Getting Started With Mesh Networking

Hello Ham friend de KD6VZQ

If you don't understand what a Mesh Network is, I provided a 3 minute blog ( HERE ) for your reading pleasure. After you have caught up to speed, you can move forward with Mesh Networking for Ham Radio Operators.

During this blog I'll be providing some important information that might make your head spin. If your head starts to spin, just know that some of this information is just FYI and need to know. If your head still spinning after that, I would guess to say that you are trying too hard. Read the information in chunks and take a break. In the end you'll see just how easy to reprogram a router, and make it a mesh router. From there its just a matter of deciding what it is you want to do with your Mesh network.

You're in luck! As a Ham Radio Operator you have a license to operate within the commercial wifi bands. This is possible because our FCC License overlaps the same set of frequencies that commercial wifi routing systems use. See chart below for Part 97. Part 97 falls under Amateur Radio Rules & Regulations. Our Ham license allows us higher power and higher gain antennas.

You'll notice that we have 13 cm and 5 cm frequencies ranges. From personal experience I can tell you that 13 cm or 2.4 GHz frequency range is a good place to start because equipment is cheap. Allowing you to practice and to understand at a lower cost. However 2.4 GHz has more devices all over your metropolitan area. And, as a result, you will hear more noise on this band.

Now that you understand which frequencies you are allow to use. The next logical question is what hardware can I use? Below is a sample list of routing hardware the you can get on the shelf. Whether it be your local electronics store, good will, or a friend saying that they don't use it anymore.

Manufacturer	Model	Revision
Linksys	WAP54G	v1.0
Linksys	WAP54G	v1.1
Linksys	WAP54G	v2.0
Linksys	WAP54G	v3.0
Linksys	WAP54G	v3.1
Linksys	WRE54G	1
Linksys	WRH54G	?
Linksys	WRT150N	1.0/1.1
Linksys	WRT160N	1.0/1.1
Linksys	WRT160N	3
Linksys	WRT160NL	1
Linksys	WRT300N	v1.0
Linksys	WRT300N	v1.1
Linksys	WRT310N	v1.0
Linksys	WRT310N	v2.0
Linksys	WRT320N	v1.0
Linksys	WRT350N	v1.0
Linksys	WRT400N	1
Linksys	WRT54G	v1.0
Linksys	WRT54G	v1.1
Linksys	WRT54G	v2.0
Linksys	WRT54G	v2.2
Linksys	WRT54G	v3.0
Linksys	WRT54G	v3.1
Linksys	WRT54G	v4.0

Although the hardware above are some of the more common routers, there are plenty enough to choose from. You can get a more complete list at DD-WRT Router Database

Most Ham Radio Operators will be using firmware (see Firmware explanation below) from Broadband Hamnet. Broadband Hamnet Supported Routers

If you don't know your router number and version number. The graphic below uses a Linksys router as an example. Other routers will have a similar identification system.

If your are looking around for a router to use, I would like to take this opportunity to suggest getting a router that allows for you to detach the antennas from the router. This will allow for you to add a better and upgraded antenna system. Adding a better antenna system increases strength of signal and usable distance.

Now for the next piece of this puzzle.. Firmware. . .

For those of you who do not understand what Firmware is. It is basically software that is being run from within hardware. In tune with this Mesh Network subject. It is the software within the the router that allows for it to works as a router. And the routers firmware is independent of your computer interface. It does not need your computer to load and run to make the router work.

Linksys routers were not originally able to be used as mesh networks routing systems until after Linksys started using a Linux based software (firmware) to run their routers. After Linksys started doing this. other companies soon followed. Linksys did this mainly to allow themselves flexibility to update the firmware on the router. This also allowed for hobbyists to create their own version of firmware and load it to the router. Changing how the router works. Making it into a mesh router. In general Wireless Mesh Networks were a Military application that eventually bled over to civilian applications. MIT is a good example of this with their One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project.

After finding your the hardware you would like. you need to make sure that it works. by simply plugging it in and logging into the router. If you are unfamiliar on how to do this. Simple go to the manufactures website and download a pdf version of the owners manual. If you have a used router, and don't know the password to login. You may need to do a factory reset to set the factory defaults on the router. This erases all info on the router.

After seeing if the router works. You'll need to find the proper firmware to download from BroadBand Hamnet or from DD-WRT depending on your router and application for use. Almost all Ham Radio Operators will use the Broadband Hamnet firmware.

Now you have a copy for the firmware you would like to use. you'll need to upload it to the router. I'll use Linksys again for this example.

NOTE: Before doing the following steps be absolutely sure you have the correct firmware.

As you might notice in this example; you would first go to Administration tab, then to Firmware Upgrade at the top. Taking you to this menu. Once you have your file to create a mesh network, you would browse for it on your computer and then click upgrade. 

After router is upgraded it will reboot and you're all set on getting started to setup your Mesh Network. I'm not going to create an instruction for this. but I am leaving a couple of links from YouTube so that you can see that instruction on how to configure your system.

Hamnet Setup 

DD-WRT Setup

Thanks much for reading all this wonderful information. Please feel free to share it with friends.

KD6VZQ

What is a Mesh Network?

Whats all this talk about a Mesh Network?

Imagine you have two internet lines coming into your business. Each internet line would come into your business and be hooked straight to a routing system. From the routing system the internet connection is propagated to various devices in the business.

Internet lines do on occasion fail. If one of the lines were to fail, then half of your business complex would not have an internet connection. Workers in half your complex would be non productive towards business matters.

This is how to keep your workers productive watching their entertaining youtube videos while at work. How? Imagine if you could have a set of routing systems communicating with each other. The routing systems would provide redundancy to each other. Therefore allowing for internet connection to remain active across your entire business.

However in the event that both your internet connections were to go down at the same time. Then redundancy would have failed. Bringing up productivity to more work related matters. Your internal network would still be able to allow communication between machines. There just would not me any internet for research and entertainment.

So there you have it. That is a Mesh network. Just don't tell your boss about it, or you'll have to do work.