This topic

Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

daiprich — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 17:01:59 GMT

From my Virgin network hub, I have a second wi-fi router (Linksys) wired by ethernet cable which is a useful range extender several meters away. I can log in to this as a separate wi-fi network (it has its own name, password).

I've now set up my BT Fastnet router, BT Hub 2. It works fine on wi-fi. But simply moving the ethernet cable into the BT Hub 2's socket (one of the 4 yellow ones) does not extend internet access to the second hub (I can log in to it as before, but no internet).

What am I doing wrong? How can I fix this?

Re: Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

Keith_Beddoe — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 17:05:54 GMT

@daiprich

Please can you confirm that you are a BT Broadband customer, as you referred to Virgin Media?

Re: Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

daiprich — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 17:14:06 GMT

Yes - I have migrated to BT Fastnet. I now have that service and it works well, but I have not yet switched off my Virgin service. I wanted to be sure everything worked before doing so.

But I have this 2nd router problem. At the 2nd router (Linksys) I still get wi-fi internet when it is connected by ethernet cable to my Virgin hub, but it doesn't work when connected to a socket in the BT hub2. Why could that be? Some naming protocol or something?

Once I solve this, I am going to cancel Virgin. Huzzah!

Re: Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

Keith_Beddoe — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 17:21:12 GMT

@daiprich

What is BT Fastnet, is that a BT Business product?

Are you actually with https://fastnet.co.uk/fibre-business-broadband/

Re: Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

daiprich — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 17:23:11 GMT

I think it is Fibre 100 - I get about 150 gb/s

Re: Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

licquorice — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 17:25:23 GMT

You need to set the IP address of the second router to an address outside of the DHCP range of the BT hub such as 192.168.1.10. It probably had an address in a different subnet when it was connected to the Virgin router.

Re: Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

Keith_Beddoe — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 17:28:45 GMT

@daiprich wrote:

I think it is Fibre 100 - I get about 150 gb/s

You mean 100 Mbs.

The IP subnet for BT Home hubs, is different that Virgin Media, so you would have to re-configure any extenders.

BT use 192.168.1.xxx gateway 192.168.1.254 DNS 192.168.1.254

I seem to remember that VM use 192.168.0.xxx subnet, but I have no idea of the rest.

Re: Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

daiprich — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 17:29:55 GMT

OK. Very helpful and thanks for getting back to me.

Um - do I do this on the BT hub, or the remote linksys?

Re: Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

daiprich — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 17:43:08 GMT

Thanks. I guess I'll figure it out eventually. Can you point me at a page which might give me step-by-step for this?

Also - you are right, I do mean Mbs. But I do get 150 of them. My contract is for 'Fibre 100', but the engineer explained that it is not fibre - it uses my existing copper wires to the cabinet a few hundred yards away - I think he called the service Fastnet, but I probably mis-remembered. Anyway, it is quite fast enough for me and much faster than before.

Thanks again.

Later

Dai

Re: Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

licquorice — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 17:48:27 GMT

It needs to be done on the Linksys box, so you need to look through the user manual for your device to see how to change its IP address.

Re: Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

RobbieBaron — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 20:19:20 GMT

@daiprichwrote:

I think he called the service Fastnet, but I probably mis-remembered.

You did! I think he called the service G.Fast. This is the BB technology from which you can get speeds up to 330 Meg (or 165 Meg on a capped product which Fibre 100 would be). This is an interim technology between the up to 80 Meg VDSL & the up to 1000+ Meg of FTTP (Full Fibre).

Re: Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

pippincp — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 20:29:41 GMT

~~It's not fastnet, it is G.Fast which is a different DSL protocol from VDSL (both FTTC) allowing speeds up to 330mbps.~~

Ooops, didn'e see @RobbieBaron 's post. He's spot on.

Re: Add a second, ethernet hard-wired wi-fi router to a BT Hub2

MarkGrotskiy — Fri, 10 Dec 2021 07:55:44 GMT

@Keith_Beddoewrote:
@daiprich
What is BT Fastnet, is that a BT Business product?
Are you actually with https://fastnet.co.uk/fibre-business-broadband/

Also didn't understand what was he referring to for the moment.