User's Guide Part 1

Bridge Mode Overview

Bridge mode provides wireless AP connectivity to SoftGate clients, and bridges the existing

wired LAN segment(s) with the SoftGate host’s wireless LAN adapter. Typically, a bridge is

used to interconnect physical LAN segments on a network that already provides DHCP and

routing services.

In a typical use case, SoftGate will run on a PC to provide wireless AP functionality to client

devices. When run on a laptop, SoftGate is essentially a portable device that provides

wireless AP functionality on virtually any network. Because each network configuration may

be different, the SoftGate host will attempt to adapt to varying network configurations.

When a network is running a DHCP service you will not want to introduce a node that is also

running DHCP, therefore the SoftGate host should be configured in bridge mode if the LAN

or any LAN segment uses DHCP.

Quetec? SoftGate

Configured Laptop

Ethernet

Printer

DHCP Server

Desktop PC

Firewall/Router

LAN Adapter and Wireless

Adapter Bridged

Existing Subnet(s)

SoftGate in Bridge Mode

SoftGate Client

Internet

SoftGate Clients and Host

Assigned IP by LAN DHCP

Server

Figure 3: SoftGate in Bridge Mode