Can you connect a router to a router

They should be identical to Router 1. Router 2 is not a wireless router, skip this step. Part 3. Disconnect the power from Router 2. Then connect to the first LAN port on Router 2. Plug Router 2 back in and turn it on. When the router comes back up, it will have the IP address you configured. As long as Router 1 has Internet access, Router 2 will now also be online. Anytime you connect a computer to a new network device, it's a good idea to restart your computer.

Connect other computers and devices. This can be done wirelessly, or by connecting Ethernet cables to unused LAN ports on either router. Enjoy your expanded network! James Kirk. In principle, yes, but it's not recommended. Not Helpful 12 Helpful To do this, you'll need two routers that are capable of wireless bridging. Most consumer routers don't have these functions by default and will require you to upgrade the firmware.

Look up information on "wireless bridging" and see if that fits what you're looking to do. Not Helpful 37 Helpful Using the same SSID and password allows your connected devices to pass from one wireless access point to the next without having to connect to another network. It also keeps the device from switching between different wireless networks if you have similar signal strength from both access points, as your device will try to connect to the strongest possible network signal.

Not Helpful 18 Helpful Of course. The more connections and traffic you have to a single outbound connection, the slower it gets. For home use this would only matter if you were downloading large files. Not Helpful 11 Helpful Certain desktop computers, especially older ones, may not have a built-in wireless network adapter, in which case you can buy and plug in a USB wireless adapter. Not Helpful 7 Helpful You can, but such antennas don't always extend the network as far as they claim.

Not Helpful 10 Helpful After I configured the slave router, connected by ethernet cable, the slave router took most of the power and the devices connected to the other three ports on the primary router slowed down or failed. How do I make this work properly? There is something wrong with one of your devices, most likely the slave router.

There should be no drop in power anywhere. If you mean a drop in speed, this will only happen if your slave router has a lot of traffic going through it.

Check what devices are connected to it is your WiFi secure, or is someone using your internet for free?

Not Helpful 5 Helpful Yes, as long as you follow the steps above, but replace the steps for router 1 to router 2 and router 2 to router 3 and so on. Keep in mind the speeds will slow down with each router you add. It would be better if you could hook router 3 to router 1, but if the distance makes that an issue, the daisy chain is the way to go.

Another router can't just "connect" to your WiFi. It would have to be configured with the same SSID and be added to your existing router as part of the network. It's possible for wireless keys to be cracked. It's also possible that a user on your network can contract a worm or other malware and pass it along to other systems. Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Bradley Mitchell. Updated on October 30, Christine Baker. Lifewire Technology Review Board Member.

Christine Baker is a marketing consultant with experience working for a variety of clients. Her expertise includes social media, web development, and graphic design.

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Thanks for letting us know! Email Address Sign up There was an error. Please try again. You're in! You simply buy a multi-port ethernet switch — they are readily available online — and connect this to one of the ports on your main router. Models with anything from 4 to 32 or more ethernet ports are available. For most home networks, adding between 4 and 8 extra ports is usually fine. You can then connect additional devices to this switch, which will direct traffic back and forward between the devices and the router.

For most home users, adding between 4 and 8 additional ports is usually enough. The same principles apply regardless. You may need some extra ethernet cables to do this, which are again easily available in lengths of 5m , 10m , 20m or more on Amazon. Cat 5e or Cat 6 are best. This is generally the best way for expanding a home network for non technical users, since there is usually no need to go messing around with any router settings. However, all this being said, it is true that it is possible for a more tech savvy user to connect two routers together, as long as they know what they are doing.

If you set the primary router on channel 1 or 6 and set the second router to channel 11, there will be no interferences. Every home router uses the default IP address, which usually looks like this: Your second router will have the same IP address as your primary router.

There is no need to change anything unless you want to configure the secondary router as an access point or a network switch. An access point is a device that delivers a wireless local area network. It requires a connection via Ethernet cable to project Wi-Fi in a specific area. But did you know that you can turn a second router into both access point and switch?