Official How to set up Ethernet Backhaul with your Deco devices
Ethernet Backhaul is a feature that makes it possible to wire the Deco units together.
Thanks to this feature, every two Deco units can be wired with an Ethernet cable. And Deco will transmit data between the two units through the Ethernet connection, which is more stable and faster than Wi-Fi. Once Ethernet backhaul is established, the Wi-Fi backhaul connection will disconnect automatically.
Here are two typical connection structures for Ethernet Backhaul:
Notes:
1. Please note that the main Deco unit will act as a NAT router by default.
2. Please add the Deco units on the same network at first through the Deco app before you wire them together.
3. Please make sure there aren't any other DHCP servers behind the main Deco. Otherwise, it will cause the second and third Deco units to obtain an invalid IP address that doesn't have internet access.
4. If you have switches on the network and find Ethernet Backhaul not working, please check the management IP address of your switches. It's possible that some switches adopt 192.168.0.1 (which is the same as the LAN IP address of the main Deco) as the management IP, which may cause some conflicts on the network. In this case, it's recommended to change the management IP address of switches to another subnet.
Frequently Ask Questions
Q1: Can I connect all the Deco units directly to my home modem/router?
* In Router mode
Only the main Deco could be connected to your home modem/router. Other slave Deco units should be connected behind the main one, just as the Star Network shows. If not, they may be in a network loop and cause unexpected dropout issues.
* In Access Point mode
You can connect all the Deco units directly to your home modem/router/switch as you want. The system will work as expected.
Q2: How to turn on the Ethernet Backhaul feature?
No need to switch on this feature manually.
Just add your Deco units in the same Deco network and wire them together as per the above network structure. Then Ethernet Backhaul will take effect automatically.
Q3: How do I know if Ethernet Backhaul takes effect?
Launch the Deco app, tap on "Internet". Then tap on the slave Deco unit which is wired to other Decos and you can see its backhaul status.
Q4: To use the Ethernet Backhaul feature, do I need to wire all my Deco units?
Nope. You can set up one for wireless backhaul, and the other one for Ethernet backhaul as what you want.
For example, if you have three Deco units and want to create Wi-Fi not only in your house but also in the garage, which is a little far from the house and without Wi-Fi coverage. Then you can put the main Deco and slave Deco 1 in your house (wireless backhaul). As for slave Deco 2, you can place it in the garage with a long Ethernet cable connected to the main or slave 1 unit. In this case, the slave 2 unit will work through Ethernet backhaul, while the main and slave 1 will work through wireless backhaul.
Q5: Why my Decos become unstable once they're connected via a switch?
It's probably that you're using a D-Link switch.
The Deco Ethernet backhaul feature is based on the standard IEEE 1905.1 protocol. However, we find that some D-Link switches will not forward packets based on IEEE 1905.1 protocol, causing all Deco units in a loop and become quite unstable. If you have a D-Link switch and encounter unstable issue with Ethernet backhaul, we recommend to change another brand of a switch or contact D-Link support directly for a fix.
If you're not sure which switch to use, TP-Link switches may be a good choice.
Q6: Can I set up Ethernet Backhaul through a powerline connection?
That's okay if the powerline connection doesn't block any data flow.
Typical topology is, modem ---- main Deco ---- Powerline unit~~~Powerline unit ---- slave Deco
Q7: Can I set up different Deco models such as M5 and M9 Plus together through Ethernet backhaul?
Yes, just configure and add different Deco models in the same Deco network. After that, you can wire them to set up the Ethernet backhaul connection.
You could refer to the link below for how to add different Deco models in the same network.
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Muggost wrote
I don't know about trolling, maybe it is you that's trolling?Here is what I asked Customer Service:Hi, guest network is not working. I have 6 units connected with Ethernet backhaul through a Tp-link 8 port switch.»Here is what they replied:Thank you very much for your email requesting information about our product.I'm really sorry to tell you that guest network of tplink deco won't work if you connect them with Ethernet backhaul . Only wireless connection between all of the devices will make guest network to work properly~ We are really sorry for the inconvenience caused!The fact is that this system is not very complicated to set up. There's not much you can do wrong. Guest network is not working at our place and we know we're running Ethernet backhaul since the units are separated by 7 floors of reinforced concrete. Since you're so intent on telling me I'm wrong, maybe you can tell me what exactly it is that I'm doing wrong?
I can confirm this is an issue:
WAN<->Deco/Router<->UTP<->Deco2<->UTP<->SWITCH<->UTP<->Deco3
Ethernet backhaul worked when swapping my switches (had a Sitecom switch -> decimated my download to 10 mbps instead of 200 mbps) but enabling the guest network broke my wired ethernet backhaul and only the Deco/Router/Main device works thus I had bad reception at my attic.
So 2 things are important to understand with the Deco M5:
- don't use D-link and Sitecom switches, use something like TP-Link or Ubuiqiti as a switch, if you have issues with ethernet backhaul this is the first thing to test/swap
- guest network disables the ethernet backhaul and falls back to wireless backhaul (as confirmed by TP link) this *still* happens with firmware: 1.2.3 Build 20180819 Rel. 68100
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I have my three Deco's in AP mode and they work fine in with ethernet backhaul. This is the only system I have found that will support mesh while in AP mode.Spyd wrote
I have the 3 units Deco m5 router pack, and while I had some trouble making it work at first, now that it's working, I'm very happy with it... except that I can't use backhaul.I have the suspicion that it's because I'm using the Deco on AP mode, something I suspect very few people does use, as it wasn't even a feature until a firmware update added it.The situation is the following: I have three decos in a straight line, with one of the ends working as the main one. If I only have the main one connected with an Ethernet cable (to my ISP's router), everything works well, except for the speed that it's not ideal (I have symmetric 600Mpbs Internet connection and a Gigabit NAS, and using the Decos as repeaters and APs slows the speed a lot).The problem arises when I plug an Ethernet cable to the middle Deco; I connect the cable with the Deco turned on and it's light solid green, then the light turns solid red for a second, and then back to solid green, something that it's supposed to tell you that everything is working; except that the wifi does not: the wifi clients show that they're still connected and with good signal strenght, but there's no Internet and the Deco app gets stuck trying to connect to the Decos.If I try to Ping the middle Deco from a Ethernet connected computer while it has the Ethernet cable plugged in, fails about 1 of every 4 pings. If I unplug the Ethernet cable from the Deco, everything works well again (after a minute or so), and when I ping the middle Deco, all pings work ok.I'm using the lastest firmware version (1.2.3 Build 20180819 Rel. 68100) on all three Decos.
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Bradan wrote
Hi Spyd
I have exactly the same problem as you - have you found any solution?
Not found any solution.
Also, calling the support line is useless (in Spain at least), they don't even know what backhaul is. Also infuriating is the "but it works, you have wifi?". I didn't pay the small fortune this costs (compared to normal APs) to just have "working" wifi, I want it to be fast.
I didn't try again since I posted, but nothing has changed (I'm waiting for a firmware update to try again).
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Kienzlenator wrote
I have my three Deco's in AP mode and they work fine in with ethernet backhaul. This is the only system I have found that will support mesh while in AP mode.
Please, if you recall, tell me how did you do it.
Thank you.
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Kienzlenator wrote
I have my three Deco's in AP mode and they work fine in with ethernet backhaul. This is the only system I have found that will support mesh while in AP mode.
Same here. We have deployed the Deco M5 system in a couple of locations using wired backhaul and AP mode. All working fine. My setup process goes as follows:
[*]1. Hook-up Deco M5 unit 1 to power and ethernet and go through the setup process in the app. At the end of the setup choose to add another Deco M5 unit.
[*]2. Hook-up Deco M5 unit 2 to power and place it close to unit 1 (I usually will have all units sitting on a desk next to each other during this part of the setup) and go through the setup process. At the end again choose to add another Deco M5 unit.
[*]3. Hook-up Deco M5 unit 3 to power and place it close to the other units. Go through the setup process and add the end choose the "I'm done for now" option.
[*]4. Switch to the new Wi-Fi network that I created during the setup process.
[*]5. Update Deco M5 firmware to latest version.
[*]6. Switch from Router mode to Access Point mode.
[*]7. Install the Deco units at the location where they will be used hooking them up to wired LAN and power. For our setups all wired LAN cables will usually connect to a central switch in the building (we don't directly hook-up the M5 units to one another without going through another switch).
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I just upgraded my internet program to 600MB but my old 5GHz router didn't have enough so I picked up a set of Deco M4 (2 unit).
But even I tried to use ethernet cable to connect between 2 Deco, the speed didn't look quite good with only 70MB down / 30MB up. and every review I saw just incomplete sometime even feels rushed.
Hoping someone also met a similar problem before
1. How do I check if Ethernet Backhaul is working or not?
2. I currently have a Modem / Router combo from my ISP, should I setup my Deco in Router mode or AP mode?
3. Did Deco have a web domain control panel? or just Deco mobile app.
This is my current setup :
ISP modem / router combo (w/ wifi built in)(but I turned off)
| (ethernet cable)
Deco M4 (unit 1)
| (wireless)
Deco M4 (unit 2)
P.S. Deco currently setup as router mode, and I use wifi most of the time, rarely use cable
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I have the Deco M5 3 pack running well in AP mode with a Gig switch. Latest firmware.
What I have found is that the main unit must be the first one turned on after upgrading and switching to AP mode (well there really is no other way...)
Second unit is plugged into the same switch, powered on. Wait a few moments, it will operate with ethernet backhaul to the main unit and internet.
At this point I asked myself about redundancy. If the main unit were to go offline, it would kill the entire setup. I have proven that by
adding the third unit, same thing, wired back to the switch. Again, success.
After a few minutes I removed the ethernet cable from the main unit.
The system went dead. The other units did not "take over" and continue to function.
So two things come to mind, all Deco traffic makes it back to the switch and routed to the modem only if the "control" deco is online and able to monitor / access the other units (Basically your APP gateway), but on the other hand, what if all traffic is making it back to the switch, into the Main Deco and back out as routed. Meaning the Deco itself is a switch in some regards, but also being a bit of a bottle neck, hence, the more Deco's you have, you run the potential of choking your system with all the traffic going through the single device.
I tend to think this is not the case, because in AP mode each Deco is assigned it's own IP and the routing table defines your modem as your Default gateway, but then why would killing the main Deco stop all the others from working?
And one other thing, has anyone been able to have a split AP mode setup, like two units on wired backhaul, one unit wireless? I have not been able to get that to funciton where wiring is not possible.
TickingMind
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Hi TickingMind,
1. It may take some time for Deco to adjust the network. When you unplug the main unit from the switch, please give it minutes and the system will recover automatically.
Will optimize its performance in this case in future updates.
2. "Two units on wired backhaul and one unit wireless", it's been verified working.
As for your side, please make sure the wireless unit is within the Wi-Fi range of any of the wired units.
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