Can an Airport Express be used to extend the Wi-Fi of another-non Apple Access Point?

My colleague has a cheap Cisco Access Point on another floor. He is using a Mac Pro and the the Wi-Fi is very spotty.

Can an Airport Express be used to extend this network?

Solution 1:

Apple seems to be saying in a round-a-bout way here that other routers are not supported for wireless range extensions (with a router connected to Ethernet and the Express not):

Extend an existing Wi-Fi network’s range.

If you already have a wireless network in your home and want to extend its range, AirPort Express can help. Just place it in range of your primary base station — an AirPort Extreme, Time Capsule, or another AirPort Express — and near the area where you want your wireless connection. Launch the easy-to-use AirPort Utility app on your iOS device or Mac, and you’re mere minutes away from long-range Wi-Fi enjoyment.

However, this is only if your AirPort Express is not connected to Ethernet. Otherwise, you can setup a roaming network. The newer Airport Express models (the ones compatible with 802.11n) can do this.

First, you need the Express connected to Ethernet. Make sure that the main non-Apple router is set to share a public IP address. Next, when setting up the Express, just set up its Network name and Password exactly the same as the network used by your non-Apple router. The network mode needs to be "Create a wireless network," it should Connect Using "Ethernet," and Connection Sharing needs to be "Off (Bridge mode)."

Solution 2:

I got mine working, Airport express connected via ethernet to linksys router, both running their own WiFi networks with the same SSID's and passwords, allowing devices to roam between them. Also, the fact that it is in bridge means the linksys gives out the IP addresses, allowing for faster roaming (theoretically, have not done testing in the middle of a transfer)

Setup was easy, if u wanna do it that way you gotta connect the WAN port to the upstream router (assuming this is a 2012 airport, else theres only one port so use that one)

Then set it up as a "new" network

You can also repeat a signal in theoory with out the cable, have not tried that though as it increases lag, halves the speed, and i have an ethernet cable where i want the router. If thats what u wanna do though, you would probably have to put it halfway between you and the other router, because it doesnt seem to be able to pick up a super weak signal (it sees about the same networks as my laptop can in the same location, so it isnt like its super powerful)