Using the Ignite TV Modem/Gateway in Bridge Mode

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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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@Yehuda_Chayem wrote:

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).

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?

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You would need a router with a 2.5 GigE WAN interface that is connected to the 2.5 GigE LAN port on an XB7 or XB8 gateway.

[Yehuda_Chayem]

Thanks -G-, responded in another thread. 

Your answers sound more logical than what Rogers told me yesterday. Hopefully others have more luck than me when talking to them. 

[augmentium]

I have just upgraded from a Hitron legacy modem and installed an XB7 bridged to an ASUS AC router, with ignite TV.  1.5gb plan. Everything's working ok, with intermittent speed drops which I never had with the bridged Hitron modem.  I'm looking into getting an AX router, but in the meantime, I'm wondering what the benefit of having ipv6 passthrough enabled for the TV is?  The TV box connects to my wireless network, so isn't that sufficient to make them work?

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@augmentium wrote:

I'm wondering what the benefit of having ipv6 passthrough enabled for the TV is?  The TV box connects to my wireless network, so isn't that sufficient to make them work?

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Technically, running Ignite TV over your own network gear is not supported by Rogers but if you do, it is best to replicate how an Ignite Gateway is configured as much as possible.  You cannot disable IPv6 on an Ignite gateway and the Ignite set-top boxes prefer to use use IPv6, so I consider that enough of a reason to have both IPv4 and IPv6 enabled and functional on your own router.

[Datalink]

@augmentium since you're running an XB7 with 1.5 Gb/s service, please take a quick read thru this post which provides more detail about the XB7 and XB8 modems:

Re: Only receiving 1/3 of 1.5 Gbps Speeds - Page 3 - Rogers Community

Fwiw, Rogers uses Native IPv6.  The settings for various routers can be seen on this page:

https://communityforums.rogers.com/t5/Archived-Posts/Rogers-IPv6-Status/m-p/373238/highlight/true#M1...

Consider setting the router to use Native IPv6 first to see how the Xi6-A or Xi7-T set top boxes behave.  

When you have the settings complete in the router, reboot the router so that the Cable Modem Termination System (CMTS) and the router negotiate the IPv6 prefix.  You will have to reboot/restart the set top boxes after the router reboot.  

[augmentium]

Thanks @Datalink. ASUS recommends using Passthrough for automatic WAN connections which is what I have. It works fine, so far. Are you saying I should rather switch the WAN setting to PPPoE then use the Native ipv6 setting instead? I was just wondering if I should even bother with ipv6 at all, but @-G- below recommends mimicking the XB7 settings, which I assume would mean changing WAN setting to PPPoE from automatic. It seems like I’d be potentially creating more problems. What advantages would my network gain from this?

[Datalink]

Hi @augmentium Rogers does not use PPPoE at all.  The modems run the coax port as the WAN port and the modem then provides a straight ethenet protocol to the connected devices.  No PPPoE involved.  Rogers uses Native IPv6.  I can't tell you if there's a difference between using Native IPv6 versus Passthrough with Asus Routers.  Anytime I've enabled IPv6 on my Asus routers, I've always used Native IPv6.  As they say, if it isn't broken, don't fix it.  Looking around, it appears that Passthrough is recommended if automatic IP internet connection is active, which it probably is for your router.  Its interesting to see the recommendation for Native IPv6 if you have a PPPoE connection.

Native IPv6 results in an IPv6 prefix assigned to the router.  After that, the result on the LAN is a combination of the assigned prefix and suffix that the device would work out.  I wonder if Passthrough results in every IPv6 capable device negotiating its own IPv6 address with the CMTS?  You would have to look at the IPV6 addresses on the devices on your LAN to see if there's any difference in the IPv6 prefix.  Thats an interesting question and unfortunately, I don't know enough about the intricacies of IPv6 addressing.  

[augmentium]

Thanks for your input. I’m going to leave the settings as is for now. As you said, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.