Help setting up wifi on a firestation (bear with me)

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Hi guys - I need some help, i have limited networking knowledge (read zero network knowledge) but I have been tasked with setting up an unofficial wifi network on my station to be used by the guys and gals for personal use during down time.

Now the problem is that it's a large building, the walls and floors are thick, the phone line comes in downstairs and we need a strong signal in 2 separate roomsupstairs.

The station is fully kitted out with a server and Ethernet ports in every room - currently I have piggy backed onto this network and I have a fully working router set up. The problem is that I need a strong signal in a second room. We have tried powerline adaptors but they simply cant cope with 4 or 5 or more simultaneous connections.

So my question is thus; is it possible for me to set up a second router, in the second room, and therefore have a strong and reliable signal in both of the communal rooms?

Here is a run down of my current set up (with pictures)

Private phone line comes into these 2 boxes which are back to back:

network8.jpg


Out of one side comes the ADSL splitter:

network7.jpg


The ethernet cable on the splitter is fed into the ADSL port on the server:

network2.jpg


Meanwhile the 'phone' line cable is plugged into a different port which seems to be at random as it does not correspond with the room upstairs in which the router is located. (so long ago i cant remember)

network3.jpg


The otherside of the back to back boxes has just an ethernet cable coming out of it:

network6.jpg


This is connected to an empty port on the server:

network5.jpg


And at the corresponding port upstairs I have a cable which connects to my router at the. This allows me to get signal upstairs.

network9.jpg


My question is can i somehow use one of the other empty ports and rig up two routers?

Sorry if this makes absolutely no sense or if I've not included essential information - I'm well aware this is possibly the most misinformed post to ever be put up on this forum. Hopefully someone who knows a lot more than I do can come along and help me out
 
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Hi guys - I need some help, i have limited networking knowledge (read zero network knowledge) but I have been tasked with setting up an unofficial wifi network on my fire station to be used by the guys and gals for personal use during down time.

In many organisations this would be grounds for immediate dismissal.
 
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I have permission from my line manager. We have unoffical sky TV as standard on all stations and this is a natural progression to have the internet- bear in mind we upto have 6 people constantly on duty for whom this is a second home.
 
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Okay, the final picture shows the rear of a router with both a phone (DSL) connection and a LAN connection. If this is the router you're connecting to where do those cables go to?

Have you got a separate ADSL connection you're trying to use, or are you trying to connect additional wireless kit to the existing network?
 
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The DSL connection plugs into the network port on the wall, this network port corresponds with the port on the server downstairs which the yellow ethernet cable is plugged into.

The LAN connection you can see is for the powerline adapter which we are currently using and finding to be inadequate.

I want to extend the wifi however, as i said, powerline adapers aren't cutting it so i was hoping there might be a way I can use the buildings existing network to do so.
 
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How many network ports do you have in the room upstairs with the router? If you have a spare plug a cable from the router into the network port to take it downstairs and then on your patch panel run a cable from the corresponding port to a port in the second room upstairs.

Then buy an access point for the second room and plug it into that network port.
 
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The station is fully kitted out with a server and Ethernet ports in every room

If this is indeed true then I think we're over complicating things. Simply plug a wireless access point into a spare Ethernet port in a room where you need wireless access.

If they've all got things plugged in then unplug them, plug in a cheap gigabit switch instead to effectively give you four ports where you had one and then plug back in whatever was in the port into the switch and put a wireless access point plugged into the switch too.
 
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In many organisations this would be grounds for immediate dismissal.

You'd be surprised... Many organisations don't follow through on this, certainly not in my organisation!

However, for the OP's benefit:
The server where the purple adsl cable goes is your corporate router with the corporate switch below this, don't meddle with this else this could lead to the above.

The black Ethernet cable with the yellow boots is a standard BT operreach cable, now this links to a patch panel where all your floor boxes / wall ports come back to, it's not a server but may link to other kit.

It looks like you have a BT Hub in which is what's putting out the "personal Internet" as opposed to the corporate connection. I assume that the cable marked 1 on the home hub goes to the power line kit? Essentially you need a wireless access point to extend the WiFi.

First locate a free port on a wall port and make sure that there is nothing plugged into the corresponding port on the patch panel, then connect port 1-4 (your choice) to that port. Then locate other free port in a room which needs the wifi and plug in the wireless access point there. Then link the two ports directly on the patch panel with a cable.

Make sure the ports are free else your going to cause problems on your corporate connection and the network admins won't thank you for that. Also I'd even label the cables so it's clear to whoever comes along behind you.

If I was the network guy and found it, I'd be really narked off... But that's just me and also do this at your own risk, if your line manager has approved, get it in writing /email etc so you have something it if goes wrong.
 
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If this is indeed true then I think we're over complicating things. Simply plug a wireless access point into a spare Ethernet port in a room where you need wireless access.

If they've all got things plugged in then unplug them, plug in a cheap gigabit switch instead to effectively give you four ports where you had one and then plug back in whatever was in the port into the switch and put a wireless access point plugged into the switch too.

The server and ethernet ports are for the running of the internal system and do not carry the wifi signal unlesss i can set it up that way. So not sure if this would work?

How many network ports do you have in the room upstairs with the router? If you have a spare plug a cable from the router into the network port to take it downstairs and then on your patch panel run a cable from the corresponding port to a port in the second room upstairs.

Then buy an access point for the second room and plug it into that network port.

I hoped this was possible! Yes we have free ports in the router room upstairs and free ports downstairs where we want to extend the signal; so if i buy an access point I can hopefully make it work?
 
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You'd be surprised... Many organisations don't follow through on this, certainly not in my organisation!

However, for the OP's benefit:
The server where the purple adsl cable goes is your corporate router with the corporate switch below this, don't meddle with this else this could lead to the above.

The black Ethernet cable with the yellow boots is a standard BT operreach cable, now this links to a patch panel where all your floor boxes / wall ports come back to, it's not a server but may link to other kit.

It looks like you have a BT Hub in which is what's putting out the "personal Internet" as opposed to the corporate connection. I assume that the cable marked 1 on the home hub goes to the power line kit? Essentially you need a wireless access point to extend the WiFi.

First locate a free port on a wall port and make sure that there is nothing plugged into the corresponding port on the patch panel, then connect port 1-4 (your choice) to that port. Then locate other free port in a room which needs the wifi and plug in the wireless access point there. Then link the two ports directly on the patch panel with a cable.

Make sure the ports are free else your going to cause problems on your corporate connection and the network admins won't thank you for that. Also I'd even label the cables so it's clear to whoever comes along behind you.

If I was the network guy and found it, I'd be really narked off... But that's just me and also do this at your own risk, if your line manager has approved, get it in writing /email etc so you have something it if goes wrong.

Thanks for this! So is the purple adsl cable anything to do with our set up? Everything was originally set up by the BT engineer and it does confuse me that we have our phone line into those back to back boxes and then the adsl splitter coming off on one side as well as the BT open reach cable on the other side which goes to the patch panel and routes upstairs to the corresponding wall port (the router then being connected to this port by DSL cable).
 
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Thanks for this! So is the purple adsl cable anything to do with our set up? Everything was originally set up by the BT engineer and it does confuse me that we have our phone line into those back to back boxes and then the adsl splitter coming off on one side as well as the BT open reach cable on the other side which goes to the patch panel and routes upstairs to the corresponding wall port (the router then being connected to this port by DSL cable).

The back to back boxes are just a convenient point :) the White cable into them is the BT multicore from the street, so you have two pairs active (one pair per line). Which BT have represented with two boxes, if you treat the two boxes as separate lines (regardless of the fact that a single cable comes in) then this should help with the confusion.
Don't touch the purple cable. That's your corporate setup, and links to the Cisco kit. Don't plug anything into that :)
 
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The back to back boxes are just a convenient point :) the White cable into them is the BT multicore from the street, so you have two pairs active (one pair per line). Which BT have represented with two boxes, if you treat the two boxes as separate lines (regardless of the fact that a single cable comes in) then this should help with the confusion.
Don't touch the purple cable. That's your corporate setup, and links to the Cisco kit. Don't plug anything into that :)

Brilliant, that clears up a real point of confusion for me as i couldn't reconcile those 2 cables with our router location up stairs.

So we've simply got our phone line box & BT open reach cable which essentially transfers the line up stairs via the patch panel. Upstairs I have the router attached via DSL and our personal wifi is set up here.

Can you recommend a reasonably priced access point which is compatible with our BT Hub?

Thanks again
 
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If you already have network sockets in the rooms where wifi is required surely just add a decent WAP. Whoever has the unenviable task of managing that network would I think then set those network ports to a separate VLAN to keep your personal network access separate from the rest of the network.

EDIT:

These two by Trendnet are very reasonably priced.

TEW-814DAP & TEW-815DAP
 
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If you already have network sockets in the rooms where wifi is required surely just add a decent WAP. Whoever has the unenviable task of managing that network would I think then set those network ports to a separate VLAN to keep your personal network access separate from the rest of the network.

EDIT:

These two by Trendnet are very reasonably priced.

TEW-814DAP & TEW-815DAP

Why would it be unenviable? I don't want to cause any issues whatsoever with the existing network.

If i use the set up outlined above by Chief Wiggum then would this ensure that the networks are kept completely separate?
 
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Why would it be unenviable? I don't want to cause any issues whatsoever with the existing network.

If i use the set up outlined above by Chief Wiggum then would this ensure that the networks are kept completely separate?

Some of what has been posted seems a little confusing / ambiguous...

Firstly the network sockets around the building are most likely part of the network install so most likely relate to providing the corporate network around the building. Certainly they're all going to most likely lead back to where the patch panel is, so should be labelled so that these ports are identified as separate from the corporate network and likewise in the rooms that the faceplates are.

The telephone / dsl back to back sockets seem confusing. From the way the black cable is described it sounds like the side with the adsl splitter, is the corporate connection and the black cable is the domestic dsl connection which is connected to a prefiltered faceplace. It seems the black cable is providing your internet upstairs but if this is the case why is it connecting to the switch downstairs or is that really the patch panel it connects to? I would have thought this would be connecting to the patch panel and jumpered to a patch port that corresponds with the faceplate upstairs.

Which port on the bt home hub upstairs is connected to the faceplate upstairs?

If i've understood this right and you have another faceplate port next to the bt home hub upstairs you should be able to connect another cable from one of the switch ports on the back of the bthh to a free port on the wall faceplate socket. Whatever port that is on the wall faceplate upstairs should not be connected on the patch panel downstairs to the corporate switch, instead it should be jumpered to a port on the patch panel that corresponds to the other room upstairs where you want wifi. You should probably use a different colour patch cable on the patch panel downstairs for any of these connections so it can be seen as a type of segregation, black probably if that isn't in use already, assuming the black cable from the back to back telephone sockets is part of this domestic service. Then upstairs in the room that now has a socket which has been jumpered on the patch panel to effectively connect it to the port on the bthh you can connect a WAP. Label the black cable coming out the back to back bt socket and put a notice explaining the black coloured patch cables are part of a separate network and put it near the patch panel. Label the 3 ports on the 2 affected faceplates upstairs to something appropriate to distinguish them apart from the corporate network.

The next problem might be whether one of the wifi signals is so strong that everyone ends up connected to that as you could end up with a slow down due to too many concurrent users on one device. You'll have to experiment whether it's better to have a single SSID on two separate channels or whether it's better to have 2 separate SSID's and if a user feels it's congested can then reconnect to the alternative SSID.
 
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It seems the black cable is providing your internet upstairs but if this is the case why is it connecting to the switch downstairs or is that really the patch panel it connects to? I would have thought this would be connecting to the patch panel and jumpered to a patch port that corresponds with the faceplate upstairs.

Yes that is the patch panel it connects to which corresponds to the faceplate upstairs on which the bthh is running.

Which port on the bt home hub upstairs is connected to the faceplate upstairs?

The DSL port is connected to the faceplate.

If i've understood this right and you have another faceplate port next to the bt home hub upstairs you should be able to connect another cable from one of the switch ports on the back of the bthh to a free port on the wall faceplate socket. Whatever port that is on the wall faceplate upstairs should not be connected on the patch panel downstairs to the corporate switch, instead it should be jumpered to a port on the patch panel that corresponds to the other room upstairs where you want wifi. You should probably use a different colour patch cable on the patch panel downstairs for any of these connections so it can be seen as a type of segregation, black probably if that isn't in use already, assuming the black cable from the back to back telephone sockets is part of this domestic service. Then upstairs in the room that now has a socket which has been jumpered on the patch panel to effectively connect it to the port on the bthh you can connect a WAP. Label the black cable coming out the back to back bt socket and put a notice explaining the black coloured patch cables are part of a separate network and put it near the patch panel. Label the 3 ports on the 2 affected faceplates upstairs to something appropriate to distinguish them apart from the corporate network.

Thanks for this. So assuming the above set up then there will be no interference between the corporate network and the newly established domestic network?
 
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Yes that is the patch panel it connects to which corresponds to the faceplate upstairs on which the bthh is running.



The DSL port is connected to the faceplate.



Thanks for this. So assuming the above set up then there will be no interference between the corporate network and the newly established domestic network?

That's correct, assuming it is as described then the two are segregated but on the limitation / understanding that someone doesn't change the patch cables on the patch panel without realising the existence of the other network, hence why it should be labelled / signed appropriately.
 
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