Squeezebox Players

[pippin107]

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SASH wrote:

So if you can turn off the WiFi in the UI, then can you turn it back on in the UI wirelessly ?

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No, you'd need to do that over a wire.

[squeezeit]

Sash,

Web UI access to a router can be WiFi or wired, but as suggested by pippin, WiFi access won't work if the WiFi is turned off.

There are routers and/or firmware for certain routers that do allow you to toggle the WiFi signal output power.  This is for increasing the WiFi signal strength to devices further away from the router, not for energy savings (which would be almost immeasurable).

You are WAY over thinking and over complicating all of this for a an extremely small benefit in lower electric use.  Buy any router and simply unplug it when not in use if it is that important to you.  Messing with the WiFi output itself (strength/sleep/on-off) is of almost no benefit and may even lead to poor WiFi performance if not done properly.

There is a reason there are almost no WiFi on-off hard switches on routers, because in almost all cases it would never be used as it offers virtually no real benefit particularly in electric savings.  

[SASH]

I don't doubt that WiFi is low energy use, but I simply can not understand having something turned on full time when (in my case) I use it only 1 or 2 hours a day (a little more on weekends).  If I had a house full of people needing to be "connected", leaving WiFi on full time would make a lot more sense... but it is just me and my dog.  I also have most of my gear run through power conditioners and the hardware I use infrequently is plugged into the switched outlets so that I can cut power to these devices when not in use.  It all adds up when so many electronic devices use power (idle) even when turned off.

Anyway, I do appreciate all the help and device.  I definitely have a little bit better understanding of networking now.

I have a Netgear CG3000D gateway on its way now thanks to eBay.  I am happy my cable modem didn't work out for my set-up as now I will have a single device acting as modem and router... and I will be able to turn on/off WiFi with the touch of a button.  The router itself must stay on full time because I am running VOIP through an Ooma which will be hard wired to the gateway.

[pippin107]

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SASH wrote:

I also have most of my gear run through power conditioners and the hardware I use infrequently is plugged into the switched outlets so that I can cut power to these devices when not in use.

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So why don't you use a dedicated WiFi AP/Router and do the same thing to it: power it up only when you need it?

[SASH]

Because I dropped my phone service and now rely on the Ooma (VOIP) to maintain open phone line.  I still want to be able to receive messages when I am not home.

[pippin107]

Yes, that's why I said "dedicated WiFi AP/Router".

I do the same thing: my (main) WiFi AP (actually a router with the routing part tuned off) is separate from the border router that is responsible for the connection to the internet and phone and both are connected by (wired) ethernet.

In my case the reason is that the place where the phone line comes in and where I want to have the DSL router (because I need to connect a fax to it) is in a place from which I don't get WiFi coverage for my whole flat so I added another one in a more central location.

This way you could turn off the router.

Makes zero sense from a power consumption POV, though, since you'd probably save 0.5W of power for WiFi in standby compared to consuming 3W or so more while turned on (for the second AP) and being offset by the power consumption of the switch, but you COULD do it.

And if you don't have the router in the same device as the modem/VOIP device then it should be pretty easy anyway. That'S how I understood your setup to look like.

[SASH]

I think I may take your suggestion Pippin.  My Netgear gateway is working fine, all except for the WiFi on/off button... which was the primary reason I purchased it over a Motorola gateway.  I suspect that the Netgear gateway was configured with the WiFI button disabled for the ISP.

If I do set up a second wireless router as an AP and disable the router function, would it still function as a switch as well ?  I have a Panasonic printer in the same room I would use for the router/AP and I would like to connect it to my LAN.

Seems I am having to learn the hard way on this little venture.  Oh well, hopefully the cost savings of the VOIP will be worth it.  And my Transporter is back up and running.

[pippin107]

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SASH wrote:
If I do set up a second wireless router as an AP and disable the router function, would it still function as a switch as well ?

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It should, at least if it has a built-in switch, that is: more than one ethernet port. Most routers do that, actually all that I have owned so far did.