Wifi Extender/Repeater modes

Hi - this is my first post !! I have a question about wifi extenders. I've got a WAVLINK dual band range extender. I am only wanting to use it to extend the coverage of our main router to other areas of the house. I realise this is usually referred to as repeater mode, but this particular extender uses very confusing terms when choosing your preferred mode.

 

Basically the options it gives you are "LAN BRIDGE (AP)" AND "WI-FI REPEATER".

 

So clearly i want the wifi repeater. But once you've chosen that, you need to choose from either "Gateway" or "Bridge". This is where I'm confused, as combining the words repeater and gateway or repeater and bridge is not what you generally see!

 

What I want to do is set it up so that it DOES NOT give out IP addresses, with the main router being the only DHCP server. I want to keep the same SSID's as the main router and not create new ones with "ext" at the end.  It connects wirelessly to the main router, and no wired connections are coming from the extender.

 

I have it all working under repeater-bridge mode. But I feel as though this isn't right.. as I'm worried our devices are connecting to the extender and the main router intermittently.

 

The main router is 192.168.0.0, I have the extender on a static Lan IP 192.168.0.12 and my laptop also has a fixed IP. However the main router doesn't show my laptop as a connected device in things like port forwarding, so I feel that the laptop is connected to the extender thing.

 

My hunch is i should have the extender in wi-fi repeater - gateway mode?? But i wanted to make sure this just means it acts as a pass through for the main gateway from the router, and does not act as an AP or DHCP server.

 

In the past we had it set up giving out its own IP addresses (it was 192.168.10.1) and gave out addresses of a similar subnet) - but this is definitely not desirable. 

 

Any help would be really appreciated as google is driving me nuts. 

Edited by Kel80, 09 September 2023 - 11:51 PM.

When in comes to bridge vs gateway, keep in mind that with bridge it connects two different LANs while gateway is singular. It sounds like you want to use gateway.

But that aside, make sure your primary router is set up in an optimal position. Confirm that you actually need a WiFi repeater to extend you WiFi coverage. Try reading through this guide:

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2020/02/the-ars-technica-semi-scientific-guide-to-wi-fi-access-point-placement/

If just repositioning or relocating your router can extend your WiFi coverage than that might negate the need for a repeater. But if that's not an issue, make sure your repeater is located close enough to exchange solid WiFi signals with your primary router. If your repeater is too far way to receive a good WiFi signal from your router it can't emit a good WiFi signal itself.

Be sure to make a good assessment of your home network's WiFi so you have accurate numeric details to make educated decisions on improving it. If you have an Android device, use this 'WiFi Analyzer (open source)' app to make measurements so you can have a usable heat map of your WiFi.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vrem.wifianalyzer&hl=en_US&gl=US&pli=1

Or use whatever equivalent utility is on your mobile device (iOS or Windows). Make a measurement standing nearby your router for a baseline and then make measurements in various rooms elsewhere to build up a  database showing good and weak coverage. Check both 2.4GHz and 5GHz networks; It's a common trope to state use just 5GHz because it can provide faster bandwidth but 2.4GHz can provide better range and penetration -- i.e. a weak 5GHz signal is less reliable than a strong 2.4Ghz signal.

 

On a side note, an option is to switch to mesh networking. It's a better option if your home is relative large, approximately over 2000 sq. ft. or so.(for smaller homes mesh is overkill vs a good conventional router). A benefit with mesh is the mesh router and its nodes all work in conjunction with each other, sharing and extending WiFi coverage. With a conventional router it's always its own source that any other extender/repeater/booster devices get their feed signal. And mesh it relatively simpler to implement, adding extra nodes are less of a hassle. But you have an increased cost if that's a factor (prices are dropping as mesh is gaining traction.)

Thanks for your reply. Yes we definitely need the extender and have always used it but until recently I had it setup to broadcast its own SSIDs and so we had four SSIDs floating around the house (2.4 and 5 from the main router and 2.4 and 5 from the extender with different SSIDs). The extender was using its own subnet with an IP of 192.168.10.1. (Main router was 192.168.1.1).

I now realise it’s beneficial to our situation to just have all the IPs coming from the main router, and the extender just repeating the SSIDs from the main.

So repeater- Gateway is the best in your opinion? In this instance does “gateway” just refer to the main router gateway? I want to make sure that the extender doesn’t act as an AP.

We don’t need any mesh systems - we already have this extender and are happy with it.

I REALLY DO APPRECIATE the time and effort you took to respond to me so comprehensively!!

Well with almost every consumer local network you will want just one gateway and that will typically be your main router.

Well with almost every consumer local network you will want just one gateway and that will typically be your main router.

 

Yeh fair enough thanks for the clarification - I was just confused by the difference between Repeater bridge and Repeater gateway for an extender. They all use different ways of expressing the options. I'm on a steep learning curve here