Setup a wifi guest network
Hi,
I am partly responsible for supporting the IT of solicitors firm. They recently asked me to setup guest wifi access for their office. They have an existing wifi setup which is provided by a leftover TPLINK router which i just used as an AP. The router doesn't appear to offer guest access so i now need to consider getting a replacement AP that does offer this service. My main issue is working out whether the guest feature on an AP alone is enough to isolate the users who are logged on from the office resources or whether i need to do additional networking configuration. There is a Cisco router in place which is managed by another company we use specifically for programming it.
I would have preferred to not involve the Cisco router when configuring the guest network but i am not sure if this is at all possible.
I am not too fussy about the model of the AP we use , so long as its not over complex to configure, i have recently been using Ubiquiti and like the way they can be configured. It is a small user network of 5 users running off a Windows 2012R2 domain.
Thanks
D
I am partly responsible for supporting the IT of solicitors firm. They recently asked me to setup guest wifi access for their office. They have an existing wifi setup which is provided by a leftover TPLINK router which i just used as an AP. The router doesn't appear to offer guest access so i now need to consider getting a replacement AP that does offer this service. My main issue is working out whether the guest feature on an AP alone is enough to isolate the users who are logged on from the office resources or whether i need to do additional networking configuration. There is a Cisco router in place which is managed by another company we use specifically for programming it.
I would have preferred to not involve the Cisco router when configuring the guest network but i am not sure if this is at all possible.
I am not too fussy about the model of the AP we use , so long as its not over complex to configure, i have recently been using Ubiquiti and like the way they can be configured. It is a small user network of 5 users running off a Windows 2012R2 domain.
Thanks
D
masnrock
Tell us about your network in general. I'd recommend setting up VLANs. And if you're using a Ubiquiti AP (or any other AP that supports VLANs), you'll be able to create a guest network that uses the VLAN you create for the guest network. And in your case, a Ubiquiti AP would work perfectly fine, especially accomplishing what you want to do without creating a huge cost.
ASKER
Hi Masnrock,
Its a small 5 user network running on one IP address range 172.16.0.x - router is a CIsco 2911 (which i never ever touch). 1 Server and 1 virtual Server running 2012R2. 2 Netgear JGS524PE switches. We only need one AP as its a small office network. The server provides DHCP.
My concern is that i would have to Configure the Cisco in order to limit traffic
Is that enough info?
Its a small 5 user network running on one IP address range 172.16.0.x - router is a CIsco 2911 (which i never ever touch). 1 Server and 1 virtual Server running 2012R2. 2 Netgear JGS524PE switches. We only need one AP as its a small office network. The server provides DHCP.
My concern is that i would have to Configure the Cisco in order to limit traffic
Is that enough info?
SOLUTION
membership
This solution is only available to members.
To access this solution, you must be a member of Experts Exchange.
Ubiquiti has a guest option that will deny access to the corporate lan without having vlan. it will issue dhcp on a different subnet to guests and give you the ability to throttle bandwidth for guest users and a captive portal.
Most TP-links support guest networks and they do isolate the local network from the guest network. Sounds like you have the cheaper model. Just go buy the next model up, they are simple to configure. Set it up identical to your current router and then add the guest network. Their wizards are pretty good if you are uncomfortable with configuring networks.
Things to make sure about. The main network has the same SSID and the Same password as the old router. Check for any special settings on the old router and make sure they are configured as well. Then just swap them out. Your users probably won't notice. anything changed.
Things to make sure about. The main network has the same SSID and the Same password as the old router. Check for any special settings on the old router and make sure they are configured as well. Then just swap them out. Your users probably won't notice. anything changed.
ASKER
Hi - What i am trying to work out is how does the access point isolate guests from the network if i am not configuring the router, vlans or firewall rules in any way?
ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION
membership
This solution is only available to members.
To access this solution, you must be a member of Experts Exchange.
ASKER
Thank you both - i will go forward with the Ubiquiti solution.