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Forum Discussion
Nighthawk M5 as backup to existing Fibre via Orbi Mesh 750 series
Hi - just got FTTP 1gb this week after using the Netgear M5 mobile router for the past year through an Orbi mesh 750 system. Did the job with 4G LTE download of 100+ but obviously no comparison with...
(The day has just started and already I have been too hasty and spouted off total nonsense. Geez)
Yes, the M5 has only a single Ethernet port. It appears that "automatically switch from Ethernet to the 5G/4G network" works when the M5 is the primary router and everything is connected to it over WiFi. No way to connect the RBR750 system.
One way to achieve redundant internet is place a router ahead of the Orbi router which supports two internet connections. One such device is the Ubiquiti Edgerouter X:
https://store.ui.com/us/en/collections/uisp-wired-advanced-routing-compact-poe/products/er-x
(not clear to me why it would be $59 at the Ubiquiti store and $72 on Amazon)
Page 72 of the User Manual explains how to set up Load Balancing. Page 73 describes how to set up"Failover" so that one network is not used unless the other network fails.
Another solution is to install a Firewall which allows for multiple internet connections, such as the pfSense Netgate 1100.
Any of these solutions involve investment in hardware plus the time required to set up and manage it all. In addition, placing one of these devices in the network also creates at "Double NAT" situation which can interfere with specific internet applications. If automatic failover is a requirement, this would be the direction to go. On the other hand, if the primary ISP is relatively reliable, digging out the M5 when they fail is probably an easier route.
Hi - thanks for clarifications. Yes I thought as much the 'always on wifi' feature for the M5 would work if that was the primary router distributing the signal, with the fibre connected and the 4G coming on only when that failed. The issue clearly is trying to use that as a passthrough to the Orbi 750 router and there's no other ethernet connection from the M5 to forward on the fibre and because it needs to have 'always on wifi' we then have the double NAT situation. I think I can deal with a short period of downtime in the house if the worst happens and I simply connect the M5 to the Orbi Mesh in offloading mode. Short of getting a mesh with a sim card feature in there's not much I can do really and I've invested heavily in the Orbi and several satellites.
Thanks again!