Internet Configuration

[support]

One pcWRT will function as a router (let’s call it PCWRT1), the other as AP (let’s call it PCWRT2). You’ll connect like this:

1. Connect the WAN port on the PCWRT1 to a LAN port on your ISP router.
2. Connect a LAN port on PCWRT1 to a LAN port on PCWRT2. Preferably, tag the connected port on both sides. If you don’t tag the ports, only LAN will be served from PCWRT2.
3. Switch PCWRT2 to AP mode

To answer your questions:

1. Yes, you can keep SSID broadcast on the ISP router. But devices connected to the ISP router won’t be visible from the pcWRT interface, and can’t be controlled by the pcWRT router.
2. You can access the router remotely regardless of VLAN configurations. I’m not sure how your safety devices are connected, but in general your safety devices should continue to work regardless of remote management or VLANs.
3. You can set up another PCWRT by wireless mesh networking.
4. How many devices are we talking about here? What’s the ISP speed and expected bandwidth consumption?

[bambina]

3. Regards the mesh, well is the 2 proposed router set up above not classed as a mesh?
also what about double NAT?
do i need to be concerned with DHCP, DCP etc?
Can I turn off IPV6 or do i need that running?
Is there any more data on me adding the 3rd router/AP via wireless connection please?

4. 150mb download speed
Possibly about 15 to 25 devices i would estimate yet i dont know for sure until i get the full set up sorted so i can observe whats going on as theres always complaints about the speed issues yet im sure someone is consuming excess bandwith as only 6 people there yet if you was to say 6 people with laptops + phones = 12 devices + IOT = 6 more devices + a couple of guests and that should be full load on the network.
The smart TV is on hard wire.

[support]

3. You can connect two pcWRT routers by wire or by wireless. What I’m suggesting here is a three router setup: 1 router + 1 AP connected by wire + 1 wireless satellite node. They’ll all be in the same subnet – so no NATting. IPv6 is not enabled by default. Check out this video for wireless mesh setup: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lIyd4BCsEQ

4. If you have multiple devices streaming or gaming, 150Mbps is not a lot of bandwidth. If that’s the case, the only solution is to get more bandwidth from your ISP. But you can use bandwidth monitoring on the pcWRT to find out the bandwidth consumption for each device.

[bambina]

That video with the very distracting music which you kindly sent me was not helpful, im so so confused here as that clearly showed a partial set up of what i think was a router + a wireless meshed AP yet i dont want such a set up, nor would i be able to complete such a set up with such limited information from such a short limited video, i need a comprehensive idiots guide for a beginner as its been almost 1yr and still i have not ever set up router 1 correctly and i have 2 routers now and intend to add a 3rd if needed yet think its best to 1st get 2 routers set up meshed correctly yet i really need all config as i dont even know what the same subnet means 100% you see? please help as i really want to use your kit? thanks

[support]

@bambina Let’s set up your first router then. What problems are you encountering with the single router? You don’t have to travel to the tenant’s place to do this.

[bambina]

lol, i so need a full guide including all settings really as i see to have issues every step of the way, i mean for example i have just gone to reset the device to start all over again yet fail to be able to even reset the router or find out where you state how to reset it either, i have spent a longtime searching on your forum and online and just cant get the answer anywhere…
I have tried holding in the reset button for up to 30secs yet to no avail, i also tried power off router then hold in the reset button then power up whilst still holding it in for 30secs yet still to no avail 🙁

[support]

@bambina Follow the steps here to reset the router: https://portal.pcwrt.com/blog/2024/04/03/how-to-reset-the-pcwrt-router/

[bambina]

> I want the pcWRT-Router to plug straight into the ISP Router (the ISP Router will be made dumb) & the pcWRT-Router to work seamlessly (meshed) with 1 pcWRT-AP all on hard wire.
> I want pcWRT-Router to Broadcast just 1, 2.4Ghz isolated SSID BBroadcast so that it can work with x1 IOT Camera Only.
> I want pcWRT-Router & pcWRT-AP to both Broadcast just 1, 2.4Ghz & a 5Ghz Broadcast for all tenants to use Only and so that when they walk past 1 Router then near the AP that their devices will seamlessly connect with which ever network broadcast is the strongest. Yet i dont want each tenant to be able to see any other device on the network which is not theirs, i.e. other tenants and/or IOT devices etc.
> I want pcWRT-AP to have x1 isolated Ethernet Port dedicated for connecting a smart TV.
> I want pcWRT-AP to have x1 isolated Ethernet Port dedicated for connecting a CCTV DVR.
> I want pcWRT-AP to have x1 isolated 2.4Ghz Broadcast to connect to a Room Stat & Nany Cameras.
SUMMARY
x3 Vlans needed in total all vlans are to be completely separate and i dont want any device on any vlan to be able to see any other device even on the same vlan.
x1 vlan will be for all tenants.
x1 vlan will be for all guests.
x1 vlan to be for all Owner IOT equipment (2.4Ghz Only.
Lastly with this in mind my other confusion was, as the owner then which vlan SSID and/or Port do i use to connect my device when i want to locally access the hub for anything on the odd occasion i may need to do so as i thought that if i used the Owner vlan IOT Vlan then i was concerned that if any hack had been done or virur inputted on the Owner IOT vlan then i plug in my loved device then i may catch and spread the said virus to my device and as there are only 3 ports on the back of the Router/Ap then these ports surly would already now be taken up with the 3 above named vlans so i wasnt sure how to deal with such an issue like that?
——————————————————————————————-
ROUTER CONFIG
1. When 1st setting up the router for the 1st time or after a reset then when following the guide wizard then what is the SSID Broadcast info required for? Is this for the Landlord/Owner only and no devices should ever be on it or is it for tenants to use only as a vlan or guests as this is extremely un-clear to me even if i need to broadcast it & if so then why and how and what for?
2. How do i know if i need to change any of the router and/or AP settings such as the below?
——————————————————————————————-
SETTINGS – NETWORK SETTINGS
—————————
DHCP SETTINGS
DHCP Start = 100
DHCP Limit = 150
DHCP Lease Time = 12
—————————
NAT OFFLOADING
Software flow offloading = NO
—————————
SECURITY
Stealth Mode = YES
Blocking Ping = YES
Block DNS rebind attack = YES
Enable mDNS = NO
—————————
DESTINATION CHART
There are 5 horizontal rows in total, its clear to me what they are for, they are for isolating LAN’s/networks from each other, so i shall try state what is not clear to me only;
> It is not clear as to what LAN is, who can use it, which port it relates to or which Broadcast it relates to or if it needs to just be kept clear and unused so that the owner/landlord can log onto it?
> I am also confused with the vertical columns for example on the LAN row they are all ticked so does that mean that if i allow a tenant to use the broadcast on LAN then they can see/access any/ever other vlan and device on any/all vlans?

[bambina]

Hi there, i posted a reply after i managed to do the reset a week ago now but i never got any reply, would you know where i need to go to get support for these routers or can i return them please as this is becoming to much trouble and taking to long please help? thanks

[support]

To answer your questions:

1. The initial set up creates two SSIDs (one for 2.4GHz, one for 5GHz), both are on the LAN. You can use them for whatever purpose you decide.
2. You don’t need to change any of these settings.
3. It’s the SOURCE/DESTINATION chart. It controls the routing between VLANs. By default, LAN can initiate communication with devices on other VLANs, but not vice versa. And only devices connected to LAN has the ability to log in the router.

Your intended setup is pretty complicated. While our router supports your usage scenario, I’d strongly suggest that you consult someone who can help you face-to-face. Some of your statements above were pretty confusing. For example:
x1 vlan will be for all tenants.
x1 vlan will be for all guests.
x1 vlan to be for all Owner IOT equipment (2.4Ghz Only.

Does that mean you wan to use X1 for all tenants, guests and IOT devices? If so, create an SSID on X1, give the WiFi password to tenants, guests, and connect your IoT devices to the SSID.

[bambina]

Thanks so much for your kind reply i was just starting to panic, well i shall try and make more simple;

> The Lan SSID will only be set up on 2.4Ghz and will be left disabled unless the Landlord wants to remotely turn it on so he can connect to it as an option in an emergency situation to config something then disable the broadcast again for example.

> x1 is used with Port 1 as Isolated Sandboxed Network for Tenants Only this means the Port1 can be used by a tenant into their laptop if they choose or x1 wifi on their laptop, which ever they prefer. In the real world it means taht all tenants will be using x1 Wifi 2.4Ghz and Port 1 will be used for their joint smart TV hence x1 and Port 1 will be dedicated just to them.

> x2 is used with Port 2 as Isolated Sandboxed Network for all Landlord IOT devices on wifi 2.4Ghz + a CCTV DVR used on the Port2 All Landlord Only.

> Guest Network is on 2.4Ghz wifi only NO PORT allocation at all ever.

> Port 3 is dedicated for mesh to the AP pcwrt router which is Tagged.

I have been playing around a little since we last spoke and i seem to have the Main Pcwrt Router set up to work online, i left the config for VLAN DESTINATION all as was, all i did was Change Port1 to x1 and Port2 to x2 then tag Port 3 (LAN) on both the Main Router and the AP Router.

I did plug in the AP Router offline and alter all the SSID Broadcasts to match the Main Router then Tagged Port3 but i don’t seem to be able to know where to go to tell it to be a AP and as a result it is not giving out any internet.

Also on the Main Router i told it to be a Main Router then entered a made up Mesh Password but dont know how to access the AP Router from the Main Router HUB?

Is there any way when im connected to the Main Router Hub i can see the config for the AP Router HUB as this has me a little confused please?

[bambina]

Also i dont seem to be able to login to the main router using an Ethernet cable, how do i fix this without giving a tenant on x1/port1 or a IOT device on x2/port2 more access to the LAN than i currently have given them?

Also should Port3 have more access or just keep 1 tick on x3 for port3?

[support]

@bambina We’ll review this and get back to you. Stay tuned.

[support]

It seems that you are not using the 5Ghz band at all. So just disable it.

1. You can’t disable LAN SSID but enable SSIDs for other VLANs. So keep LAN SSID on, but set a strong password and keep it for yourself.
2. Work on the main router first. Connect your computer to it via the LAN SSID. On the Wireless Settings page, select “No Mesh”. Create additional SSIDs for Guest, X1, and X2. To be sure this is the router you’re working on, keep the AP router powered off at this point.
3. On the Network Settings page, select Router mode, assign X1 to Port 1, and X2 to Port 2, tag Port 3 but leave it on LAN. Keep the checkboxes below unchanged.
4. Power down the main router. Power up the AP router and connect to it via the LAN SSID. On the Wireless Settings page, select “No Mesh”. Create additional SSIDs for Guest, X1, and X2.
5. On the Network Settings page, select “Access Point” mode. Assign X1 to Port 1, and X2 to Port 2, tag Port 3 but leave it on LAN. Click Save and you’ll be notified that the router switched to AP mode.
6. Connect the main router to your ISP and power it up.
7. Connect the AP router Port 3 to the main router Port 3 and power it up
8. After both routers are powered up, go to the router admin page (i.e., http://192.168.10.1 if you didn’t change the LAN IP). You’ll see the AP router in the list of Connected Devices. Click on the hostname to give it a proper name. You can use the listed IP address to manage the AP router.

[bambina]

Thanks for that, that reassures me that i did do everything correct as i have done that about 6 times and still dont have any AP action, the only things i did different i shall list below for you to see if that should matter or not;

5Ghz has always been disabled.
1. I only actually disabled the Broadcast of the SSID for LAN, in fact i disabled the broadcast of all SSID Broadcasts for now for everything, LAN, x1 & x2 as im on Ethernet wire, however all the SSID’s have been set up and ready for me to tick Broadcast when ever i like.
2. When you say keep off the AP whilst setting up the Main router i actually plug the main router directly into 1 laptop offline and the AP into another laptop offline and do them at the same time to check all SSID’s etc are all perfectly the same.
3. I left as you said yet i also ticked all the row on x2 just so i can access the router via Ethernet for now during this testing stage as i seldom use wifi.
8. I changed both routers IP addresses much earlier on, so the main router is; 192.168.5.1 and the AP i changed to; 192.168.6.1 surely this is not the issue is it?

As i currently have a ISP router on LAN connected to a VPN Router (WAN) then from the VPN Router i use (LAN) to plug into your pcwrt Main Router (WAN) then Port3 to the AP router Port3

Could i be getting triple NAT or something i read online, may i add, i have absolutely no issues with my current setup at all, i can access the pcwrt Main Router perfectly just the AP is non existent…
Should the 2 routers have their blue mesh lights on as the mesh lights are NOT On on the routers.
I i plug my Ethernet into any port on the AP after i told it to be a AP then i have ZERO access and i am then forced to reset it and start all over again, but the AP looks and seems all good sat there with the blue lights clearly showing the connections are good, i also tried changing around my cat6 cables for cat6a but that made zero difference & im getting concerned as i need to have this set up fully working for Tuesday midday and im panicking now.
4.

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