Choose between buying another router Vs. 50' Ethernet Cable

Hello,

This is my situation, in my living room I have to 2 computers and a switch to allow them both to access the internet. In my room which is about 50 feet away I have my computer which is connected to the router with a 50 feet ethernet cable.

I recently got a new computer in my room and thinking between the following:

• Buying a router, placing it in my room and connecting both computer thru that router.
  - Any downsides to having 2 routers in home? any conflicts I might run into? Would I have 2 diffrent default gateways? (I'm kind of confused on this)
• Buy another 50 feet ethernet cable and run it thru.
• Buy another NIC for the current PC in my room and connect the 2 pcs via ICS.
  -With this both pcs will have to be turned on in order to receive a connection to the internet.
• Any other suggestions?

Thanks.



-Sorry about the picture.. I'm not the best artist.

P.S
I plan to be using the second PC to install linux on and mess around with some networking. Win Server with Win client, Linux server with win client, etc. Thanks.

 

Looks to me like you have a router/switch connected to a modem in the living room-- is that correct? If so, then I might suggest leaving everything as is and adding a switch in your room and connecting both computers in your room to the switch. Use the existing ethernet cable to connect the switch in your room to the router. You can get a switch for about $10 to $30 on sale; maybe cheaper if you shop online.

I did something similar in the past and it worked very well. I would avoid ICS because I have always had problems with it every now and then (it would work for a while and then require some kind of intervention to reconfigure again). I gave up on ICS a long time ago, but you are probably a lot more savvy than me and it might work OK for you.

I don't know about using two routers. I thought that I would someday run an ethernet cable to a small workshop area and, via a switch, just play around with a couple of computers and other OS's. I like to try out new linux os when they are released-- I just find it interesting (and challenging).

 

im lazy and cheap so i would have just got another 50' cable. if you bought a switch for your room you would need 2 more cables. and a 50' crossover cable to connect the 2 switches.

 

Hi fadeone
You could purchase a switch that does auto-cable-detect. That way, you don't need a cross-over cable and you can avoid the nuisance of running new cable.

 

Do the auto-cable-detect units have what are also called Up-link ports? I think my Linksys router (WRT54G) has a port like that and I will probably just go ahead and get a Linksys switch that has the up link port (internal cross over wiring).

I bought a Linksys modem when I first got broadband and have just stayed with that brand because it seems like good stuff. I have used a d-link switch in someone else's home and it works perfectly also.

I also like to get longer patch cords than I really need because it makes moving the computers around and working on them more pleasant. I like to get 10 footers for short ones.

 

(If so, then I might suggest leaving everything as is and adding a switch in your room and connecting both computers in your room to the switch. Use the existing ethernet cable to connect the switch in your room to the router. You can get a switch for about $10 to $30 on sale; maybe cheaper if you shop online)

I agree this is the best and cheapest option, exactly what I have at home and at work.

 

@stardis
Linksys makes a nice little 5-port "Autosensing" switch for about 30USD. They're a bit more here in Canada, but I've had my eye on it - waiting for the prices to line up. It's the EZXS55W - here's the blurb from the Linksys site.