TDM-C500 ADSL2 Modem Router Connects to Wireless Router or Access Point?

Some people make mistakes in purchasing the wireless access point (AP) to create a wireless network in home and share the broadband ADSL internet connection with many client computers within the household. They don’t realize that what they currently have in home is a modem (without the routing / NAT function). When the wireless AP connects to this modem, it creates a wireless LAN but only one client computer can access the internet at the same time. Why? The modem doesn’t include the NAT function.

The NAT (Network Address Translation) is a fundamental feature of the routers which is to translate and map an IP address or more to one or more IP address in different networks. Typically in home router, the NAT feature is used to map a single public IP address provided by your ISP to one or more private IP addresses behind the router (which is your internal network). In case that you have already purchased a wireless access point and your client computers cannot share the internet, your modem doesn’t include the NAT feature. What you need is a modem with router function such as TDM-C500 ADSL2 modem router.

TDM-C500 is an ADSL2 modem with router function. The modem includes the dual firewall features – the NAT and SPI (stateful packet inspection). The NAT feature helps you hide your internal network from the wild internet and to share your ADSL broadband internet connection with many computers in the network.

TDM-C500 ADSL2 modem router include one 10/100Mbps Auto-MDIX RJ-45 port you can use to connect the wireless access point such as TEW-690AP N450 Wireless Access Point should you need to expand the network wirelessly. Since this TDM-C500 modem includes the router function, you don’t need a wireless router for creating wireless network, just connect a wireless access point to share the broadband internet connection.

There are some wireless routers that can be switched to access point mode such as WZR-HP-G300NH Buffalo Nfiniti Wireless-N Router & Access Point. It includes external switch to change between router and access point modes. Some router manufacturers provide guidelines in connecting the router to another router (including this ADSL2 modem router) such as disabling the DHCP server, disabling the UPnP, and modifying the IP address that is in the same subnet with your current network.

Or you can connect the modem direct to the Switch should you need to expand the wired connections to the internet. The good thing with this TDM-C500 ADSL2 modem router is that it includes the DHCP server. With the DHCP server, you don’t need to provide the static IP address manually to all of the client computers in the network. This will reduce the complexity of IP address administration.

Alternate Solution

The TDM-C500 ADSL2 modem router provides you the flexibility in choosing the wireless access point to create a wireless network in homes or in offices. You can connect the outdoor wireless access point (such as TL-WA5210G High Power Wireless Outdoor CPE) to provide wireless internet access for client computers in harsh outdoor environment. This is typically suitable for site projects with many computer clients separated hundreds of meters from the main site.

For home environments where internet access and other wireless networking tasks are required, instead of purchasing separate TDM-C500 ADSL2 modem router plus wireless access point device you can consider purchasing the all-in-one device which includes all the requirements for building a wireless LAN. For example, TEW-635BRM TRENDnet 300Mbps wireless N ADSL2/2+ modem router. TEW-635BRM includes build-in ADSL modem plus wireless router in a single device. Or you can consider DGND3300 V2 N300 RangeMax dual band ADSL wireless modem. Both ADSL modem wireless routers are designed with 802.11n technology, but DGND3300 supports the simultaneous dual band technology to work both in 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequency bands in the same time.

TRENDnet TDM-C500 is an ADSL2 modem router – a modem with build-in high speed router function to share the ADSL broadband internet connection with many computers in homes or offices. You need to connect a wireless access point device to create a wireless network.

By Ki Grinsing