This article explains how you can setup a local network at home using wired and wireless option. The first options shows to setup a local network for wired systems. The second option shows to setup the network for a combination of wired and wireless systems.
How to setup a local network at home for wired systems – Option 1
In this section , we understand the components which are required to setup a wired local network. Here we assume that all the systems which needs to be in the local network are wired.
Step 1
To setup it up, we would initially need to purchase a switch. Switches comes with different options like 8 port, 16 port 24 port, 48 port etc. Based on the number of devices, the appropriate switch needs to be purchased. Check out gigabit switches – Click here
For this network, we assume that there are 10 users on the network. So a 24 port switch would suffice. For better speed and performance , it is recommended that a 24 port gigabit switch is purchased. This would provide gigabit speeds to all the individual ports on the switch. Check out gigabit switches – Click here
Step 2
It is assumed that all the devices on the network has inbuilt ethernet cards. If ethernet cards are not available, it has to be purhcased. It is recommended to purchase gigabit ethernet cards for the devices for optimal performance and speed. Check out gigabit ethernet cards- Click here
Step 3
The next step is to connect the devices to the the switch port. This is done using ethernet cables.
Step 4
Once connected, the IP address for the systems has to be configured. Note that we do not have a DHCP server on the network. So the IP address has to be provided manually. The IP address from 192.168.0.1-192.168.0.10 can be configured on the systems. The subnet mask 255.255.255.0 has to configured for all the devices.
Step 5
Once the IP addresses are configured and setup, it is time to test the connectivity between the devices. Ping the IP address of the devices from different systems to verify connectivity. If a response is recieved then the network has been setup properly.
How to setup a local network at home for wired and wireless systems – Option 2
In this section , we understand the components which are needed to setup a local network at home for a combinaton of wired and wireless users.
Step 1
1. Purchase a switch Check out gigabit switches – Click here and an access point. As mentioned earlier, the type of switch would be dependent on the number of wired users requiring connectivity. An access point would be required for providing wireless access to users on the network. Access points can be checked out here – Check out access points – Click Here
Step 2
Connect the access point to the switch as shown in the below diagram. A wired etherent cable is used for connecting the access point to the switch.
Step 3
Once connected , the IP address has to be configured. An access point has inbuilt DHCP server in it. Configure the DHCP server to provide IP address to users on the network. The DHCP server can be configured to provide IP address in the range of 192.168.0.1 – 192.168.0.10,assuming that there are a total of 10 users on the network.
Step 4
Configure the Wifi parameters of the access point on the systems connecting to it. This would include the Wifi network name which is the SSID and the security key.
Step 5
Test the connectivity between the wired and wireless systems using ping.
Based on your requirement you can select which option is best suitable for you and setup the network as mentioned in the above steps.
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