Wireless Mesh Network

[#1]

Hi all,

We're currently using the Plusnet Hub One router with powerline adapters in the house to fix any connection dead areas. They work "sort of" ok but they're not great. My assumption is that it's partly due to the wiring of the house. I've been looking into getting a wireless mesh network instead but am a bit apprehensive.

I've got an old Netgear D6400 router. I've been looking to see if I can set this up as a modem only, as has been recommended on other posts about this topic. The intention is to then use something like Google Nest Wifi as the router with it's hot-spots around the house. There is an option to turn the router part of the Netgear D6400 off - https://kb.netgear.com/27191/How-to-set-the-cable-modem-router-to-be-on-modem-only.

Does this sound like the correct way forward? I'd like to make sure I'm on the right track before buying/switching any equipment. Are there any alternatives people can recommend as well - different mesh networks, etc.

A great forum with loads of helpful information! I would never have even thought about doing this without reading posts on here.

Thanks!

[#2]

This is not the right part of the forum for a question like this, which is probably why you haven't had any answers!

Anyway, you could proceed either way - use the Netgear device as a modem only and do the routing in the Nest system, or use it as the router and use the Nest system as just a network of access points.

Although I have no practical knowledge of the exact combination your are proposing, I think that setting it up in the way you suggest would be quite complex as getting the IP addresses and settings right might be challenging if you do not have moderately high level IT knowledge.

Better in my view would be to use your router in the normal way with it carrying out the NAT functionality, and then use your Nest system to provide meshed access points. You don't need to worry about IP addresses in this scenario, it should all just work. The only thing you will have to do is switch off any routing (NAT) functionality in the mesh wireless system.

In an ideal world it is normally better if you do assign static IP addresses to every device so that you know where they are and what is going on within your network, but opinions vary about this and it should all still work fine if you just leave everything to sort itself out.

You may need to set the Nest base station to use DHCP rather than a static IP address so that it is located within the correct subnet to connect to your router, but the Nest setup procedure may address that anyway if it has been well thought-through.

Everything is possible, of course, and other people might suggest different approaches, but personally I think the way I suggest would be the easiest to get right if you don't have deep understanding of what is going on!

Finally, just to introduce abc alternative - why not proceed as I suggest above, but simply use the Plusnet router instead of the Netgear one? You should be able to plug the Nest mesh system in to provide access points throughout the house just as well as with the Netgear router.

[#3]

@huwparry22  Welcome to the forum.

First you say the powerline units are not very good, that's not surprising, but have you checked that it's inferior to the performance when connected directly to the hub with an Ethernet cable?

Second why Google nest? Do you want to use the other bells and whistles?

Third do you need wireless? Installing Ethernet cable requires a bit of effort but you only have to do it once, is cheap and will always give you superior and totally reliable performance at your best possible connection speed.

[#4]

@Baldrick1 - thanks for the welcome!

In an ideal world I would use Ethernet cables everywhere, but if I started running those all around the house I think my misses would kick me out! Wifi just makes life easier for everyone.

Connection via Ethernet directly into the router is great, no problems at all. The wifi on the router itself is not strong enough to cover the whole house which is why I went cheap and cheerful with the powerline adapters. These do tend to drop out quite frequently though, usually requiring a restart.

Wireless mesh networks seem to be the way forward these days for whole-house wifi. It doesn't have to be Google Nest Wifi. That seems to be appearing everywhere at the moment. I've read elsewhere on the forum that people have had problems with double NAT and general configuration using the Plusnet Hub One with the wireless mesh products, I think it's due to not being able to turn off the router of the Hub One.

[#5]

Double NAT is why you have to set the Google Nest into a mode where it is only providing access points rather than doing the whole router (NAT) thing. It should be relatively easy, and almost certainly easier than setting it up the other way round. You certainly can do it the other way round but it will require more complex configuration.

[#6]

@JoeJohnJames I don't see why using the Google Nest in router mode should be that difficult, there should be no complex configuration required, provided you connect it to a VDSL2 modem (or  a router that can be configured in modem only mode which is not possible with the Hub one)

I have used a Huawei HG612 3B on my FTTC connections for many years, it was the modem supplied by Openreach in the early FTTC days, this device is actually a router but the default configuration is a modem so no configuration needed there.

The Google Nest has to be configured with the PPPoE connection info, that is Username and Password and that is all. The only possible snag is that there is a lack of instructions on how this can be achieved correctly, I have seen previous posts where users have been having trouble to set up a connection because Google say the Nest will not support internet connections that require a VLAN ID as there is nowhere to specify this in the configuration page. This is total rubbish because the VLAN ID is already configured in the modem. So I think setting up a username and password is within the capabilities of most users.😁