Introduction

Wireless networking is quickly becoming the "defacto" standard in home and small business networking. There are more than a few reasons for this, but for the most part it is done because it is cheaper and easier to setup and maintain. The problem arises when you cannot cover the entire area you need to with a single wireless device. This (in many cases) requires you to setup a repeater in line from your source wireless device.

Now, a repeater is great, but it only serves to re-broadcast the signal from the source and has no real ability to hand off data to ensure that it is consistent. For this you really need an access point. The drawback to this is that you then need to run cables from the host router to the access point; the exact thing you were trying to avoid by using wireless in the first place. Fortunately, there is an answer for this.

The answer comes in the form of the Wireless Distribution System (WDS). With WDS you put multiple wireless devices into bridge mode, but without the need for wired connections between them. Let's take a deeper look into this intriguing technology and see how it works in theory and in practice. Along the way we will see if it can fill the needs of a typical modern home network as well.