Routers

CptnObvious999 · Post by **CptnObvious999** » Tue Aug 16, 2005 11:58 pm

I'll be getting Cable internet, finally! No more dial-up! So I will have 1 jack for the internet but I have 2 computers in my house that use the internet simultanously (3 if you include my bros laptop, but he's hardly ever home). Now I would like to go wireless because the next Nintendo system is going to have WiFi and my Nintendo DS has WiFi so that way I could use they easily over the internet. The only problem is I don't know how well Linux supports Wireless adapters. Could anyone recomend a good WiFi adapter and maybe even a wireless router? A builtin firewall would be nice too

bosshoff · Post by **bosshoff** » Wed Aug 17, 2005 10:06 am

If you have an old p1 or p2 lying around, I highly suggest using that. Buy a few NICs for like $2 a piece, a wifi NIC for like $10, and hook it up. You won't be able to plug and play, but there are some really nice advantages to using a regular computer for a router:

You can run dns caching and/or authoritative services
You can implement a tried and true firewall (iptables), which you will need for NAT anyway
You will gain a lot of knowledge about how linux does networking

I think the last reason is the sticking point. I have learned so much about how packets are treated by routers after reading the iptables man page.

If you want a minimalist box to run this stuff on, I suggest Gentoo. They even have a home router guide, which really can't be used until you install it.

http://www.gentoo.org/doc/en/home-router-howto.xml

CptnObvious999 · Post by **CptnObvious999** » Wed Aug 17, 2005 1:24 pm

I don't really have any old computers, most I raid for good parts and give some to friends and such. Besides the fact that me setting up another computer to run permenantley might freak out my mom.

bosshoff · Post by **bosshoff** » Wed Aug 17, 2005 2:50 pm

Well, whatever floats your boat. Oh, and by the way, almost every wireless card works on Linux. If they don't work natively in Linux, you can use ndiswrapper to use a windoze xp driver, which has saved me in the past.

CptnObvious999 · Post by **CptnObvious999** » Wed Aug 17, 2005 4:17 pm

bosshoff wrote:Well, whatever floats your boat. Oh, and by the way, almost every wireless card works on Linux. If they don't work natively in Linux, you can use ndiswrapper to use a windoze xp driver, which has saved me in the past.

Ok Im probly going to get:
GIGABYTE GN-WPEAG PCI Wireless Network Adapter
Zonet ZSR2104WE Wireless Broadband Router

Post by **dann** » Wed Aug 17, 2005 5:02 pm

According to the Linuxquestions.org HCL this card will work with ndiswrapper:

http://www.linuxquestions.org/hcl/showp ... oduct=1927

Should you want a card natively support by the kernel without having to use ndiswrapper.

I hear aironet cards work really well.

Wireless support is such a pain in the ass that it is a good idea to look around at what is available and then head over the the LQ HCL or do a search for linux and the card in question. That should give you a pretty good start on whether the card works natively or with a work around like ndiswrapper.

Be cautions of any version numbers as some cards change chipsets so what worked as a past version may not work in the latest version of the product.

bosshoff · Post by **bosshoff** » Wed Aug 17, 2005 8:17 pm

Yeah, the native Linux things will give you extra goodies, like monitoring and statistics...and I hear they are needed if you plan on cracking any wireless encryption

I have also heard that the Prism 2.5 chipsets are the best for Linux. If I were going to buy another wireless card, I would definetely go for this one:

http://moonblinkwifi.com/pd_zcom.cfm

It is the card used by the dudes to set the record for unamplified wireless transmission (175 miles!!!). It might be a little overkill for your situation, though.

CptnObvious999 · Post by **CptnObvious999** » Wed Aug 17, 2005 9:24 pm

bosshoff wrote:Yeah, the native Linux things will give you extra goodies, like monitoring and statistics...and I hear they are needed if you plan on cracking any wireless encryption

I have also heard that the Prism 2.5 chipsets are the best for Linux. If I were going to buy another wireless card, I would definetely go for this one:

http://moonblinkwifi.com/pd_zcom.cfm

It is the card used by the dudes to set the record for unamplified wireless transmission (175 miles!!!). It might be a little overkill for your situation, though.

Yeah a little overkill plus it's for laptops. I couldn't find any native linux network adapters. Could someone get me a link to a good one under $40. It needs to go up to 54Mbps at least. The aironet ones are very expensive.

EDIT: I might get this adapter. It says it supports Linux....although it doesn't say the brand so I can't search the HCL to confirm it.