kentcrane
asked on
Customer wireless access point for coffee shop
I need advise on a brand and model of wireless access point to install in my coffee shop for my customer's use. For a reason that I have not been able to pinpoint, I have repeatedly had reliability problems with the consumer type access points that I have installed. My Asus RT-N66U has just died after about 8 months. It is the latest in a string of failed boxes that I have used. I have considered the possibility that humidity may be the culprit, but I have lots of other electronic devises in the same area that have worked for years without problems. At any rate, I need an AP that I can connect by hardwire to my network and provide a wireless guest account for my customers that will shield my internal network. The area of installation and use is indoors and mostly line-of-site and will need, at most, about 60' of coverage. I normally have no more that 5 users connected at a time. I do not need any type of log-in for the customer, just internet access. I think that the porn filter set on my Sonicwall firewall extends to the wireless guest accounts. I have no plan to expand coverage or use the AP for anything other that what is stated here.
Benjamin Van Ditmars
What functionality you want to use. for profesional use. choose cisco, aruba or aerohive. they are maybe a bit more expensive. but they do the job for you
There are some routers that have dual access point (two SSID's for two networks) capability. You can have a secured business access point and an open "guest" based AP. Configure them for to be separate networks to isolate them from each other. Unless speed is a major concern, you can NEVER go wrong with the good ol' Trusty Linksys WRT54GL flashed with DD-WRT. 4,000+ reviews on newegg, about $53 right now.
oh, also... by "speed as a major concern," I only mean that the 54GL is a wireless G router. No N speeds. Fine for business and "convenience" internet. Might prove problematic if you have a bunch of people streaming HD and 4k movies in your shop.
ASKER
I've requested that this question be deleted for the following reason:
It appears that the 2 respondents did not read my question, but just threw out some generic commentary that did not address the specific problem that I am facing. I was hoping to get some help from someone that had some experience dealing with my particular problem.
It appears that the 2 respondents did not read my question, but just threw out some generic commentary that did not address the specific problem that I am facing. I was hoping to get some help from someone that had some experience dealing with my particular problem.
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"I need advise on a brand and model of wireless access point to install in my coffee shop for my customer's use. For a reason that I have not been able to pinpoint, I have repeatedly had reliability problems with the consumer type access points that I have installed."
The sole reason I recommended the WRT-54GL was because of it's rock solid reliability. I don't understand how this doesn't address exactly the question you posed.
"At any rate, I need an AP that I can connect by hardwire to my network and provide a wireless guest account for my customers that will shield my internal network."
The reason I mentioned running DD-WRT on the device was exactly because you can create two separate SSIDs with two completely different DHCP scopes and networks. More of that is covered on the help wiki for DD-WRT here http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki
By configuring your "guest" network into a different vlan, you can allow it access to your gateway (or the internet), but block it's access to your wired and business WLAN devices, which would simply join the regular business SSID instead of the guest one.
I don't know how you would think we didn't read your questions, when I know I specifically addressed all of them in my previous response. If you were unclear, you should have asked questions for clarity.
ASKER
Trenton, you quoted me correctly when I said that I will " connect the AP by hardwire and provide a guest network for my customers." I do not need a separate SSID for my business. At the end of my initial statement I say "I have no plan to expand coverage or use the AP for anything other that what is stated here." I thought that I was very precise in my description of the devise that I need. I am looking for a reliable devise that will live in an environment in which many consumer grade APs have failed. Perhaps the WRT-54GL would work for me, but I have low confidence with the failure rate that I have already experienced with consumer grade equipment. I thought that perhaps someone made a commercial devise that is of sufficient quality to withstand the temperature and humidity conditions that exist in my particular location. Thank you for your time, but your response makes me believe that you have not understood my need. Again, thank you for your time.
I assume you'll be using the sonicwall as your router?
ASKER
Accepting credit cards and processing over the internet, I am required to have a strong firewall as well as other security features. The Sonicwall serves as my firewall. It has a filter function that I use to prevent my employees and customers from accessing certain websites. The rest of my network is hardwired using a series of switches. My local network is peer-to-peer using (for now) Windows 7. I will probably migrate to 10.
the reason I ask, is because you will have to vlan whatever port the wap371 is connected to if you want to truly isolate it from your other network. You should also consider that your previous device, as a router, also served DHCP addresses, the WAP371 will not. You will have to enable a DHCP scope in your router, or in the sonicwall if you are making the connection there.
A router will naturally seperate network traffic because it creates a new network for your wireless clients, whereas a wireless ap like the WAP371 is more for connecting wireless clients to your existing network. It can work for your needs, but I just wanted you to be aware that the setup will be different. It's not just a matter of plug and play.
A router will naturally seperate network traffic because it creates a new network for your wireless clients, whereas a wireless ap like the WAP371 is more for connecting wireless clients to your existing network. It can work for your needs, but I just wanted you to be aware that the setup will be different. It's not just a matter of plug and play.
ASKER
OK, Thanks.