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| docs:guide-user:network:wifi:dumbap [2023/12/19 10:40] – [Configuration via LuCI, the OpenWrt Web Interface] mopsza | docs:guide-user:network:wifi:dumbap [2024/02/01 19:55] – [Wireless Access Point (aka "Dumb" Access Point)] intro should be concise palebloodsky | ||
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| ====== Wireless Access Point (aka " | ====== Wireless Access Point (aka " | ||
| - | **Summary: | + | This page describes how to configure your device as a //wireless access point (AP)//, sometimes called a //" |
| - | //In truth though, a Wireless AP is anything but dumb, it just does not provide IP routing services.// | + | One common reason for this is to add additional wireless coverage to an existing network, maybe on a different floor or to cover a wireless dead spot. This setup is sufficient for small home or office network, but for larger networks a more sophisticated approach is often used. |
| - | One of the most common reasons for creating a Wireless Access Point is to add additional wireless coverage to an existing network, maybe on a different floor or to cover some other wireless dead spot. Adding a wireless AP will do exactly that. | ||
| - | |||
| - | The end result of following the instructions below will be a bridged LAN with no internal subnets. | ||
| <WRAP box> | <WRAP box> | ||
| - | **TL;DR** Here are the important configurations | + | Summary of configuration |
| - | - The wireless AP is connected LAN-to-LAN to the main router by some means eg an ethernet cable, | + | - The wireless AP is connected LAN-to-LAN to the main router by some means e.g. ethernet cable, 802.11s mesh, etc. |
| - | - The wireless AP bridges its SSID wireless interface onto its LAN bridge interface. Wireless traffic on the wireless AP goes to its bridge LAN interface, | + | - The wireless AP bridges its SSID wireless interface onto its LAN bridge interface. Wireless traffic on the wireless AP goes to its bridge LAN interface, then to the main router. |
| - | - The wireless AP bridge LAN can have a static or DHCP address on the same subnet as the main router' | + | - The wireless AP bridge LAN may have either |
| - | - The wireless AP' | + | - The wireless AP gateway |
| - The wireless AP does not provide DHCP service, DNS resolution, or a firewall. | - The wireless AP does not provide DHCP service, DNS resolution, or a firewall. | ||
| </ | </ | ||
| Line 21: | Line 18: | ||
| ===== External Videos for Reference ===== | ===== External Videos for Reference ===== | ||
| - | Several | + | Several videos are available on the topic which may be useful |
| + | Bare in mind they are somewhat outdated and generally do not take into account | ||
| - | + | Using OpenWrt | |
| - | Using OpenWRT | + | |
| {{youtube> | {{youtube> | ||
| - | + | Two videos which are outdated but explain firewall and APs: | |
| - | Two-part older videos which are considerably | + | |
| {{youtube> | {{youtube> | ||
| {{youtube> | {{youtube> | ||
| - | + | WiFi roaming is much improved in newer mobile devices so configuring Fast Roaming, aka 802.11r, may not be required.\\ | |
| - | WiFi roaming is much improved in more up to date mobile devices, so configuring Fast Roaming, aka 802.11r, may not be required. | + | This video can be misleading as 802.11r has nothing to do with mesh networking. |
| - | This video can be very misleading as 802.11r has nothing | + | |
| - | Nevertheless it may provide some background information: | + | |
| {{youtube> | {{youtube> | ||
| + | ===== Configuration via LuCI ===== | ||
| - | ===== Configuration via LuCI, the OpenWrt Web Interface ===== | + | These instructions refer to the interface found in OpenWrt 23.05. The interface of v21 upwards differs in significant ways from earlier |
| - | + | ||
| - | These instructions | + | |
| This setup requires two routers, a computer with an Ethernet port, and an Ethernet cable. | This setup requires two routers, a computer with an Ethernet port, and an Ethernet cable. | ||
| Disconnect the wireless AP from your network.\\ | Disconnect the wireless AP from your network.\\ | ||
| - | Use an Ethernet cable to connect your computer | + | Use an Ethernet cable to connect your computer to one of the LAN ports (not the // |
| - | If you use a notebook, | + | If you use a notebook, turn off WiFi while configuring your AP to only have one IP connection, a wired one, to your "to be" configured |
| - | From a browser | + | From a browser, navigate to LuCI by going to http:// |
| - | Change the admin password if necessary. | + | |
| | | ||
| - | {{: | + | {{: |
| Go to //Network -> Interfaces// | Go to //Network -> Interfaces// | ||
| - | {{: | + | {{: |
| It is best to configure the wireless AP to use DHCP to obtain an address from the main router,\\ | It is best to configure the wireless AP to use DHCP to obtain an address from the main router,\\ | ||
| - | but HERE we will configure | + | but this guide will show how to do it the alternative way - by configuring |
| + | |||
| + | Give the wireless AP an IP address "next to" your main router.\\ | ||
| By default, the main router will have an address of 192.168.1.1, | By default, the main router will have an address of 192.168.1.1, | ||
| The address should be on the same subnet as your main router but out of the DHCP range used when assigning addresses to connected devices.\\ | The address should be on the same subnet as your main router but out of the DHCP range used when assigning addresses to connected devices.\\ | ||
| - | By default, that means the wireless AP router IP should be between 192.168.1.2 and 192.168.1.100.)\\ | + | By default, that means the wireless AP router IP should be between 192.168.1.2 and 192.168.1.100.\\ |
| - | If you're adding multiple wireless | + | If you're adding multiple wireless |
| Save and apply the new IP address. | Save and apply the new IP address. | ||
| | | ||
| - | {{: | + | {{: |
| | | ||
| - | A warning screen will apear because you changed the routers IP to 192.168.1.2. . Press "Apply and keep settings" | + | A warning screen will apear because you changed the routers IP to 192.168.1.2. Press "Apply and keep settings" |
| Navigate back to the address you assigned in the previous step (say, http:// | Navigate back to the address you assigned in the previous step (say, http:// | ||
| Line 78: | Line 72: | ||
| Login in your router and go back to //Network -> Interfaces//, | Login in your router and go back to //Network -> Interfaces//, | ||
| - | {{: | + | {{: |
| | | ||
| Change the IPv4 gateway to point to your main router, 192.168.1.1 by default. | Change the IPv4 gateway to point to your main router, 192.168.1.1 by default. | ||
| | | ||
| - | {{: | + | {{: |
| | | ||
| Use the main router (192.168.1.1) for DNS. Same page but the //Advanced Settings// tab. Enter the IP of your main router in the //Use custom DNS servers// field and click //+//. | Use the main router (192.168.1.1) for DNS. Same page but the //Advanced Settings// tab. Enter the IP of your main router in the //Use custom DNS servers// field and click //+//. | ||
| | | ||
| - | {{: | + | {{: |
| | | ||
| Use the main router for DHCP (and disable DHCP for the Wireless AP). Same page again, now the //DHCP Server// tab. Ensure the //Ignore interface// checkbox is checked.\\ | Use the main router for DHCP (and disable DHCP for the Wireless AP). Same page again, now the //DHCP Server// tab. Ensure the //Ignore interface// checkbox is checked.\\ | ||
| | | ||
| - | {{: | + | {{: |
| | | ||
| Disable IPv6 DHCP. Same page, //DHCP Server// tab again, but click on the //IPv6 Settings// sub-tab. | Disable IPv6 DHCP. Same page, //DHCP Server// tab again, but click on the //IPv6 Settings// sub-tab. | ||
| Line 96: | Line 90: | ||
| Press " | Press " | ||
| | | ||
| - | {{: | + | {{: |
| | | ||
| - | On the " | + | On the " |
| + | Most important steps are done, your wireless | ||
| + | |||
| + | Review | ||
| If you plan to add a " | If you plan to add a " | ||
| - | **DO NOT do the next steps** regarding turning off services labeled // | + | **do not** do the next steps regarding turning off services labeled // |
| - | because your guest network will need this services.\\ | + | Deleting the WAN / WAN6 interfaces is compatible with having a GUEST network |
| - | Deleting the WAN / WAN6 interfaces | + | |
| | | ||
| - | - To save resources on the wireless AP router, disable | + | - To save resources on the wireless AP router, disable unneeded services. |
| - Optionally, remove or disable the //WAN// and //WAN6// interfaces. | - Optionally, remove or disable the //WAN// and //WAN6// interfaces. | ||
| - //Note that by default OpenWrt does not enable wireless access.// | - //Note that by default OpenWrt does not enable wireless access.// | ||
| Click the //Save and Apply// button.\\ | Click the //Save and Apply// button.\\ | ||
| - | + | ||
| - | | + | |
| Use an Ethernet cable to connect one of the LAN ports on your main router to one of the LAN ports (**not** the // | Use an Ethernet cable to connect one of the LAN ports on your main router to one of the LAN ports (**not** the // | ||
| You may need to reboot or power cycle either or both routers, the device connecting your main router to the Internet, and potentially any connected devices. | You may need to reboot or power cycle either or both routers, the device connecting your main router to the Internet, and potentially any connected devices. | ||
| Line 148: | Line 143: | ||
| </ | </ | ||
| - | Switch configuration on WR1043ND (barrier breaker): | + | Switch configuration on WR1043ND (barrier breaker). |
| < | < | ||
| Line 177: | Line 172: | ||
| option proto ' | option proto ' | ||
| </ | </ | ||
| + | |||
| === Switch and dedicated WAN devices post 21.01 === | === Switch and dedicated WAN devices post 21.01 === | ||
| - | The syntax is slightly different for these devices. You will notice that there is a config device which lists the ethernet port(s) assigned to an interface (in this case the br-lan). It will also list the assigned port under the "list ports" clause. The gotcha here is that you must add a separate line for each "list ports" added to a device. If you try to add them to one "list ports" entry space or comma separated it will not work properly. Finally you can remove/ | + | The syntax is slightly different for these devices. You will notice that there is a config device which lists the ethernet port(s) assigned to an interface (in this case the br-lan). It will also list the assigned port under the "list ports" clause. The gotcha here is that you must add a separate line for each "list ports" added to a device. If you try to add them to one "list ports" entry space or comma separated it will not work properly. Finally you can remove/ |
| < | < | ||
| option name ' | option name ' | ||
| Line 191: | Line 187: | ||
| option ipaddr ' | option ipaddr ' | ||
| </ | </ | ||
| + | |||
| ==== Step 2: Change the existing wireless network ==== | ==== Step 2: Change the existing wireless network ==== | ||
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| option reqprefix ' | option reqprefix ' | ||
| </ | </ | ||
| + | |||
| ===== Disable Daemons Persistently ===== | ===== Disable Daemons Persistently ===== | ||
| Note that although the start-up of daemons such as firewall, dnsmasq, wpa_supplicant and optionally odhcpd have been set to disabled, when a new image is flashed to the device, they will be re-enabled. | Note that although the start-up of daemons such as firewall, dnsmasq, wpa_supplicant and optionally odhcpd have been set to disabled, when a new image is flashed to the device, they will be re-enabled. | ||
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| rm / | rm / | ||
| - | </ | + | </ |
| - | ===== Populate | + | |
| - | Dumb APs will not have the data to display | + | ===== Populate |
| + | Dumb APs will not have the data to display hostnames of the associated devices. | ||
| On the router, one can extract this data with the following one-liner: | On the router, one can extract this data with the following one-liner: | ||
| Line 294: | Line 293: | ||
| ===== Multicast ===== | ===== Multicast ===== | ||
| - | DLNA and UPnP clients and printer or SMB discovery protocols | + | DLNA and UPnP clients, and printer or SMB discovery protocols tend to work by using multicast packets. For example |
| On WiFi the //slowest// modulation available is used for multicast packets (so that everyone can hear them). If you have " | On WiFi the //slowest// modulation available is used for multicast packets (so that everyone can hear them). If you have " | ||
| Line 302: | Line 301: | ||
| ==== Notes: ==== | ==== Notes: ==== | ||
| - | * //The Dumb AP wireless can be configured to control access as Open/ | + | * //Dumb AP wireless can be configured to control access as Open/ |
| * //' | * //' | ||
| * //This recipe is similar to the " | * //This recipe is similar to the " | ||
| * //Firewall bridge mode support in OpenWrt is provided by the [[packages: | * //Firewall bridge mode support in OpenWrt is provided by the [[packages: | ||