I admit. I didn't care much about WiFi signal strength or range for my cellphone because I had the unlimited data plan from Verizon. But my way of thinking now needs to be changed as my old HTC thunderbolt started acting up to the point where I could no longer tolerate (it sometimes takes 15 mins to start making a call after inputting numbers, on-screen keyboard doesn't input anything, etc...). So finally I decided to upgrade my device and plan.

As I started using WiFi at home, I realized the WiFi signal didn't cover all the rooms and somehow I needed to extend the signal range. The best way would be to relocate my current Actiontec router from Verizon somewhere center of the house but this was not an option for me. Another way was to use another wireless router as AP (Access Point) along with Actiontec router. Luckily, I still had ASUS Wireless router (RT-N56U) that I used to use before FIOS and used it to extend the WiFi signal range.

Here is the steps that I took to configure the primary router (Actiontec) and secondary router (ASUS).

Disclaimer:
The information in this site is the result of my researches in the Internet and of my experiences. It is solely used for my purpose and may not be suitable for others. I will NOT take any responsibilities of end result after following these steps (although I will try to help if you send me your questions/problems).

Configuring the Primary Router (Actiontec)

1) First thing first, disconnect all patch cables connected to the primary router except the one system used to configure it. This step involves changing DHCP address range, so it's better to turn off any devices using wireless connection and reset the primary router to start off with clean state.

2) Access the configuration page of the primary router from web browser pointing to http://192.168.1.1.

3) Once successfully logged in, go to My Network → Network Connection → Network (Home/Office) then click on the Settings button. Scroll down a bit and locate IP Address Distribution.

IP Address Distribution: DHCP Server
Start IP Address: 192.168.1.6
End IP Address: 192.168.1.254
Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0

The starting IP address I used was 6. This is because address 1 is reserved for the IP address for the primary router. Address 2 is for the secondary router and I have some other devices that I wanted to use static IP address (ex: my primary system, printer, etc...).

4) Click Apply, then click Apply again.

5) Now set up the static IP address for the secondary router, my primary system and printer. Go to Advanced → Click on Yes → IP Address Distribution → Connection List → New Static Connection

Make sure the physical address (MAC address) is available for each system configuring for static IP address

6) Make sure that the system still has the Internet connection.

Configuring the Secondary Router (ASUS)

7) Unplug the patch cable from the primary router and plug it in the LAN port of the secondary router. Then restart networking. I used my notebook with Debian and below is the commands: # /etc/init.d/networking stop # /etc/init.d/networking start

8) Again, access the configuration page of the secondary router from web browser pointing to http://192.168.1.1.

9) Now configure this secondary router as Access Point (AP). There are two ways to do this:

i. Setting Up AP Mode: I updated its firmware to 3.0.0.4.376_1665 and AP mode became available.

Go to Administration and make sure Access Point(AP) mode is selected.

Set up static IP address for this router.

IP Address: 192.168.1.2
Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway: 192.168.1.1

Then set up wireless, such as SSID, Network Key, etc...

ii. Setting Up Manually: Manual setting is not difficult. All you need to do is to setup the static IP address and disable DHCP.

Set up the static IP address for the secondary router. Go to LAN under the Advanced Settings → LAN IP

IP Address: 192.168.1.2
Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0

Now disable DHCP. Go to LAN → DHCP Server and make sure Enable the DHCP Server is set to No

Let's Connect Two Routers

10) Connect a patch cable from a LAN port on the primary router to a LAN port on the secondary router. At this point, I can connect to the configuration page of the primary router via http://192.168.1.1 and that of the secondary router via http://192.168.1.2.

That's all!
-gibb