You can expand your existing wireless network using a special device - a repeater. It repeats (broadcasts) the WIFI signal of the router. With the correct placement of the repeater in the room, the network coverage area expands. Reception can be done at a greater distance from the router.
You can solve the problem in another way - use an additional router, connecting it to the main one. How to connect two routers? This issue is considered in the article.
Ways to connect routers
Routers can be interconnected in two ways. The first of these involves laying a cable line between them. A router receiving Internet from a provider is the main one on the local network. Another, designed to expand it, can be considered optional.
The second way is to organize a wireless bridge. It uses the latest technology introduced by manufacturers WDS - wireless distribution system. Both methods have their own advantages and disadvantages.
Cable connection
With this method, you have to resort to additional installation work on laying the communication line. It depends on the location of the planned location of the additional router. Over time, you may need to change this place. Special care requires the use of fiber optic cable. It does not tolerate bends at sharp angles. The cable line allows you to place an additional router at a considerable distance from the main one. This distance is limited by the amount of linear attenuation of the type of cable selected for the connection.
If you connect two routers to the same network with a cable, you can achieve stable operation of the network expanded in this way. The connection speed does not change compared to the speed in the network of the main router. There are no disadvantages inherent in the connection by radio waves.
Wireless connection method
The advantage of this method is the high mobility of the connection. The user can independently experimentally choose the location of additional equipment, based on the best quality of exchange in the network.
The location of an additional router at such a distance from the main one, at which the signal is still being received, is considered optimal. The determining factor will be the power of the WI-FI transmitters of the range of both devices and the gain of their antennas. It should be possible to orient them in different planes to achieve the best network conditions.
The exchange rate in a network organized in this way decreases due to the appearance of a relay. In addition, the impact is exerted by surrounding objects, which may be an obstacle to the propagation of radio waves.
Network setup for cable connection
How to connect two routers together in this way? First they decide which one will be the main one and which one the additional one. Higher performance routers are usually assigned as the primary. The role of an additional router is performed by a device whose performance is inferior to the main one. Both of them must work in the same frequency range and be compatible with each other in terms of software. This can be achieved by using routers of the same manufacturer. Two types of connection are used:
In the first case, any LAN ports of the primary and secondary routers are connected by cable.
The ISP cable is connected to the WAN connector of the main router. In the second type of connection, the LAN port of the main router and the secondary WAN port are combined.
The Internet is delivered by the provider via cable to the WAN connector of the main router. The second type of connection is more widely used in organizing a local area network for the home.
In the settings of the main router, make sure that the DHCP server is enabled. It is used to automatically assign IP addresses on a local network. If this is not so, then in the router’s interface on the page of the DHCP section in the settings, you should mark the “Enable” cell with a marker and save the changes.
Before configuring an additional device, a hardware reset is made with the RESET button located on the rear panel of the product. It is pressed and held for (10-15) seconds. The manufacturer defaults are set.
After that, the interface type "Network" on the WAN page indicates the connection type - "Dynamic IP". On the LAN page, you need to change the own IP address of the additional router and save the entered values. The change is made in the last group of numbers. Typically, an increase is made by one. This prevents a possible conflict of identical addresses with the main router. Now, to enter the interface of an additional router, a new assigned address must be entered into the address bar of the browser on the computer.
Wireless Setup
How to connect two routers via wifi? As with cable connections, a master or master router is assigned. It is initially considered configured. In its interface in the section "Wireless" (Wareless) should make some changes. The static channel of work is set instead of the previously set "Auto" (Auto).
The user can have routers of different manufacturers at his disposal. Their software has different functions. Therefore, the wireless configuration of routers is considered separately for the main manufacturers.
Connecting a TP-Link Router
The first step is to change the own address of the additional router (similar to the case of cable connection). A transmission channel is set, the number of which coincides with the data of the main router. Put a tick in the "Enable WDS". After that, in the added field, press the "Search" key, which launches a scan of the currently available wireless networks.
In the list that opens, select the one with which you want to install the wireless bridge (expand it), execute the "Connect" command. After this, the SSID and MAC address fields are automatically populated with the values of the main router. It remains to manually fill in the "Encryption Type" field and enter a password that protects the wi-fi network from unauthorized access. They must match the values of the main router. After saving the entered values, go to the DHCP section and disable it. A reboot completes the wireless bridge setup.
Connecting an ASUS Router
To transfer the ASUS router to the repeater mode, go to the "Administration" section in its interface. On its page, in the upper row of tabs, “Operation mode” is selected and the item “Repeater mode” is marked with a marker. After saving the data, the router reboots. In the next step, in the "Quick Internet Setup" tab, from the list of wireless networks found by the router, you need to select the one you want to connect to. This will be the network of the main router. A password is entered in the "Network Key" field and the "Connection" key is pressed. Obtaining an IP address on the network and subsequent broadcasting of the signal from the main router.
Connecting a Zyxel Router
How to connect two routers via wifi when a device from Zyxel is used as an additional? The manufacturer has designated the wireless bridge mode as WISP. After selecting in the interface of the router on the main page the icons with the image of the Globe, on the opened page, click on the tab "WISP 2.4 GHz", check the box "Enable". After moving to a new page and pressing the "Browse Networks" button, the device scans its environment and displays the result in a list. The following user actions are described in the previous section for ASUS routers.
Conclusion
All the methods described in the article allow you to answer the question of how to connect two routers to the same network. They are effective, tested in practice and allow the user to expand an existing local area network both using an additional cable line and creating a wireless communication channel.