.168.1.1 and serving DHCP, and the second router as 192.168.1.101 with DHCP off and connected to the first router through a LAN port, usb drives on each would be findable as independent drives, by using that information--right?  For example, I should be able to ftp from a remote computer and find the right drive?

 

I noticed that the router seems to identify the first drive on it's USB port as U:  I haven't tried putting more than one drive on a single router's port, but I presume it would give a second drive on the same port another letter.  But with two routers, will the routers know to give these drives different letters for the sake of sanity on the network?

 

Thanks,

Michael

 

Message 3 of 14
ElaineM
NETGEAR Employee Retired

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

How's the connection?

 

For FTP, it would only be one access. I do not think you will be able to change the port of the other one from the other router since it's configured in AP mode.

Locally, calling it by IP address shouldn't be a problem.

 

Message 4 of 14
Bilateral
Aspirant

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

Thanks again for your reply, Elaine.  Yes, I found that I could not ftp to find this router when it is set up behind another router as an AP.  Presumably the Netgear router is acting as an ftp server, but the router that is reached and is serving DHCP is not the Netgear.  There would need to be some sort of special instruction to go to the device at that particular IP address, because it is not seen as a computer on the LAN, and ftp is not finding the router that is acting as a server behind the DHCP router.  I did find that I could reach it through using it's IP address on the network from any other computer within the network, and as a Readyshare device in the network, so this will be fine for internal backup on the LAN, but I haven't figured out a way to reach it from the internet.

 

Still, the question remains--if there are TWO Readyshare routers in a network, how will they be distinguished on the LAN?  Will they both be called READYSHARE, and will there be two folders in the network with the same name??

 

Michael

 

Message 5 of 14
ElaineM
NETGEAR Employee Retired

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

Only one will be available to access from the Internet and that's the drive that's connected directly to the main router.

The other router that is configured in AP will not have an option to enable FTP access via the internet, its functionality is disabled.

However, both drives will be accessible through LAN access.

Message 6 of 14
Bilateral
Aspirant

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

Okay, makes sense.  The one thing that is still not clear from your answer is whether the two routers will be distinguished from each other on the LAN, since both routers are designed to set up the same way--identified as Readyshare on the network, and 1st drive identified as "U:".  Will folders on each drive which are set up with a share name appear under one Readyshare device on the LAN?  It would be confusing if two devices appear in Network which both have the same name--Readyshare.

 

Perhaps you are unsure of how this would be represented.  I may just have to get the second Readyshare router and try it to find out.

 

Michael

 

Message 7 of 14
ElaineM
NETGEAR Employee Retired

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

I do not have WNDR3800 to test but I have tested it out with another model and it shows as "\\IP_Address\USB_Storage" on the one that is configured as AP.

Somehow, it uses whatever IP address that is assigned on the router that's configured in AP mode.

The main router shows \\readyshare\USB_Storage.

Message 8 of 14
Bilateral
Aspirant

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

Well, that's interesting, Elaine.  I have my WNDR3800 (actually, it's a 3800CH) set up as an AP.  (I did not use the AP selection specifically--I simply turned off DHCP and set it up with a fixed IP address outside the DHCP range of the primary router, and plugged it in via a LAN port.)  When I look in Windows "Network", it appears in the section as a "Computer" named Readyshare.  When I click on it, I see the two folders I set up as shares.  One is shared as a Guest and is easily and immediatly accessed.  The other is set up with password, so unless I have recently accessed the router setup (therefore having recently used my password), I have to give name and password to access it.

 

This works fine if I am on the wireless of the 3800 AP.  I was also surprised to find that if I look at "Network" from a computer that is plugged into the primary router by LAN cable (so, this is a parallel connection to the one the 3800 has to the router serving DHCP), I still see it as a computer named READYSHARE, and access is the same.  So presumably my primary router is tracking it just like other computers on the network.

 

Another thing--if I go in from a computer served directly by the 3800 (like on it's wireless) and use http://readyshare.routerlogin.net/shares in a browser, I can usually get in that way.  But so far, I don't think that has worked from a computer that is connected to the primary router, rather than to the 3800.

 

Michael

 

Message 9 of 14
ElaineM
NETGEAR Employee Retired

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

The way I setup the router in AP is to specifically select "Enable AP" and just let use dynamic IP address.

I'm not sure if that would make any difference.

Will you be able to use the IP address to get into the shares that's connected to the WNDR3800?

Message 10 of 14
Bilateral
Aspirant

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

Elaine, I apologise for leaving this thread for so long.  In part, I got involved with other things, but I was also initially confused about how to answer your reply to my last comments.  After thinking about it, I realized that I need to understand the difference between the way I set up my router to act as an AP, and the way you did it.

 

I said in my last post, "I did not use the AP selection specifically--I simply turned off DHCP and set it up with a fixed IP address outside the DHCP range of the primary router, and plugged it in via a LAN port."  This does get the WNDR3800 to act as an AP, and I don't think I am missing any functions by doing this--or perhaps I am wrong?  You said that you "specifically select 'Enable AP' and just let use dynamic IP address."  I am not sure what selecting "Enable AP" does that is different from what I did.  Does this allow the WAN port to act as another LAN port, sort of turning the router into a basic Switch?  Or does it do something different?  One thing you mentioned is that the router in this case also uses a dynamic IP address--presumably this is whatever is assigned by the main router.

 

You also suggested "Will you be able to use the IP address to get into the shares that's connected to the WNDR3800?"  If you are talking about accessing the shares on the network, there really is no issue that I can see, since my main router has already found the shares with the fixed address on the AP and listed them under "READYSHARE".  I presume this is the same as it would be if I did it the other way. ("Enable AP" and let it get dynamic IP address.)  As to accessing the READYSHARE shares from outside my LAN, via the internet, I don't know if there is some way to do this using FTP, since the shares on not on the main router, and I don't know if there is a way to specify the IP address on my LAN within an FTP program.

 

So, what am I missing?

 

Thanks, if you can clarify,

Michael

 

Model: WNDR3800|N600 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router|EOL
Message 11 of 14
ElaineM
NETGEAR Employee Retired

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

The way you configured your router in AP mode is the old fashioned way we on how we would do it without the option "Enable AP".

Accessing it outside will not work since you cannot change the FTP port number on either of the two units, plus Port Forwarding is disabled if you set the router in AP mode.

 

Message 12 of 14
Bilateral
Aspirant

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

Okay, thanks.  By any chance, does using the built in "AP mode" on the router disable the router's WAN port and make it available as a LAN port?  This would give the router 5 LAN ports instead of 4.  Of course, one would be used to connect to the main router if LAN cable is used.

 

Michael

 

Model: WNDR3800|N600 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router|EOL
Message 13 of 14
ElaineM
NETGEAR Employee Retired

Re: Running Readyshare on two SEPARATE routers

I think you can. Try it and let me know if it did work. 🙂

Message 14 of 14
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