Ubiquiti Nanostation "MuniWifi" Build Experiment

1170 Views 5 Replies 4 Participants Last post by Xyro TR1, Mar 12, 2009

Xyro TR1

Discussion Starter · Mar 10, 2009

So my boss and I are working on an interesting idea. Here at the office, we have a Watchguard Firebox x20 and we've got nothing (important) on the untrusted network side. The idea is to drop one of our DD-WRT'd Linksys WRT54GL's on that untrusted port and run a CAT5 cable from it to a Nanostation that will be mounted on top of the office. My boss lives about three miles away, and he's going to put one on his roof and have it act as a repeater.

Initially, we're doing it as a proof of concept, to see if it's powerful enough to cross through three miles of suburbia, which is chock full of WiFi networks. Ideally, we'll end up putting another on the roof of my house, which is about 4mi from his house, and create a small "mesh" of these.

I know they're somewhat directional, so we'll be compensating for that as well, including trying some external antennae, omni- and multidirectional.

As far as network security, we're thinking WPA as well as MAC address filtering.

At this point, we just ordered the devices. I'll be updating this thread as the experiment progresses. Any suggestions or comments would be great.

Nanostation2 Info

Note: if anyone sees any legal issue in this, please PM me. I've researched it to the best of my ability, and it seems that the device is FCC approved. Thanks.

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yawnbox

· #2 · Mar 12, 2009

from what I understand, you would need an amp a mile, plus directional antennas like a yagi or a parabolic dish. omni directional will not work with that distance. the FCC allows operation up to 4 watts EIRP without having to have a custom system approved by the FCC. (EIRP calc)

edit: when a device is FCC approved, the device as a whole is approved. if you were to add an external antenna, you would have a custom system that is not approved by the FCC.

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DuckieHo

· #3 · Mar 12, 2009

I doubt you can get a good and reliable WiFi signal 3miles through all those other networks and physical obstructions.

Their testing is done in optimal conditions.... line of sight, good weather, and in a desert.

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Xyro TR1

Discussion Starter · #4 · Mar 12, 2009

That's good info. I believe these things are going to get here today or tomorrow, so I'll share my findings.

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Syjeklye

· #5 · Mar 12, 2009

we use the nanostation's big brother the powerstation 5's here at my work to get signals from centrally located towers. You will definately need to mount the one you have at the office high enough so it has line of sight on your boss and your house.

you don't need to worry much about security, other than just using wpa, only ubiquiti stuff can talk with ubiquiti, since there technically isn't a standard for this stuff yet.

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Xyro TR1

Discussion Starter · #6 · Mar 12, 2009

I was under the impression that it was just 802.11b/g broadcasted at high power... At least the NanoStation2.

Isn't the PowerStation5 just 802.11a? 5Ghz?

EDIT: nvm, the Powerstation5 is 802.11e, but the PS2 and NS2 are 802.11b/g.

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