I’m familiar with the absolute basics of networking, but very little surrounding wifi.
I’m current using the modem-router-AP provided by my ISP, along with a couple repeaters. This isn’t working well, and in areas of my house further away from my main AP, packet loss is often around 20% - near unusable. How should I improve this?
I can run some wires (within reason), and have multiple spare routers-APs to work with. I can also buy something new off the shelf if needed, but don’t want to spend more than I have to. What would be the approach I should use? Like, is there a particular type of extender I should be using, or can I use multiple routers as a mesh or something?
Repeaters are awful. It’s best to have multiple access points instead. One simple solution is to deactivate wifi in your ISPs router, and add your own APs instead, possibly via a switch.
I ran some cables throughout my house and bought a 3-pach of Aruba AP22. Wired them into a PoE switch, which in turn connects to my router (I managed to replace my ISPs router, but that’s besides the point). Works like a charm.