# Connecting LAN to WAN?



## pasiman94 (Aug 31, 2010)

So im going to be adding a router to my network soon but recently after following this guide below on the internet I am confused. It states I should connect LAN from router 1 to the WAN port on router 2. I dont believe that that is even possible. Is it?

Here is the guide at the end of the page near the comments of the guide

http://www.devhardware.com/c/a/Networking-Hardware/How-to-Connect-Two-Routers-on-the-Same-Network/3/

Also if I connect it LAN to LAN would I need a crossover cable?


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## PedroHin (Aug 13, 2010)

Yes, it is possible, as long as the LAN settings of each router use a different IP subnet (#1 uses 192.168.1.* , #2 uses 192.168.2.* etc). 

Following the tutorial, anything that is on router 2 will be on the same LAN, if they need to get to the internet, router 2 will know to send traffic through the WAN port to router 1. Router 1 will know to forward traffic through its WAN port to the internet. 

Most new small office networking hardware auto-detect send/receive pairs, so crossover cables are not necesary.


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## pasiman94 (Aug 31, 2010)

So I would connect them LAN to LAN? if not how would I connect WAN to LAN?

will a wan cable fit in the lan socket?


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## PedroHin (Aug 13, 2010)

If these are standard routers, yes, they are all RJ45 connections. Connect #2's WAN to #1's LAN

You aren't trying to use a DSL or Cable modem as router #2 are you?


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## pasiman94 (Aug 31, 2010)

Router 1 is a DSL Router/Modem combo, router 2 will be a regular wireless router. 

I see now, I was trying to see if my router/modem could fit an ethernet cable in my DSL slot that was the problem. Thanks for your help.


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## JohnWill (Oct 19, 2002)

Connecting two (or more) SOHO broadband routers together.

*Note:* _The "primary" router can be an actual router, a software gateway like Microsoft Internet Connection Sharing, or a server connection that has the capability to supply more than one IP address using DHCP server capability. No changes are made to the primary "router" configuration._

Configure the IP address of the secondary router(s) to be in the same subnet as the primary router, but out of the range of the DHCP server in the primary router. For instance DHCP server addresses 192.168.0.2 through 192.168.0.100, I'd assign the secondary router 192.168.0.254 as it's IP address, 192.168.0.253 for another router, etc.

_*Note: Do this first, as you will have to reboot the computer to connect to the router again for the remaining changes.*_

Disable the DHCP server in the secondary router.

Setup the wireless section just the way you would if it was the primary router, channels, encryption, etc. Note that you should use the same SSID and encryption key for the secondary router but a non-conflicting channel. I recommend channels 1, 6, or 11 for use for the best results.

Connect from the primary router's LAN port to one of the LAN ports on the secondary router. If there is no uplink port and neither of the routers have auto-sensing ports, use a cross-over cable. Leave the WAN port unconnected!

This procedure bypasses the routing function (NAT layer) and configures the router as a switch (or wireless access point for wireless routers).

For reference, here's a link to a Typical example config using a Netgear router


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