What do I need to know about switches?

[Brannigans Law]

eh thats starting to get a little more complicated than i want

can I just do this:

telus fibremodem >ethernet direct to my main level counter
actiontec telus modem/router combo gets main internet feed
>> feed back to basement with another ethernet cable
>switch
>devices

[Rathji]

That would work, assuming you can do the cabling

[TheGrimm]

Originally Posted by Brannigans Law

eh thats starting to get a little more complicated than i want

can I just do this:

telus fibremodem >ethernet direct to my main level counter
actiontec telus modem/router combo gets main internet feed
>> feed back to basement with another ethernet cable
>switch
>devices

One thing to remember when you devices on your network performing the NATing function is that even though you may have them configured to use the same IP range (192.168.x.x, etc) they could be in different networks and as such you might have issues connecting between devices in your house.

That is why Rathji was mentioning a wireless "access point" and not wireless "router". If the wireless device allows you to turn off NATing and keeps you on the same network as your primary router it will cause wireless devices to be on the same network as your wired devices. This is great if you have a home NAS or server that you want all of the devices to be able to connect to.

The setup you want could work fine
(Telus Modem - With NATing)
|
(Switch)--(Wireless AP - No NAT/Routing)--(PC)
|
(PC)

[Brannigans Law]

So I would want to just turn off NAT on the secondary wireless device? I assume that's a fairly easy thing?

[Rathji]

Depending on the router model/firmwaren you need to either

a) Turn off NAT/DHCP
or
b) Enable Access Point mode

Both do the same thing.

You will also need to make sure they are both on the same subnet, and that the IP address of the one set to access point has a different IP address than the one acting as a Firewall. Typically, out of the box, your firewall will have a 192.168.x.1 address and your AP will have a 192.168.x.254 address (unless it is actually a router, then it will have a 192.168.x.1 address as well). The x needs to be the same on both addresses.

[Bean]

Piggy-backing onto this thread:

I'm in a similar position as Brannigan's Law but I'm with Shaw for our home. Would this be a smart setup?

Shaw router -> Asus wireless router -> switch -> devices & Wireless Access Point for upper floor

The main difference with my intended plan is that I'd like to keep the Shaw router in bridge mode, have a hidden SSID via Asus router which will then be repeated via the Acess Point.

If it matters, here is the hardware that will be in play:
Asus N56U router
Netgear 24 port gigabit switch will buy this: http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX14063
Dlink N645 for access point

[Rathji]

I am unsure what the router in bridge mode had to do with your ssid being hidden.

Otherwise it seems fine

[Bean]

Originally Posted by Rathji

I am unsure what the router in bridge mode had to do with your ssid being hidden.

Otherwise it seems fine

I've edited my post due to bad wording but I took the cue for bridging the modem from a previous post about poor home wifi signal strength.

It sort of seems silly to have two modems one after the other, I don't know much about networking but it seems like I've added another element to slow things down.

[Rathji]

ok, so the issue here is you are getting some things mixed up, terminology wise.

The shaw modem has a built in router. If you put it into bridge mode, it bypasses that router, so it is just a modem.

Then you plug in your existing wifi router, configure it (and your access point) however you like.

At this point, you have a single modem, single router and other devices connected to the network.