You can get signal repeaters, but the metal building may still interfere. You can also try building a cantenna to send a shotgun data stream to the garage. Google "cantenna" for designs and prebuilt units.

 

It's never a good idea to run copper between buildings unless you REALLY know what you're doing. If you must run a line, I'd use fiber.

You'll need to get the antenna outside the metal structure, so I'd look for an outdoor directional antenna for the garage. If you have a window facing the garage, you could use a Cantenna or similar directional antenna on that end.

 

okay, two more questions, what is the issue with running copper vs. fiber? second, when I get the cable out to my garage, I have a desktop out there, and I also have a laptop.can I use my second router to have wireless on the laptop or will that interfere with the settings on the first router? is there a better option?
there is an office in the garage if you are wondering why all the computers out there.....

Thanks again
Ron

 

the only thing i can think of that is bad about running copper between two buildings, is if you aren't properly grounded in one building.

when i was told to do this by one of my bosses, we used a peice of flexible conduit, and attached the conduit to ground at both ends. we had 0 problems getting connectivity through it.

not sure if that was even the right way, but it seems to work just fine.

 

Grounding and lightning are the two main reasons. It's not as easy as you might imagine to get the same ground levels between two buildings. This issue used to drive me nuts when I was building trading equipment for Wall Street firms, we'd run cables a few hundred feet, and we'd have 10-15 VAC between the grounds! It would drive the networks and serial connections crazy!

 

ahh, yes that's the one thing i thought you might mean.

and yeah, those buildings both had a ground rod, and also a large ground wire running out there. (it was a metal garage, so the feed was 3 fat 2 guages wires, one being ground)

and then the ground on the conduit.

so it was seriously well grounded.

but i can agree that it wouldn't be something simple.

fiber would be best, but expensive.

 

okay, grounding issues and all, I managed to get the cat5 out two the second building, the network works on the desk top out there direct wired to the router with the cat5.
Now I still have the issue that my laptop doesnt work unless I unplug the cat5 from the desktop and use it on the laptop which I dont want to do.

Is it possible to hook up a second router to the cat5 or will that conflict with the one in the house?

let me refresh your memory here..
house = Building one... Satalite internet modem to Router
Router to desktop in building one, laptop via wireless, and cat5 to building two

Garage = Building two
Desktop computer, also want wireless but wont work thru the walls.

I am so close but stopped by lack of knowledge.... frustrating..
Thanks again..
Hoffy

 

All you need is a simple switch at that end, and you can connect both devices. Here's a D-Link model for $10. http://www.gearxs.com/gearxs/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=DSS-5PLUS

 

i have an older version of that same switch.

d-link makes very solid stuff for the prices.