networking expertise needed for robot camera (adding an additional router to an existing network)

[mattkime]

so i have my time lapse camera running at my parents place about a thousand miles away. unfortunately, something, who knows what, has caused wifi connection quality to drop between the router and eye-fi card. and just to be extra annoying, its not dead, just flakey. yes, i've ruled out new appliances or network devices.

the eye-fi card is registered on the network. changing this would mean disconnecting the camera and removing the card. its just not going to happen like that.

more background - the router and cable modem are in the basement. the camera with eye-fi card are outside a 2nd story window.

so my thought is to move the existing router up next to the camera. then i install a new router where the old one was. my main concern is with how i should configure the new router. can the new router run the 192.168.1.x network, and then place the old router on that network, creating its own 192.168.1.x network?

[laarree]

Are you spying on your parents?!

[mattkime]

no

[mattkime]

that would be boring

[Fred_Also]

can you move the original and set it up as a bridge? That way everything would be on the same network. I don't think you can have 2 routers on the same network without monkeying with the netmask to make them cover different parts of the same network. (You couldn't use 255.255.255.0 as netmask on both).

I'm far from an expert, just my 2¢ worth.

Fred Also

[Dick Moore]

It's easiest if your routers support WDS (Wireless Distribution System) which makes bridging simple -- well kinda simple. Most routers don't support it, but DD-WRT does if you've got routers you can flash with it. Most Buffalo routers do support it and I've got three running in WDS bridge mode right now. Trouble is, the makers rarely tell you anywhere that they do support it. I don't know why it's a big deal -- are they thinking no one uses it, so they have it but won't tell you they do? I know this isn't much help, but it's what I know, which ain't much. BTW, I think the Apple Extreme products do support WDS...