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Lost Passwd
@videotron.ca

Lost Passwd

Anon

Wireless using Ubiquiti Nanos

Hello,

This is a specialized split from »Alternative to Wired Connection Between Two Buildings

Summary: I'd like to use Ubiquiti Nanos over 200' with clear LOS between two buildings.

I'm set on such gear because it was recommended by several (renowned) posters and because I found a Canadian reseller. I'm here referring to NanoStation Loco (M2 or M5) International devices.

As an appetizer, what kind of difference does it take for a POE adapter to be B/G/N or A/N compatible?

The M2 is 25% more expensive than the M5. I surveyed a couple of 2.4 GHz house-grade wireless routers in the area but I don't know about 5's. What would be the advantages of using 5.8 GHz and/or 13dbi? Note: this is (still) snowy Canada.

Would a regular house-grade wireless (2/5/dual) radio pick up the signal directly from the antenna?.

How do you optimize (if necessary) the antennae alignment? Do you you have to buy software or more gear to do it?

I suppose you need outdoor shielded cable from the antenna to the PoE adapter. Crimping cable is not my bag, especially outside below 0C. Can I get ready-to-use lengths?

Do I need earth grounding/ESD protection for the PoE?

Some PoE's come (extra) with remote reset capability. The only antennae I ever used had nothing to set/reset. What do you have to set up other than positioning that would require remote action?

Lastly, it's getting rather cold here. I'm not ready to play the (old) monkey on top of a ladder before the weather gets better. Would the antennae work through a window or even a shingle roof?

TIA

Gordo74
Premium Member
join:2003-10-28
Pittsburgh, PA

Gordo74

Premium Member

I'll be watching this with a close eye. It could definitely pertain to my system as well.

»Help with blanketing outdoor cabin grounds with Wifi!

clarknova
join:2010-02-23
Grande Prairie, AB

clarknova to Lost Passwd

Member

to Lost Passwd
said by Lost Passwd :

What would be the advantages of using 5.8 GHz?

Threefold: 1. More available spectrum. 2. Fewer devices on that band. 3. Less 'leakage' from neighbours' devices. All together, this means that you are far less likely in most situations to experience RF interference when using the 5 GHz band compared to 2.4 GHz.
said by Lost Passwd :

Would a regular house-grade wireless (2/5/dual) radio pick up the signal directly from the antenna?

Yes, but return signal won't be as good. It may work, but save yourself the grief and do it right in the first place using a pair of Nanos.
said by Lost Passwd :

How do you optimize (if necessary) the antennae alignment? Do you you have to buy software or more gear to do it?

AirMax devices have a web UI. Therein you can do a site survey. Once the two radios are associated you can see the signal strength and quality as you adjust your aim.

They also have 4 LEDs on the radio body to indicate signal strength. You can configure these to a custom threshold, such that if you know that your initial connection is at -65 dBi, you could set these 4 LEDs to light up at -65, -63, -61, and -59 respectively. In this way you can aim without having to look at the computer.
said by Lost Passwd :

I suppose you need outdoor shielded cable from the antenna to the PoE adapter.

Yes.
said by Lost Passwd :

Can I get ready-to-use lengths?

Probably.
said by Lost Passwd :

Do I need earth grounding/ESD protection for the PoE?

If you use Ubiquiti's power supply and a shielded cable with metal ends the grounding is integrated.
said by Lost Passwd :

What do you have to set up other than positioning that would require remote action?

Remote reset is nice for an ISP who has many radios in the field and has to reset some of them from time to time. Most of my customers have bricks with no reset button, but I always carry one with a button for this purpose. For somebody like yourself, you're not likely to ever need to reset the nano once it is set up and configured properly. Worst case scenario, a monkey is going up a ladder, or you order a psu with a button.
said by Lost Passwd :

Would the antennae work through a window or even a shingle roof?

Possibly.

Lost Passwd
@videotron.ca

Lost Passwd

Anon

Tank you clarknova See Profile for the useful info.
said by clarknova:

said by Lost Passwd :

Would a regular house-grade wireless (2/5/dual) radio pick up the signal directly from the antenna?

Yes, but return signal won't be as good. It may work, but save yourself the grief and do it right in the first place using a pair of Nanos.

I wasn't thinking about cutting corners here. You see, I'm trying to replace a wired connection that failed, so any extra would be welcome. Like getting more points of wireless access on the way, because the aim is to feed a wireless access point located about 100' farther.

So if WiFi cell phones would work, I might try to get the antennae as far apart as I can. House and garage are perpendicular.

There is a TV satellite dish on the house. Would that affect the antennae connection? If it does, how far from it should I install the house antenna?
tomdlgns
Premium Member
join:2003-03-21

1 recommendation

tomdlgns to Lost Passwd

Premium Member

to Lost Passwd
regarding the power reset, i recommend this (you can probably find a similar product at a lower cost).

»shop.proxicast.com/shopp ··· tch.html

they work great, i use them to power cycle cellular routers in remote locations. you can set them to ping a website/device and if it times out it will auto reboot the outlet, outlets, or entire device. if you don't want to use that feature, you can set it to reboot whenever you want (once a day, every few hours, etc...).

clarknova
join:2010-02-23
Grande Prairie, AB

clarknova to Lost Passwd

Member

to Lost Passwd
said by Lost Passwd :

how far from it should I install the house antenna?

The satellite uses different frequencies so you don't need to worry about RF interference. Just put a dish width of space or more between them to avoid obstruction.
switchman
join:1999-11-06

switchman to tomdlgns

Member

to tomdlgns
The OP has a 200' shot from his house to the barn, I think this is probably a little overkill for that. In this situation, walk over an power cycle the device. Now if this was up on a tower miles away, then yes I could see getting one.

Lost Passwd
@videotron.ca

Lost Passwd to Lost Passwd

Anon

to Lost Passwd
Hi,

I just received the equipment today: 2 X NanoStation loco M5. Since it might help others:

1- The only mounting gear provided with the antenna is a plastic tie to attach it to a pole. You must therefore buy additional equipment if you don't have it already. At the very least a 2nd plastic tie... I had ordered two wall mounts.

2- Once the equipment was connected, I wasn't able to access the AirOS interface even after installing the latest Java RTE software.
All the lights were working, where only two (Power and LAN) should have been on. The others were flashing alternatively.
It was because of a faulty power injector. I have to wait for a replacement.

This will be my setup:
[(Wireless) Router] --Cat5E-- [Antenna A] [Antenna B] --Cat5E-- [(Wireless) AP]

I'll set 2 static IPs for the antennae.
A will be set as Access Point with WDS.
B will be set as Station with WDS.
Both A & B will use the same SSID and use WPA2 Personal (AES) security.

Four SSID's are already defined on the wireless router. I suppose the one used for the antennae should be different.

When I'll get the other PoE injector, will I be able to associate the antennae indoors and then go outside just for the time it takes to align them?

Would you have any additional suggestion or recommendation in order to speed my work?

Thank you.

clarknova
join:2010-02-23
Grande Prairie, AB

clarknova

Member

It sounds like you're all set to go. Bummer about the PSU.
LLigetfa
join:2006-05-15
Fort Frances, ON

LLigetfa to Lost Passwd

Member

to Lost Passwd
said by Lost Passwd :

Would you have any additional suggestion or recommendation in order to speed my work?

A known-good spare Nano to be able to swap parts when troubleshooting.

Lost Passwd
@videotron.ca

Lost Passwd

Anon

Actually, that's how I found the first PSU was defective, by swapping it with the second one.