Can I Share Dial Up Internet Service over a Wireless Network?

Sharing broadband Internet service over wireless networks is not very difficult
with today's routers and other home networking equipment. But what about those
folks still stuck with dial-up Internet - can they share too?

Is it Possible?
Yes, it's certainly possible to share dial-up Internet access across a wireless
home network or other wireless LAN (WLAN).

Wireless LANs easily support the amount of bandwidth required to share dial-up
Internet service. Dial-up runs at such low speeds, however, that Internet
connections will perform sluggishly on WLANs, particularly when trying to access it
with multiple computers at the same time. Try any of the following approaches to
make it all work as well as can be expected.

Wired Router with Wireless Access Point

This option requires three pieces of hardware in addition to wireless network cards
for the client computers: a wired broadband router, an external modem, and a
wireless access point. Connect the external modem to this router for Internet
access, then connect the wireless access point to the router for wireless access.
Not all broadband routers support external modems; look for those that feature RS-
232 serial ports.

Ad Hoc Mode With Windows ICS

Alternatively, you can try Windows Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) or equivalent
software that relies on one computer hosting the Net connection. This option
requires at a minimum that the host computer has a modem (either internal or
external) and that all wireless network cards be configured for ad-hoc (peer-to-
peer) mode. This option works best if you only have a few home computers located
close to each other.

Those who prefer the first option usually already own a wired broadband router that
supports external modems. Because the second option requires neither a wired router
nor an external modem, it is usually cheaper and easier to set up for those
building new home networks from the ground up.

WiFlyer
You may also consider purchasing the WiFlyer product designed to operate as a dial-
up router. This option is the simplest to install of the ones discussed here but
most expensive in terms of equipment cost.

Other Specialized Wireless Routers

If none of the above options are feasible, you'll need to find a wireless router
that features an RS-232 (serial) port in order to share the dial-up line over an
external modem. The mainstream models today do not feature such a serial port.
Products that do tend to be discontinued models or higher-end routers designed to
use dial-up as a failover option. Some residential routers that provide serial
ports for external modems are:

ZoomAir Internet Gateway IG-4165

SMC Barricade 7004AWB
Early models of the Apple Airport Base Station
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