So Cal Free Net.org

Last night was the 'official opening' of the Golden Villas installation we did a couple of months ago. This was a party thrown by the residents for the installation team and it was fantastic. Lots of kids running around (avid users of the lab), excellent home cooked food, and a great time to catch up with the people who are really using the system.

Here is a brief description of how we configured the two Netgate HS3000 250mW APs we're using at Golden Villas.

Setup is very much like configuring any AP, but with one twist - adding the WDS (Wireless Distribution System) setup. The basic steps are:

1. set a startic IP on your computer such as 192.168.2.100 (255.255.255.0)
2. connect to the HS3000 via ethernet, turn it on, etc.
3. connect an ethernet cable from your computer to the HS3000 - a crossover cable is needed for a direct connection
4. open a browser at http://192.168.2.254, no password is needed

This page details the network work configuration for the Golden Villa installation.

Subnet 10.12.11.0/24

This installation uses the 10.12.11.0/24 subnet - i.e. 10.12.11.0 to 10.12.11.255. This is further divided as follows:

A Soekris 4501 is used as the main router, running m0n0wall. The three ports are assigned as follows:

Note: This document was a 'living' document during the planning phase, and as such was never quite up to date. And so far it has not been updated to reflect the final outcome on the installation day. However we're leaving it here in this state to serve as a guide for the next install and/or interested readers. Please don't mistake it as "The whole truth and nothing but the truth.".

This document is a central planning document for the Golden Villa installation day. The address is
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=3385%20Elm%20St%2C%20san%20diego%2C%20ca and the start time is 10am.

The installation has four parts:

1. Installing the main wireless node above the office
2. Installing the repeater wireless node
3. Installing and configuring the common room computer lab
4. Helping residents get online

Below are the details for each part of the installation.

Each building has a similar set of utilities fixtures at one end. Every second power box has an outlet underneath it. We'll add a waterproof box and use it to house the PoE adapter. There's plenty of locations to put a grounding rod, though more likely we'll put a clamp on an existing grounded pipe (like the one coming from the bottom of the meter box).

SoCalFreeNet member Drew is setting up the site survey gear on what will become the primary antenna location. The door at the bottom right is the office where the Business Cable feed is located. We'll likely drill the back wall and run the cable up the drain pipe and then tack it to the wall by the edge strip and mount the antenna on the side wall above the vent and light.

Further to the right of the club house, you can clearly see the three apartment buildings including the one we're standing on). Coverage is pretty poor outside at the very back of the furthest building.

From the main antenna location you can see the clubhouse directly below where a computer lab will be, and to the right are 3 more apartment buildings.