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dl42's avatar
dl42
Aspirant
Apr 22, 2022

RBK13 Guest Network

Hi

I had not logged into the orbi app for a while as everything seems to have been working fine and there have not been any recent updates to the firmware.

When I logged in today I noted that the " Allow guests to see each other" option was selected and greyed out for my guest network.

After a moment of panic...I checked and lo and behold when connected to the guest network other devices on the network CANNOT be seen as was my initial expectation before seeing this option.   So the indication is incorrect and I am not even to select this if I did want to!   Running  2.7.3.22.

Anyone else seen this behaviour??

 

14 Replies

  • KevinLiT's avatar
    KevinLiT
    NETGEAR Moderator

    Hi dl42,

     

    I understand that you would like to know if the guest network is supposed to be separated from the main network devices. 

     

    The answer is yes, the devices on the guest network will not be able to connect to any devices on your main network. This is done to ensure that the information on your main network is secured. If you would like all of the devices on your network to be able to communicate then all the devices will have to be connected to your main network. 

     

    Please let me know if you have any additional questions!!

     

    Best,

    Kevin 

    Community Team

    • dl42's avatar
      dl42
      Aspirant

      Sorry for any misunderstanding but there is an option to either allow or disallow guests to see the rest of the network.

      Normally you would not want to guests to see the rest of the network - that in my view is the whole point of the guest network.

      My real issue here is that what it says in the GUI and the reality do not match!

      "Allow guests to see each other" option is selected and greyed out for my guest network.  The reality is that is not the case!

      So the GUI is misleading and inaccurate!

      • KevinLiT's avatar
        KevinLiT
        NETGEAR Moderator

        Hello dl42,

         

        Please ensure that the device you are accessing the GUI from is on your main network. The "Allow guests to see each other" should not be greyed out. From the main network, you should be able to toggle this setting. 

         

        Best,

        Kevin

        Community Team

  • CrimpOn's avatar
    CrimpOn
    Guru - Experienced User

    dl42 wrote:

    When I logged in today I noted that the " Allow guests to see each other" option was selected and greyed out for my guest network.

    After a moment of panic...I checked and lo and behold when connected to the guest network other devices on the network CANNOT be seen as was my initial expectation before seeing this option.   So the indication is incorrect and I am not even to select this if I did want to!   Running  2.7.3.22.


    Although the firmware release number may be the same, the actual code can be different between models of Orbi.  For example, the original Orbi featured three sets of radios (one 2.4G and two 5G).  The RBK13 system has only two sets of radios (and also has a lower price). And, the original Orbi had numerous optional settings, possibly because back in 2016 the engineers were not entirely certain how things like Beamforming, MIMO, and Fast Roaming would function under different conditions.  Later Orbi product removed some of those options.

     

    It could be that the consensus became, "nobody wants guest devices to see other devices on the network. Just set it that way."

     

    The user manual for my RBR50 clearly shows that option.

    The user manual for the RBR750 does not mention it.

    Page 78 of the RBR10 user manual says this option is "cleared by default".

    https://www.downloads.netgear.com/files/GDC/RBK12/RBK12_13_14_UM_EN.pdf 

    • dl42's avatar
      dl42
      Aspirant

      I agree with you and the consensus....my issue is (as mentioned in my previous reply) the GUI information is inaccurate and hence misleading.

  • KevinLiT's avatar
    KevinLiT
    NETGEAR Moderator

    Hi dl42,

     

    Thank you for bringing this to our attention. 

     

    I will let my team know about this issue!!

     

    Best,

    Kevin

    Community Team