Do satellite units need to sit "behind" the main router?

Question

I have AT&amp;T fiber as my internet provider.&nbsp; I am also in the process of building an ADU (accessory dwelling unit, or also known as an "In-Law quarter"), which will be a separate building in my backyard.&nbsp;For the main house, the AT&amp;T fiber comes into the garage, where I have the AT&amp;T fiber modem and an ethernet cable that runs the signal into the house to my Orbi RBR850.&nbsp; I have two Orbi satellite units connected to the Orbi RBR850.&nbsp;My question:&nbsp; For the ADU, I have a second ethernet cable that runs from the AT&amp;T fiber modem into the ADU.&nbsp; Can I simply connect another Orbi satellite unit to this second ethernet line and have it be part of the same mesh network, as shown in the diagram below (i.e., act as a satellite of the main Orbi router?)&nbsp; Or is it necessary for the satellite to sit downstream of the Orbi router?&nbsp;

CrimpOn · Accepted Answer

Sorry. No.&nbsp; Orbi satellites have to be behind the router.
&nbsp;
There are several possibilities:

Place the Orbi&nbsp; router in the garage. Use that ethernet cable to connect one satellite.
Run a second ethernet cable from the garage to the Orbi router.
Deploy a pair of smart switches and set up VLANs so that the single ethernet cable carries the internet feed and the backhaul to that ADU location.This forum post shows how one user did this:https://community.netgear.com/t5/Orbi/Disabling-automatic-subnet-reconfig/m-p/2031354#M110164&nbsp;

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Do satellite units need to sit "behind" the main router?

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