Using Wireless for Internet & Gigabit LAN for NAS?

1

As my homeplugs are faulty, I have sent them back and while I wait for them to be repaired and sent back to me, I am currently running on Wireless on both of my laptops (MacBook Pro and HP Envy 17). Because of this, I don't get gigabit speeds to my NAS as the wireless router is downstairs and the NAS is in the same room as me.

What I am asking is, is there a way I can use the Wireless for the internet and use the Gigabit LAN port for connecting to my NAS?

Dean Perry

Posted 2011-05-23T17:22:55.710

Reputation: 667

1Your NAS isn't on the same network as your router? Why can't you use the same network connection for both? – afrazier – 2011-05-23T17:36:06.687

No it is on the same network. I use homeplug so I have access to the internet upstairs in my room. The router is downstairs at the front of the house. I then have a gigabit switch and a couple of machines connected to it along with the NAS. Because the router is downstairs transfers will be extremely slow, hence why I am asking can I use the wireless for the internet while using the LAN for connecting using gigabit speeds to my NAS? – Dean Perry – 2011-05-23T18:12:52.380

Answers

0

Yes, plug your Gigabit LAN port into your NAS, and then go to System Preferences > Network > Action menu [The "gear" icon button at the bottom of the interface service list] > Set Service Order...

...and then drag AirPort above Ethernet in the list. Then click Okay and then Apply.

Ordering your interface services this way tells your machine that AirPort should be your default interface instead of Ethernet. Ethernet will still work for getting to the local subnet (i.e. your NAS), but AirPort will be used for getting "out to the Internet" (this is known as your "default route").

Oh, you'll also probably need to figure out IP addressing for this two-device subnet of you and your NAS. Since this is now an isolate network since your HomePlug repeaters are down, your NAS and your Mac probably can't get to a DHCP server on this network, so you'll need to give them static IPs on the same subnet (but not on the same subnet as the rest of your home network), or you'll need to fire up a DHCP server on this network. If your NAS can serve DHCP, you can have it do it. Or you could turn on Internet Sharing in Mac OS X "From: AirPort, To: Ethernet", to have your Mac act as the DHCP server so your NAS can get an IP lease from your Mac.

Spiff

Posted 2011-05-23T17:22:55.710

Reputation: 84 656

@ Spiff -- Thank you for taking the time to craft the response for the OP. 7 years after switching to a Mac, and I had no idea it was this easy!! I have tried for 2 days to figure out how to attach my NAS locally using the LAN port -and- to be able to still use the WiFi to connect to the internet; chiefly because my wifi router is in a different part of the house; I imagine others are in the same predicament... I have always thought that it would be nice to take advantage of the Jumbo frames that the 1Gb LAN offers for backups over 802.11(n). – TheDudeAbides – 2014-06-07T05:23:07.067

Glad I could help. BTW, it's the reliable bandwidth of gigabit Ethernet that makes it better than 802.11, not the frame size. TCP/IPv4 over Ethernet is around 94.1% efficient with standard 1500 Byte frames. 9K jumbo frames take it to 99.1% efficiency. That's a 50Mbps speedup, but that pales in comparison to the several hundred megabits of difference between typical 802.11n speeds and 1Gbps Ethernet. – Spiff – 2014-06-07T15:50:02.393

Asked: 2011-05-23T17:22:55.710

Viewed: 687 times

Active: 2014-06-07T05:23:07.067