[NCLUG] FOSS (OpenWRT) friendly extended-range WiFi home ideas?

[Gabriel L. Somlo]

On Mon, Nov 23, 2020 at 04:18:30PM -0500, Gabriel L. Somlo wrote:
> I'm currently running OpenWRT on a NetGear X4S R7800, but had to hook
> it up toward one end of my house, and the coverage only goes about
> half-way to the other end.
> 
> I'm new to the world of WiFi "extenders" and "repeaters" and "mesh"
> configurations, and I'm wondering if anyone here has any good/bad
> experiences with any specific setups.
> 
> I'm thinking I'd probably need one or two additional devices to speak
> WiFi to my "main" router (which I'm happy to also replace, if that's
> going to get me a better overall end result), and also allow wifi-enabled
> client devices to connect through them to the "main" router and on to
> the Internet.
> 
> Bonus points if end devices can seamlessly jump from one
> extender/repeater/mesh box to another, remain within the same SSID,
> stay within the same layer-2 broadcast domain, and/or keep the same
> IP address while doing so.
> 
> In lieu of "buy this and flash OpenWRT (or other FOSS firmware) on it",
> a link to a good tutorial (which also explains the tradeoffs between the
> various options) would also be much appreciated :)

As it turns out, after some more research, I *think* I want 802.11s
(mesh), which OpenWRT supports out of the box:
https://openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/network/wifi/mesh/80211s

So, 1. find out if my router's hardware supports it, then either buy
another one just like it, or if not, buy two that are, and follow the
setup instructions in the link above :)

Still would like to hear from anyone who thinks there's a better way.

Thanks again,
--Gabriel