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Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

-G-
Resident Expert
Resident Expert

There have been many questions in the Rogers Community Forums lately from users who have switched to Ignite TV and now wish to enable Bridge Mode on the Ignite modem/gateway and use Ignite TV with their own routers and Wi-Fi access points.  The Ignite TV service is actually pretty flexible and works great with a wide range of 3rd-party networking equipment.  That said, Rogers cannot troubleshoot problems or provide any level of support for these configurations so I'm creating this thread so that we, as a community, can support each other.

 

I recently posted some configuration tips for setting up your own router for use with the Ignite TV service and (time permitting) will post a more comprehensive step-by-step guide.  However, I still don't recommend using Ignite TV in any unsupported configuration unless you have moderately-advanced networking skills and can troubleshoot problems on your own.  Also, if any technical issues should arise, you need to be able to put your Ignite TV components back into their originally-installed supportable configuration before contacting Rogers for technical support.

 

*** Edited Labels *** 

280 REPLIES 280

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

-G-
Resident Expert
Resident Expert

@sikhness wrote:

@-G- wrote:
If you are only using the Velop for WiFi connectivity and not using any of its other special features, then why not try undoing the DMZ setup and put the Velop mesh into bridge mode?  That would also allow seamless connectivity between your wired and wireless devices.

Thanks for the tip.  Yes I'll definitely try putting the Velop into bridge mode since I only really use it for extending my wireless range and speed.


No problem.  With your Velop in bridge mode, you should even see slightly better performance.

 

I just tried doing the IPV6 test on the machine that is wired to the XB6 directly and saw that is getting all green there.  However, any device connected wireless to the Linksys Velop only has IPV4 and not IPV6.  Is this because of my configuration?  Once I put the Velop in bridge mode, will IPV6 start working for all my devices like my phone?


Yes, that's due to your configuration.  Once you undo the DMZ config and put the Velop into bridge mode, all of your wireless devices will have full IPv4 and IPv6 connectivity.

 

Best of luck with your re-config.  Please let us know how it all turns out!

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

Dpower20
I've been around

Do people generally see better coverage/speeds when using a third-party router paired with the XB6 router? I am just wondering if it is really worth investing $200 in standalone router.

 

 

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

Bplayer
I'm a trusted contributor

People usually have third-party router for better control over their network or enhanced features. These could include having a Guest network, allow 3rd party VOIP services, and control over their firewall.

Some third-party modems will have better wifi coverage, but there are alternate solutions such as Ignite Pods which extends the wifi range but are slow (but are free).

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

sikhness
I plan to stick around

@-G- wrote:

@sikhness wrote:

@-G- wrote:
If you are only using the Velop for WiFi connectivity and not using any of its other special features, then why not try undoing the DMZ setup and put the Velop mesh into bridge mode?  That would also allow seamless connectivity between your wired and wireless devices.

Thanks for the tip.  Yes I'll definitely try putting the Velop into bridge mode since I only really use it for extending my wireless range and speed.


No problem.  With your Velop in bridge mode, you should even see slightly better performance.

 

I just tried doing the IPV6 test on the machine that is wired to the XB6 directly and saw that is getting all green there.  However, any device connected wireless to the Linksys Velop only has IPV4 and not IPV6.  Is this because of my configuration?  Once I put the Velop in bridge mode, will IPV6 start working for all my devices like my phone?


Yes, that's due to your configuration.  Once you undo the DMZ config and put the Velop into bridge mode, all of your wireless devices will have full IPv4 and IPv6 connectivity.

 

Best of luck with your re-config.  Please let us know how it all turns out!


Thank you @-G- ! That worked and I do seem to see better throughput having the Velop in bridge mode.

I had one more question.  When I have my Velop in bridge mode, I have the XB6 LAN1 port connected to any LAN port on the Velop as they auto sense whether it's a WAN or LAN connection.  However, if I used another router in bridge mode let's say that has separate WAN and LAN ports, when I connect the XB6 to that, would I connect the LAN1 port from the XB6 to the router's WAN port or one of the LAN ports for connectivity?

The reason I'm asking is that I'm using another router in the network as a switch (also in bridge mode) and that is currently connected to the LAN port instead of the WAN and it seems to work, but wanted to know if that configuration is correct or not and whether it should instead be on the WAN port.  This would free up another LAN port for me on the switch to use.

 

So in other words do I do:

XB6 (LAN1) -> Bridge router (WAN)

or

XB6 (LAN1) -> Bridge router (LAN1)  (this is what I have currently on my other "switch")

 

Thanks so much once again!

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

srees
I've been here awhile

I bought our current outboard router when we lived in a larger place and I needed the coverage.  We've moved to a slightly smaller place so I probably don't technically need the extra coverage any more, but I had gotten used to the DLNA server that the router provides for streaming travel videos, etc.  It gives me more reliable performance than the other DLNA implementations (e.g. windows media player) I tried on other network devices in the house.  I suspect that's because of the stream only having one hop (router to the display device) vs two (DLNA server device to router, then router to display device) but I'm not certain.  In any case, it all seems to be running OK now.  The one remaining item was to lock down the wifi channels on the XB6, but I haven't been able to do that.  As @-G- said, it doesn't seem to be a show-stopper so far.

 

Besides the media server, I do also like the fact that while Rogers is severely dumbing down what can be done on the XB6, I still have all the outboard router's capabilities available to me.

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

dougjp
I plan to stick around

@Bplayer;

 


@Bplayer wrote:

such as Ignite Pods which extends the wifi range but are slow (but are free).


Interesting comment and it raised a question. Is there any information anywhere quantifying how much slower? Its important to decide whether to use a 3rd party router or not. Ideally it would be a comparison of download speeds using ethernet, wifi, wifi with pod and 3rd party mid range router (not a mesh). 

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

-G-
Resident Expert
Resident Expert

@dougjp  With the Pods that Rogers is currently using, you can expect throughput of up to 200 - 250 Mb/s.  This generation of Pod only has a single 2.4 GHz radio and a single 5 GHz radio so, if optimally placed (so that it still has good connectivity to the XB6), it will use that single 5 GHz radio both for communication with the end device and for its backhaul connection.

 

Comcast is now rolling out a newer Pod that has a single 2.4 GHz radio and two 5 GHz radios.  With a dedicated radio for the backhaul link, that should double the effective throughput.  Hopefully Rogers will offer the upgraded Pod in the near future.

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

-G-
Resident Expert
Resident Expert

@sikhness wrote:

Thank you @-G- ! That worked and I do seem to see better throughput having the Velop in bridge mode.


Glad to hear that this worked out well for you!

 

I had one more question.  When I have my Velop in bridge mode, I have the XB6 LAN1 port connected to any LAN port on the Velop as they auto sense whether it's a WAN or LAN connection.  However, if I used another router in bridge mode let's say that has separate WAN and LAN ports, when I connect the XB6 to that, would I connect the LAN1 port from the XB6 to the router's WAN port or one of the LAN ports for connectivity?

The reason I'm asking is that I'm using another router in the network as a switch (also in bridge mode) and that is currently connected to the LAN port instead of the WAN and it seems to work, but wanted to know if that configuration is correct or not and whether it should instead be on the WAN port.  This would free up another LAN port for me on the switch to use.


With your router in bridge mode, you can (and arguably should) use the WAN port for the uplink.  However, you may see a drop in throughput, depending on your router's internal switch architecture.  If your router can simply assign all Ethernet ports to the same VLAN and use the internal switch fabric to forward LAN traffic, you won't see any degradation when using the WAN port.  However, if the LAN switch and and WAN ports are separate internally, and the router's CPU is used to forward traffic, you may see a drop in throughput.

 

One downside to uplinking with the router's LAN ports is that if the router were to ever factory reset and drop out of bridge mode, its DHCP server (and other internal services) would become active and that would cause problems on your network.

 

As far as LAN switches are concerned, a (< $30) unmanaged LAN switch will do a better job than a $300 router.

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

dougjp
I plan to stick around

@-G-  Thanks, excellent info.

 

So could one expect to get about the same speed with a 150 Mb/s service using the existing pod, vs. a closer distance wifi alone from the modem, or using an ethernet connection?

 

Friends with the 150 service without a pod are only seeing 90-95 down, whereas on digital I get much closer to the 60 Mb/s service i subscribe to (54-58 Mb/s), but they could have some other issue I'm not aware of.

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

-G-
Resident Expert
Resident Expert

@dougjp  Proper Pod placement is absolutely crucial.  You need to place Pods in a location where they have good connectivity back to the XB6 AND have good connectivity to the devices that connect to them.  If you place the Pod in a location that does not have good connectivity to the XB6, the mobile device may have a good connection to the Pod but the backhaul link will be slow.  Same goes for the case where a Pod has good connectivity to the XB6 but not to all of the devices that connect to it.  It is absolutely pointless to place a Pod in any location that has poor WiFi connectivity, and Pods can be rendered useless if placed behind furniture that blocks their WiFi connectivity.

 

WiFi devices on the same channel/frequency all share the same airspace, and only one device can transmit on the frequency at a time.  WiFi performance will get degraded, even for a device that is only a few feet away from the Access Point, if you have multiple devices that are very active on the network but have poor connectivity.  (The devices with a slow link speed require more time to transmit their data.  Meanwhile, other devices need to wait for their opportunity to transmit while slow devices hog the available airspace.)  If your neighbour is also using the same WiFi channels as you are, you can also have a negative impact on each other's WiFi performance.

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

__J__
I've been here awhile

Thank you for this detailed guide. My set however requires LAN devices connected to the XB6 in contrary to step 2 in your guide.

"Connect your router’s WAN (Internet) port to LAN port #1 on the Rogers modem (labelled ETH 1 on the XB6) using an Ethernet patch cable.  DO NOT connect any devices other than your router to the Ignite modem/gateway."

My set-up uses Aruba AP22 access points. These do not have LAN connection. Therefore I have a switch connected to the second LAN port. That switch is for a couple Hubs and printer.

I have the two WIFI networks (XB6 & AP22) running in parallel  and have migrated all the traffic onto the AP22 except for the two set top boxes. I have tried simply disabling the XB6 WIFI without any success. 

Is there a solution available to support this AP22 WIFI and XB6 LAN traffic?

 

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

-G-
Resident Expert
Resident Expert

@__J__ wrote:

Thank you for this detailed guide. My set however requires LAN devices connected to the XB6 in contrary to step 2 in your guide.

"Connect your router’s WAN (Internet) port to LAN port #1 on the Rogers modem (labelled ETH 1 on the XB6) using an Ethernet patch cable.  DO NOT connect any devices other than your router to the Ignite modem/gateway."

My set-up uses Aruba AP22 access points. These do not have LAN connection. Therefore I have a switch connected to the second LAN port. That switch is for a couple Hubs and printer.


Keep in mind that when Bridge Mode is enabled, anything connected to the XB6's LAN ports will be directly exposed to the Internet.  Furthermore, Rogers will only allow up to 2(?) devices direct access to the public Internet.

 

This thread supports users who wish to run Ignite TV through their own Internet router/firewall.  I don't think that you want to do this.  Rather, you are probably looking for Rogers Ignite TV - Alternate wifi/connection possibilities , which supports users who only want to disable Wi-Fi on the Ignite XB6 gateway and use their own Access Points.

 

I have the two WIFI networks (XB6 & AP22) running in parallel  and have migrated all the traffic onto the AP22 except for the two set top boxes. I have tried simply disabling the XB6 WIFI without any success. 

Is there a solution available to support this AP22 WIFI and XB6 LAN traffic?


If the Ignite WiFi Hub is active, Rogers will override many of the things that you configure through the XB6's web-based management UI.  Looks like when you try disabling WiFi, the WiFi Hub back-end re-enables it again.  If this is the case, you will need to call Rogers for assistance.

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

Demonic_sin
I've been here awhile

Hello all,

 

I recently upgraded my ignite tv/internet to Gigabit.  Everything has been working fine up until about 2 months ago.  I decided to upgrade my router from an Netgear R7000 (6 years old)  to a single Asus RT-AX92U.  I've had everything setup and working for about 2 weeks now.  As of this week, my internet keeps dropping and producing a a red WAN light on my router.  I've tried factory resets, power cycling.... I have yet to find a permanent solution.  From what I've read in this forum, it looks like the XB6 is known for this.

 

Anyone have any suggestions?

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

Sunshine881
I'm here a lot

@-G- 

 

Sorry, How do you do step1, configure your modem if it is not connected to the gateway which is stated for step 2. Please explain.

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

Please share routers that anyone is using that have worked well with the ignite XB6 gateway(modem/router) in bridge mode.

 

Thank you.

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode


@Sunshine881 wrote:

Sorry, How do you do step1, configure your modem if it is not connected to the gateway which is stated for step 2. Please explain.


Have you already performed the initial configuration of your Ignite XB6 modem/gateway and are you using it now to access the Internet?

 

If so, the next thing that you should do is connect your computer to your new router, ensure that is is configured according to the posted guidelines, then connect the WAN port of your router to the ETH1 port on the XB6 using an Ethernet cable.  You should now have basic Internet connectivity on your computer going through your own router.  At this point, you should now be able go to http://10.0.0.1 , log into the XB6 and enable Bridge Mode.

 

After enabling Bridge Mode on the XB6, some routers may require a reboot to regain Internet connectivity.  If your router is unable to obtain an IP address while the XB6 is in bridge mode, unplug ALL devices from the XB6's Ethernet ports, leave everything disconnected for at least 15 minutes, then connect your router (and ONLY your router) to the XB6.

 

 

Back to your initial question,

"Sorry, How do you do step1, configure your modem if it is not connected to the gateway which is stated for step 2. Please explain."

 

I assumed (and stated so) that people would have an Ethernet-connected computer, and could connect their Ethernet cable to whatever device that they were configuring; initially to the XB6 to perform the basic setup, then their router to perform its basic setup. 

 

The guide was also written at a time when the XB6 could only be configured using a web browser and a Rogers tech performed the initial installation.  Things have changed a bit since then.  It was also targeted at users who had moderately-advanced networking skills, in part because I only provided general configuration guidelines, and because Rogers will not be able to provide any support to users who try to run Ignite TV through their own router or their own Wi-Fi gear.  You need to be skilled enough to be able to support yourself.  If you are uncomfortable with technology or do not have much technical experience with networking and Wi-Fi, I would STRONGLY advise that you simply use the equipment that Rogers provides.  If you should ever require technical assistance, help is only a phone call away... and it is available 24 hours/day, every day.

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

Thank you for your kind response. I am clearly not computer savvy. The reason I would like to use a 3rd party router is to access the internet browsing history thru a detailed logging function that cannot be accidently cleared.  We have a member in our family with high anxiety and needs the reassurance of where they have travelled on the internet. Besides bridge mode(which I understand you are not recommending) and software(which our member feels is not adequate) is there another solution to use rogers supported gateway in terms of configuration/equipment to be able to use the advanced settings of a router to use a logging function such as seeing web browsing history. This is very much a mental health issue and I am grateful for any help you can offer.

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

57
Resident Expert
Resident Expert

Most browsers have a History tab.  I'm guessing this is not adequate for your needs?

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode


@Sunshine881 wrote:

Thank you for your kind response.

 

Is there another solution to use rogers supported gateway in terms of configuration/equipment to be able to use the advanced settings of a router to use a logging function such as seeing web browsing history. This is very much a mental health issue and I am grateful for any help you can offer.


Is this family member simply seeking re-assurance of their browsing history or is there actually a need to block access to certain content and to protect against them from actively trying to subvert parental controls, content blocking and history logging?  Also, will you need to perform this logging on all household devices or just the few that this family member uses?

 

I have never researched the solution that you are looking for.  I don't think that the Rogers-provided equipment will be of any help to you... but I don't know for sure either since I don't use their parental controls.

 

If this user simply wants to monitor their web browsing history, they might want to try using the Vivaldi web browser.  It actually has a very nice History feature.  You can also configure "Delete Browsing Data" so that it does not clear browsing history...  and can configure Privacy settings to only store browsing history for a certain period of time if you also do wish to store web history indefinitely.  Built-in content blocking can also block access to malicious sites.

 

If this is not enough and you would like to maintain a Rogers-supported configuration, another option that you could do is to connect your router (with its logging features) to the XB6, leave "bridge mode" disabled on the XB6, then connect any devices that you wish to log to your own router; connect other devices directly to the Rogers Wi-Fi.

 

The problem with parental controls and connection logging is that you can often get around them by installing a VPN, so you also need to maintain administrative control of any device that you need to protect.  The logging on most routers is also connection based, not the URLs that are visited, so your logs can get bogged down with connections to 3rd-party advertising and analytics services.  They can also only store a limited about of history internally, so you would also need to store logs either on a server or on an external disk.

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

I really appreciate your help.

 

Ideally, I would prefer to use rogers supported configuration.  In relation to your second last paragraph,  I am unclear. Please explain specifically how the connections would be made. Does our 3rd party router connect directly with an ethernet cable to the XB6  and then connect 3rd party router to their computer with an ethernet cable or Wi-Fi for them to see their web history only thru their logging feature of their 3rd party router?

 

If I am understanding this correctly this would be using 2 routers(the XB6 and the 3rd party). This would not put them in conflict?

 

In relation to the 3rd last paragraph , How do you go about adjusting settings in the Vivaldi browser such as turning off "delete browsing data" and so on as you mentioned.

 

I am sorry if this is too dumbed down but please explain it to me as if I were in grade 6.

 

Thank you so much. This is very important to our family.

Re: Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode


@Sunshine881 wrote:

I really appreciate your help.

 

Ideally, I would prefer to use rogers supported configuration.  In relation to your second last paragraph,  I am unclear. Please explain specifically how the connections would be made. Does our 3rd party router connect directly with an ethernet cable to the XB6  and then connect 3rd party router to their computer with an ethernet cable or Wi-Fi for them to see their web history only thru their logging feature of their 3rd party router?


You would connect the router's WAN port to the ETH1 port on the XB6 modem/gateway.

 

I don't know anything about the logging capabilities of the router that you purchased.  Presumably you would have to log into the router to view the connection log.

 

If I am understanding this correctly this would be using 2 routers(the XB6 and the 3rd party). This would not put them in conflict?


Not necessarily.  It should suffice to assign different Wi-Fi network names on the router and on the XB6.  If you would like your traffic to be logged, connect the device to your router's Wi-Fi, otherwise connect to the Rogers WiFi network that you set up on the XB6.

 

However, some applications may not function properly if they connect to the Internet through multiple cascaded router/firewalls, which is what would happen if you do not enable "bridge mode" on the XB6.  You can also avoid this by configuring your router as a WiFi Access Point... but I don't know whether or not the connection logging would work in this configuration.  (Sorry, this is technical stuff.  I can't really make this any simpler.  You may just have to experiment to determine what does work and what does not.)

 

In relation to the 3rd last paragraph , How do you go about adjusting settings in the Vivaldi browser such as turning off "delete browsing data" and so on as you mentioned.


To delete stored data, you invoke "Tools / Delete Browsing Data", and a menu will drop down asking you what data you would like to clear and for what time period.  To prevent the sites that you visited from getting cleared, simply do not check the selection box next to "Browsing History".  The browser will remember the selections that you made previously.