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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.

 

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280 REPLIES 280

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

-G-
Resident Expert
Resident Expert

@xeronine wrote:

So I've skimmed through this and I can't find an answer, so I'm wondering if it's just a specific problem with me or what..

 

I set everything up and enabled bridge mode and my OPNsense is working just fine (oddly enough, I have the exact same IP address as before I switched the modem out).

 

My issue is when I use the Ignite TV app on my phone a lot of the channels are telling me that I can only access them on my in-home wifi.  Curious, I decided to see if I could track down whether or not my phone was trying to access 10.0.0.1 at all and it seems it makes a bunch of connections to a eas-po-rogers-wsl4lb-p-vip.potomac.co.ndcwest.comcast.net host before accessing a bunch of AWS IPs.  Not sure how to fix this (if it's even possible to fix).


Those connections to Comcast and AWS are normal.  You should also see some connections to Rogers' back-end servers as well.  I'm not sure why you are expecting any connections to 10.0.0.1, the default IPv4 address of your Ignite gateway; it's just a cable modem with telephony support.

 

As for the error that you can only access certain channels while on Wi-Fi, it works fine for me while I am in my home, and I am also running Ignite TV over my own network gear and with Bridge Mode enabled on my Ignite gateway.  It also works fine if I am using the Ignite TV app on my iPhone while in the home of another Rogers Ignite TV customer.

 

In some cases, the Ignite back-end also geolocates you through your Ignite TV app and your device's location services... so if you spoofing another location or have a VPN service active, that will also make the mobile client appear to be at another address.

 

If you are a new Ignite TV customer, it may also take some time for the back-end systems to associate your IP addresses as that of an Ignite TV subscriber.

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

xeronine
I plan to stick around
I mistakenly assumed that it accessed those “in-home” channels through the modem itself, and that was how it knew if you were at home or not.

In any case after I posted this last night I decided to sign out of the ignite tv app and sign back in and for some reason that worked. All is well!

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

Jflash
I've been here awhile
Has any body used this guide to set up a Ubiquiti modem? Is the main guide on the front page of this topic accurate for Ubiquiti equipment ? Or is there other problems I will run into? I pretty sure I won’t have any issues changing it to bridge mode etc, my main concern is connecting the tv box’s to the dream machine modem over wifi with the ipv6 settings etc.
Thanks for any help or tips!

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

-G-
Resident Expert
Resident Expert

@Jflash  Most modern routers should "just work" with the WAN interface set to Auto/DHCP.  Others can be a bit finnicky.  Hopefully, somebody in the Community will be able to assist you if you should run into any difficulties.

 

As for your set-top boxes, I would recommend connecting them to your Ignite gateway first, then duplicate the Wi-Fi credentials on your own gear.  The set-top boxes should then reconnect to your Wi-Fi AP without issues.

 

One other quirk to be aware of: you might find that your Ignite set-top boxes will disconnect from Wi-Fi if you try to connect them to a Wi-Fi network that uses different credentials than what you configured in the Ignite gateway.

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

Jflash
I've been here awhile
Thanks for the fast response! That’s a good idea to use the same network name etc on my new equipment as I’m using now for my ignite equipment. Hopefully that’s saves me from having some issues

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

-G-
Resident Expert
Resident Expert

@Jflash wrote:
Thanks for the fast response! That’s a good idea to use the same network name etc on my new equipment as I’m using now for my ignite equipment. Hopefully that’s saves me from having some issues

No problem!  One more tip:

 

I think that your Ubiquiti gear will also allow you to configure secondary Wi-Fi networks.  If that is the case, feel free to use one SSID for you own devices and a secondary SSID for the set-top boxes that matches the Wi-Fi configuration in your Ignite gateway.  That will make the cutover easier:

 

  • Before enabling Bridge Mode on the Ignite gateway, power down your Ignite set-top boxes.
  • Enable bridge mode on the gateway, then make sure your gear has Internet connectivity.
  • Enable the Ignite TV SSID (that you had configured on the Rogers gateway) on your UDM.  For simplicity, do not put this on a separate VLAN.
  • Power up the set-top boxes and they should connect.

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

ramg1967
I plan to stick around

I have been rogers internet customer since 2013.  I was using old Cisco DPC3825 DOCSIS 3.0 Gateway modem.  It has 4 ETHERNET ports.  This week, I switched internet plan to Rogers Ignite 75mbps and received new white Gateway XB7 modem.  It has 4 LAN ports and 2 telephone ports. So far everything is working fine. 

 

I want to enable bridge mode on XB7 and use Cisco DPC3825 as the router.  Want to know, if it will work because Cisco DPC3825 does not have WAN port - just ETHERNET ports.

 

Thanks

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

@ramg1967 nope, this won't work.  The best that you could do is to leave the XB7 running in its default Gateway mode and use the 3825 as an access point by connecting an XB7 Lan port to one of the Lan ports on the 3825.  You would also have to turn off the DHCP server on the 3825.  I'm not even sure that's possible as I don't know if the 3825 will boot up without a cable connection.  

 

Even if it was possible to use the 3825 as a router (which I don't believe is possible) the 3825 has probably not seen any firmware update for several years.  It should be considered a security hazard for both firewall and wifi applications.  These days, if your modem or router hasn't seen an update for several months, and there isn't an update on the horizon, its time to junk one or both and replace them.  Security issues with modems and routers arise just about every week, not with every modem or router, but with groups of them as determined by the actual path into the device that has been found by internet miscreants.  That depends on the how the firmware has been built and to some degree whether the problem is with a common third party component that has been incorporated into the device firmware.   So, you've certainly obtained your money's worth out of the 3825, but, its time for a new router which receives regular firmware updates. 

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

ramg1967
I plan to stick around

@Datalink- Thanks to your reply.  

 

I thought the same as well.  Hence going to get a used router Model TL-WR841N which has 1 WAN and 4 LAN.  I guess this should work so, I can enable bridge mode on XB7 and use TL as the router and use my DHCP server to take care of IP Address.  

 

Home Lab Setup will be:

XB7 -> Enable Bridge -> LAN port 1 -> WAN port TL -> LAN port 1 TL -> TP Link 24 Port Switch -> All Servers/Clients will be connected by Ethernet Cable from TP Link 24 Port Switch

 

I will be disabling DHCP on TL-WR841N so DHCP Server 2019 can provide IP Address to all Servers/Clients

 

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

@ramg1967 you need to be careful with that used TL-WR841N.  I checked TP-Links support page for the latest three versions of that router.  So, here's the latest published firmware releases for the three latest router versions, version 12, version 13 and version 14:

 

TL-WR841N(US)_V12_160803 Published Date: 2016-08-03


TL-WR841N(US)_V13_180119 Published Date: 2018-02-24


TL-WR841N(US)_V14_210203 Published Date: 2021-04-09

 

The only version of that router with any recent update is Version 14.  Even then, that release date is in April, which doesn't make me terribly happy.  Going back to Version 12 and 13 of that router, it would appear that TP-Link has abandoned those routers, given the firmware release dates of 2016 and 2018.  So, any version of that router, earlier than Version 14 should not be used.  If you're going to obtain a Version 14 router, that's ok for now, but, not for much longer.    If you are going to use a Version 14 model, you need to keep an eagle eye out for any updates, and if TP-Link isn't going to provide any updates, then its time to find another router that receives regular updates.  

 

Unfortunately, the internet miscreants move faster than the modem and router manufacturers, so one has to keep an eye on the support pages for the routers for any firmware updates.  When an update occurs, load the update and then set the router up from scratch.  Don't load a backup config file unless you know that its acceptable to do that with a newer firmware file.  In the absence of any guidance, simply set the router up from scratch.  

 

Here's the link to the TP-Link support page for that router.  You have to select the router version from the drop-down menu and then select the firmware link to see the latest available firmware version for that particular version of the router:

 

https://www.tp-link.com/ca/support/download/tl-wr841n/v14/

 

 

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

ramg1967
I plan to stick around

Thanks a lot @Datalink.  I will definitely watch out of new firmware update for this router.  

 

I will definitely write a blog post once, I have completed all the configuration and testing with XB7 and TL Router- it might help others, if they want to try out.

 

I want the home lab working the way it was before when, I was using Cisco Modem.  I will figure out to make it happen and reach out to the community for help if needed.

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

ramg1967
I plan to stick around

I was able to enable Bridge Mode on XB7.  The TL router is working fine and wifi is also working. 

 

One thing, I noticed on TL router WAN ip address is different than Rogers XB7 WAN ip address.  Is this normal?

 

I also checked what is my IP Address through google - it reports Rogers XB7 WAN ip address.

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

-G-
Resident Expert
Resident Expert

@ramg1967 wrote:

I was able to enable Bridge Mode on XB7.  The TL router is working fine and wifi is also working. 

 

One thing, I noticed on TL router WAN ip address is different than Rogers XB7 WAN ip address.  Is this normal?


Yes, this is normal and expected.

 

With the Ignite gateway, Bridge Mode only disables the internal personal WiFi network and allows an Ethernet-connected router to obtain a public IPv4 address and an IPv6 PD.  It still has services running internally which require connectivity to the Rogers network, which is why the Ignite gateway still has its own public IPv4 and IPv6 addresses.  The Ignite gateway also still has some hidden Wi-Fi networks active, which are also associated with those internal services.

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

ramg1967
I plan to stick around

Thanks @-G- 

 

I even tested the speed - they are all within the range per Ignite contract. Very happy now.....

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

DRChevalier
I've been around

I have one of the black Ignite modems and am trying to set up access to a VPN Server on my local NAS.  The DDNS entry finds the external Rogers access, but the router set up shows that the Ignite modem device is doing NAT as is my own EERO internal wireless.  With my last modem, I had it set to bridge mode.  How do I set the Ignite modem to bridge mode?

 

Thank you

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

 Greetings @DRChevalier!

 

You can find instructions on how to get your Ignite modem into Bridge Mode at this link here: https://www.rogers.com/customer/support/article/how-to-bridge-your-rogers-ignite-modem

 

Keep in mind that putting this modem into bridge mode will disable any Ignite WiFi boosting pods in use and prevent you from using Ignite WiFi Hub.

 

If you’re an Ignite Bundle customer, and Ignite TV is connected to the modem via WiFi, bridging your modem will disconnect any WiFi-connected devices and may cause issues with your Ignite TV service.

 

Note: While this is not guaranteed, we suggest that you only turn off the WiFi on your modem and place your third-party solution into Access Point/Bridged mode instead.

 

If you have any issues with your services while in Bridge Mode, we may need to get your modem out of Bridge Mode in order to fully troubleshoot.

 

Regards,

RogersCorey

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

Tone31337
I've been here awhile

> we suggest that you only turn off the WiFi on your modem 

 

I would love to fully turn off the WiFi on the modem, however, as has been noted in this forum several times now, that's not possible... at least with the XB6 modem. Even after setting the radios to Inactive, that device continues to broadcast strong WiFi hidden SSIDs, messing up any other home WiFi router that might be nearby. 😞

 

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

bracer
I've been here awhile

I recently changed to the Ignite XB6 modem. In the past I had used the Hiltron modem in bridge mode with my Asus router and planned to do the same with the XB6. When I plugged the Asus router into port 1 of the XB6 everything seemed to work fine through the Asus router without changing the mode of the XB6 to bridge mode. I really don't care about the extra WiFi channel. Are there any advantages to using the bridge mode or disadvantages in using my Asus router with the XB6 not being in bridge mode? Thank you.

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

-G-
Resident Expert
Resident Expert

@bracer wrote:

I recently changed to the Ignite XB6 modem. In the past I had used the Hiltron modem in bridge mode with my Asus router and planned to do the same with the XB6. When I plugged the Asus router into port 1 of the XB6 everything seemed to work fine through the Asus router without changing the mode of the XB6 to bridge mode. I really don't care about the extra WiFi channel. Are there any advantages to using the bridge mode or disadvantages in using my Asus router with the XB6 not being in bridge mode? Thank you.


Using your own router with Bridge Mode disabled on the Ignite gateway will probably work okay if you only do basic web browsing but this configuration can also be problematic.  This is because when connecting to the Internet, devices on your in-home network will need to traverse two IPv4 firewalls, each of which perform Network Address Translation, and this double NAT configuration can cause some applications to break.  You will also end up with broken IPv6 connectivity.

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

NBer
I've been around

Hello.  I am unable to change the WiFi channels to manual.   This is the message on my settings screen.  Any suggestions?

Wi-Fi Mode, Security Mode, Channel Selection, Channel Mode, and Channel Bandwidth are being managed automatically to help optimize your home Wi-Fi network and improve Wi-Fi coverage. To edit your Wi-Fi Network Name & Network password, please download the Rogers Ignite WiFi app or visit ignitewifi.rogers.com.

 

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

Yehuda_Chayem
I've been here awhile

Sorry to circle back on a year later but, without WAN aggregation being an option, this device poses real challenges for users paying for more than 1gbps (i.e., the 1.5gbps package). When running bridge mode, without aggregation being an option, the ethernet ports on the back of the device are only capable of delivering a maximum of 1gbps (this answer from technical support escalation to tier 2 today). To test this, I've purchased a router with a 2.5gbps WAN port and connected to the red marked port on the back of the device via cat6 and cannot achieve speeds greater than 1gbps when testing from the router directly. 

 

Unless there's something I'm missing to resolve this, does this mean Rogers cannot deliver on speeds greater than 1gbps to people using bridge mode?