I wanti to hook a linksys router to my 2wire modem/router (2701HG-b) to share the connection. I ran from an open port from the 2wire to the WAN port of the linksys but it will not work.

I did this before with my cable modem to a router to my linksys router. It worked then but not now. I read I can turn the 2 wire into a modem only but I need the 2wire wireless access also. IPCONFIG /ALL sees the 2wire with IP info as well as dhcp server/gateway. Any ideas?

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6 Answers

Do you want to use the 2wire as just a DSL modem or as your firewall/router? Its default configuration is as a firewall/router.

If you want to use the 2wire as a passthrough-only DSL modem, you'll need to look up instructions on bridging it and have only the Linksys plugged into it. The 2wire will not be providing wireless, etc., it'll just be acting to translate from DSL to Ethernet (Bridging)

  • Be sure you have your PPPoE login information - you may need to enter it on the Linksys
  • Connect to the 2wire and configure it for bridging
  • Disconnect from the 2wire
  • Connect the WAN port of the Linksys to a LAN port on the 2wire
  • Connect to the Linksys admin interface
  • Configure it for a PPPoE Internet connection
  • Connect other devices to the Linksys
  • Put a piece of tape over the unused LAN ports of the 2wire

If you're happy with the 2wire as your firewall/router but want to use the Linksys as an access point (providing wireless signal in another area, perhaps), the setup is actually much simpler.

  • Connect to the Linksys admin interface
  • Give it an internal IP that won't conflict with the 2wire (e.g. .254 instead of .1)
  • Disable DHCP on the Linksys (so you don't have 2 devices handing out DHCP addresses)
  • Connect a LAN port on the Linksys to a LAN port on the 2wire
  • Put a piece of tape over the WAN port of the Linksys
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your second set of instructions for setting up linksys as a wireless accesspoint worked. Thank you so much. – Naveen Garg May 4 '10 at 23:15
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Try resetting your Linksys router, you may have configured it for the cable specifically (with a fixed IP address).

Unplug any computers or other devices from the 2wire (except the router) and power cycle the 2wire. Make sure you have the 2wire ethernet going to the linksys WAN port (or just one of the ethernet ports if you want the 2wire to do all of the routing, in which case you'll need to turn dhcp and routing off in the linksys). Connect to the linsys router and configure it if necessary.

The 2wire modem could also be setup to only give out one IP, or only to a specific MAC address. Which is where the disconnecting comes in, in my statement above.

It also appears that the 2wire router you have, has a USB port, some routers do not work well (or at all) with both the USB port and ethernet ports in use.

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Sounds like an idea to me..I will try that now.. Thanks.! – Imajica666 Dec 22 '09 at 21:08
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if it works on your computer, then there is no reason why it shouldn't work on the Linksys' WAN port.

maybe your old cable modem was using a static IP address instead of DHCP. make sure to configure the Linksys router's WAN IP settings the same way you're computer is set up.

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Thanks...I was using DHCP before. I called tech support and they say I can put the 2wire into bridge mode and only use it as a modem then I can hook it up to my linksys but that would do away with my wireless which I need. Something seems strange about that..Don't know. Thanks for your input. – Imajica666 Dec 22 '09 at 21:05
Some of the 2Wire Homeportal units (like his and mine) have a router and Wi-Fi AP built-in (in addition to the modem). If one attaches another router, it creates a double-NAT situation and often times the 2Wire unit throws a fit and doesn't work. – krhainos Dec 22 '09 at 22:06
I also missed that he'd like to use the Linksys simultaneously with the 2Wire's Wi-fi. The 2Wire has a built-in router already and four LAN-side ports... So, I'm wondering if the Linksys' NAT is really needed -- could just turn it into a switch. – krhainos Dec 22 '09 at 22:16
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I don't specifically have that model 2Wire model, but I have the 3700HG-V (used in AT&T U-Verse setups). The 2wire Homeportal units seem to detect and know when you're double-NATing (as the Homeportal has a router and Wi-FI AP built-in and your Linksys is one as well) and either warn you about the setup or flat out refuse to work.

I'm not sure if your unit has this, but setup your Linksys as Tyler instructed -- and head to the router's admin page (http://192.168.1.254 for me) and look for an option called DMZplus. This option passes your 2wire's external IP address to a MAC address of your choice (your Linksys router's WAN-side MAC address in this ase) -- so your Linksys router behaves as if it's attached directly without a router in between like your previous cable modem setup. (Technically, it's a layer 3 bridge that passes all incoming traffic to the assigned DMZplus host -- so it's not exactly like a direct modem connection, but pretty close)

This page will also let you control which of the attached devices get which IP (in your case, just the router's WAN-side should be attached to a LAN-side port on the Homeportal).

See if that helps!

EDIT : I missed the part where you said you needed the Homeportal's Wi-Fi capabilities -- in this case you could disable DHCP on your Linksys unit and not attach anything to the WAN port. This way, you can use your Linksys unit as a plain switch to attach multiple computers using the Homeportal's router capability. You can also just use the Homeportal as-is since it features four LAN-facing ports.

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Awesome... I think your edit post is the way to go. Going to give it a try.. Thanks a bunch!! – Imajica666 Dec 22 '09 at 22:38
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Network Configuration of 2Wire Gateway plus Wireless Router

I have a network set up with a 2Wire 1800HG Gateway and a LinkSys WRT350N Wireless Router. This is set up as two network addresses, 192.168.1.0 and 192.168.2.0 (two Class C networks).
See: IP Address Subnetting Tutorial.
Network address 192.168.1.0 is assigned to the 1800HG and 192.168.2.0 is assigned to the WRT350N.

Computers on both networks can access the internet through the 1800HG Gateway.
Both of the wireless networks are active and use different SSIDs. The 1800HG is the high power/long range 400mW wireless and the WRT350N is the lower power/shorter range wireless. The DSL is from AT&T.

==================================================================================

The 2Wire 1800HG is used with its default IP of 192.168.1.254 and creates the first network.
This .1.x net is used to get a high power/long range wireless network with SSID #1 by taking advantage of the 1800HG's 400mW power. I leave this with the default WEP 64-bit security so I can use the label on the gateway to provide a key to guests easily (10 digit number in square brackets).
I connect one LAN port of the 1800HG to the WAN port of the WRT350N.
I don't have any other wired connections to the 1800HG.

You get to the hard core 2Wire 1800HG/2701HG Gateway configuration pages by using this URL: http://192.168.1.254/mdc.


2Wire 1800HG Settings

Broadband Link
DSL and ATM Settings
DSL Line Selection: Automatic
ATM Circuit Identifier: VPI: 0 VCI: 35
ATM Encapsulation: Bridged LLC
ATM PVC Search: Enabled
Internet Connection Settings
Connection Type: PPPoE
PPP on Demand: 0
Use the built-in hardware address.
Obtain Internet address automatically
Obtain DNS information automatically

Local Network
Wireless
Settings
Network Name: SSID #1 (Use the 1st name you want)
Wireless Channel: 6
Enable SSID Broadcast: checked
Wireless Security
Enabled
Authentication: WEP-Open
Use default encryption key
Additional Settings
All default, except Power
Power Setting: 9

Configure
Private Network
Configure Manually
Router Address: 192.168.1.254
Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0
Enable DHCP
First DHCP Address: 192.168.1.64
Last DHCP Address: 192.168.1.149
Set DHCP Lease Time: 24 hours
Public Network
unchecked
Bridge Network
unchecked

Firewall
Select a computer that will host applications through the firewall: 192.168.1.253
Maximum Protection
No NetBIOS (unchecked)
No Remote Management (unchecked)

Advanced
Configure Services
Routing
Enable Routing: checked
NAT = both defaults
Force Upstream MTU: 1492
Static Routes
none defined (none added)


LinkSys WRT350N settings

The WRT350N WAN port is set to an IP of 192.168.1.253.

Internet Setup
Internet Connection Type
Automatic Configuration - DHCP
Internet IP Address: 192.168.1.253
Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway: 192.168.1.254
DNS 1: 68.ATT DNS #1
DNS 2: 68.ATT DNS #2
DNS 3: 206.ATT DNS #3
Host Name:
Domain Name:
MTU: Auto Size: 1500

The WRT350N network address is set to 192.168.2.1.

Network Setup
Router IP
IP Address: 192.168.2.1
Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0
DHCP Server Setting
DHCP Server: Enabled
DHCP Reservation
Starting IP Address: 192.168.2.64
Maximum Number of Users: 86
IP Address Range: 192.168.2.64 ~ 149
Client Lease Time: 0
Static DNS 1: 68.ATT DNS #1
Static DNS 2: 68.ATT DNS #2
Static DNS 3: 206.ATT DNS #3
WINS: 0.0.0.0

Basic Wireless Settings
Network Mode: Mixed
Network Name (SSID): SSID #2 (Use the 2nd name you want)
Radio Band, Wide Channel, and Standard Channel = Auto
SSID Broadcast: Enabled

Wireless Security
Security Mode: WEP
Encryption: 128-bit
(I'm stuck with WEP because of a few older wireless devices).
This gives a lower power/shorter range, slightly more secure 2nd wireless network with SSID #2.

Security
Firewall
SPI Firewall Protection: Enabled

VPN Passthrough
All Enabled

Administration
Management
Remote Access
Remote Management: Disabled

(Remote Management is disabled for both the 1800HG and the WRT350N).

This also worked on an older LinkSys wireless router, the BEFSR41.


All wired computers are connected to the WRT350N Gigabit LAN ports either directly or through Gigabit switches.
I can access both the 2Wire 1800HG Gateway and the LinkSys WRT350N Wireless Router easily from any computer on the 192.168.2.0 network.

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This is... so confusing – Simon Sheehan Nov 5 '11 at 13:24
I added some headings and horizontal rules to your post. It seemed like a mess of … stuff, hard to parse. – slhck Nov 5 '11 at 14:06
Very hard to comprehend still... Could you explain what each section or setting is doing ? – Simon Sheehan Nov 5 '11 at 14:10
What I'm saying is what you tried originally should have worked if you have the correct settings. The 1800HG and the 2701HG-B are very similar and the configuration pages are almost identical. So, I included settings for the 1800HG and the LinkSys WRT350N so you could compare. The settings are what made it so long, but I kept them in the same format as the routers web interface shows them. My setup has an 1800HG LAN output connected to the WRT350N WAN input, just as you tried. Both of my networks can get internet access through the 1800HG. And both of the wireless networks are active. – Plan9FOS Nov 5 '11 at 14:11
Thanks slhck, I'm still trying to understand how the formatting works. – Plan9FOS Nov 5 '11 at 14:14
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Cascading Routers, Connecting 2Wire Gateway to LinkSys Wireless Routers

Since my original answer got long with the settings, I've tried to make this post an overview answer to Simon's question. Hopefully this will make it less confusing.
If you find the LAN-to-WAN type is what you need, look at my other post for detailed settings for the gateway and router.


In general, you want to look for articles about Cascading Routers. Here are 3 good ones with the core of each in summaries:

http://www6.nohold.net/Cisco2/ukp.aspx?vw=1&docid=785463d9ecaf4cac84aed245b08d615f_3733.xml&pid=80&respid=0&snid=1&dispid=0&cpage=search

Cascading (Connecting) a Linksys router to another router

There are two ways to cascade a Linksys router to another Linksys router:

  1. LAN to LAN – Connecting one of the Ethernet ports (LAN ports) of the second Linksys router to one of the Ethernet ports (LAN ports) of the main Linksys router.

This connection makes the computers connected to both routers to be on the same LAN IP segment. This will allow sharing of resources within the network. For instructions, click here.

  1. LAN to WAN – Connecting one of the Ethernet ports (LAN ports) of the main Linksys router to the Internet port (WAN port) of the second Linksys router.

This connection makes it easier to identify which router the computers are connected to since they will have different LAN IP segments. For instructions, click here.

NOTE: If you have a modem/router from your Internet Service Provider (ISP), you can still do cascading of routers.


http://www.corenetworkz.com/2009/05/how-to-connect-three-routers-in-your.html

How to connect three routers in your network - Three Router cascading

To connect three routers in a network with full routing features we need to change the third octet IP address of the routers ( In this IP address 192.168.1.5 the third octet is 1 ). Many guys telling like it is difficult to connect multiple routers in a network. But following the guide below it will be a fun. To perform this follow the steps provided below.
We need to change the class C IP address of the router 2 to a different number. In the Image the router 2 IP address is 192.168.2.1.
The IP address of the router 3 is : 192.168.3.1
The points in connecting three routers are:
1. Connect the WAN Port of router 2 to the one of the LAN port of the router 1 using an Ethernet cable.
2. Connect the WAN Port of router 3 to the one of the LAN port of the router 2 using an Ethernet cable.
The diagram of connection will be like this:
Router 1(LAN port)----(WAN Port)Router 2(LAN Port)-------(WAN Port)Router 3


http://www.corenetworkz.com/2008/02/router-to-router-cascading-simple-guide.html

Router to router cascading a simple guide

There are two ways to cascade a router to another router:
1. Connecting one of the Ethernet ports (LAN ports) of the second Router to one of the Ethernet ports (LAN ports) of the main router.
2. Connecting the Internet port (WAN port) of the second Router to one of the Ethernet ports (LAN ports) of the main router.


I used the LAN-to-WAN connection.
I connect one LAN port of the 1800HG to the WAN port of the WRT350N.
Network address 192.168.1.0 is assigned to the 2Wire 1800HG and 192.168.2.0 is assigned to the LinkSys WRT350N.

Computers on both networks can access the internet through the 1800HG Gateway. Both of the wireless networks are active and use different SSIDs.

I can access both the 2Wire 1800HG Gateway and the LinkSys WRT350N Wireless Router easily from any computer on the 192.168.2.0 network.
Computers on the 192.168.2.0 network can see other computers on the 192.168.2.0 and 192.168.1.0 networks (they can see "out").
Computers on the 192.168.1.0 network can only see other computers on the 192.168.1.0 network (they can't see "in").
So, the 192.168.2.0 network is the more secure.

I have the wireless on the 1800HG set for SSID #1 and the default WEP 64-bit for ease of access for guests, and the wireless on the WRT350N is SSID #2 and will be set to WPA PSK2 Personal when I finally get rid of the last WEP device. :)
So, the WRT350N wireless on 192.168.2.0 will be more secure as well.

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