First post here... please go easy on me...I have an Asus gigabit LAN switch and an ASUS RT-N56U wifi router... right now I have everything wired connected to the router, my pc, x1, x360, my dish receiver. But, because of where it is, the wifi range is not optimal. So I plan to connect my ISP modem, that is next to my desk, to the switch, connect everything else to it, and then run a solitary cable through the wall to my living room, and put the router there... So it would be modem>switch>router... is this possible? All I could find is conflicting answers... thanks
is it possible to connect a wifi router to a switch?
- Thread starter jdl2010
- Start date
Solution
I cant do it that way. My modem connection is fixed to the wall. I want to move the router from where it is, to have better coverage in my house. So my thinking was, like I wrote, connect everything wired to the switch, and a solitary cable trough the wall. Or around the door frame. Cant do two cables to and from the router. Not where I want to place it. Is not possible then?
Entomber
Admirable
- Apr 21, 2014
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That will only work if your router is not being used as the primary DHCP/NAT server for your home network. If your modem has no routing capabilities then devices must be connected to the router via LAN ports to get Internet access.
If your router is connected to the switch via its WAN port then anything connected to the switch will not have Internet access.
If your router is connected to the switch via a LAN port then it should work fine.
If your router is connected to the switch via its WAN port then anything connected to the switch will not have Internet access.
If your router is connected to the switch via a LAN port then it should work fine.
wait, wait, back up a bit... how do I make my switch my primary DHCP/NAT then, and not my router? And... can you clarify a bit the last two sentences? If I connect the router to the switch, using the router wan, the switch will not work as a switch? just as basically an extender? And if I connect the router via a lan port, it will work? but the router wont , doesnt it? I... I didn't get the last two sentences... I think. And no, my Modem doesn't have any routing capacities... I just got one Ethernet cable running from box
Entomber
Admirable
- Apr 21, 2014
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Your switch likely does not offer DHCP/NAT functions, so the way your network is set up, everything must be directly networked to the LAN (Local Area Network) ports of your router.
DHCP = assigns IP addresses to devices on the network
NAT = translating local IP addresses to "real" IP addresses so your devices can communicate on the Internet
Since you said your modem does not have any routing capabilities, your devices MUST be connected to your router through LAN in order to have Internet access.
Text diagram:
[INTERNET] --- [MODEM] ---- [ROUTER] ------ [SWITCH] ---- [DEVICES]
This is the only way that everything will work properly. If you have this:
[MODEM]----[SWITCH]----[DEVICES]
.____________ |------[ROUTER] -----[DEVICES]
Then your devices not connected to the router will not have Internet access.
An alternative you could consider to moving your current router is to buy another router to extend your wifi signal. Then you can connect your second router wirelessly to your first router in order to boost the signal.
DHCP = assigns IP addresses to devices on the network
NAT = translating local IP addresses to "real" IP addresses so your devices can communicate on the Internet
Since you said your modem does not have any routing capabilities, your devices MUST be connected to your router through LAN in order to have Internet access.
Text diagram:
[INTERNET] --- [MODEM] ---- [ROUTER] ------ [SWITCH] ---- [DEVICES]
This is the only way that everything will work properly. If you have this:
[MODEM]----[SWITCH]----[DEVICES]
.____________ |------[ROUTER] -----[DEVICES]
Then your devices not connected to the router will not have Internet access.
An alternative you could consider to moving your current router is to buy another router to extend your wifi signal. Then you can connect your second router wirelessly to your first router in order to boost the signal.
Thanks for the reply... Yes, my wired devices are connected to the wifi router's LAN ports. I was thinking of using the switch as a sort of a bridge (since I already have it), and then turning the Asus wifi router to a AP. From what you wrote, I guess I cant do it with this switch, right?
I dont think it has a WAN port. Its an Asus GX-D1051. I should say, my internet is wireless provided. I got an antenna on the roof, and a PoE device on my desk, connected to the antenna. The other Ethernet port on the PoE device is the one I use to connect to my router, right now. But if I connect it directly to any device, it works. I used an older switch I had, flawlessly, in the begging (years back) till the need for wifi, and for some settings to have NAT open for xbox live play, that my ISP provided me. I thought, since the connection is ready to go, its basically an Ethernet cable, I could once again use a switch, and then connect a wifi to it. Because of the location, its range is... awful
Entomber
Admirable
- Apr 21, 2014
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oh so if you connect any device to your PoE device, then it works and has Internet access? In that case, your PoE device may have some routing capabilities and your proposed setup just might work after all. Before you start drilling holes in your wall, though, just plug them all in using the configuration that you want and see if it does work.
Rakesh_2914
Commendable
- Apr 28, 2016
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- 1,510
this is basically what you asked and it works for internet access but not when hosting games on the lan switch. My setup at the moment is a powerline adapter in my kitchen that is connected to my adsl router (modem) which has the internet. 3 ports (out of 4) free. The second powerline is connected in my outside Studio (where I host LAN games). Now the powerline output ethernet cable is connected into a cheap, generic 8 port switch. From this switch I connect an ethernet cable to my xbox. Another ethernet cable is connected to the WAN port on my router (Trendnet TEW-432BRP) so as to get WIFI access for phones etc. In this setup I now have 5 free ethernet ports on the switch to connect 5 pcs (To play 5v5 team games like Paladins and CSGO). However there are the 4 free ethernet ports on the switch as well. You can use these for wired internet connection but cannot use them for LAN games hosted on the switch. This is most likely due to the router being connected to the switch via WAN port which is not recommended for lanning (due to NAT, DHCP etc), I have not found a way to solve this. However it is recommended to connect the switch to the router via ethernet but not in the WAN in order to get Lan access. This would thus leave 4 ports open on the switch and 3 on the router for a maximum of 7 people on a LAN server which is not ideal since 8 is a better number (however removing the xbox connection makes it 8). However using another 8 port switch I can connect more of course. If anyone has any tips on how to host lan games with switch > router connection via WAN port please let me know as its more convenient not to have to remove the xbox connection.
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