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Orbi Pro Wifi 6 backhaul with managed switch
Hello everyone,
I'm currently testing the Orbi Pro Wifi 6 in my company and I have some difficulty setting up a wired backhaul.
The Orbi Pro is in AP mode and that's how it's connected to our network:
Pfsense (firewall/DHCP server) > Managed DELL switch (N1548) > Orbi Pro (WAN port).
We have several VLANs configured on the pfsense which I have linked to the LAN ports of the Orbi Pro.
Pfsense (firewall/DHCP server with VLAN) > Managed DELL switch (N1548) > Orbi Pro (LAN ports).
Everything works fine, the orbi pro gets an IP address from the DHCP server, the WiFi access points also work and I get an IP address from the corresponding VLAN when I connect to them.
But here is my problem: we have three floors, the Orbi Pro is on the middle floor and I have to position my two satellites on the other floors. For that I would have to connect my two satellites to the managed switch:
Managed DELL switch (N1548) > Ethernet patch panel --------- Ethernet wall socket > Satellite.
Can you tell me if it is possible to do this? According to the documentation What-is-Ethernet-backhaul-and-how-do-I-set-it-up-on-my-Orbi-WiFi-System, there are three ways to make a wired backhaul. Should I connect the switch to the LAN port of the Orbi Pro rather than the WAN port? Currently when I connect my satellites to the switch they are still seen by the Orbi as being connected in WiFi. Also, should the satellite ports remain in trunk mode?
Thank you very much,
Theo_C.
Theo_C wrote:................... Should I connect the switch to the LAN port of the Orbi Pro rather than the WAN port? ............
Does not matter. When Orbi is in AP mode the WAN and LAN ports are the same.
Please make sure the managed switch is configured correctly in order to work with Orbi:
- Managed switches discover and block IP loops! Orbi satellites when connected by ethernet cables and also wirelessly will cause loops, this is normal in mesh networks, but managed switches think it's an issue and block them which will cause the wired satellites to stop working. Usually managed switches have settings to just log loops and do not block them. I think if you get this setting right you will be ok. Unmanaged switches are not smart enough to detect loops that's why they are ok.
- Green features in few managed switches will cause the backhaul connections (connection between router and satellites and between satellites) to go down all time to save energy and that will cause issues with Orbi. So if you disable such features that will be ok.
8 Replies
Theo_C wrote:................... Should I connect the switch to the LAN port of the Orbi Pro rather than the WAN port? ............
Does not matter. When Orbi is in AP mode the WAN and LAN ports are the same.
Please make sure the managed switch is configured correctly in order to work with Orbi:
- Managed switches discover and block IP loops! Orbi satellites when connected by ethernet cables and also wirelessly will cause loops, this is normal in mesh networks, but managed switches think it's an issue and block them which will cause the wired satellites to stop working. Usually managed switches have settings to just log loops and do not block them. I think if you get this setting right you will be ok. Unmanaged switches are not smart enough to detect loops that's why they are ok.
- Green features in few managed switches will cause the backhaul connections (connection between router and satellites and between satellites) to go down all time to save energy and that will cause issues with Orbi. So if you disable such features that will be ok.
Hello ekhalil,
I checked and the Green features on my switch are disabled.
But there is indeed a spanning tree error, I lost some of my ports, and I had to re-enable them.
Could you please explain me a bit more precisely on which ports I should disable the spanning tree protocol?
Is it on all ports connected to the Orbi pro and satellites?
Thanks a lot!
Theo
Define the VLANs which are in use for the Orbi Pro WiFi WLANs, and make (only) these available on the ports where you need to plug the Orbi Pro devices, of course configured acordingly.
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