Do I need a router or a switch?

[IanWilson]

Our current set-up at home is that we have a cable modem connected by an ethernet cable to a wireless router. We make wireless connections to that from my wife's laptop, my wife's iPad and my Kindle. I also make wired connections to the LAN sockets on the router from (1) my desktop computer (2) my work laptop, and sometimes (3) my old PC. Because I want to connect more than one device to it by ethernet cable, the router sits in my study. The result of this is that the wireless signal is weak or non-existent at the far end of the house.

I'm thinking of moving the wireless router to a more central point. But I still need 2 or 3 ethernet connections in my study. I could, of course, run several cables through the house. But can I run just one cable and then split it with (a) a switch or (b) a wired router?

(I already have my old wired router, a Netgear RP114. I gather that with the right settings I can use it as a switch.)

I'm not sure whether with using a switch all the computers connected to it get their own internet connection as if they were connected to a router.

Someone please explain all this to me in simple terms.

Ian

[StuartR]

You should be fine using a switch. Each computer will attempt to use DHCP to get its own unique IP address, and the switch will pass these requests to the existing router, which will provide the required response.

When any PC attempts to connect to the internet, the switch will simply pass the packets directly to the router, which will be responsible for the NAT (Network Address Translation) needed for the packets to find their way back to the correct computer when the remote computer replies.

[IanWilson]

You should be fine using a switch. Each computer will attempt to use DHCP to get its own unique IP address, and the switch will pass these requests to the existing router, which will provide the required response.

When any PC attempts to connect to the internet, the switch will simply pass the packets directly to the router, which will be responsible for the NAT (Network Address Translation) needed for the packets to find their way back to the correct computer when the remote computer replies.

And so I should be OK using my old router as a switch, too, should I? (If I can understand the instructions I have found in various places online.)

Ian

[StuartR]

Yes, I have used that setup myself. If you can put your old router into switch mode then it should work fine.

[IanWilson]

Yes, I have used that setup myself. If you can put your old router into switch mode then it should work fine.

Thanks, Stuart. I'll give it a try.

Ian