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[jinixris]

Hello, guys.

I have a serious problem with my DAP-1155 APs.

I live in UAE and the internet provider is Etisalat.
I have one main router after the Etisalat modem and one 16-port hub after the main router.
I connected ten DAP-1155 APs to the 16-port hub and configured them to receive IPs from the main router.

First time when I connect everything, I can connect my devices to the internet through the DAP-1155 to the hub, to the main router, to the Etisalat modem. But, after 10 or 15 minutes later, the devices(laptop and mobile phones) lose connection.

When I reset everything, it works, then same symptom comes again, loses connection.

I checked the main router(Belkin), then found the IPs for the DAP-1155s are not well managed by the main router.
So, I tried following;

1) I changed main router. I tried D-link, Belkin, Cisco. No difference.
2) I changed DAP-1155 IP from DHCP to static IP. No difference.
3) I connected only one DAP-1155. This worked well. No problem.

My house is a 3-storey villa and have 12 rooms.
Is my configuration OK? How can I resolve this problem? Is DAP-1155 capable to be connected through the hub?

Please help me, professionals....

[FurryNutz]

Link>Welcome!

Wireless Configurations
Links>Wireless Installation Considerations and Managing Signal Congestion and Good Neighbour Policy

• Ensure the default (dlink) SSID name is changed. Can be anything and not something that's already in use by any neighboring WiFi routers. Under Setup/Wireless/Manual.
• 2.4Ghz Routers only: Try single mode G or N or mixed G and N?
• Channel Width set for Auto 20/40Mhz or try 20Mhz only.
• Try setting a manual Channel to a open or unused channel. 1, 6 or 11. 11 for single mode N if the channel is clear. Each AP needs to be on a channel thats not being used.
• What security mode are you using? Preferred security is WPA-Personal. WPA2/AES Only. Some WiFi adapters don't support AES, so you might want to try TPIK only or Auto TPIK and AES.
• Try setting Medium or Low power output settings  on each AP and test again Under Advanced/Advanced Wireless.

[jinixris]

Thank you.

* I already changed the SSID name to avoid the collision. Every AP has different SSID.

* And my additional questions are as follows;

1) Can I use many (more than 10) DAP-1155 APs in a same network which has only one DHCP server? without IP collision?

2) Does the default IP of the DAP1155 (192.168.0.50) affect the function of the DHCP server? Do I have to change DHCP server option to avoid that default IP?
My DHCP server is now distributing IPs from 192.168.0.2 to 192.168.0.100

3) Why, do the APs work well at first then start to be disconnected? If I did something wrong for the setup, then they would not be connected to the internet. But they are working well for the first 10 or 15 minutes. Then starts not to work....This is the question and problem that I have...

[FurryNutz]

the AP can use the same SSID if the channels are different so roaming can be used...

Each AP should be set for a different static IP address other than .50.

Yes, .50 will impact DHCP server I would presume if too many are online.

APs are disconnecting due to channels being used up, close proximity and having too many APs...Is this for a business or home use?

I recommend phone contacting your regional D-Link support office and inquire for help and information on having many APs connected.

[DennisOlof1]

jinixris, hmm

1. Use different SSID for every AP, keep it nice and clean. Plus it is easy for anyone who is connecting to see that all APs are on the same network but with xxxxx-1 xxxxx-2 xxxxx-3 or something like that in the SSID names. Logic says that you connect to the units with the best signal strength. I would advice against roaming, unless you need that badly. If you have few units you can simply add all of them, with password etc and have windows connect and re-connect automatically. A sort of simple (or crude) roaming.

2. You can use a lot of APs on the same network (or IP range, like 192.168.1.X), I am unsure but there was a recommended maximum devices that you should not go beyond connected to the same range, has to do with traffic, congestion and other things related to tcpip but in you case, not a problem.

Do not forget, each unit uses UP a IP-adress and the devices connected to each unit (if everyone is on the same IP-range also needs a IP adress. If you start with 192.168.1.1 (the router, DHCP server), and then add 40 DAP-1155 the first IP that will be handed you to computers, phones etc connecting to the network will be .42 or something like that.

Since the units use "192.168.0.50" as a default when connecting to it with a single cable (you understand) it could work, but if you can, like in this case, DO not use that range. Go for 192.168.1.X instead. And you will not have that problem.

3. Another good thing to do is, using static DHCP for the units you are using, this way you can give them names similar to the SSID, and that way you will know what units have what IP-adress. Easy to search for faults and errors when needing to logon to a unit. But you do not need that.

4. Remember to place the units in a circular pattern and with the adequate range, each circle will overlap onto other units but as they are at the right range from each other, this will not be a problem and you then choose the right channel for each of them.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WLAN_channels

Other than that, your setup seems to be in the right order, do not forget to make sure that the cable modem (or whatever it is) Etisalat modem is in "bridge" mode, so that the router can do all the work. Otherwise a lot of things could go wrong and prevent your setup from working as it should.

Etisalat modem -> firwall / router -> hub / switch -> all the DAP-1155 units

You might not need that many units even if you have a large house, the key here is to check with a laptop or phone. You should have about 2-3 bars minimum for stable connection and good speed.

http://www.metageek.net/products/inssider/

Can be used on laptop, phone. It's free.

P.S. I take it you have upgraded the units to latest firmware version in case that could be a problem. But I do not have any experience with your units.

Can not help you out more, sorry.

[FurryNutz]

Thanks for posting Dennis, this is a good one. 

[jinixris]

Thank you guys,

But I'm still suffering from the same issue.
I'm trying my best to resolve this problem.  I don't know why the main router fails to manage IPs and loses the internet connection.

Well, there are 12 rooms and I need one AP for one room. I have many guests who stays in my house. They need strong radio signal when they stay in my house.
If they move around my house from here to there, from ground floor to second floor, will it be OK? Will it cause IP problem?

I have to resolve this problem ASAP because my guest are complaining about this.
I also asked local distributor, IT technicians and service provider but nobody found out the cause....

What am I going to do now?

[FurryNutz]

I'd phone contact your regional D-Link support office and ask for help and information on this. Having this many DAPS on one router maybe an issue here...

Let us know how it goes...

[DennisOlof1]

jinixris, ok. Most of my information in the my post is still valid.

IP problems, no, the only thing that will happen without "roaming" is that when someone move to far away from the AP they are connected to, they will loose the connection. This is in general not a problem when using wifi as most people do not move while using it, as it is mostly for laptops, tablets etc. If you use skype and so on, yes this could be a problem, but then again, the solution is to tell people to stay stationary when using the WIFI and the problem is gone.

And if you use the same password on all APs, and the are sorted by ap1, ap2, ap3 and so on, if people move from the room to the lobby, they just reconnect to the closest AP, with the same password. Not a big deal, and most people who have used wifi understand this. What does irritate people is if you have poor signal, or bad coverage, or no coverage in some parts of the building.

As I have been using DAP-1360s without a problem, my suggestion to you is to get swap out the firewall / router. And depending on what Internet connection you have I would suggest zywall. The only reason for that is they are easy to use, even though they have complicated options, and provide enough throughput for the network. Plus you can get them second hand or cheap if you need to.

I am still on my old zywall utm 35, I know it has a limit of 25mbit throughput (something like that, it is kind of slow) but as I am not using any advanced options (like vpn) and so on, more as a standard firewall it is great for me. Plus I only have ADSL 12/1 and I will never get any more speed from internet unless I get fiber connection, the phone line is maxed out with current technology and the distance to the phone exchange.

I have another system with a more powerful zywall USG 100 that will do about 85-90mbit throughput but that is because the connection there is a 100/10 fiber so I could not use my older zywall there.

Otherwise the best firewall for price / preference is mikrotik. And for APs it is ubiquiti. But that equipment is more advanced and a bit more difficult to manage or install etc. And in most cases you can select other stuff that is more easy to manage and will work fine.

P.S. You could try some other cheap firewall / router function just to see if you can get that working and get the Internet stable and working in your location. After you got it working (even if you have to get a it technicians to install it / fix it), then you can evaluate if you need better firewall etc.