A good gift is one that is made with your own hands (provided they are sufficiently “straightforward”). Well, the best router, probably, can only be homemade. Now there are many components that meet the mini-ITX standard. And in a compact case that you buy in a store, you can assemble a WiFi router with your own hands, working with only one screwdriver, and your head too. Here we would like to list tips that will protect the developer from common mistakes made when choosing hardware components.
Storage device
The task looks like this: you need to assemble a computer consisting of a motherboard with a processor, a case with a power supply, and one expansion card (wired network card). It is better to buy memory of the smallest possible size (1 Gb), and let those cases whose design does not allow installing an expansion card be left with the seller. You also need to take care of proper cooling. The instructions for the case may indicate the TDP value of the CPU, for which it is not necessary to use fans, but if the TDP of your processor is higher, then the recommendation cannot be neglected. It is better to use the following options as a hard drive:
- m-SATA (mini-SATA) SSD drive, if the motherboard is compatible with them.
- A device of the Intel Z-U130 class or its analogues from other companies (if you find it). Please note that such a drive cannot be installed on some boards due to mechanical incompatibility.
The most optimal SSD volume is 4 GB, and now we will talk about choosing a processor and board.
List of materials
Sacrificing price and power consumption, I chose the x86 platform for the sake of a modular, relatively powerful configuration that is available for upgrade.
If you don't need ARM, then you don't need a fan.
- Gigabyte GA-J1900N-D3V (J1900 quad-core 2 GHz Celeron, two NICs)
- Airetos AEX-QCA9880-NX (dual band 802.11ac, MIMO)
- 4 GB RAM (DDR3-LP, 1333 MHz, 1.35 V)
- mPCIe extender
- MX500 mini-ITX case
- Three dual-band 6dBi RP-SMA antennas + RP-SMA cable
- PicoPSU-90
- Spare HDD 2.5”
The housing is spacious, with two prepared holes for an AC/DC plug. Installation of the motherboard, RAM and Pico-PSU went smoothly:
Hardware porn
The most difficult thing was installing mini-PCIe WiFi, because the board only supports half-size cards: here the mPCIe extender came to the rescue. I used a 20cm FFC cable (included) to connect both sides of the adapter and secured the mini-PCIe to the chassis using double-sided tape.
mini-PCIe expander
Luckily, the case comes with three pre-cut antenna holes. Here's the final result:
It is clear that we are installing Linux. Depending on the hardware, this could be an optimized distribution like Raspbian (for the Raspberry Pi) or any other Linux distribution you like. Since I've been using Ubuntu for many years, I chose Ubuntu Server 18.04 LTS, which I'm more familiar with and has long-term support.
The remainder of this article assumes that you are using a Debian-based distribution.
If the installation went well and you logged into the console, let's define the interface names:
$ ip -br a | awk '{print $1}' lo enp1s0 enp2s0 wlp5s0 There are two built-in NICs on the motherboard: enp1s0 and enp2s0. The wireless card is displayed as wlp5s0 and supports AP mode, as expected: $ iw list ... Supported interface modes: * managed * AP * AP/VLAN * monitor * mesh point Now we can outline what we need: we will set the first NIC as a WAN port , and connect the second one to the wireless interface:
Short range base station (supports 60 clients)
Take note of the solutions proposed below, which can be used in areas where there is virtually no interference.
Rocket M
Up to 60+ clients can be connected, provided that the equipment used is compatible with airMAX. Due to the sensitivity of the design itself to interference, operation in rural areas is allowed.
Base stations with high performance. Designed for 100, 200+ clients.
Rocket 5AC PRISM with airMax AC Sector antennas
Highest performance when clients are densely located.
Rocket 5AC Lite and Titanium Sector antennas
Presented in several variations, applicable to models available to the target audience that has generated demand for the product.
Client stations
Net
If you have Ubuntu 18.04, we'll immediately get rid of netplan to return to /etc/network/interfaces support: $ sudo apt-get install ifupdown bridge-utils $ sudo systemctl stop networkd-dispatcher $ sudo systemctl disable networkd-dispatcher $ sudo systemctl mask networkd-dispatcher $ sudo apt-get purge nplan netplan.io Let's select dnsmasq as the DHCP/DNS server: $ sudo apt-get install dnsmasq Since we will be launching and configuring the dnsmasq process through the post-up hook, do not forget to disable the daemon at boot: $ sudo sed -i “s/^ENABLED=1$/ENABLED=0/g” /etc/default/dnsmasq Let’s write a preliminary
configuration of network interfaces in accordance with the diagram, including the minimum dnsmasq setting: $ cat /etc/network /interfaces # Loopback auto lo iface lo inet loopback # WAN interface auto enp1s0 iface enp1s0 inet dhcp # Bridge (LAN) auto br0 iface br0 inet static address 192.168.1.1 network 192.168.1.0 netmask 255.255.255.0 broadcast 192.168.1.255 bridge_ports enp2s 0 post- up /usr/sbin/dnsmasq \ --pid-file=/var/run/dnsmasq.$IFACE.pid \ --dhcp-leasefile=/var/lib/misc/dnsmasq.$IFACE.leases \ --conf-file=/ dev/NULL \ --interface=$IFACE --except-interface=lo \ --bind-interfaces \ --dhcp-range=192.168.1.10,192.168.1.150,24h pre-down cat /var/run/dnsmasq.$IFACE.pid |
xargs kill Documentation /etc/network/interfaces here
As you may have noticed in the post-up section, dnsmasq starts as soon as the bridge is raised. Its configuration is done with command line arguments only (-conf-file=/dev/NULL), and the process will stop when the interface is disabled.
The bridge_ports field specifically does not include the wlp5s0 interface because hostapd will add it to the bridge automatically (brctl may refuse to do this before hostapd is started to change the interface mode).
See dnsmasq documentation.
Now you can restart the network (sudo service networking restart) or simply reboot to check that the network configuration is configured correctly.
Please note: although we can currently receive DHCP from enp2s0, we will not have any wireless connectivity
(more on this later),
nor internet access
(see below).
We create a Wi-Fi signal amplifier with our own hands
There are many DIYers who have created their own amplifiers. Let's look at the most common and working options. You can make such Wi-Fi signal amplifiers with your own hands in just 10 minutes from scrap materials.
The very first and simplest option is to use a disc box. It has the perfect radius for our purpose. So, take the CD BOX and cut off the pin, but not completely. You need to leave about 18 mm. Now, using a file, we make small cuts on the spire for fastening.
The next stage is the creation of copper squares. We look for a wire 25 centimeters long and make two squares out of it by bending the ends. These copper structures are analogous to an antenna; we attach them to the pin of our disk box and glue them.
The ends of the antenna must be soldered together and soldered to the coaxial cable that leads to our modem. At the bottom of this installation, place a CD, which will serve as a reflector here.
Routing
At this stage, you need to route packets between the LAN (enp2s0) and WAN (enp1s0) interfaces and enable network address translation.
It's easy to enable packet forwarding:
$ sudo sysctl -w net.ipv4.ip_forward=1 $ echo "net.ipv4.ip_forward=1" |
sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf The last command ensures that the configuration will persist until the next reboot.
Network address translation is a different matter; you usually have to deal with (or rather struggle with) iptables. Fortunately, the Stone Age is long over, and the guys from FireHol have put a lot of effort into adding the necessary level of abstraction:
$ sudo apt-get install firehol FireHOL is a stateful secure firewall language whose configuration is easy to understand and access. You no longer need to write iptables statements: the configuration file itself is translated into iptables statements and applied as needed. No demon in the background.
Enabling network address translation for local network interfaces with the addition of minimal firewall rules is done simply:
$ cat /etc/firehol/firehol.conf version 6 # Accept all client traffic on WAN interface enp1s0 wan client all accept # Accept all traffic on LAN interface br0 lan server all accept client all accept # Route packets between LAN and WAN router lan2wan inface br0 outface enp1s0 masquerade route all accept
FireHOL is written by people for people, documentation is here.
You can check the settings by manually running firehol (sudo firehol start) and connecting the laptop to the LAN port: now you can access the Internet
, if the WAN port is connected.
Before rebooting, don't forget
edit /etc/default/firehol to allow FireHol to start on boot:
$ sudo sed -i -E "s/^START_FIREHOL=.+$/START_FIREHOL=YES/g" /etc/default/firehol I won't go into all the details firehol syntax, the configuration file is self-explanatory, I recommend referring to the documentation in case of more complex settings. If you're really curious about what firehol did to iptables, just type sudo firehol status at the command prompt.
Bridges at a distance of 5-15 km
LiteBeam 5AC-23
This solution boasts sufficient performance with a throughput of up to 450 Mbit/s and the presence of the AirMax standard.
PowerBeam 5AC
Versatile and economical to use with a bandwidth limit of 450 Mbit/s. We advise you to opt for this development if you are considering placing client equipment at 5, 10 or 15 km.
PowerBeam 5AC ISO
Due to the isolator, this solution can be used in a noisy environment.
LiteBeam M
Suitable for people interested in the price factor and putting performance in second place.
PowerBeam M5
Mainly for medium distances.
Wireless access point
Obviously, we will manage the access point using hostapd: $ sudo apt-get install hostapd Below you will find a minimal and almost self-explanatory 802.11 n/2.4 Ghz/WPA2-AES configuration file: $ cat /etc/hostapd/hostapd-simple.conf #### Interface configuration #### interface=wlp5s0 bridge=br0 driver=nl80211 ##### IEEE 802.11 related configuration ##### ssid=iCanHearYouHavingSex hw_mode=g channel=1 auth_algs=1 wmm_enabled=1 ## ### IEEE 802.11n related configuration ##### ieee80211n=1 ##### WPA/IEEE 802.11i configuration ##### wpa=2 wpa_key_mgmt=WPA-PSK rsn_pairwise=CCMP wpa_passphrase=YouCantGuess Documentation hostpad.conf see /usr/share/doc/hostapd/examples/hostapd.conf
.
The described configuration can be tested manually:
$ sudo hostapd /etc/hostapd/hostapd-simple.conf If all goes well,
the wireless connection will appear
.
If you are satisfied with the result, don't forget
to change the configuration to start hostapd as soon as the interface comes up (as shown below).
Here is your final /etc/network/interfaces:
$ cat /etc/network/interfaces # Loopback auto lo iface lo inet loopback # WAN interface auto enp1s0 iface enp1s0 inet dhcp # Bridge (LAN) auto br0 iface br0 inet static address 192.168.1.1 network 192.168.1.0 netmask 255.255.255.0 broadcast 192.168 .1.255 bridge_ports enp2s0 post-up /usr/sbin/hostapd \ -P /var/run/hostapd.$IFACE.pid \ -B /etc/hostapd/hostapd-simple.conf post-up /usr/sbin/dnsmasq \ —pid-file=/var/run/dnsmasq.$IFACE.pid \ —dhcp-leasefile=/var/lib/misc/dnsmasq.$IFACE.leases \ —conf-file=/dev/NULL \ —interface=$ IFACE --except-interface=lo \ --bind-interfaces \ --dhcp-range=192.168.1.10,192.168.1.150,24h pre-down cat /var/run/dnsmasq.$IFACE.pid | xargs kill pre-down cat /var/run/hostapd.$IFACE.pid | xargs kill
Passive scanning
According to the Airetos AEX-QCA9880-NX documentation, the chipset supports 802.11ac, so we can escape the crowded 2.4 GHz channels into the heavenly 5 GHz.
Let's see what frequencies are supported:
$ iw list … Frequencies: * 2412 MHz [1] (20.0 dBm) * 2417 MHz [2] (20.0 dBm) * 2422 MHz [3] (20.0 dBm) * 2427 MHz [4] (20.0 dBm) * 2432 MHz [ 5] (20.0 dBm) * 2437 MHz [6] (20.0 dBm) * 2442 MHz [7] (20.0 dBm) * 2447 MHz [8] (20.0 dBm) * 2452 MHz [9] (20.0 dBm) * 2457 MHz [ 10] (20.0 dBm) * 2462 MHz [11] (20.0 dBm) * 2467 MHz [12] (disabled) * 2472 MHz [13] (disabled) * 2484 MHz [14] (disabled) … Frequencies: * 5180 MHz [ 36] (17.0 dBm) (no IR) * 5200 MHz [40] (17.0 dBm) (no IR) * 5220 MHz [44] (17.0 dBm) (no IR) * 5240 MHz [48] (17.0 dBm) (no IR) * 5260 MHz [52] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5280 MHz [56] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5300 MHz [60] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5320 MHz [64] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5500 MHz [100] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5520 MHz [104] (23.0 dBm) (no IR , radar detection) * 5540 MHz [108] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5560 MHz [112] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5580 MHz [116] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5600 MHz [120] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5620 MHz [124] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5640 MHz [128] (23.0 dBm) ( no IR, radar detection) * 5660 MHz [132] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5680 MHz [136] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5700 MHz [140] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5720 MHz [144] (23.0 dBm) (no IR, radar detection) * 5745 MHz [149] (30.0 dBm) (no IR) * 5765 MHz [153] (30.0 dBm) (no IR) * 5785 MHz [157] (30.0 dBm) (no IR) * 5805 MHz [161] (30.0 dBm) (no IR) * 5825 MHz [165] (30.0 dBm) (no IR) ... In the list above we see, that the chipset supports channels 1-14 (2.4 GHz) and channels 36-165 (5 GHz), but did you notice the no IR flag?
The no IR flag stands for no-initiating-radiation
(i.e.
passive scanning
).
This means that this mode is prohibited when the device is the first to initiate radiation (including beacons
).
In other words, you cannot run the access point on these channels
!
A couple more “crazy tips” from the Internet
So now we’ll look at a few tips on what not to do, and then I’ll tell you how you can actually strengthen the signal. Some write that they urgently need to update the operating system. This is possible and will help if the system is damaged by programs and has system errors. But they will not strengthen the signal in any way.
Then many people write that they need to erase the list of all Wi-Fi networks. This can help if there are connection problems, the Internet drops out or it simply doesn’t exist. But this is also a systemic problem and is related to problems setting up networks on the phone. You can, of course, try resetting the network settings on Android, but it’s not a fact that this will help.
Regulatory Requirements
The above situation is due to Linux regulations, which regulate the use of the radio frequency spectrum depending on the country.
But wait!
I live in the USA, and the link says that I have the right to initiate radiation on channels 36-48, so what's the matter? Let's see which regulation domain is currently in use:
$ iw reg get country 00: DFS-UNSET (2402 - 2472 @ 40), (N/A, 20), (N/A) (2457 - 2482 @ 40), (N/A, 20), (N/ A), NO-IR (2474 - 2494 @ 20), (N/A, 20), (N/A), NO-OFDM, NO-IR (5170 - 5250 @ 80), (N/A, 20) , (N/A), NO-IR (5250 - 5330 @ 80), (N/A, 20), (0 ms), DFS, NO-IR (5490 - 5730 @ 160), (N/A, 20 ), (0 ms), DFS, NO-IR (5735 - 5835 @ 80), (N/A, 20), (N/A), NO-IR (57240 - 63720 @ 2160), (N/A, 0), (N/A) The output shows that
the world
domain is currently active (or not installed), that is,
the minimum values allowed in each country
.
Unfortunately, you won’t be able to manually install the sudo iw reg set domain, because the domain is hardcoded into the EEPROM:
$dmesg | grep EEPROM [12.123068] ath: EEPROM regdomain: 0x6c
Comparison with an outdoor antenna for a router
Applications for controlling Wi-Fi networks and monitoring traffic on Androdi
In general, as mentioned above, there is no difference between an outdoor WiFi antenna and a regular home antenna in terms of using them for a router, PC or laptop, since these are universal passive amplifying devices. The advantages of an outdoor antenna include the following features:
- in the radiation pattern, the external device has a narrower main lobe;
- greater protection of outdoor equipment from atmospheric influences.
Patch!
Fortunately, regulatory requirements are handled at the driver level, so they can be easily changed: find the patch in the Open-WRT sources.
First of all, don't forget to include the source code repository from /etc/apt/sources.list:
$ cat /etc/apt/sources.list ... deb-src https://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ bionic main restricted ... Then prepare the environment by installing the necessary dependencies: $ sudo apt-get install build-essential fakeroot $ sudo apt-get build-dep linux Download your kernel sources: $ apt-get source linux Since the original Open-WRT patch cannot be applied "as is" to the Ubuntu kernel tree due to subtle differences in the build system, I had to fix it: $ VERSION=$(uname -r) $ cd linux-${VERSION%%-*} $ wget -O — https://gist.github.com/renaudcerrato/02de8b2e8dc013bc71326defd2ef062c/raw/a2db325e520e6442c8c12f7599d64ac1b7596a3e/40 2-ath_regd_optional.patch |
patch -p1 -b Everything is ready to build: $ fakeroot debian/rules clean $ fakeroot debian/rules binary-generic If there are no problems, you can now install the patched kernel on top of the previous one: $ cd .. $ sudo dpkg -i linux*.deb Reboot, and voila: $ sudo iw reg set US $ iw list … Frequencies: * 5180 MHz [36] (17.0 dBm) * 5200 MHz [40] (17.0 dBm) * 5220 MHz [44] (17.0 dBm) * 5240 MHz [48] (17.0 dBm) * 5260 MHz [52] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5280 MHz [56] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5300 MHz [60] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5320 MHz [64] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5500 MHz [100] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5520 MHz [104] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5540 MHz [108] (23.0 dBm ) (radar detection) * 5560 MHz [112] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5580 MHz [116] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5600 MHz [120] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5620 MHz [124] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5640 MHz [128] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5660 MHz [132] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5680 MHz [136] (23.0 dBm) ( radar detection) * 5700 MHz [140] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5720 MHz [144] (23.0 dBm) (radar detection) * 5745 MHz [149] (30.0 dBm) * 5765 MHz [153] (30.0 dBm ) * 5785 MHz [157] (30.0 dBm) * 5805 MHz [161] (30.0 dBm) * 5825 MHz [165] (30.0 dBm) … To avoid automatic updates, you may need to pin the Linux kernel version.
Internal WiFi antennas for laptop
Review and configuration of the D-Link Dir-320 modem
Internal products are used as a simplified option. Unlike external ones, there is no need to take them outside, connect a wire to them, or attach them in the required place. It can be installed in an area near a window or on a balcony, connected via a cable to a special connector and enjoy high-quality communication.
Typically, indoor antennas are designed to improve the signal from your own router or router, which for certain reasons cannot receive a connection of normal quality.
Configuration
The new hostapd configuration file will be fairly simple: hw_mode=a enables the 5GHz bands and ieee80211ac=1 enables 802.11ac (VHT).
The ieee80211d=1 option with country_code=US specifies the regulatory domain under which we operate. To make the most of bandwidth, ht_capab and vht_capab should reflect the hardware's capabilities:
$ iw list ... Band 1: Capabilities: 0x19e3 RX LDPC HT20/HT40 Static SM Power Save RX HT20 SGI RX HT40 SGI TX STBC RX STBC 1-stream Max AMSDU length: 7935 bytes DSSS/CCK HT40 ... Band 2: VHT Capabilities (0x338001b2 ): Max MPDU length: 11454 Supported Channel Width: neither 160 nor 80+80 RX LDPC short GI (80 MHz) TX STBC RX antenna pattern consistency TX antenna pattern consistency With that in mind, here is the
final
hostapd.conf: $ cat /etc/hostapd /hostapd.conf #### Interface configuration #### interface=wlp5s0 bridge=br0 driver=nl80211 ##### IEEE 802.11 related configuration ##### ssid=iCanHearYouHavingSex hw_mode=a channel=0 auth_algs=1 wmm_enabled =1 country_code=US ieee80211d=1 ieee80211h=0 ##### IEEE 802.11n related configuration ##### ieee80211n=1 ht_capab=[HT40+][SHORT-GI-20][SHORT-GI-40][TX -STBC][RX-STBC1][DSSS_CK-40][LDPC][MAX-AMSDU-7935] ##### IEEE 802.11ac related configuration ##### ieee80211ac=1 vht_capab=[MAX-MPDU-11454] [RXLDPC][SHORT-GI-80][TX-STBC-2BY1][RX-STBC-1][MAX-A-MPDU-LEN-EXP7][TX-ANTENNA-PATTERN][RX-ANTENNA-PATTERN] vht_oper_chwidth =1 ##### WPA/IEEE 802.11i configuration ##### wpa=2 wpa_key_mgmt=WPA-PSK rsn_pairwise=CCMP wpa_passphrase=YouCantGuess For
hostpad.conf documentation, see /usr/share/doc/hostapd/examples/ hostapd.conf
.
At this point, the wireless router is fully functional, and if more advanced configuration is needed, you can now dive into the configuration files.
Whether you want to set up a guest hotspot or a dedicated wireless network for your VPN, at some point you'll have to set up a virtual SSID.
Bridges up to 5 km
NanoBeam 5AC-16 / NanoBeam 5AC-19
The development is focused on relatively short distances, the throughput is 450 Mbit/s. The performance is sufficient - the desired effect is achieved thanks to AirMax technology.
NanoStation Loco M5
There are restrictions on the permissible application distance (no more than 3 km).
NanoStation M5
Like Nanostation Loco M, it is recommended to use it for short distances for video surveillance, which is achieved through the use of another Ethernet module. Among the advantages are affordable installation and high build quality.
Network interface
According to the documentation in hostapd.conf, there is a strict relationship between the MAC address of the physical interface and the BSSID of the virtual interfaces:
hostapd will generate a BSSID mask based on the BSSIDs that are configured. hostapd will verify that dev_addr & MASK == dev_addr
. If this is not the case, the MAC address of the radio must be changed before starting hostapd. If a BSSID is configured for every secondary BSS, this limitation is not applied at hostapd and other masks may be used if the driver supports them (eg, swap the locally administered bit)BSSIDs are assigned in order to each BSS, unless an explicit BSSID is specified using the 'bssid' parameter.
If an explicit BSSID is specified, it must be chosen such that it: — results in a valid MASK that covers it and the dev_addr — is not the same as the MAC address of the radio — is not the same as any other explicitly specified BSSID
To meet these requirements and allow hostapd to automatically assign the BSSID of the virtual interface(s), we update the MAC address of the physical wireless interface by clearing the four least significant bits.
This is enough for 15 virtual BSSIDs - much more than necessary. First, let's determine the current MAC address:
$ ip addr show wlp5s0 | grep link | awk '{print $2}' 44:c3:06:00:03:eb If you clear the last four bits and set the U/L bit, the MAC address is 46:c3:06:00:03:e0.
Now let's update the configuration to set the correct MAC address right before loading the interface, and also advertise the virtual wireless interface according to our diagram:
$ cat /etc/network/interfaces … # Physical Wireless auto wlp5s0 iface wlp5s0 inet manual pre-up ip link set dev wlp5s0 address 46:c3:06:00:03:e0 # Virtual Wireless allow-hotplug wlan0 iface wlan0 inet static address 192.168.2.1 network 192.168.2.0 netmask 255.255.255.0 broadcast 192.168.2.255 post-up /usr/sbin/dnsmasq \ --pid-file=/var/run/dnsmasq-wlan0.pid \ --conf-file=/dev/NULL \ --interface=wlan0 --except-interface=lo \ --bind-interfaces \ --dhcp-range=192.168.2.10,192.168.2.150,24h post-down cat /var/run/dnsmasq-wlan0.pid | xargs kill... Great. I'm using dnsmasq as a DHCP server - feel free to change it to whatever you like. Please note that allow-hotplug is required for the virtual interface to work correctly.
External Wi-Fi antennas. Myth or reality?
At the moment, all kinds of Wifi antennas for laptops are quite widespread. These are devices that allow you to amplify the received and outgoing signal from a wireless network. They can be used to better capture the signal from your own router or router, as well as to use the signal of a friend or relative who lives at a certain distance.
Some people purchase such devices in order to intercept someone else's signal. However, this is a controversial decision, since the owner of the access point can easily block access to outsiders upon identification.
Note! External antennas are considered much more efficient than their internal counterparts.
A standard Wi-Fi signal from any device has a certain range. Without various amplifiers, it is impossible to catch remote Wi-Fi.
Such antennas can be used to share one access point between several people. In such cases, internal products or directional external ones for longer range are suitable.
Important! Previously, such catchers were used exclusively for radio and television signals. Today, similar devices are used to improve the quality of mobile Internet and Wi-Fi.
Equipment of any type to improve the quality of access, both Wi-Fi and mobile Internet, has a certain radius or effective range. In cases where the subscriber is outside the detection zone, laptop antennas are used.
Access Point Configuration
Now the simplest part: add a virtual SSID to the current hostapd configuration. Just add this to the end
of your existing hostapd.conf file: $ cat /etc/hostapd/hostapd.conf … ### Virtual SSID(s) ### bss=wlan0 ssid=MyVirtualSSID wpa=2 wpa_key_mgmt=WPA-PSK rsn_pairwise=CCMP wpa_passphrase=you_cant_guess In the example above, I used WPA2 encryption, but most radio interface options are available here (for example, channel). You can add more virtual SSIDs by simply adding lines in the configuration file, according to the declared and correctly configured virtual interfaces.
Now let's reboot - and we see our new SSID along with the new wireless interface (pay attention to the MAC address):
$ ip addr show wlan0 |
grep link | awk '{print $2}' 46:c3:06:00:03:e1 That's it, guys!
Antennas up to 7 km
LiteBeam 5AC-23
Combines proprietary hardware and software technologies to deliver an unrivaled combination of capacity and economic value, while the airMAX TDMA protocol will improve network performance.
PowerBeam 5AC-300/400
High performance is achieved through impressive range and low noise levels thanks to the fast processor and its innovative mechanical design at a low cost.
