Member Avatar for giacomo

I have a MSI RG54GS2 wireless router plus USB print server and a Netgear Rangemax Wireless router WPN824 V3. I have the netgear connected directly to a cable modem. I have been trying for the past couple of days to connect the MSI to the Netgear wirelessly using the WDS function on the MSI. I put the Mac of the netgear in the WDS of the MSI and have enabled wireless repeating function and have check the radio button "Wireless base station" on the Netgear in repeater Mac address 1.

I was able to connect locally to the other computer on the network from the MSI wireless but was unable to connect to the internet.

Can anyone relate to this and tell me where I am going wrong?

Please.

Cheers!

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Dani AI

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reported that wireless clients on the second router could see other LAN machines but not reach the Internet. was right to flag WDS compatibility — that is the most common root cause, but several other configuration traps produce the same symptom.

A short troubleshooting checklist that addresses the usual causes:

  • Confirm both devices actually implement compatible WDS/bridge modes. Vendor-specific WDS often will not interoperate; a “repeater” UI option is not always true WDS.
  • Verify both radios use the same channel and SSID as required by the chosen bridge mode.
  • Temporarily disable wireless security (or use WEP only for testing) to rule out encryption incompatibility; many older WDS implementations do not work with WPA/WPA2.
  • Ensure the secondary box is not running its own DHCP server or doing NAT. Clients on the repeater network must get the main router’s gateway (use ipconfig /all or equivalent to check).
  • Use ping and tracert from a client on the repeater side to see where packets stop (the repeater, the main router, or beyond).
  • When a MAC address is requested for WDS, supply the wireless MAC (BSSID), not the LAN/WAN MAC — many GUIs expose multiple addresses and the wrong one will fail.

If WDS cannot be made compatible, a reliable fallback is LAN-to-LAN wired AP mode with DHCP off on the secondary device. Where wiring is impossible, consider replacing the secondary unit with a dedicated bridge/repeater or installing proven bridging firmware (DD‑WRT/OpenWrt) only if the exact hardware and build are supported — flashing carries risk.

Manuals and firmware notes for both routers often state WDS limitations; those documents are the best definitive source for whether an interoperable bridge is possible. WEP is insecure and should be used only for testing; restore strong encryption or another secure solution once connectivity is confirmed.

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Member Avatar for hughv

I believe both routers must support WDS, and it looks as though the Netgear may not.

Member Avatar for giacomo

What is the wireless repeating option in the netgear for? I thought that was for the wds purpose (bridging).

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