The Pros use a distributed architecture; a router dedicated to being the best it can be, switches to distribute Ethernet as needed and wireless access points to distribute WiFi access where it's needed.
Professional equipment often uses "command line interfaces" to provide the optimum in flexibility and configuration options. Unfortunately
complexity often comes along with flexibility.
The rise of "all-in-one" home routers with "graphical user interfaces" (GUIs) make this technology readily available to novices like me (albeit with some limitations). I am simply prompted to give my WiFi service (SSID) a name and password and I'm done. As I further browse the interface I'm presented with options where I simply check "yes/no" or "enable/disable". Some GUIs present a robust list of features, others - few.
For many of us home users that's all we need, a single "all-in-one" router for the whole house!
The OP has set a second set of SSIDs with In
tranet access disabled. This way "guest" can not view your internal network, they are only allowed access to the Internet.
Using the OP's router configuration;
If a client connects to SSID5 (or 2.4) he will inherit access to everything; if he connects to "Guest" he only has access to the Internet. In this case if the client connects to the router via Ethernet he also has access to everything. The client simply inherits the traits the router allows.
The OP is taking a 2nd router and is "downgrading" it to serve as a wireless access point. (Essentially he is disabling routing, NAT, DHCP et al.) How successful he is will depend on how robust the configuration options are.
If the AP connects (back-hauls) to the router over Ethernet or wireless over SSID 5 or 2.4 the AP's clients will inherit access to everything. If the AP connects wireless over SSID "Guest" the AP's clients will be limited to Internet access only.
Now if you have a smart (e.g., expensive) AP you would give it access to everything. Then you program the AP to broadcast multiple SSIDs; some "protected", some not. Ruckus comes to mind.
I have not re-purposed an Asus Router as an access point. My "guess" is (as per above) it can be setup to give clients either full access
or guest access but
not both.
Maybe "guest" access for the whole house would meet your needs? It would for me. My needs are simple. Yes, I'd have to walk my laptop downstairs / closer to the main router (where the "
non-Guest" SSIDs are available) when I wanted to print, but not all that bad since I'd have to pass the beer cooler on the way : -)
Now, IMO, there are three types of wireless Access Points; a "Repeater", an "Extender" and a
wired wireless AP.
The wired AP uses an Ethernet line as a dedicated backhaul to the router. Ethernet is Full Duplex; you can send and receive at the same time. That's 1 Gig up and another Gig down. It's also its very own collision domain. You are not sharing that bandwidth with anyone else.
A Repeater uses a WiFi radio as the backhaul to the router. Clients use the
same radio to talk. A client talks. The radio then becomes unavailable because it has to relay the data to the router over the backhaul. This essentially cuts available air time in half. In addition wireless is half duplex, that means only one thing can talk at a time. All clients are also in the same collision domain, that means all bandwidth is shared by all users/clients.
An Extender falls in between the two. Like a Repeater clients are half duplex and live in the same collision domain. Unlike a Repeater it uses a second radio for the backhaul eliminating the "halving" effect of a Repeater.
Using my old $75 dual-band Netgear 6150 as an example:
- I connected it to my router with Ethernet. It offered me "Home" or "Public". "Home" gave clients full access, "Public" gave them Internet access only.
- I connected it as a wireless repeater. One backhaul connected at 2.4 and offered a 2.4 service. The other backhaul connected at 5 and offered a 5 GHz service. I guess I could have connected one to SSID2.4 and the other to "SSID5-Guest" and achieved pretty much what you're looking for at a cost of $75.
- Instead I set mine for Extender mode. I dedicated one radio as the backhaul and the other for client communications only.
Confused? Me too! Good Luck.
