Hey everyone!

A family member has expressed in their Xmas wish list a desire for something to provide WiFi coverage at the other end of their house. They currently get WiFi from a router supplied by AT&T. Is anyone using a range extender (or similar scheme) that they like? I am still using the setup recommended here nearly 10 years ago which has been very effective. However, I see there are now powerline extenders and wireless extenders but I have no experience with these and wonder how effective and reliable they are.

If anyone has any experience with these devices, I'd love to hear any happy stories or caveats you might have.

sneakyimp It seems to me that wireless mesh networks rather than powerline extenders (in vogue a few years ago) and wireless extenders (similiar, but lacking in some ways) are all the rage today. There are a bunch of such consumer products available, e.g., Google Wifi, Netgear Orbi, Ubiquiti Amplifi, Linksys Velop, Synology mesh, etc. I'm afraid that I don't have any experience with these, though my wifi setup is arguably a wireless mesh network.

In my new place I am using a bunch of products from Ubiquiti's "enterprise lite" UniFi ecosystem: in my lounge, the fibre ONT is connected to a UniFi Security Gateway (a fancy name for their basic UniFi router that doesn't actually provide any additional security out of the box), which is then connected to a UniFi Switch 8 60W, which is connected to my smart TV (and soon, my NAS) and also supplies PoE to a UniFi Cloud Key, a UniFi AC Lite AP, and my Raspberry Pi. In the upstairs landing, another UniFi AC Lite AP is connected by wireless uplink to the UniFi AC Lite AP in the lounge, though I'm thinking of running a cable so I can power it through PoE.

The wireless uplink is basically Ubiquiti's version of mesh for their UniFi product range, i.e., it's supposed to be smarter about transmission of signals and handoff when devices are moved around, and you can control everything from the single interface provided by the controller software (which is one of the selling points of going with the UniFi ecosystem), but unlike consumer products it requires a bit of configuration rather than just letting the mesh APs work it out themselves.

      Oh, I realised that while my previous post answered your question, it isn't really helpful as your family member is probably not sufficiently technically skilled to be meddling with "enterprise lite" equipment, and you probably do not want to end up as the eternal tech support.

      My feeling is that if you want to give the family a simple Christmas present, then a wireless extender will do: potential hiccups with handoff and the lack of a unified configuration interface probably won't be dealbreakers. If you would like a grander present, then suggesting switching to a wireless mesh network with consumer-grade products might be an idea to consider, though presumably you wouldn't buy the entire setup for them (maybe you buy one unit and they buy the other, though note that some of them may come in a set of three).

      laserlight Thanks for your response!

      I'm very curious about mesh networks -- especially the claim of seamless traffic handling even as you move from hotspot to hotspot. Is there any way to emulate this seamlessness with a simple network consisting of two routers connected by an ethernet cable? My knowledge of network nomenclature is sorely lacking, but I think this topology would be described as a WiFi network with an extra Wireless Access Point (WAP).

      i'm also wondering if a mesh network requires installation of any special networking protocol or updated hardware on client devices (computers, laptops, TVs, phones, tablets, gaming consoles, etc.). From the descriptions I've read, it doesn't sound like you do. Although I have seen reference to 802.11s.

      You are correct that I need a simple solution for my family member. A salient illustration of the technical competency is the fact that they have a laptop they can't use because they forgot the password. I only just reinstalled the OS last Christmas after wiping the hard drive of all the sluggish cruft. Other concerns for the mesh network products you describe is cost. They all seem to start around $200-300 for any functioning system. For myself, I'm concerned about privacy. All of those products appear to have network-enabled features and phone app installations that suggest the vendors will be rifling through your phone and correlating network stats with your account in some nefarious data profiling operation.

      I'm really curious about how I might improve my network to have a single network SSID and password that can effectively and quickly switch between hotspots. I've installed DD-WRT before, and have been very satisfied with the two-routers-connected-via-ethernet-cable-under-the-floor approach running in my apartment. It currently has two separate SSIDs but just one (bridged) network. The ethernet cable brings fast, reliable connectivity from my office (where the ISP line comes in) to the pile of TV devices (which are on the other end of the building). This approach requires basically no maintenance or configuration once configured and has been extremely stable thanks to linux-based firmware. Downsides are a) two differently named hotspots and b) a sort of dead space in the middle of my apartment, and c) devices often fail to switch to the nearer hotspot as we move about the apartment.

      EDIT: I've been looking at the DD-WRT Linking Routers article. It's not especially well-written, but does attempt to clarify some of the concepts involved. It describes:
      Access Point / Switch (connecting routers via ethernet cable)
       Repeater
      Repeater Bridge
       Client
      Client Bridge
       WDS
      * OLSR

      I'm still digesting it, and it's a bit confusing. E.g., it doesn't really clarify differences between repeater and client topology, for instance. I'm still picking through the article and the white paper.

          Why I say that the handoff thing is unlikely to be a dealbreaker is that the decision to switch lies with the connected device rather than the base station/AP, so if your mobile devices are too "stubborn", you would still have the problem where "devices often fail to switch to the nearer hotspot as we move about the apartment" even with a wireless mesh network. The advantage for handoff is that the wireless mesh AP may be smart enough to kick the device to encourage it to switch, and then when the actual handoff happens, it may be faster, e.g., using 802.11r protocol for fast roaming, or some proprietary variant thereof.

          My impression is that 802.11s is about taking the mesh to its logical conclusion, i.e., rather than meshed base station/APs serving clients like mobile phones, every node -- possibly even including your mobile phone -- could potentially be an "AP" in the mesh. As a consequence, what we presently call clients will be more intelligent and so the issue of "stubborn" clients will be fully addressed, but then this does mean that all devices that are nodes in the mesh need to implement 802.11s, and I suspect that there has not been a high rate of adoption.

          My DSL router is in an outbuilding (my old office from when I first joined here and was working for myself). It does
          wireless and wired connections.

          I have a wireless extender (Belkin, I think) in the bedroom on that end of the house and it covers the house pretty well. It's about 30-45 feet from the outbuilding to the extender, and we have computers about 50-60 feet from the extender in the other end of the house.

            laserlight the handoff thing is unlikely to be a dealbreaker is that the decision to switch lies with the connected device rather than the base station/AP,

            This is disappointing, but makes complete sense -- unless you can somehow install a new protocol on your device. More than one of the consumer mesh network products you mentioned above appear to promise continuous connection as you move through your dwelling. Google WiFi says that it "Always connects you to the fastest Wifi point." LInksys in particular crows about "seamless roaming." Specifically:

            One Network and Seamless Roaming

            The name “mesh network” itself implies that every component of your WiFi system is working together, and seamless roaming is a perfect example of that. When you use a router and range extender combination, you have to switch between the networks manually as you move from one coverage zone to the other.

            But with seamless roaming, you only have one network with one name and password—that means that as you move about your home, you’ll never have to manually switch from one network to the other. So go ahead, stream video in the living, kitchen, or bedroom without worrying about buffering or a dropped connection.

            While it seems convenient to have exactly one SSID and password for your entire home, this seems like it might be a disadvantage if you get that same name showing up multiple times when selecting a wifi network. Which network is which?

            laserlight The advantage for handoff is that the wireless mesh AP may be smart enough to kick the device to encourage it to switch, and then when the actual handoff happens, it may be faster, e.g., using 802.11r protocol for fast roaming, or some proprietary variant thereof.

            Given that none of my current devices (iphones, ipad, laptops) document any support for 802.11r or 802.11s, I think this is unlikely. Please correct me if I'm mistaken.

                sneakyimp iOS has supported 802.11r for some time now, and so does Windows 10 and Android, though the latter probably is a case of your mileage may vary according to manufacturer.

                As for which network is which: this shouldn't matter since you should just connect to the one with the strongest signal.

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