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Connect existing mixed network to another wireless network.

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TheObserver

Programmer
Mar 26, 2002
91
US
Hello. I currently have an existing mixed wireless/wired network for my home. Everything works pretty well and everything can talk to everything properly (they can all access a network file server, print server, one another, etc).

I currently have a netgear wireless router that enables the wireless portions of my network to communicate and share the network with my wired portions (and an additional netgear switch). That's all good, too.

What I'd like to be able to do is add a component to my network to be configured to connect to another wireless network to provide Internet access to my existing network - essentially a gateway to another wireless network. The nomenclature that pops to mind is "bridge" (besides "gateway", but I think that's something else entirely, perhaps erroneously), but after looking around some forums, that term seems to be used in conjunction with adding wireless capabilities to an existing network (ie a WAP), rather that what I'm looking to do.

An additional consideration is that I'd like to segment off my existing network so that I'm not sharing my network components with the wireless network I'd be connecting to. An example of what I'd be aiming to do is sharing a shared neighborhood wireless connection to the Internet while maintaining my own wired/wireless LAN with no unauthorized external access.

Is there a preferred term for the component I'm looking for besides "bridge"? And could anyone recommend a good (and hopefully cheap) device to accomplish this? Thanks.
 
Router/firewall is the correct term for what you need. Routing between one IP network and another, and firewalling off your bit from the outside world.

A 'Bridge' has quite a strict definition, and it is not what you want.

What is your Netgear router connected to on its external port? What model are you using?
 
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