How to Configure Router as Access Point in a Network

There are situations where you have got an old router at home or office and you want to extend the WiFi range to other parts of the location. The best way to do so is to install an access point. Stand-alone routers or routers-cum-modems can be configured to work as an access point. Using a spare modem or a router as an access point is the cheapest way to increase the Wi-Fi signal. In this article, I will demonstrate how I used one modem as the main router and the other as an access point by following simple steps.

Step-1. The first step is to check the default gateway IP address. To do so, open internet explorer when you have connected your laptop or PC to the Network. Now type windows+R on the keyboard and in the windows run screen type CMD to open a command prompt.

Now type ipconfig. Under the wireless LAN adaptor, check the IP address of the default gateway. In my case, it is 192.168.1.1.

Step-2. Open the configuration settings of the second router. But before that, you need to know the IP address of this router. Most of the routers have mentioned the IP address, user name, and password on the backside of the router.

In case, it does not work, you can reset the second router by pressing a small button provided on the backside of the router. You need to keep it pressed until the router restarts.

Step-3. Next, you need to assign the same IP class as your main router but the IP address number has to be different. For example, if the IP address of your main router is 192.168.1.1, you can assign an IP address of 192.168.1.2 or the last number of the IP address can be anything between 2 to 254.

To perform these settings, you need to open the router’s configuration by entering the user name and password. Once the router interface opens, navigate to LAN settings and change the IP address as shown in the image below.

Step-4. The next setting you need to do is related to DHCP. You have to disable the DHCP in the second router since it is already enabled on the main router. So navigate to DHCP settings and disable it or select None in the settings as shown below in the image.

Step-5. The last step is to connect the two routers with a network cable. Connect both the cable ends to the LAN ports.

The Wi-Fi signal gets attenuated due to concrete walls or where there is a large number of glass windows. You can easily extend the range of signal strength by configuring any old router as an access point in the existing network. Let me know if you have faced any difficulty in settings or other configurations.

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