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Orbi mesh network question
It appears Netgear and Linksys and maybe others can't seem to explain the mesh network that well. And it seems Netgear has no pre-sales tech support, so here I am.
I guess most people don't have wired homes. I do. But I still need good wireless and, like many houses, there are dead spots. It appears that some extenders (and maybe some mesh network devices) can plug into a wired network port and become an access point. The advantage being that they are not "boosting" an already weak WiFi signal, but are taking the wired network and making it wireless at that point. This should offer benefits in speed and as long as the resulting wireless network is seamless, there won't be a lot of switching of networks (either automatically by the device or manually by the user of the device). I wouldn't be in one part of my home and move to another and have to manually switch to another network (an automatic switch would be good, if the device can do that). And although I'm a software developer, keeping up with the rapid changes here in this space is daunting. So what I'm looking for is a system where each node of the wireless system plugs into the wired network and gives you a seamless and fast wireless network. Is this possible with the Orbi system or any other mesh system? Because it seems like some of these systems are really just acting a wireless extenders and boosting an already weak wireless signal is not optimal, IMHO.
GTGeek88 wrote:So what I'm looking for is a system where each node of the wireless system plugs into the wired network and gives you a seamless and fast wireless network. Is this possible with the Orbi system or any other mesh system?
All models of Orbi which include ethernet ports can be connected over ethernet. (This leave out the least expensive, newest model RBR10 series, becauses the satellites have no ethernet port.
The KEY to this is that the satellites need to be connected to the Orbi router LAN ports. There have been some active discussions about pitfalls when "smart" or "green" ethernet switches are used between the router and satellite.
But, yes. This is exactly how people lucky enough to have ethernet wiring typically run their Orbi systems.
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GTGeek88 wrote:So what I'm looking for is a system where each node of the wireless system plugs into the wired network and gives you a seamless and fast wireless network. Is this possible with the Orbi system or any other mesh system?
All models of Orbi which include ethernet ports can be connected over ethernet. (This leave out the least expensive, newest model RBR10 series, becauses the satellites have no ethernet port.
The KEY to this is that the satellites need to be connected to the Orbi router LAN ports. There have been some active discussions about pitfalls when "smart" or "green" ethernet switches are used between the router and satellite.
But, yes. This is exactly how people lucky enough to have ethernet wiring typically run their Orbi systems.
Thank you. That answers the basic question, but now I'm wondering what the issue with the switch is. I've got a Netgear GS116 switch. I'm wondering how to search for these discussions. Do you have any links to such discussions?
GTGeek88 wrote:It appears Netgear and Linksys and maybe others can't seem to explain the mesh network that well. And it seems Netgear has no pre-sales tech support, so here I am.
I guess most people don't have wired homes. I do. But I still need good wireless and, like many houses, there are dead spots. It appears that some extenders (and maybe some mesh network devices) can plug into a wired network port and become an access point. The advantage being that they are not "boosting" an already weak WiFi signal, but are taking the wired network and making it wireless at that point. This should offer benefits in speed and as long as the resulting wireless network is seamless, there won't be a lot of switching of networks (either automatically by the device or manually by the user of the device). I wouldn't be in one part of my home and move to another and have to manually switch to another network (an automatic switch would be good, if the device can do that). And although I'm a software developer, keeping up with the rapid changes here in this space is daunting. So what I'm looking for is a system where each node of the wireless system plugs into the wired network and gives you a seamless and fast wireless network. Is this possible with the Orbi system or any other mesh system? Because it seems like some of these systems are really just acting a wireless extenders and boosting an already weak wireless signal is not optimal, IMHO.
Thanks, Furrye38. I had seen backhaul mentioned earlier in the day while doing some research. I need to understand what that means exactly. The "back" part seems to me to imply one-way communication. What I'd like to see - what I think would give you the best response - would be this scenario:
My computer is linked wirelessly to one of the units, which is plugged into my wired network. I request a web page and that request goes wirelessly to the closest Orbi unit, then over the wired network, eventually making its way to whatever server I was hitting. Then on the way back, it goes to that same Orbi unit via the wired connection and then to my computer via wireless. In other words, as little travel as possible over wireless and then only via the closest Orbi unit (no, "closeness" doesn't necessarily relate to the strongest signal, but this is just an example) so that you get the best wireless performance.
So "backhaul" just seem to imply to me that it's a one-way thing. You know, "it's going out and it's coming back" . . . is the path the same there, like above, or does going out take one path and the trip back take another path. I don't know enough about this term, yet, but if history is the guide, it's about jargons and cool-sounding words and not always about accuracy or something that's easier to understand. The IT industry has a long history of that. But I digress.
In Orbi terminology "front" means the connection between Orbi units and user devices. "back" means the connection between Orbi units. Traffic goes both ways, no matter whether the "backhaul" link is WiFi or ethernet.
