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I am looking for a new wireless router that should automatically distribute available bandwidth to all users connected (up to 10 via wifi), particularly avoiding situations where some (one) user sucks all bandwidth. More than lowering downloads (P2P, http, etc) priority, the problem seems to be related to users watching online videos (youtube, etc).

In conclusion, what kind of QoS service should I look for?

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  • Do you need more fine grained control than what a typical router's QoS settings provide? Rate limiting based on the user sounds like it would work fine here.
    – rtf
    Dec 31, 2012 at 15:11
  • I don't' know really... ideally the router should be able to automatically stop users to steal whole bandwidth, or set a lower priority for "bad" users, or set a low priority for particular data. However I suspect some video streaming is being transferred over http, if this is the case I wouldn't be able to use protocol filtering without restricting ordinary web users...
    – Riccardo
    Dec 31, 2012 at 18:15

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It really sounds to me like any decent QoS feature will suit your needs; no need for anything too special. This is going to be more of an interface and design problem than anything.

Use emulators!

(this question might come in handy)

Your best option is probably to dig through the web interface of the particular router you are considering purchasing, and see if it will suit your needs. Why guess when you can simply find out?

There's plenty of routers out there that don't have an emulator out there. You could always dig through the manual, or skip those. I'd rather skip them personally.

I grabbed links to emulators of a few top selling (or at least most reviewed on Newegg as of 12/31/2012) routers as examples. Let's take a look:

  • Linksys WRT54G - Big no. Just one non-descript "wireless QoS" feature that's on or off.
  • D-link DIR-655 - Looks very promising! It supports IP ranges of both source of destination, along with some protocol choices.
  • Netgear WNDR3700 - Seems mostly MAC and port based. Would be a major PITA for your scenario.
  • DD-WRT - In case you're a fan of custom firmware. Again, looks like you'd be filling in MAC addresses

For ten wireless clients, I think a router that supports specifying a range of IP address for QoS settings would be ideal.

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  • Great! What do you mean by emulators? I have been reading some manuals, it looks like mostly as a lowering priority by MAC address as you say. Would be great to find a router that simply allows configuring a policy that limits each user to xx% of the available connection. As you do I'm reading each manufacturer manual and see how each model is configurable. I see your conclusion is the same as mine: limit by device/user/IP/MAC... boring, I know! As for the performance: 10 users will stress the router? How about Linksys EA3500 or Netgear WNDR4500? Overkill?
    – Riccardo
    Dec 31, 2012 at 19:30
  • I see what you mean for emulators
    – Riccardo
    Dec 31, 2012 at 19:31

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