Connecting my old ASUS RT-N66U to a new BT Smart Hub

[Andrew Whale]

Hi
I hope some of you can give me some advice.......
I currently use an ASUS RT-N66U which provides wireless and hard wired ethernet throughout my house. I also have a usb drive attached, with ftp share and samba share configured. As such, I can ftp to/from the USB storage and also access data as shares from my other devices (Win 10, android, security cameras). I also have port forwarding configured. Basically it's configured just the way I need it (not bad for someone in their 60's).

However, I'm now being forced to ditch my current ISP as this uses wireless technology and my line of sight has been affected by some large trees. Fibre was installed into my village recently so I have decided to go with BT Infinity (good or bad - this is what I have gone for).
I think that the BT router is limited in terms of functionality (eg no ftp, samba, usb storage?) so I doubt I can replicate what I have done on my ASUS - but maybe I'm wrong? As such I think I have two/three options....
Option 1 - ditch the BT router and attach my ASUS to an old BT modem (which I already have) on the incoming line. The only drawback with this option as I see it is that I'm not taking advantage of the superior wireless that the BT router offers.
Option 2 - somehow connect my ASUS to the BT DSL router? However I guess that in AP mode the ASUS will loose features like port forwarding, ftp server and samba server? So I guess option 2 isn't really an option at all.
Option 3 - connect my ASUS to an old BT modem on the incoming line and connect the BT router as an AP - if this is possible.

I've not received the BT Smart Hub yet, but tried to check documentation for it's advanced features. However there appears to be info little out there.

Any thoughts on how I can retain the current ASUS functionality and also take advantage of the BT router?
Thanks in advance.
Cheers. Andrew

 

[LeeM]

quick googling suggests the home hub doesn't have a "modem only" mode. So I don't think you can use your Asus for anything other than an AP.

You could buy a new asus router with a modem built in presumably and perhaps replicate your setup that way by completely replacing the home hub.

 

[MichaelCG]

quick googling suggests the home hub doesn't have a "modem only" mode. So I don't think you can use your Asus for anything other than an AP.

I'm sure he can run a double NAT setup if he wanted to. That is how I am setup today with no issues. I come in through my provider router and plug in my pfSense firewall into that. It has a double-NAT which I have to manage a bit more when I chose to have an inbound service, but it is way less hassle than trying to remove the provider router from the picture.

 

[Andrew Whale]

Hi folks - many thanks for the feedback and thoughts. I actually got the new line installed yesterday. I decided to go with my option 1 initially, and this works like a dream. I now have all my existing functionality on a faster and more reliable connection (I hope!). After a week or so, I will have a go at reconfiguring the BT router to act as a WAP. I think I know how to do this, by disabling DHCP and changing the routers IP address. If I can't get this to work it's no great problem, but it would be nice to be able to replace my old WAP with more powerful dial wifi device.
Thanks again.
Cheers. Andrew

 

[Trikein]

Incase anyone else has this problem, how did you get the BT modem into bridge? What model modem is it? ECI? Huawei?

 

[Andrew Whale]

Hi Trikein
The modem is a BT Openreach made by ECI.
I just connected it to my incoming phone line and then connected it to my ASUS router using ethernet cable.
No reconfiguration required on any device. The service has been rock solid from day one and all my existing functionality remains.

I later had a go at reconfiguring the redundant BT router to act as a WAP. This didn't work and, after some investigation on the intertnet, I concluded that many others had tried and failed. Not a great problem for me, as my ASUS WAP is still good and, again, rock solid. From my experience, you just can't beat ASUS comms gear.
Cheers
Andrew

 

[Trikein]

Did you check that your Asus router is getting a public IP under the WAN status? I thought unless you unlocked the ECI modems (which is hard to do) they had NAT/SPI enabled by default.

 

[Andrew Whale]

Hi Trikein
The ASUS router is definately receiving a public IP address. I also use the ASUS DDNS service.
Obviously I had to change the PPP Username and Password to connect to the BT service - but apart from that, no reconfiguration needed.
Cheers
Andrew

 

[Trikein]

Hmm, good to know. Thanks!