Never throw away your old routers. The new routers may offer you high performance and speed, yet there are some ways to use old routers. Some great uses for old routers include improving the new network, extending wireless coverage, providing network authentication, assisting in providing public WIFI, or enabling site-to-site connections for VPN and secure remote VPN connections.

Giving Old Tech New Life: Routers

Most of these ideas include moving your old router around to serve different purposes. Nevertheless, some use neat features, which replacement firmware projects offer for the famous WRT series from vendors like Linksys. However, all ideas can be a bit helpful and will let you save lots of money.

Extend Coverage Through the Use of Old Routers As AP

Even if wireless routers are made to connect and distribute internet connection, they may be used for their WIFI capabilities. In other terms, you may use old routers as AP or access points rather than wireless routers. If you have a small network with a single wireless router, it can double your own wireless coverage, and it is free of charge.

Make It a Repeater to Take Signal Further

Another great way to use old routers is to extend the WIFI footprint. You can use it as a repeater. Rather than running an Ethernet cable out to an access point, the repeater gets its network connection by listening to airwaves and retransmitting WIFI signals between the current wireless network as well as the users out of the coverage area. It’s great if you cannot or do not want to run some wires. Even if this technique will not let you run cables to extend coverage range, it does need to flash your router with the replacement firmware. The main reason behind it is that routers do not come with a repeater feature. If you have supported routers, you may use Tomato or DD-WRT firmware replacement.

Use Old Routers As a Wireless Bridge

You can convert your old routers into wireless bridges if you have other network devices or computers that should be connected to the network yet only have an Ethernet port and are not close enough to the routers. Regarding bridge mode, old routers would communicate with new routers through airwaves. Any computer that’s connected to the Ethernet ports of old routers would be like they’re connected wirelessly to new routers.

Turn Old Routers Into A Hotspot

You can convert an old router into another hotspot gateway if you have a business. Even if you can plug in the regular wireless router to provide wireless internet, you must implement hotspot features. The captive portal lets users see the ads or disclaimers or make payments before getting internet access.

Offer the VPN Connections or Connect the Offices Together

Another provided feature by several firmware replacements is built-in VPN servers and clients. This allows you to set up the router for a more secure remote connection, so you may access services and files or secure WIFI hotspot connections. In addition to that, if you have different locations, you may securely connect them through the internet.

How to Use Old Routers

Rather than just throwing away your old router, I hope we gave you a few good ideas of ways to use old routers. If you do decide to throw them out, please consider recycling or filling out our recycling form to responsibly recycle the routers for you.