How to increase DWL-2100AP Power and Frequency Range

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With thanks to Daniel, who recently held my hand through the process of making it all work, I recently discovered that the D-link DWL 2100AP wireless access point is a far more worthey piece of equipment for wireless networking than I previously thought. Here are my thoughts on the DWL 2100 to date - they are still valid for standard units, but the potential for modifying the DWL 2100AP to transmit higher power and to operate on an extend frequency range by hacking it just a little bit is fantastic.

The DWL-2100AP is quite capable of transmitting up to almost half a watt, and with it's internal frequency limitations turned off, will operate on an extra 13 channels!! This page is intended to document clearly how to get the most out of your DWL-2100AP for community wireless use, and I would like to thank Daniel, and the makers of http://www.wavedale.net/ Take a look at their web site, which is written in german,  for a more technically based discussion of what is outlined below.

Depending where you are in the world, these modifications may be illegal as increased power output or extended frequency coverage may go beyond the laws that cover your use of wireless equipment. In testing I used a dummy load, and I would recommed the same for others if you are unsure whether you are going to be operating outside regulatory limitations. Better to be sure than sorry.

To increase your DWL-2100AP's power

1. Download THIS FIRMWARE
2. Upgrade your access point with the firmware using it's GUI      TOOLS>FIRMWARE>UPDATE FILE
3. Reset the unit
4. Via the unit's telnet interface, issue the command "set overridetxpower xx" where "xx" is your desired power output in Dbm
5. Adequately cool the unit

To Extend your DWL-2100AP's Frequency Range

1. If you haven't already, carry out steps 1 to 3 above.
2. Via the unit's telnet interface, issue the command " set regularydomain none " to disable the unit's frequency restrictions
3. Select your desired operating frequency by issuing the following command " set frequency xxxx " where "xxxx" is the frequency in MHz, selected from
    the following table. The frequencies on the left are the new frequencies, the ones on the right are the standard frequencies. You must use the telnet interface to
    enter the desired frequencies.

Telnet

For those not familiar with the telnet interface, it is a text based interface that is used by many peripherals that allows you to view and change equipment settings, often (as is the case here) providing more functionality than the web based graphical interface. To telnet to a DWL-2100, use the following steps.

1. Open the MS DOS prompt        START>RUN>CMD>OK
2. Issue the command "telnet xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx" where "xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx" is the ip address of the unit. DWL-2100's have a default ip address of 192.168.1.50, so "telnet 192.168.1.50"
3. You are then requested to log in to the DWL-2100 using your username and password. The defaults are "admin" and no password
4. You may now issue commands to the box. To exit type "quit"

Following is a list of telnet commands for the DWL-2100AP

Cooling

If you turn your DWL-2100's power up significantly, you are going to need to provide extra cooling for it. If you don't, as it heats, it's performance will reduce significantly, negating any positive gained from increasing the power, and with excessive heating comes the potential of damaging the unit. You will have to manage heat by adding a heatsink with a fan to the PA section of the unit, and adjusting power output to levels that your heatsink can handle.

A CPU heatsink and fan placed over the PA assembley provided adequate results.