Question Dual WAN config & setup help

[RickMo]

Current setup: ISP #1: Cable to modem to WiFi router, ISP #2: Verizon LTE Home Internet WiFi router (ASK-RTL108).

Objective: Combine both incoming Internet connections into one network, while allowing all connected computers to see/use resources and computers.

Thinking of purchasing Tp-link TL-R470t+ (or anything similar) but I'm unsure how to configure the TP Link to accommodate the two ISPs. I'm guessing I connect the TP Link to the output of the cable modem, but do I take the LAN output of the Verizon router and connect it to the TP Link? And then how do I configure it? And I still want to utilize my main WiFi router.

Thanks in advance...

 

[VirtualLarry]

Asus routers with recent firmware support dual WAN, as does some flavors of "Tomato" firmware.

 

[JackMDS]

Reading this page might help to understand what the term Combine means in this specific Tech topic (as oppose to Combine in poetry).

Loadbalance Internet Connections

 

[SamirD]

I've been running dual wan for over a decade now. The consumer implementations leave a lot to be desired. The best implementations come from enterprise routers, but there is a bit of a configuration learning curve. Once it's set though, it's one and done.

The tplink you linked to is a bad choice as the wan and lan ports are only 10/100. This may not be an issue if you have sub 100Mbps speeds, but honestly there's no reason to compromise since you can get full gigabit units for probably the same price.

 

[RickMo]

I've been running dual wan for over a decade now. The consumer implementations leave a lot to be desired. The best implementations come from enterprise routers, but there is a bit of a configuration learning curve. Once it's set though, it's one and done.

The tplink you linked to is a bad choice as the wan and lan ports are only 10/100. This may not be an issue if you have sub 100Mbps speeds, but honestly there's no reason to compromise since you can get full gigabit units for probably the same price.

Thanks for the info. My TP Link choice is one I pulled out of the air. (I did notice there's an updated version; maybe that has gigabit ethernet.) I just need an overall picture as to how to put it all together.

We have many power outages up here and I need something reliable, hence, two ISPs. I just need a way to have, at the very least, one operable ISP and I thought if I could seamlessly have both available I wouldn't have to physically switch over from one to another.

 

[mxnerd]

[]

 

[Fallen Kell]

Another option is to build/setup a pfsense router which can be configured to use dual/multi-wan:

Multiple WAN Connections | pfSense Documentation

docs.netgate.com

.

I recently built a pfsense router myself off an old Dell Optiplex 9020 SFF system which I picked up for cheap off ebay. I added a 40GbE network card and an SSD hard drive and was good to go. Please note you don't need to use a 40GbE network card, I did because I could get one for cheap (~$30) and had QSFP+ ports available on my main network switch, so for me, it was the best/cheapest way to configure it. You can simply add a dual/quad port 1GbE network card (I suggest read up on supported/recommended cards for pfsense before purchasing one, but most will work, just that some work much better than others if you want to have decent performance).

 

[RickMo]

Another option is to build/setup a pfsense router which can be configured to use dual/multi-wan:

Multiple WAN Connections | pfSense Documentation

docs.netgate.com

.

I recently built a pfsense router myself off an old Dell Optiplex 9020 SFF system which I picked up for cheap off ebay. I added a 40GbE network card and an SSD hard drive and was good to go. Please note you don't need to use a 40GbE network card, I did because I could get one for cheap (~$30) and had QSFP+ ports available on my main network switch, so for me, it was the best/cheapest way to configure it. You can simply add a dual/quad port 1GbE network card (I suggest read up on supported/recommended cards for pfsense before purchasing one, but most will work, just that some work much better than others if you want to have decent performance).

Thank you, Fallen Kell. I'll read the docs.

 

[SamirD]

Thanks for the info. My TP Link choice is one I pulled out of the air. (I did notice there's an updated version; maybe that has gigabit ethernet.) I just need an overall picture as to how to put it all together.

We have many power outages up here and I need something reliable, hence, two ISPs. I just need a way to have, at the very least, one operable ISP and I thought if I could seamlessly have both available I wouldn't have to physically switch over from one to another.

Gotcha. That's kinda what I figured. So the best way to get an idea of what's going on is to think of it this way--multiple wans, but you only have one lan and basically each individual packet will hit various wans automatically or based on whatever rules you apply (or can apply) to the traffic.

I deal with power outages too at our sites and generally we've found that if you have the equipment on a ups, the service stays up even during power outages.

The strength of enterprise equipment is the switch. I could always tell or even have to wait for my rv016 back in the day, but on our watchguard m300 I pretty much have to check the control panel as it's so seamless I've actually run with an isp down for days and not even known it.

Of course, the equipment has changed dramatically, especially in the cisco rv series, and a quick search for a review on the rv345 said that it switched over to the other wan in just 1 ping.

Cisco RV-345P Dual WAN Gigabit PoE VPN Router Reviewed - SmallNetBuilder

Cisco's RV-345P is the latest addition to the company's small business VPN router family.

www.smallnetbuilder.com

You can also check out the emulator on the rv345 here:

Cisco RV345 Configuration Utility

Checking out the interface will get you familiar with the differences in a multi-wan and traditional router.

Our requirement is 100% uptime for Internet, so dual wan makes a lot of sense when it is on different isps. Back in the day it was for additional upload bandwidth since having 3x cable modems was cheaper than a single t1, and faster too.

Hope this helps a bit and feel free to ask more questions.

 

[RickMo]

Thanks so much, Samir. I'm gonna check out the info you provided... very helpful.

 

[RickMo]

Samir: I looked at the config utility which was very helpful. An initial question though: My cable modem output would be a WAN connection, but my Verizon LTE wifi router has only LAN ethernet outputs. How would this be configured when connected to the Cisco?

 

[SamirD]

Thanks so much, Samir. I'm gonna check out the info you provided... very helpful.

You're welcome.

Samir: I looked at the config utility which was very helpful. An initial question though: My cable modem output would be a WAN connection, but my Verizon LTE wifi router has only LAN ethernet outputs. How would this be configured when connected to the Cisco?

Yep, cable modem is easy as it's just like any other router straight to the wan connection. The LTE probably has its own router built-in so ideally you'd want to run that in some sort of bridge mode. But if that's not possible, you can run dmz and then worse case, just double nat. The connection is the same though--cable from the LTE to the second wan port on your multi-wan router. What makes a difference is the IP address from the LTE, which may not be the true WAN IP due to a double nat. It won't make a difference though in terms of use--just make sure that if you're running double nat the two IP ranges are different, ie 192.168.2.x and 192.168.1.x.

Back when Arris became big in the carrier side of cable modems, my isp moved to an Arris c4 at their head end and my speeds finally jumped with >1M upload speeds (yay!), but I noticed a weird problem with my rv016 disabling one of the 3 wan connections in turn. I came to find out that the Arris c4 was sending 100 packets/sec of ack/nak packets to the rv016 and it was thinking it was under attack so it would disable the wan. I never got a resolution to this from the isp or Cisco, so finally I broke down and get some cheap $5 routers from a used computer place to put in between the cable modems and my rv016 on 2x wan connections. That solved the issue as the other routers were now dealing with the 100 packets/sec of ack/nak. But even with this convoluted setup, my lan didn't know the difference and just kept working. I needed all 3x modems because I would saturate all of them for 12hrs at a time ever week for uploading the thousands of photos I shot over the weekend covering events. Once uploads speeds were 5Mbps, I dropped one of the modems and had 'only' 2.

 

[RickMo]

So helpful... thanks, Samir. Another question: I still want to use my current WiFi Router. So once I connect the cable modem and LTE router to the Cisco, do I connect the WiFi Router (Asus) to the Cisco? What about DHCP; which router would handle that? Thx.

 

[SamirD]

So helpful... thanks, Samir. Another question: I still want to use my current WiFi Router. So once I connect the cable modem and LTE router to the Cisco, do I connect the WiFi Router (Asus) to the Cisco? What about DHCP; which router would handle that? Thx.

So to use your current router as an access point, it's no different than if you were doing this in a normal single wan setup--disable dhcp, make sure the IP is outside of the range of the main router, and connect it lan to lan to the main router. The beauty of a multi-wan router is that from the lan side, everything is the same as it normally would be.

 

[RickMo]

Got it! Samir, you've armed me with courage and knowledge. Just ordered the Cisco router but won't be able to work on our network until later next week. I may be writing to you again... hopefully not, though. Thanks for your help.