I need to make a wireless hot spot?

You're in luck - I did this for my church last year (I'm the IT Coordinator).

There is only one type of router you should get for this job - Dlink DIR615 (Wireless N)

Some places sell them nice and cheaply online. I also used a few DIR635s because I liked the 3 antennae as opposed to 2, but it really doesn't matter. But get them - they have been tried and tested, and are extremely configurable. And they can be wall mounted and have removable / exchangable antennae.

Get Wireless N, because that's helping to future-proof the whole operation.

You'll need a heck of a lot of Cat5e cable, but I'm sure you know how to source that cheaply if you are taking on this job. I got 305m of the stuff for about £50, but that was all I needed really.

Ok, so I'll try and do this in a step-by-step way.

Equipment:

* as many Dlink Dir615s as you require

* as much cable as you require

* RJ45 faceplates with TWO ports (or FOUR, if required - you'll see why later) and accompanying backing plates for each router to plug into (more professional) and a ONE port RJ45 to begin the cabling with.

* Drills, screwdrivers, ethernet cable wall/skirting board clamps, cable testers, RJ45 ethernet clamps, trunking, whatever else you need to get the cabling done.

Method:

1) Work out the route your cabling will take, and where each router will be placed.

2) Install the first backing plate and single RJ45 faceplate at the location of the main DSL router. This is where the ethernet cable from the main DSL router will be plugged into. The back of the RJ45 faceplate is where the cable leading to the first wireless router should be clamped into.

3) Run the cable to the location of the next wireless router

4) Install a 2-port RJ45 socket where it is required, and clamp the wires into the back of the first port. This is where an ethernet cable will come out of, and you will plug this into a LAN socket (not the WAN) of the DIR 615.

Make sure you have enough cable just in case you make a few mistakes when trimming the coating off the cable to show the wires.

5) Another ethernet cable should be plugged into a second LAN port, and this is the output. This ethernet cable should be plugged to the 2nd port of the 2-port RJ45 faceplate.

6) Clamp a new segment of cable into the 2nd port from behind, and continue to the next location a router is required.

Repeat steps 3 - 6 as required for how many routers you require.

This will get your cabling all done. You may be better not clamping into the back of the RJ45 port until you are ready to attach the cable for that segment.

A few things to note:

You don't have to follow this method exactly. For example, you may find that from one router, you have the next two routers going off in different directions, in which case, you might need a FOUR port RJ45 faceplate, so that you can connect up to THREE more routers from ONE router. Easy.

Now, the most important part... Setting Up the Routers!!!

With this configuration, your main DSL router will stay as the main DHCP server, so nothing needs to be changed. All you need to do for each router, is this... exactly this...

1) Power on the router and connect to it via Ethernet cable to your laptop. Don't plug anything else in.

2) Access the router (192.168.1.1) and configure the wireless settings. Each router should have *exactly* the same SSID, password, and encryption method. Save and reboot. You might also want to change the admin username and password to access the router.

Now... the bit you will have to remember and make a note of

3) Change the IP address of the router to an IP used by the main DSL router (in my case, the main DSL router is a Thompson Speedtouch with an IP 10.0.0.138 - so I set my first router to 10.0.0.255, my second router to end in 254, then 253, and so on).

Click to turn OFF the DHCP server. (These steps should be done together as they should be on the same page of your router). Save and reboot.

Here's a tip: NUMBER the routers on the back with a sticker or something similar, and make a note of the IP address that corresponds to the router number, and the location of where it will be installed. Handy for troubleshooting.

4) Now, to test, plug a cable from the LAN of your existing router into the LAN (NOT the WAN) of your newly set up router. Your existing router will detect the IP address you set and will route traffic through it accordingly when you connect. You should also be able to access BOTH the main DSL router and the newly configured wireless router by typing in the IP address in your browser.

Now your wired/wireless devices accessing your new router will have their IPs assigned by the DHCP server on your existing router and you will still have access to ALL network resources on both routers (eg printers, hard drives, and PCs too).

And that, as far as I can see... is that.

If you need more help, just mail me. I'm pretty passionate about networking,

extremely tough point. check out onto google or bing. that will will help!