Home LAN setup

Wired and wireless

[Maxformed]

Not sure if this is the right place to post, but here goes...

Hardware and misc. - One cable modem, one G3 beige tower, one indigo iMac.

Locations - G3 in basement, iMac on second floor

Best case - wish to have the cable modem in basement run through router/switch wired (ethernet) into G3. Use some wireless setup for iMac access. Will probably be adding a PC to the network in next month or so.

I have some ideas about the router/switch issue - not sure what all I'll need for the iMac and how it will see the network.

All advice appreciated. Not sure what other info is needed to help.

Thanks,
Max

[Yidaki]

Allthough you might probably know it allready - this is all you need: Apple Airport [apple.com]!

In fact, that's what i work with right now while sitting in the garden. ;)

You can plug a additional - wired - computer into the airport. There's one port currently but you can buy a small hub for just a couple of $ and connect as many machines as you want.

[Maxformed]

Well, this may seem kind of stupid - but what all will I need and will airport work when I get the PC?

I was actually looking at a belking 4-port router and wondering how airport will recognize that?

Sorry to be redundant.
Max

[Yidaki]

>I was actually looking at a belking 4-port router and wondering how airport will recognize that?

The Belkin Router seems to be at least compatible with the Mac. Presumably it also works with the airport ... Review - Belkin 4-Port Cable/DSL Gateway Router [applelinks.com]

[ppg]

I've just done something similar with a Linksys BEFW11S4 - 4 port ethernet router and wireless access point. It cost £60 (about $90?) and was almost literally plug and play. I've just got a windows PC and a G4 powerbook hooked up to it at the moment, but I'll be adding an iMac shortly which hopefully should just be a case of plugging it in.

The machines can get a private IP address via DHCP as soon as you power them up, so once you've named your network your pretty much done. I need to do some more set up on the security, but that looks pretty easy through a web interface.

I'm really impressed with it for the price. It does port filtering, port forwarding so you could run a webserver through it if you wanted, DMZ support and some stuff with mac addresses which I don't understand yet, but apparently is a good security feature :-)

>added
I'm just using it to share Internet access though, not trying to network the machines.

[timster]

The Airport is standards-based, so it will suit your needs fine here.

However, when your talking about connecting several computers, an Airport, and another router, that's no longer a trivial network. You're not likely to find a tutorial that will step you through it exactly.

What I mean is that you may be in for a bit of a learning curve.

That said, you may be able to do without the Belkin hardware. The Airport is a pretty capable router by itself. Doing it that way might save you both money and hassle.

[Maxformed]

Well, found the old iMac wasn't airport ready. And no one locally sold the macsense aerorouter and usb wireless adapter/receiver. So I ended up snaking cat5 cable through the walls (pains!) and went the old way. Whew! Thanks for the help, though.

Max

[dragonlady7]

>windows PC and a G4 powerbook hooked up to it at the moment, but I'll be adding an iMac

That's MY network! Same router too!

Well then.

Wireless is the way of the future. I got rid of the PC and now we're all wireless. It's very pleasant, no wires running around the floor...
:D

[Fearless]

I must be an ole Crumudgeon...

I'm "anti-wireless."

Yes, snaking cable can be a PAIN but it gives me the things that I want more than anything else:

Speed.

Security.

Reliability.

(No wonder my kids call me an old phart..)

I put my three Macs and the Pee Sea behind a Linksys router (with the firewall administered by the PeeSea.. sigh) the Internet (and Roadrunner) only see the IP addres for the router and I live a virus free existance unfettered by worries of anybody snooping.