Can I use two routers with one ADSL line?!

[kjmacphee]

As per the subject line I have two PCs at home. The one I use for my normal day to day activities and a manky but functional Dell PowerEdge 300 Server in the shed that I use for Boinc and not much else at the moment.

I want to use the Server in the shed as a web server - nothing heavy just my photos and stuff through Coppermine. My house has got extremely thick walls and I was getting all sorts of problems with my wireless router so got a new one (Netgear DG834G) and it has cleared up all general network issues I was having with my main PC. The problem is that the wireless range just about hits my shed but it's somewhat flaky ... certainly not reliable enough for a web server application.

Now I've got a ropy Actiontec wireless (although I would use the ethernet connection) router I bought a couple of years ago and there is a phone point in the shed. I've tried plugging the whole shooting match in and unsurprisingly nothing worked at all.

So can I do it? Appreciate some help as this is all well beyond my networking knowledge!

[chuteless]

I'm not an expert on this, but I know you definitely can't plug both routers into the phone line. Like you found out, that just wont work.

I think what you need is a WAP (Wireless Access Point). If you put this between your main router, and the shed, then it should expand the cover of your wireless network. Hopefully someone else can come along and confirm that....

Edit: Actually, it might not be a WAP. I know there's something that does it, but I can't remember what it's called.

[MarcusUK]

A wireless bridge is what I think you mean.

[IAmATeaf]

A wireless bridge is what I think you mean.

Will that help then? as it sounds like it's a range type problem.

What you need to do is either extend the range or take a UTP cable from your house to the garage. Providing the cable is in trunking and raised a few feet from the ground it should be OK.

[kjmacphee]

Thanks for all the suggestions. It needs to be a zero cost solution hence the desire to reuse the old router.

Rather than being a problem of range ... I don't actually need to shed PC and house PC to be networked together. Just that the shed one needs to have web access through the second router.

I may have to go for re-siting the new router to a wife-unfriendly location or just host the site on my main PC although I was trying to avoid both!

[internetuser]

what channel were you on wireless, the netgear default of 11 is flakey at the best of times

[red_lego_man]

Build an antenna (http://www.turnpoint.net/wireless/cantennahowto.html) to boost the range of your exisitng WAP. Or stick the WAP in the loft. Or do both.