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JmsWhitlow's avatar
JmsWhitlow
Follower
Nov 29, 2025

Router Recommendations

I am hopeful that a knowledgeable someone can save me some research time in selecting a new router. I have a few must haves and a few nice to haves:

 

Must Haves:

  • VLAN support with wireless for each VLAN
    • Port level VLAN with at least 3 ports
  • Mesh capabilities that support both wired and wireless back-haul
  • Gigabit or faster Ethernet ports (preferably 5+)

Nice Must Haves:

  • Load balancing for multiple WANs
  • Automatic switching to backup WAN if primary fails
  • Port isolation configurable for each VLAN

I am using a much older, non-mesh router now, but it does have Fresh Tomato firmware on it that supports port-level VLANs with ability for each VLAN to have its own wireless. This allow me to keep my IoT devices separated from my primary VLAN. It also allows me to keep my guest network separate from both my primary and IoT VLANs. I am hopeful to upgrade to a new mesh router while keeping these abilities.

 

I currently have a primary and backup Internet provider and use a physical switch to toggle when needed. If possible, I would like to have the router either switch automatically for me or load balance.

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