[Hidden-tech] help with enterprise grade router recommendation?

[Jan Werner]

As Robert Heller pointed out, what you are looking for is a wireless 
access point that can handle more connections than what you have.

A router is what assigns LAN addresses and routs traffic to them. An 
access point is a radio transmitter that broadcasts those signals.

In most small networks, one device does both functions. That is what is 
commonly referred to as a "router" and it is that is the word I use in 
the following, but in a large enterprise, those functions are usually 
handled by separate devices.  Unless you plan to learn a lot about 
network management in a hurry, I would second Chris Hart's suggestion to 
get a more powerful-off-the shelf router.

Routers are generally rated by their theoretical maximum throughput in 
Mbps. The prefix N indicates a single band (2.4GHz) and AC indicates 
dual band (2.4GHz+5GHz). Newer dual band routers are usually optimized 
for handling multiple devices simultaneously. Anything rated AC1900 or 
better should be more than enough for your situation.

I have at least 20 devices (PCs, printers, smartphones, tablets, stereo 
receivers, TV) on my home WiFi network and had been experiencing similar 
problems to what you described using 3-year old ASUS RT-N66U router 
(rated N900). I replaced it recently with a newer ASUS RT-AC68U (rated 
AC1900) and everything has been running smoothly since then.

Jan Werner
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Sara MacKay wrote:
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> Hi Folks,
> Can anyone recommend an enterprise model router for a medium/small
> business?  I have a site that is connecting to their wireless fine
> (signal is strong) but randomly,  folks are getting dropped from the
> wireless.  Or if they are trying to connect more than 10 laptops
> sometimes not everyone can connect.  They have Comcast business cable so
> I don’t think bandwidth is the problem. Last spring when we upgraded to
> cable, all network equipment was upgraded to gigabyte units. Any wiring
> used is all cat5e.  There are still 2 desktops and 2 network printers in
> the mix as well.
> This is a learning center and when they do online testing, dropping in
> the middle of it is really problematic. They have over 30 laptops, not
> to mention other devices that the staff walk in with (phones, i-pads)
> and rarely are they all in use, but but it has happened. Or rather been
> attempted.
> I have the opportunity to put in for approx $1000 for this line item,
> though if there is no solution in that price range, I can make a case
> for more. Unfortunately the request has to go in in the next couple of
> days and I have no history purchasing one of these.
> Anyone have any recommendations on routers that can handle that, or
> which mftr would be reliable to look at?
> Sara
>
>
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