Can I Use My Present Router With New Mesh Community {Hardware}?

There are just a few conditions the place you would possibly want to preserve utilizing your present router alongside your new mesh community. In some instances, you would possibly even be required to take action! Right here’s what it’s worthwhile to know.

Why Use a Mesh Community With Your Outdated Router?

Usually while you purchase a brand new router, whether or not it’s a stand-alone conventional mannequin or a bunch of mesh nodes, you exchange the previous one altogether. There are, nonetheless, conditions the place it’s your decision or have to preserve your previous router operational.

Your ISP Requires It

Generally you will have a mix router modem, whereby one piece of {hardware} is the modem that connects you to your ISP, a router, and a Wi-Fi entry level all rolled into one. In that case, you’ll have to preserve the system round to serve, at minimal, as a modem.

In lots of instances, you should preserve the {hardware} your ISP gave you lively both as a result of the modem is constructed into it and/or as a result of the MAC handle of the {hardware} they gave you is assigned to your account and required for authorization.

When confronted with that state of affairs, you possibly can flip off the routing and Wi-Fi operate of the combo unit your ISP gave you with a view to use a multi-node mesh package for each higher Wi-Fi protection in your home and improved High quality of Service guidelines or parental controls.

You Need to Retain Options From Your Outdated Router

If you happen to actually like sure options your present router provides however the Wi-Fi protection is dangerous, you would possibly preserve the routing operate turned on however use the Wi-Fi mesh community to supply higher protection in your house.

Perhaps, for instance, your present router provides precisely the parental management options you want in addition to assist for the precise VPN protocol you employ or another particular use case. Whereas we’d suggest upgrading to newer {hardware} with the options you need, we do perceive the enchantment of sticking with a well-known tried-and-true system.

Let’s check out the alternative ways you possibly can mix your present {hardware} and a mesh community. Remember to examine the documentation and settings in your specific {hardware}—each your present {hardware} and the {hardware} you’re contemplating including—to make sure it helps the options and settings required for the actual setup configuration you’re fascinated by.

Router Bridge Mode: Your Mesh Community Takes Over

We’ll begin with one of the frequent setups: utilizing your new mesh community as your main router. That is the popular strategy to do it for most individuals as a result of it downgrades your modem/router/Wi-Fi combo unit to only a modem and permits your new {hardware}, like an eero mesh community, to deal with every thing else.

To do that, you’ll have to entry the configuration management panel of your present router (and in some instances, you’ll have to name your ISP to have them make the change).

What you’re on the lookout for is an choice to put your router combo unit in “bridge mode.” Generally, notably within the case of lots of the new fiber modems AT&T makes use of, there is no such thing as a true bridge mode, however there’s an choice referred to as “passthrough mode.”

The aim of placing your present router in bridge mode is to instruct it to easily cross alongside community visitors with none of the additional parts a router often gives, like DHCP handle project.

Then, plug in your new mesh community {hardware} to the router and configure the brand new mesh community utilizing an online browser or app, as instructed by the producer.

Remember to double-check the Wi-Fi standing on the unique router. Generally placing a mix unit in bridge mode turns off the Wi-Fi radios, however generally it doesn’t. You don’t want the previous Wi-Fi setup (nor would you like the congestion from operating it proper subsequent to your new mesh community) so take a second to disable it.

From this level ahead, you’ll use your new mesh community to handle all of the facets of your own home community, and your former router and Wi-Fi entry level will merely function a gateway to attach your mesh community to the web.

For anybody caught with utilizing ISP-supplied {hardware} however who desires to improve to higher gear, this can be a easy and simple strategy to improve your community.

Mesh Community Bridge Mode: A Very Blended Bag

On the other finish of issues, as an alternative of placing your present router in bridge mode in order that your new mesh community can do all of the heavy lifting, you possibly can as an alternative put the mesh community in bridge mode to retain the options of your present router whereas utilizing the mesh nodes as entry factors.

We’re going to warning you on this plan of action, nonetheless, as a result of it is vitally a lot a “your mileage could fluctuate” state of affairs. Completely different mesh community methods deal with bridge mode in several methods. Additional, the vast majority of client mesh platforms are designed to be put in as a cohesive end-point answer for the buyer, not shoe-horned in with different {hardware}.

Some mesh {hardware}, when put in bridge mode, continues to operate as a cohesive mesh platform, albeit minus the routing capabilities and, often, among the superior options.

The eero platform, for instance, will operate as a linked mesh community when put into bridge mode (although you do lose entry to among the extra superior options that require the routing part.) You may’t use eero nodes as stand-alone entry factors; it’s an all-or-nothing factor.

Different platforms like Google Nest Wi-Fi assist bridge mode, however just for a single node at a time. In different phrases, when you put your three-node Nest Wi-Fi system into bridge mode, the first node will operate as an entry level in your present router, however all the extra nodes will merely drop off, and main options shall be inaccessible.

Lastly, different platforms like the favored TP-Hyperlink Deco lineup assist stand-alone entry level mode. On this configuration, your present router handles all of the routing capabilities, and the entry factors merely deal with the wi-fi visitors. Usually you’ll lose all inter-node communication, the superior options, and the entry level setup would require a wired backhaul with Ethernet connecting every entry level again to the router.

Finally, until you will have a very particular have to slap mesh community {hardware} in bridge mode on prime of your present router, we strongly suggest in opposition to it. Mesh methods have superior a lot and supply so many options it could be a disgrace to overlook out on virtually all of them.