set up new router with router-modem

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Pat

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Mar 17, 2005
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I need to set up a router for somebody in another city. 

I have a modem-router.  Can I set up another plain router with my modem-router? 

Wifi login and pw on both routers must be identical.

Modem login and pw will be different.  Brands are different, so the web addresses are different, when I log into his new router to set it up.

Any special steps to set this up here before I ship his new router to him?  Any way I can tell when I'm logging into the wifi that I'm on his new router?
 
Turn your router off while configuring the new one.  Use a wired connection to the new router for the configuration.  Then test the WiFi configuration by logging onto the new router without the wired connection, using WiFi, of course.
 
Never thought the router part of my router-modem could be turned off.  I'll check that. 

The new router will need to be wired to the router-modem in order to produce the wifi signal.  What I'm trying to emulate is a separate modem and router.  Agree, if I can turn the router function off in my own router-modem, I should be able to emulate the separate pieces of equipment that my brother has.
 
Just unplug the power.  You don't need your router/modem running to configure and test the new one.  What is the make/model of the new router?  You will need to know how to configure the WAN side of the new router.  That will depend on how his ISP configures his modem and he should have that information available.  It's probably DHCP but could also be PPPoE (or possibly some others) which require login credentials.
 
He has two houses, and I have one.  All three router/modem setups are identical with regard to the wpa personal aes security and the wifi logins, so they don't have to figure out how to log into anything at any of the places.  But I almost forgot about setting up the wpa security. 

I did look up my router-modem (Motorola sbg6580), and it has a way to turn off its router capability and run it as a modem, so I can be sure I'm emulating what he has. 

When I load his new router with the identical wifi login, I can test it and the security with my pc and ship it off.  I love stuff like this.

 
You still need to configure the WAN side (the connection to his modem) to match the modem's requirements.  If that isn't set up properly, he'll plug it in and it won't connect to the internet.  If you can't get the configuration details for his modem, then set it up as DHCP, which is the most likely and probably what you're using.
 
I wonder if that's what happened.  His DSL service forced a new modem on them, and he's been having trouble ever since.  Previously all we had to do was configure up here, and he'd take the router home and plug it in.  I really don't want to drive 260 miles RT to do this.  Can't even pass this old router-modem on, since he's DSL and I'm cable.

 
Being on DSL, he may very likely be using PPPoE (or something else) and not DHCP.  If you can get him to access the Internet setup page on his working router and get you a screen print of it, you'll have what you need to set up the new router.  If his internet is working, you could use Remote Desktop to access his system and look at the router settings yourself.
 
Not much of an exaggeration to point out that it would be quicker to drive the 260 miles.  Plus setup time.

Just saying.

Agree, it's so much easier to see a screen print. 
 
When in doubt...

I phoned my brother's DSL service. Tech said they have a combo router-modem (no extra cost) that he should be using.  He's phoning them to get one.  He'll still have to be walked through to match the new equipment to the computer security so that all 3 sites match, is that's possible.   
 
That solves the problem of configuring the internet connection side, if the ISP preconfigures it for him.  For remote computer support, I've used TeamViewer for many years, it's free for personal use.  But it can be tricky using it for things like router configuration as one slip and you lose the connection.  I've done it but very carefully :)
 
Looks like everything is quite standardized these days.  All I did was establish the login and pw for the router and then the wifi.  Even the security was preset to WPA2-Personal AES to match the computers and Kindles. 

The most useful bit I learned was how to turn off the wifi on my own modem-router, so I could keep from confusing the two routers.  And how to turn it back on.  The instruction I downloaded had the wrong IP address, so I wrote the instructions in my notes.  I'll have no clue how to do this in a couple years when I need to do it again for some reason.

 
If you're using a modem+router provided by your ISP it will have the admin password and maybe the address on the bottom or somewhere.  If not call them.  Not many DSL providers are using PPPoE any more.  I haven't seen anything but DHCP in a long time.  Much simpler system.

I've been able to set up all but very old wifi routers using an iPad.  No wires.  You just need to know it's default SSID and admin password, both of which are easily found in the instructions (but you gotta read them) or on Google.  Doing it wirelessly is a little more complex in that you'll loose the connection when you rename the network (SSID), change the password/encryption and possibly some other parameters.

Having the two networks set up the same doesn't really get you much.  All portable network capable devices remember networks and passwords automatically, just select 'connect automatically' the first time join a new network.  The profile for that network will remain on the device until you manually delete it. I. E. 'Forget This Network'.
 
Admin admin as usual for the new router.  It's public info online.  I change it right away.

I have a password protected file with my setup info. What was new for me this time was turning the router feature off and back on in my own router-modem.  I love these combo units.

I set up all our devices to log into all 3 networks automatically. 
 
It might be admin/admin for that particular brand but other manufacturers use different defaults.  But anyone can find the defaults so you should at a minimum change: SSID, Network password, admin logon, and admin password. 

Sometimes I change the base IPA as well.  Almost all use 192.168.x.x.  You can change it to pretty much whatever you want. 

Use the latest & greatest encryption if you can.  Some older devices may not work though.  I had an old RCA video device that didn't work with WPA2.  I threw it away.

When I install a network for someone I try to steer them to a cloud enabled router so I can administer their network without actually being on-site, most of the time.  In your multi-dwelling setup that would be a good choice.
 
I didn't realize the base IPA could be changed.  That would be something I could standardize, too, because one of our routers is a different brand and default IPA. 

I use WPA2. 

 
Do use an IP address of the form 192.168.x.x for the router.  These are non-routable addresses intended for local networks and you will avoid any potential conflicts with other devices on the internet that may have identical IP addresses.  Some routers use 10.x.x.x but home networks don't need that many IP addresses.  In general, the default IP address range is fine, but feel free to change it, within the above constraint.  There is no reason to make both router the same configuration.  Just make the SSID and encryption key the same and everything will work correctly leaving everything else at the defaults.  Don't make your life any more complicated than necessary :)
 
I figured the IPA needed to be in that format, but I'll add that to my notes.

The wifi login has to be the same for all three locations.  SO much easier on the sys admin's nerves...
 
No problem making the SSID and password (encryption key) the same on all routers.  Each device will connect automatically to each router once it's been connected to any one of them.  Just don't let 2 of the routers be within range of each other or you will have some confused devices :)
 
6 miles and 130 miles.  Which explains why it's been practical to keep maintenance to a minimum. 

 
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