Hey Guys,

I recently bought a Mikrotik RB433.

I have previously worked with ubiquiti, but my one repeater starion got struck by lighning so i thought i would try a Mikrotik.

So i know nothing about them.

I’m not a total noob.

I have been playing around with it and I have managed to log into it via WINBOX.


I need to get this wireless network up and running.


Can anyone help me with setting it up?

I have 2 mini-pci cards in.

I want one to be a station and it must connect to a Ubiquiti Nanostaion,

Then the second card must then be an ap that basically extends the range of the 1st bridge (does not have to be the same network, can be diff.)





Questions:?

1. Can the different interfaces connect to each other internally?

2. Why are the 3 Network ports?

3. In winbox under system and ip all the options there if i click on any of them. they are all like blank, Why is this?




Thanks Guys.

Questions:?
1. Can the different interfaces connect to each other internally?
2. Why are the 3 Network ports?
3. In winbox under system and ip all the options there if i click on any of them. they are all like blank, Why is this?

Answers:
1. Yes
2. So you can have multiple networks on one device. Same reason there are 3 mini-pci slots.
3. Most you must enter values in one field to activate any of the other options.

Question 3 was a bit vague. You must be more specific about what entries you are discussing if you want an appropriate answer.

Thanks, well thats not so important for now.

Main thing is how do i set the 1 card to be a station and the 2nd card to be an AP.

And both cards must be connected.

So if i connect to the AP card, i must be able to use internet etc from the station side?

How do i go about doing this?


So far i have managed to make one an ap. but if i connect to it i cant do any thing. cant access the network ?

Do i need to create some sort of bridge between the 2 wifi cards?

I use radius (FreeRADIUS, like "user manager" in Mikrotik) to control my networks. How do you control access to your network?

I always recommend checking the network settings before setting up the hotspot. The minimum is dns, dhcp, gateway (/ip route), and either a masquerade or srcnat in "/ip firewall nat". If you have installed the hotspot, then I would disable the hotspot until you have internet access from your localnet first.

Well this is just a wireless bridge connecting the main office to a 3 granite mines. and i have 2 sections.

What is radius?

1: from the main office to the top of a hill. AP= Ubiquiti Nanostation, wpa2, and Station+RB433 card 1

2: AP= RB433 card 2,wpa2, and stations are a Ubiquiti Nanostation


ther wotn be more than 3 clients on the AP


i can get the RB433 to connect to the ap as a Station and i can connect to the RB433 via the AP card.


But its like they are not connected to each other or the ethernet port.


So if i connect to the rb433 via card 2 (which is ap) and try acces anything on the LAN or on the other wireless nothing happens?

Is there like a setting some where, where i can tell which interface each interface can talk to?

Do you have a default gateway set?
/ip route
add gateway=xx.xx.xx.xx

Do you have a masquerade set?
/ip firewall nat
add chain=srcnat action=masquerade out-interface=ether1

How you connect to the internet is not clear, but this is the basics. If you want more specific help, you must provide more specific information about your network setup, like ip/netmask assignments on each interface.

Well i have a IPCOP router running.

Thatch the router and that feeds the network with internet, the ip address is. 192.168.1.X subnet is 255.255.255.0

I basically just want a bridge. Nothing fancy. No firewall or any thing.

The ap at the main office connects to the network there, its a ubiquiti nanostation.

Now i want my rb433 to connect to that AP and then to basically broad cast the signal again.

the gateways ip is 192.168.1.1 it is a NAT and has a firewall.


The smaller offices that connect to the main office via the bridge use: printer, internet, skype, file sharing.

Bridge:

/int bridge
add name=bridge1

/int bridge port
add interface=wlan1 bridge=bridge1
add interface=wlan2 bridge=bridge1

/ip address
add address=xx.xx.xx.xx/yy interface=bridge1

Where do i type that?

Where do i type that?

Type in console / terminal

Ok what am i doing wrong?

I cant type or any thing in the console or terminal.

Ok, Now i left it on for like 5 min and then the mikrotik logo came up.

But if i type its like REALLY REALLY SLOW>


if i wright bridge.

after about 20 seconds the b comes up. and it takes about 2 min for the word to appear?

Did you set up the bridge and then the router started responding slow, or was it like that from the beginning?

I think it has been like that from the beginning.

That’s why I thought that there were no settings,

But if you just leave the window open for a while it comes up.

And if you like add a bride or anything under interfaces, and click apply then ok. Nothing thining happens, and 3 min later it suddenly appears there.

I would try resetting the router and start the setup again. That sounds like there was some type of misconfiguration. The response is very fast on my routers using the console, unless the internet is really bogged down. And even then, it is never as slow as you describe.

If you can,
/system reset

or use the reset jumper.

ADD: I know this sounds backwards, but I install the bridge first. The reason is the bridge becomes the interface, and that is the interface you assign the ip addresses to, and refer to in all other setup options.

but the interfaces just appear there. i didnt even create them?

So much i take the 2 mini-pci cards out and then create the bridge and then put them back in?



( It also keeps saying "error. The router has beed disconnected") in winbox?


to reset. do yoou do it while its on?

MY BAD! I can see now how that wording was incorrect. I should have said "the bridge interface becomes an interface unto itself. The other interfaces (wlan1 and wlan2) become children of the bridge. They appear in "/interface" and "/ip", but should not be used anywhere else.

oh i see.

Check previous post i eddited it.

Yes, it does send a disconnect message when you reboot or reset the router. You should be able to log in again when you hear the double-beep.

k i rebooted it,

It says routerOS default configuration.


Must i click "remove" or "ok"


and it used to say disconnected randomly. while i was just in it, not after i rebooted. like i would be changing some thing and it would just disconnect.

I also do things that cause disconnects. It is not only reboot and reset that disconnect you. Usually involves an ip address change on the interface you are on, or a firewall setting. If the setting was wrong, and since all my routers are remote, it also involves some swearing and a drive in the car.

ADD: And I think the answer is "ok", but I have not yet tried the jumper reset. And now that I think about it, and with all the testing I do, I find that fact amazing.

ha ha;

ok so i clicked ok,

1st thing i do is?

open 'new terminal' ?

the logo still does not apprear, and i keep getting disconnected, after loggin in.



Could the board be faulty?
Or could a firmware update help?

It will be like starting from new. You will probably want to connect with WinBox like the router was new. All ips, routes, firewall, nat settings are gone. admin password may still be there.

correct.

Its clean. there no settings and the ones that are there are defualt, like the interfaces.

Both wifi cards are disabled.

One weird thing. if i right click on the top bar you can add 'cpu' 'memory' 'uptime' i did that before like when i 1st got it and it showed me the mem, now they are all just 000

I don't know about WinBox. I am a ssh kinda guy.
Might want to look at "/system resource" (it should be tabbed in WinBox in about the same order as the terminal). See what those settings say.

ok. i got terminal working
and i typed in that code you told me to do earlier:
"
Bridge:

/int bridge
add name=bridge1

/int bridge port
add interface=wlan1 bridge=bridge1
add interface=wlan2 bridge=bridge1

/ip address
add address=xx.xx.xx.xx/yy interface=bridge1
"


now what do i do.


i made the ip:
192.168.1.30/24

and what is the /yy for?

That is the designation widely accepted as the netmask. It needs to be entered in most settings. The xx.xx.xx.xx is the ip, the /yy is the netmask.

When I use these as a bridge, I assign two ip nets to the ap-bridge side (internet side) interface (wlan1 on the other router?):
One is the ip range I will use for clients. Usually 192.168.x.x/24.
And the other I will use to control the bridge router. Usually 10.0.0.1/24

Then I assign 10.0.0.2/24 to the bridge (the one we are discussing). The 192.168.x.x net will be bridged right on through the router (forward). The 10.0.0.x net stops at the router (input). That is the ip (10.0.0.2) you will use to communicate with the bridged router.

so i must ad a gateway under ip/routes and then enable the wireless cards.


I gather most of Mikrotik's setting up is NOT GUI based.

what code do i use to add a GATEWAY ip to my bridge1?

Actually, I believe most use the WinBox application to set up the routers. I am just an "old guy", and it is a habit from the "Old Days".

Like I said, WinBox order is about the same as the command line. The "Home page" should offer selections like "IP", "Interface", and "System", just like the first parameter of the command line.

If you select "Interface", you should see selections like "Wireless", "Ethernet", and "Bridge", just like the second parameter in the command line.

ADD: I see a second post.
/ip route
add gateway=10.0.0.1

when i go add gateway= i cant type in an ip address it wants an interface.




but in winbox. you can add a bridge but you cant tell it which 2 interfaces to bridge.

There should be a "port" tab under "/interface bridge". That is where you add ports to the bridge.

/interface bridge port
add interface=wlan1 bridge=bridge1
add interface=wlan2 bridge=bridge1

This presumes you used "bridge1" as the name of the bridge. If not, edit to match your bridge name.

i have created the bridge and setup both wlan cards.

THe bridge shows activity. but i still cant access anything from the Wireless AP side (wlan2).


the add gateway wont allow me to enter an ip only a interface.

The forum server is responding really slow.

If it is asking for an interface in the gateway, it must not have the correct ip/netmask assignment on the bridge. Insure the netmask is correct (/24?).

yes.

bridge1:

IP:192.168.1.30/24
Network:192.168.1.0
Broadcasr: 192.168.1.255

What ip set do your clients have? It isn't 192.168.1.x/24, is it? You need another network to control the router. That is why I use the 10.0.0.x/24 ip set for control.

oh.

well the hosts have a dhcp server (running on the router)

and its is set to:
192.168.1.x
and the subnetmask is:
255.255.255.0


dont know where the /24 comes into play with the clients.

so if i change the bridges ip to 10.0.0.1 it will allow me to add gateway=xx.xx.xx.xx

If you change the ip/NETMASK to 10.0.0.2/24 on the bridge, it will take 10.0.0.1 as the gateway, and should not ask for an interface. Insure the wireless card in the router on the other side of this wireless connection is assigned 10.0.0.1/24 in addition to the 192.168.1.x/24 assignment.

but if i go to ip route (in winbox)
it has my bridge 1 ther with its ip bt under gateway and gateway interface there is nothing. and it dnt work.

Then it seems all you need to add the gateway now. If the ip/netmask is showing correctly in /ip route (it puts a route there by default so the router will know about that network), then you have it set right. Try to add a default gateway now. If it asks for an interface, use bridge1

k i think i added the gateway. but even if the gateway was not setup. sureless i could still of been able to browse other computers on the network. cause right now i can connect to the ap but i still cant do any thing.

Your client computer you are on has the correct ip/netmask? It should be 192.168.1.x/24 or 255.255.255.0

laptop/

with automatioc ip. (i have set a dhcp relay in the rb)

but i have tried with static.

so you mean.

if my bridge is 192.168.1.30.

then the client must be 192.168.1.x

What is the ip of the wireless network card in the main router? It should be 192.168.0.1/24
Can you ping that ip?

If you are using MikrotikLinux, the netmask is /24, if Windows, it is 255.255.255.0

main router being? the RB433.

I am just testing this at home now before i go out and install it. i have a small ap connected to my network at home and i have the rb433 on the desk. and the one card is connecting to the ap and the other card is an ap which the laptop is conneting to. and i am on my desktop connected to the rb433 via ethernet. which runs through the network.

my gateway /router s ip is 192.168.1.1

Your bridge should be 10.0.0.2/24. Your clients should be 192.168.1.2 to 192.168.1.254. I use this to isolate my clients from any housekeeping duties my aps need to perform.

If you prefer, you may assign your bridge an ip in the 192.168.1.x/24 range, but insure your dhcp server does not issue that address. That could result in severe problems.

from the laptop i can ping the mini pci card (wlan2(the ap)).

i can also ping the wlan1 card the station.

OMW, i am the biggest fool.

i changed the bridge to bridge the wlanap tot eh ehternet and it works fine so its got nothing to do with the bridge. it must just be some hting to do with my station connection to my ap in the house.


How do i check that the station is making a proper connection?

Easiest question so far. Look in "/interface wireless". If the interface shows "running", it is connected to its ap-bridge router with the same ssid.

but mine says that.
it has a R by it.

I am a little confused. You should not be able to ping the wireless card in the bridged router. It does not have an ip address in the 192.168.1.x/24 range. The bridge is the interface. 10.0.0.2

What is the ip of the wireless card in the main router? The gateway for the 192.168.1.0/24 net. I would have used 192.168.1.1. Can you ping that ip?

k well to trouble shoot.

i have connnected the laptop to the rb433 via cable and then bridged wlan1 and the lan to try test the station card.


Is it just meant to be set on station?

I am a little confused. You should not be able to ping the wireless card in the bridged router. It does not have an ip address in the 192.168.1.x/24 range. The bridge is the interface. 10.0.0.2

What is the ip of the wireless card in the main router? The gateway for the 192.168.1.0/24 net. I would have used 192.168.1.1. Can you ping that ip?

i can ping 192.168.1.1 (only when the ehternet and teh wlan2 are bridged)

when the wlan1 and wlan2 are bridged i can only ping intefaces on the rb433. i can ping the bridge, wlan1, wlan2. but nothing further. So this tells me the connection between wlan1 and my ap in the house is not working?

If 192.168.1.1 is the main router at your house, you are doing good! You can add ether1 to bridge1 for testing if you wish. Three is not really a crowd.

Now, can you ping the gateway for the internet interface? That would be the gateway for the interface on the router at your house that connects to the internet.

when ethernet1 is in the bridge i can ping every thing that works. the thing that does not work is when i set one of the cards to station. it connects to the AP and has R by it,. but it does nto work. and it shows throughput.


So like now. I have the laptop pluged into eth1 and then the bridge consists of wlan1 and eth1,

wlan1 is set to station and it says its connected to my Home AP.

but i cant ping anything past wlan1 interface.

So the connection between wlan1 and the home AP is not working?

What wireless card is set up to connect to the router at your house? wlan1 or wlan2? Why not have all in the bridge? wlan1, wlan2, and ether1 can be in bridge1 at the same time.

wlan1 is set as a station which connects to the ap/network at my house.

Wlan2 is in the bridge but its not being used here. cause the laptop is in the lan.

What could be wrong with the bridge between the rb433 and the ap in my house?

Settings or what?

Try assigning 192.168.1.2/24 to the bridge. Remove that ip from the dhcp server. See if that helps.

nope.

it dont.

i can ping 192.168.1.1 (only when the ehternet and teh wlan2 are bridged)

How is that possible? Unless wlan2 is connected to "Mom" (main router).

no that is when i had the original setup.

when the laptop was connected via wireless (wlan2) and the rb433 was connected to the network via lan cable.


I swaped it around to try and fix the wlan1 (station)

Is there any ip assignments in "/ip address" besides the 10.0.0.2 to bridge1? No assignments to ether1?

yea there are others.

i created IP's for each interface so that i could ping it.

so there is wlan1, wlan2, eth1 and bridge1

And those ips/netmasks are...? Anything that would interfere with the routing tables?

All in the 192.168.1.x range.


I was thining couldnt i just make wlan1 and wlan2 Access Points and then make the ubiquitis on either end the stations?


is there like a standard where which end must be the AP and which must be the Station?

I wouldnt think it wouldnt make a diff.

i been playing around.

I have made both cards access point and then made my home AP a station.


I can now connect to the network. but not the internet.

i can use intranet, just not internet?


Is this the gateway problem or the dns relay problem. cause it dotn work when the client is on automatic or static.]

With the dns relay option must the relay be on the bridge?




Also is there a way to back up settings after i have spent so much time setting them up.

I use radius (FreeRADIUS, like "user manager" in Mikrotik)

What exactly is radius?

http://www.mikrotik.com/testdocs/ros/2. ... bridge.php >> you cannot bridge a wireless client/station
http://www.mikrotik.com/testdocs/ros/3. ... reless.php >> station-pseudobrige is a routeros 3.x workaround
Set wlan1 = station pseudobridge (not station!)
Set wlan2 = ap/bridge
Create bridge1 and assign valid ip to bridge1 + dns + gateway (or if you have dhcp server on upstream ap, then create dhcp client on bridge1 with 'default route' and 'use peer dns' checked)
Add wlan1, wlan2 and ether1 to bridge1 as ports
That's it.

Another option is to route.
Set wlan1 = station and then assign valid ip + dns + gateway (or set as dhcp client with 'default route' and 'use peer dns' checked)
Set wlan2 = ap/bridge and assign ip in different subnet
Assign ip to ether1 in different subnet
Create dhcp server on wlan2 and/or ether1; or use static ip addresses for clients connected to either of these interfaces.
That's it.

http://www.mikrotik.com/testdocs/ros/2. ... radius.php

Omw. thank you so so so much.


I will try that as soon as i get home.

I thought it would be something simple like that.

So the gateway and the dns must be assigned to bridge1? or to wlan2?

DNS is not assigned to any interface.
In terminal type: /ip dns add primary-dns=x.x.x.x secondary-dns=x.x.x.x

Yes, gateway interface is bridge1.
In terminal type: /ip route add gateway=x.x.x.x interface=bridge1
Where gateway ip (x.x.x.x)= ip of upstream AP

Please check attache d of screen shot of routes.


is this correct.

I added a gateway but it automaricaly had annoter one that i cant edit the gate way on,

Yes that is correct.
I assume 192.168.1.2 is the ip assigned to bridge1?

yes.

and my gateway router & DNS is 192.168.1.1 on the wlan1 side.

Then you're good to go!

Can you explain to me what that pseudobridge means or does differently just to the normal station?


Also i was just wanering.

is it possible to put 3 wireless cards in and connect 3 secors to it and make it all apear as one wireless network. So if you had to drive around you tower it wouls appear as the same one and it would be stronger signal as they could overlap each other if you used 120 degree ones?

station - the interface is operating as a wireless station (client)
station-pseudobridge - wireless station that can be put in bridge. MAC NAT is performed on all traffic sent over the wireless interface, so that it look like coming from the station's MAC address regardless of the actual sender (the standard does not allow station to send packets with different MAC address from its own). Reverse translation (when replies arrive from the AP to the pseudobridge station) is based on the ARP table. Non-IP protocols are being sent to the default MAC address (the last MAC address, which the station has received a non-IP packet from). That means that if there is more than one client that uses non-IP protocols (for example, PPPoE) behind the station, none of them will be able to work correctly

http://www.mikrotik.com/testdocs/ros/3. ... reless.php

is it possible to put 3 wireless cards in and connect 3 secors to it and make it all apear as one wireless network

Yes. All wlan interfaces set as ap/bridge with same ssid. Preferably on separate channels.

So if you had to drive around you tower it wouls appear as the same one and it would be stronger signal

It will appear as one network but only as 'strong' as each 120deg sectorial and its minipci radio.

but then surely you would just pick up 3*ssid

eg;

wirelessap
wirelessap
wirelessap

Instead of just one wireless ap at 90% signal?

So there is no way to combine all the wireless.


How do cell phone providers bridge all their networks together?
Or Iburst or any wireless supplier with many towers?

See the first 2 replies in this post.
http://forum.mikrotik.com/viewtopic.php ... 22&start=0
and/or search for 'how to roam with mikrotik' or something similar.

cant you just set each station to be a repeater?


Whats WDS do then?