Adding a 2nd Wireless Router to use as a network switch

Question

I have bought a Netgear N300 Wireless Router (WNR2000v3) and am attempting to use it as a wireless switch. A.K.A. I am tying to connect 2 wired devices on the 2nd floor (desktop computer and game console) to the wireless network that is being run from the Bell 2wire modem on the 1st floor without running an Ethernet cable up the stairs. The problem being that I can't seem to figure out how to connect the two routers.

I'm not sure if I'm going about this wrong (could it be possible I should be trying to make a bridge connection) or if this isn't actually possible with the router I bought. If somebody could please set me straight it would be much appreciated.

Thanks in advance -Chris

Answer 1

I would see if your N300 supports DD-WRT (I think it does; I have the N450 which supports it fully), and then configure the wireless into "Client Bridge" mode. You are wanting to make a wireless bridge, so you're correct there. Once you have the client bridge set up, you'll want to make sure DHCP is disabled on the N300, and of course, remember that only the LAN ports on the N300 will work (the WAN/Internet port will just be empty).

Answer 2

If both routers support WDS, that's definitely the way to do it. You can't set up the router as an AP client because a client can only connect a single device. Make sure to disable the DHCP server on the router you're using as a switch. Also, don't connect its Internet/WAN port to anything.