the quickest / easiest / cheapest solution would be to have the comcast modem / wireless router unit network used for the in-law apartment then connect to it (via ethernet) a standalone wireless router (Ideally a 802.11AC equipped model with good range -- Netgear Nighthawk or ASUS RT-AC86U) to the comcast unit and use that wireless network for the rest of the house (and ideally the comcast modem/router should have a DMZ setting and it should be set to the IP address that you specify in the static WAN IP setting of the third-party router. this prevents a Double-NAT situation) the reason for this arrangement is that the firewall in the second router will prevent tenants from seeing into your household wireless network going with a router with a strong range may fix the range/coverage issues you've had to date (make sure to mount the third-party router as far away from the comcast modem/router as it practical and also mount the third-party router as far away from walls as is practical, as high as is practical, and away from metal and hard/dense objects, as well as away from other electronics) Chris Hart Computer Support & Technology Consulting for Connecticut and Western Massachusetts Tel: 860-291-9393 chris at chrishart.net http://www.MyMacTech.com > On Jan 9, 2016, at 8:46 PM, Duane Dale <duane.dale at gmail.com> wrote: > > > > > Dear H-Techers: > > In advance, forgive me if these are naive questions or have been addressed previously. > > Consider this scenario: > * A homeowner has a "mother-in-law apartment" which is rented to tenants. > Imagine that these parties don't know each other well. > * The chosen internet option is Comcast. > * A Comcast-provided cable modem-wireless router is the default option. > * Because it's nominally a single-family house, Comcast says it's prohibited from providing two separate accounts. > * Comcast says it could (for an additional fee, of course) install two separate cable modem-routers on the same account. > > The security question: > * If the two parties share one WiFi account, is there a security risk? > (Assume, of course, that banking and other sensitive use is with https sites.) > * If there is a security risk, how does it compare to risks at an airport? > ... in an apartment building (without shared WiFi access)? > ...drive-by "listening" to WiFi activity. > * Would the second Comcast WiFi "box" reduce security risks? > * Would hard-wiring a third-party wireless router into a single Comcast box provide a separate log-in? ...and would that reduce security risks? > > The coverage question: > If the house is large enough to have coverage issues (or has out-buildings where coverage is weak)... > * Is there a WiFi Extender device that anyone would recommend? > * Would hard-wiring a third-party wireless router into the Comcast box -- with a long Cat5 cable to take that second box into the weaker zone -- help? > > Thanks! > Duane Dale > > _______________________________________________ > Hidden-discuss mailing list - home page: http://www.hidden-tech.net > Hidden-discuss at lists.hidden-tech.net > > You are receiving this because you are on the Hidden-Tech Discussion list. > If you would like to change your list preferences, Go to the Members > page on the Hidden Tech Web site. > http://www.hidden-tech.net/members -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://lists.hidden-tech.net/pipermail/hidden-discuss/attachments/20160109/b924c261/attachment.html