Can you add non-WiFi clients to the Guest Network?

[Seth Harman]

I currently have an AC86U as my main router and an AC3100 operating as an AIMesh node with ethernet backhaul. The guest network is currently running and I use it to isolate my IoT devices. The one device I cannot add to the guest network via WiFi is the Hue hub as it requires an Ethernet connection. Is it possible to add non-WiFi clients to the Guest Network by giving them a fixed IP and then telling the router to include that IP address in the Guest Network? If not, is it possible to assign one of the LAN ports on the AC86U and tell the router to add anything connected on that port to the Guest Network?

 

[RMerlin]

The Guest Network is not IP-based, it's interface/bridge based. Each Guest network runs on its own separate interface, which is what allows them to be isolated at the bridge level. The Ethernet switch are all on one single interface, so they cannot be isolated on a port-basis. You'd have to setup VLANs to achieve that - and it would only allow you to isolate them from the LAN, not to put them on the same network as the Guest wifi clients.

This is typically best done with a managed switch, since Asuswrt has no real support for VLANs.

 

[CaptainSTX]

Yes it is possible by writing a custom script to add VLAN functionality to your router. Another option might be to flash your router with Tomato which does allow setting up VLANs using the GUI.

If you decide to go the script route search this forum.

 

[RMerlin]

Yes it is possible by writing a custom script to add VLAN functionality to your router. Another option might be to flash your router with Tomato which does allow setting up VLANs using the GUI.

If you decide to go the script route search this forum.

He has an RT-AC86U, which means no Tomato support, and no robocfg tool either.

 

[Seth Harman]

The Guest Network is not IP-based, it's interface/bridge based. Each Guest network runs on its own separate interface, which is what allows them to be isolated at the bridge level. The Ethernet switch are all on one single interface, so they cannot be isolated on a port-basis. You'd have to setup VLANs to achieve that - and it would only allow you to isolate them from the LAN, not to put them on the same network as the Guest wifi clients.

This is typically best done with a managed switch, since Asuswrt has no real support for VLANs.

Bummer. It looks like the only way to do this is to get a cheap device to act as a wireless client to connect to the Guest Network that I can plug wired devices into. Thanks for the clarification!

 

[Val D.]

It looks like the only way to do this is to get a cheap device to act as a wireless client to connect to the Guest Network that I can plug wired devices into.

It’s an excellent simple workaround, actually.

 

[Martineau]

You'd have to setup VLANs to achieve that - and it would only allow you to isolate them from the LAN, not to put them on the same network as the Guest wifi clients.

Would you mind clarifying your statement

" and it would only allow you to isolate them from the LAN, not to put them on the same network as the Guest wifi clients"?​

I'm pretty certain I've been doing this (and guided others to do the same) since 2017

i.e. Bridge Guest WiFi VPN SSID and VLAN Switch Port

 

[RMerlin]

Would you mind clarifying your statement

" and it would only allow you to isolate them from the LAN, not to put them on the same network as the Guest wifi clients"?
I'm pretty certain I've been doing this (and guided others to do the same) since 2017

Some routers use VLANs to isolate Guest Networks. Asuswrt does not, it relies on ebtables to isolate them.

His original request was for having Ethernet clients within the same "guest network" as Wifi Guests. Just stating that setting up VLANs on the LAN switch ports won't be enough to achieve that (since wifi guests aren't part of any VLAN), he'd need to also reconfigure things to have these wifi guests also part of the same VLAN.

 

[Seth Harman]

It’s an excellent simple workaround, actually.

Yep, and $19.00 later I have just such a thing coming from Amazon.

 

[Seth Harman]

Ok, so the device worked but... Once I connected the Hue hub to the Ethernet port on the extender/bridge it was connecting to the guest network through that device but the Amazon Echo couldn't talk to it directly to discover the lights connected to the Hue Hub even thought it was also connecting to the guest network. As soon as I changed the wireless network on the Echo to connect to the extender/bridge and used that to get into the guest network all of the sudden everything started working. So, for anyone thinking about doing this scenario keep that in mind.