Repeating Mode Comparisons

From DD-WRT Wiki

(Difference between revisions)
Jump to: navigation, search
Revision as of 12:49, 27 August 2008 (edit)
Soulstace (Talk | contribs)
m (a few notes and revisions)
← Previous diff
Revision as of 13:33, 27 August 2008 (edit) (undo)
Soulstace (Talk | contribs)
m (some general guidelines)
Next diff →
Line 1: Line 1:
 +__TOC__
 +
== ''WDS'' vs ''R'' (Repeater) vs ''RB'' (Repeater Bridge) == == ''WDS'' vs ''R'' (Repeater) vs ''RB'' (Repeater Bridge) ==
Line 15: Line 17:
* WDS supports building a network of routers, where each repeater can connect to multiple other "main-routers" (WAN-routers) at the same time (TODO: Confirm). R/RB only connects to one router at a time, by SSID. Both WDS and R support connecting multiple repeaters in series ("repeat a repeater"), however a RB must connect to a DHCP serving unit. * WDS supports building a network of routers, where each repeater can connect to multiple other "main-routers" (WAN-routers) at the same time (TODO: Confirm). R/RB only connects to one router at a time, by SSID. Both WDS and R support connecting multiple repeaters in series ("repeat a repeater"), however a RB must connect to a DHCP serving unit.
* WDS does not perform MAC address translation (MAT). R/RB does translate MACs : the main-router sees all connections from clientes which connects through the repeater belonging to the same MAC as the repeater. This causes problems with some applications which relies on a MAC address. * WDS does not perform MAC address translation (MAT). R/RB does translate MACs : the main-router sees all connections from clientes which connects through the repeater belonging to the same MAC as the repeater. This causes problems with some applications which relies on a MAC address.
 +
 +==I'm still confused! Which mode should I use?==
 +The following are just some general guidelines for helping you choose a proper repeater mode.
 +
 +*Use [[WDS Linked router network|WDS]] if you have control over all routers '''and''' they each have compatible WDS implementations. WDS works well for repeating your wireless signal and/or connecting multiple networks together.
 +*Use R ([[Wlan Repeater|Repeater]]) if you don't have control over the host Access Point. For example:
 +**you want to repeat a wireless signal coming from your ISP.
 +**you're staying at a hotel and want to boost an otherwise weak wireless signal to your laptop.
 +*Use RB ([[Repeater Bridge]]) if you want all clients on the same network but your host router doesn't support WDS.
== See Also == == See Also ==

Revision as of 13:33, 27 August 2008

Contents


WDS vs R (Repeater) vs RB (Repeater Bridge)

This is a summary of issues related to repeating using "WDS" vs "Repeater" vs "Repeater Bridge" modes. Please note that some lines require to be confirmed ("TODO: Confirm"). If you experiment other results than those here indicated, please add your comments providing also your HW and DD-WRT version.

  • On both WDS and R/RB (both R and RB), the repeater can broadcast another SSID. On WDS with WPA, both routers need to have the same SSID (TODO: Confirm).
    • On WDS, both routers need to have the same SSID, which will be broadcasted by both routers (TODO: Confirm).
    • On R/RB, the physical SSID will not only be used for joining the main-router, but also be repeated by the repeater (TODO: Confirm).
    • On R, two SSID with the same name will collide (give problems) (TODO: Confirm). On RB, having the same SSID on the main-router and the repeater allows to "roam", ie. keep a connection active ¿or reconnect? (TODO: CONFIRM) when a client nears the other router.
    • After RC6.2, virtual interfaces have BSSID with MAC address 02:XX:XX:XX:XX:01 for R mode. If the main-router and the repeater broadcast a BSSID with the same MAC, they probabilty will collide. For RB mode the MAC address is 00:XX:XX:XX:XX:01. - redhawk
  • WDS and R/RB both will reduce bandwidth in half (but not necessarily for wired clients (TODO:Confirm))
  • WDS must be configured on both routers (requires access) and require a compatible WDS implementation. R/RB only needs to configure the repeater and doesn't rely on the main-router's HW or firmware version.
  • WDS may not support WPA2, it can be setup, but is just ignored (TODO: Confirm). R/RB support all encryption algorithms.
  • WDS supports building a network of routers, where each repeater can connect to multiple other "main-routers" (WAN-routers) at the same time (TODO: Confirm). R/RB only connects to one router at a time, by SSID. Both WDS and R support connecting multiple repeaters in series ("repeat a repeater"), however a RB must connect to a DHCP serving unit.
  • WDS does not perform MAC address translation (MAT). R/RB does translate MACs : the main-router sees all connections from clientes which connects through the repeater belonging to the same MAC as the repeater. This causes problems with some applications which relies on a MAC address.

I'm still confused! Which mode should I use?

The following are just some general guidelines for helping you choose a proper repeater mode.

  • Use WDS if you have control over all routers and they each have compatible WDS implementations. WDS works well for repeating your wireless signal and/or connecting multiple networks together.
  • Use R (Repeater) if you don't have control over the host Access Point. For example:
    • you want to repeat a wireless signal coming from your ISP.
    • you're staying at a hotel and want to boost an otherwise weak wireless signal to your laptop.
  • Use RB (Repeater Bridge) if you want all clients on the same network but your host router doesn't support WDS.

See Also

Linking Routers