Longer range wireless question

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sevente

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#69278 5-Oct-2010 17:12

I have an adsl (no plans for adsl2 here in the foreseeable future I’m told) capable telephone line, the jack is in a small room in a concrete block building with a power source available. Just over 100 meters away I have my motorhome inside of which I have a somewhat new Dell XPS desktop running Windows 7 64 bit. This is all in a country-like environment, flat, open, no trees, not a lot of people. Lots of small batches and caravans, TV aerials, seagulls...

I want to connect my computer to the telephone adsl telephone line in the building, wirelessly. It would appear quite possible to mount an antenna on the side of the building and or on the side of my motorhome. I expect the maximun download speed will be less than 10 mbps with 6 mbps being the likely norm. I will be the only computer connected to the adsl line.

My question is what hardware should I purchase. I understand that the common home and garden wireless router is good for maybe 25 meters so that won’t cut it, I think, but I may well be incorrect.

Presumably I need a wireless router, into which I plug the telephone line and to which I connect an antenna, outdoor or indoor, and a USB device plugged into my computer. The only known possible constraint is a gentleman who uses a wireless telephone and he is anxious that I don’t disrupt his life. Fair enough says I.

I read here that d-link products suck; they are a major wireless player it would appear and DSE seem to push that brand.

So recommendations please, and will be gratefully received.

Cheers...

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Ultimate Geek

#388371 5-Oct-2010 17:27

I have emailed you.

mxpress

nickb800

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#388374 5-Oct-2010 17:32

You might be pushing it with an average wireless router. I would think at the very least you would want an external directional antenna attached to a cheap wireless router.

A possible option would be to buy a cheap non-wireless adsl router (~$20 on trademe) and pair it the wireless transmitter below pointed towards your motorhome, picked up by a usb wifi dongle on your pc

http://www.gowifi.co.nz/access-points-802.11/ubiquiti-airgrid-m2-802.11n/b/g-100mw-16dbi-outdoor-ap/...

sevente

28 posts

Geek

#388521 5-Oct-2010 22:22

That would do the trick, you say nickb800, and I thank you. At least now I know it can be done. If we move another notch up the food chain - I can spring a few more bucks than that - what then might you suggest as an even more elegant approach?

Many thanks...

raytaylor

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#388570 6-Oct-2010 01:10

Nanostation 2 from gowifi is the elegant solution when looking at short distance wireless links.
A nanostation will handle about 20mbits so with a 6mbit adsl connection, which will probably hardly ever reach that speed, you cant get much better as your maximum speed will be thinnest pipe in the line In this case the nanostation will talk to your computer faster than the adsl modem talks to the internet.

Oh i just set up this evening a link between a nanostation 2 and a airgrid M2 16dbi - got just on 5km with 4mbits throughput in a rural area with -88 noise - for anyone thats interested.

Ray Taylor

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sevente

28 posts

Geek

#388898 6-Oct-2010 20:02

Thanks Ray, for the recommendation. I believe I will go with the Nanostation2. Pardon my ignorance but I presume I need only a plain dsl2 modem backwards compatible with plain old dsl which I assume they all are and from that device I take the Ethernet cable out to the NanoStation2 mounted on a facia board or a pole but outside. I presume I don’t need a modem/router combo (which most seem to be) but just a modem.

If I have this right what modem would you recommend? Reliability is important as it will be located in a locked storage room and not as if it’s on my desk easily accessible.

And one more question: will this cause problems with the wireless telephone handset the manager uses, do you think?

Many thanks...

raytaylor

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#388906 6-Oct-2010 20:26

You can buy an outdoor enclosure, use a telephone extension cord, and a normal 240v cord and put the modem into an outdoor nema? rated outdoor enclosure - or something lockable and waterproof.

I have a couple of sites where i have done this as i could not get key access, so i just ran power outside and have my equipment in a box.

Do you know how to cut the end off a power extension cord and wire up a plug on it?

The modem will probably come free from the isp.
You run ethernet from the modem, to the power injector included with the nano, then another ethernet cable from the power injector to the nano itself.

Line of sight, a laptop can typically go 400m from a nanostation when its antenna is set to vertical mode.

Ray Taylor

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raytaylor

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#388907 6-Oct-2010 20:28

Oh also
The nanostation gets set to bridge mode, and the modem will act as your router.

A DSL modem with a network plug on it is always a router - its just a common mismatch of names. The modem or router that is supplied by the isp is always a modem and a router inside the one device.

Get the nanostation 2, or the nano loco 2
Dont get the M2 or loco M2 - M series makes things a little more complicated when setting these up.

Ray Taylor

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sevente

28 posts

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#388923 6-Oct-2010 20:53

Got it, thanks Ray, your explanations are extremely helpful, and I’ve just been reading the spec sheet. I’m impressed, and delighted. This might just work; 20 gig a month (upgradable) and dsl speed!

Finally good Internet connectivity and loads of it and at reasonable cost.

Maybe real soon...

raytaylor

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#389006 7-Oct-2010 00:18

Sorry i just saw your commant on the wireless telephone.

A nanostation 2 runs at 2.4ghz. You can try channel 1, and if that causes a problem, try channel 11.
If it is a 5+ year old cordless phone that runs on 2.4ghz, he is probably going to cause interference to you when he is near your nano or laptop. but only when he is on the phone.

If its a dect, 900mhz, 1.7ghz or 5.8ghz then its fine.

Ray Taylor

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sevente

28 posts

Geek

#389106 7-Oct-2010 11:24

Or I might just buy him a new broadband friendly cordless phone, for not much more than $100.00. Thanks again Ray, you are indeed a gentleman and a scholar.

I might just be back when it comes time to connect all the bits and pieces.

Cheers...

webwat

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#389284 7-Oct-2010 18:32

Yes buying him a wifi-friendly phone would solve a few problems if he's also on 2.4Ghz, but you could check what channel his phone is set to and ensure your wifi is 2 or 3 channels away from that since they overlap a bit. Make sure you run a permanent drip loop on any cables that go outside.

Directional antenna on the conrete room would solve lots of problems, but of course your router needs removable antenna connection and your motorhome would have to stay in approximately the same direction...

Time to find a new industry!

sevente

28 posts

Geek

#389361 7-Oct-2010 21:53

Thank you, Webwat, for that. It would appear that the cordless phone is on its last legs and he is planning on replacing it anyway, so that’s a good thing. I'll help with that.

The other reason I’m looking at going with the NS 2 rather than a directional antenna, as kindly suggested by rickb800 above, is that in due course this setup might serve the park visitors as a small hotspot. I understand the NS2 is widely used in the hotel motel large factory environments, is state-of-the-art, and costs only pennies. As Ray said, ‘Nanostation 2 from gowifi is the elegant solution’ given the intended longer-term deployment.

Let me ask about my motorhome end of things. I do have an antenna mount on the vehicle and a telescopic pole. Should I put another antenna up on that pole a meter or two above the vehicle and plug it into the network card in my computer? Another NS2 perhaps - they cost almost nothing and I have no hesitation in paying a few hundred or more dollars to ensure full functioning Internet connectivity.

Obviously a USB adaptor is the more elegant solution provided the device is not the bottleneck in the data flow. And uploadiing large multi-media files is what I'm doing more and more.

Speaking of which is it reasonable to expect that the dsl line is and remains the bottleneck and my network easily handles much more than even dsl2. In other words no loss in speed – is this doable wirelessly, the way I’m looking at going?

Many thanks...

raytaylor

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#389385 7-Oct-2010 23:16

If your laptop is less than 5 years old, you can use the built in wireless to recieve the signal from the nanostation, or the usb dongle as you say. A usb dongle or built in will still go up to 20mbits with a good signal which you should have from just a nano at one end.

If you were to place an antenna on a telescopic pole, you will likley overload the radio reciever from them shouting at each other from such a short distance. Nano to usb/built in goes 300m line of sight. Nano to Nano goes up to 3km at 2.4ghz but you have to turn down the transmit power.

Like people, if radios shout at each other, they go deaf pretty quick.

Ray Taylor

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sevente

28 posts

Geek

#389392 8-Oct-2010 00:27

Ha Ha - Thanks for the colorful metaphor.

Like radios, if people are misaligned, they go dumb pretty quick!

I kind of intuited that a couple of Nanos pointing at each other 100 meters apart was some sort of overkill, but I deliberately went there to establish that or not. I’m learning.

Thanks again, Ray. Not a laptop but a rather new Dell Studio XPS well decked out, but no built in wireless, yet. In that case I’ll go with the USB dongle. Any suggestions make and model...Windows 7 64 bit drivers necessary of course, so suggestions most appreciated - I do need one of those.

Cheers...

raytaylor

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#389503 8-Oct-2010 11:30

I have good luck with the TP-Link usb dongles. In a holiday park where i have a few users on a hotspot, i give them a tp-link with a small strip of velcro to stick it near a window if the signal doesnt go through the metal wall of the caravan. On the end of a 3 or 4m usb cable they work well.

See here for some interesting info if you are learning. Its how i learned about radio waves and reflection.
Not really practical for daily use but its interesting to see what these guys done in wellington
http://www.usbwifi.orconhosting.net.nz/

If you wanted more than 5mbits, speed becomes a concern over 200m where you can use a pair of locos with the power turned down. But for 100m, the usb dongle should be fine.

Ray Taylor

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