Wireless...

[MHP]

Hi all, I've got a pretty specific wifi problem and would appreciate your views and help if you have the time.

Here’s the problem.

I have two windows 7 boxes, these are flight cased PC’s that go out on jobs. They both need wireless internet access and they both need to share files between them wirelessly.
Getting this to work at home or in the office is simple, join a wireless network, sort out the folder sharing and bobs your uncle.

Getting this to work out in the field on publicly shared wifi is not so easy. Most network admins worth there salt lock down the sharing side of the wireless network in public places as a security measure. So this puts the kibosh on the simple solution.

So now for the complex solution. I try 2 USB wireless adapters in each box, 1 for WAN (internet) and 1 for LAN (local file share). I configure the adapters separately so windows knows what’s going on, set up an access point on the LAN adapter on both boxes and bingo it works.

Now here’s where it starts to go tits up. Windows likes to fuck about with the USB ports. If I leave everything as it is, it works fine. If I plug any USB device into the PC, memory stick etc, windows randomly shuffle everything about in the registry and I lose my config.

I realise that I wouldn't have this problem if I used PCIE wireless cards but one of the boxes is a SFF PC with no expansion slots and the other is a low profile server case with not much room for the antenna.

How do I stop Windows messing with the USB ports?

Is the multi adapter the best solution?

[Soulassassin]

Can't really help with the WiFi, but would it not be easier to use cloud based storage for the shared files?

[MHP]

I looked at cloud based storage in the beginning, but the up/down speeds on random public wifi's are temperamental and the software solution I'm using will not let me point to a cloud based network address.

[Basset]

Are you using the internet access when out and about in public or purely as a LAN ? If just LAN then I would have thought using a mobile mi-fi hotspot as a router would be easier or even if you do need the public wi-fi internet access a Kingston wi-drive that can act as a bridge.

[MHP]

I've tried mi-fi and dongles in the past. 3G/4G signal in the basement function room of a hotel of venue is non-existent.

[DejaVu]

If you have 2 wireless adapters, are they configured as 1 on each for Internet and the other for direct Adhoc?

If it was Adhoc, I wouldn't think Windows would mess with any settings and it'll be a direct connection between them without the need for a router or access point.

But I could be wrong.

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

[MHP]

Yep 2 adapters on each box,one for internet and one for LAN. Windows is reinstalling usb adapters on the fly and unlinking previously set configs in the. registry. Pci configs are linked to slots so they don't move about so easily unless you unplug from a slot etc. With usb, windows is creating virtual slots and being an arse by not maintaining a static config for the usb infrastructure.

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[Mr.James]

How far apart are they? Can you not plug a crossover cable in for your shared folder stuff then use wireless for Internet?


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[Mr.James]

Failing that bang a pci wireless in both, set one as ad-hoc, connect 2nd to that for folder sharing, then two USB for Internet.


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[DejaVu]

He's already doing that. It's when a new USB device is plugged in, Windows messes with resources, things change and ID's are changing. Hence breaking connection and settings/configs. Need a way to fix down a USB ID to the device permanently.

It's the fact that USB is hot swappable that's creating this unique issue.

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

[MHP]

He's already doing that. It's when a new USB device is plugged in, Windows messes with resources, things change and ID's are changing. Hence breaking connection and settings/configs. Need a way to fix down a USB ID to the device permanently.

It's the fact that USB is hot swappable that's creating this unique issue.

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

Exactly, I need to lock the configs to the USB ID's. Being network devices I assumed windows would look at the Mac addresses and work it out. I was wrong.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

[koola2]

What about a wireless HDD that they can both connect to?
e.g. http://www.clasohlson.com/uk/Seagate...Fi/Pr385606000

I looked at cloud based storage in the beginning, but the up/down speeds on random public wifi's are temperamental and the software solution I'm using will not let me point to a cloud based network address.

Dropbox has a LAN sync so the internet speed on the public wifi should not matter (as much)

[MHP]

The problem with using Dropbox and any cloud based solution is the single point of failure. With a separate WAN/LAN setup, if the internet goes down or is unavailable then the local file share is still up. If no internet is available I don't have Dropbox. LAN sync is a great feature of Dropbox but it needs a LAN to work and that's what I don't have because windows keeps screwing my configs.

[Undertaker]

Have you looked into locking the registry settings or even writing a vb script that would put your reg settings back to what it should be?

[MHP]

Have you looked into locking the registry settings or even writing a vb script that would put your reg settings back to what it should be?

I hoped that would be my last resort, I wanted a cleaner, simpler solution but unless I can shoehorn some PCIE cards into one of the boxes then it's probably the route I will have to go.

[DejaVu]

Careful with the shoehorning, you could end up getting the attention of Goldberg in here!

[Undertaker]

Well shoehorning Linux might actually prove fruitful here

[Mr.James]

He's already doing that. It's when a new USB device is plugged in, Windows messes with resources, things change and ID's are changing. Hence breaking connection and settings/configs. Need a way to fix down a USB ID to the device permanently.

It's the fact that USB is hot swappable that's creating this unique issue.

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

As long as the USB wireless dongles are plugged in to the same port, and only unplugged/plugged in when the machine is off, then it shouldn't fuck with the settings... Or at least it never did on my old XP laptop and Netgear dongle.