Topography

I'm away from home, on a training course, so time to take a metaphorical step back. And time for an update on the "tiny" computers I have scattered around the house.

After hours of poking at the WL-HDD, I couldn't convince the wired port to give out a DHCP address to an attached machine. It would, quite happily, bridge wired to wireless. Makes sense, then, to connect something with a static ip to it. I did, briefly, attach the Netgear PS110 print server, and give it a static ip. It worked, but I really like using DHCP - only one place to make changes and so on.

Luckily, there already is a static ip in my set up - the Safecom modem / router / wireless access point. Plugged the WL-HDD, set up as an access point, into the router, and switched off the router's wireless. Seems a bit of a shame to have an access point, but leave it switched off, but it does mean that all wireless in the house is now on OpenWRT. And that means WDS.

Wireless Distribution System is a protocol which allows a point to point link to be established between two access points. It doesn't work with a standard access point, only with other WDS access points. And it's very easy to set up on OpenWRT.

So this is where stuff is now:

Ground floor, next to telephone socket:

• Safecom modem / router (wireless off!)
• Sipura SPA3000
• Asus WL-HDD giving WDS link to...

First floor: WRT54GS providing:

• Asterisk server
• 5 port switch (WAN is LAN)
1. Grandstream 286 ATA
2. Wife's silent PC
3. Great big tower PC
4. PS110 print server
5. Spare port
• and WDS link to...

Second floor: WRT54G, just sitting there. But give great wireless coverage!