Do You Need a Router for WiFi?

Technically, you can have a Wi-Fi system that does not connect to the Internet. For example, if you have a small business and you want computers within your office to have a method of conveniently sharing information, you can connect them via a Wi-Fi system. The goal of a Wi-Fi system is to connect a computer to the Internet. To do that, the system needs a connection to the Internet, a method of translating information from the Internet communication format to your computer's format, a way of sending and receiving that information over wireless radio waves (at the network connection and at your computer), and a computer.

If you already have a computer and a broadband connection to the Internet, you need the pieces in-between. The piece that translates from telecommunications format to your computer's format is your modem, and the piece that converts that to a wireless radio signal is a wireless access point, or a wireless router. Then your computer will have it's own wireless hardware, which can be an internal or external device. You need all those pieces.

A wireless access point fits into a pre-existing network and adds a wireless section to the existing hardwired connections. A router does more or less that same thing, but it also provides additional capabilities. The capabilities it offers allow you to create a network (as opposed to adding on to an existing one) and put in some levels of security. You could get by without a wireless router by using a wireless access point, but it almost never makes sense for a home user to do that. A wireless router is the hardware of choice to create the wireless radio signal.

Many options are out there right now that combine the functions of a modem and a wireless router. So, what could have been three pieces of hardware --- one to translate the signals, one to define a network, and one to send and receive radio signals --- is now very often just one piece of hardware. This combination device, called a modem router, will often be supplied by your Internet service provider. You do have to be careful if purchasing your own, because a cable modem, for example, will not work with a DSL modem.

You can also create what's called an ad-hoc network. This type of network is also known as a computer-to-computer network. You can set up an ad-hoc network using hardwired or wireless protocols, and your computer will walk you through the steps, although additional information is available on the Internet. Most often an ad-hoc network is just that --- set up solely for the short-term sharing of information among computers. Although it is not absolutely required that you have a wireless router, for all practical purposes a router is the best solution for setting up a Wi-Fi system.