User Tools
media_bridge
Differences
This shows you the differences between two versions of the page.
| Both sides previous revisionPrevious revisionNext revision | Previous revision | ||
| media_bridge [2024/10/31 23:02] – [LAN Settings] -Condense hogwild | media_bridge [2026/05/18 19:13] (current) – [Wireless Mode and Settings] -Condense hogwild | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| - | ====== Media Bridge Mode Setup ====== | + | ====== |
| - | Support for Media Bridge mode started with release 2021.6. The initial setup can be done with the following steps: \\ \\ | + | In Media Bridge mode, a FreshTomato router connects via WiFi to a second router. The second router passes network traffic to LAN devices connected to the FreshTomato router' |
| + | |||
| + | A common scenario for using this mode is when simple media devices have an Ethernet port, but no built-in WiFi. You //could// run a long cable between your primary router and the media device. However, a better solution would be to place the simple device near your FreshTomato router, connecting the two with a short cable. Then, the FreshTomato router would connect via WiFi to your primary router on behalf of the device. In essence, FreshTomato would act as a sort of " | ||
| + | |||
| + | You can connect multiple devices to the FreshTomato LAN ports and they will all be relayed to the main network. Some examples of devices are NAS drives, PCs without WiFi, and printers. | ||
| + | |||
| + | The devices plugged into the FreshTomato router obtain their IP address from the primary router and appear to be on the same subnet as other devices in the network. | ||
| + | |||
| + | The initial setup can be done with the following steps: \\ \\ | ||
| Line 8: | Line 16: | ||
| \\ | \\ | ||
| - | - Go to the [[basic-network|Network]] menu. | + | - Go to the [[basic-network|Network]] menu. \\ Scroll down to the section for the WiFi module you wish to use. \\ For example: " |
| - | - Scroll down to the section for whatever wireless | + | - From the //Wireless Mode// dropdown, select |
| - | - From the //Wireless Mode// dropdown | + | - Set Wireless Network Mode to: "Auto". \\ \\ |
| - | - Set Wireless Network Mode to: Auto (all possible WiFi protocols). | + | - Set SSID to the same SSID as the one on the primary router. \\ For example, if the primary router' |
| - | - Set SSID to whichever | + | - Set Channel to the channel |
| - | - Set Channel to: Whichever WiFi channel | + | - Set Channel Width to: 20 MHz, 40 MHz or 80 MHz. It is best to \\ find this value in your primary router' |
| - | - Set Channel Width to: 20 MHz, 40 MHz or 80 MHz (your choice). | + | - Set Security to: WPAx, where " |
| - | - Set Security to: WPAx (Usually | + | - Set Encryption to: "AES". Again, this should match your primary router. \\ In 2026, your primary home router probably uses AES 2026. \\ \\ |
| - | - Set Encryption to: AES. | + | - Set Shared Key to: <WiFi password |
| - | - Set Shared Key to: WiFi password | + | - Set Group Key Renewal to: 3600 seconds. |
| - | - Set Group Key Renewal to: 3600 seconds | + | |
| \\ | \\ | ||
| Line 29: | Line 36: | ||
| Still in the Network menu, under LAN Settings: | Still in the Network menu, under LAN Settings: | ||
| - | * Configure bridge " | + | \\ |
| - | | + | |
| - | | + | - Configure bridge " |
| - | * Since release 2022.6, selecting “Automatic IP”, will make the router \ obtain IP/ | + | |
| + | | ||
| \\ | \\ | ||
| + | |||
| + | |||
| + | ==== Apply the Changes ==== | ||
| + | |||
| + | \\ | ||
| + | |||
| + | Click Apply at the bottom of the page to proceed with the changes. FreshTomato will show a screen reminding you of the new IP address. Be sure to reset any custom network settings applied to your PC network settings so that the DHCP server of your primary router can correctly find and assign an IP address to your PC. If successful, you can now plug devices into the FreshTomato router and your primary router will detect them. | ||
| + | |||
| + | \\ | ||
| ==== Comparing Media Bridge Mode and Wireless Ethernet Bridge Mode ==== | ==== Comparing Media Bridge Mode and Wireless Ethernet Bridge Mode ==== | ||
| - | \\ \\ | + | Media Bridge (MB) mode has several advantages over wireless Ethernet Bridge mode: |
| - | | + | \\ |
| - | * MB mode will work with SDK6 MIPS routers like the Asus RT-AC66U, D‑Link DIR‑865L \\ (wireless Ethernet bridge mode is not possible). | + | |
| - | * MB mode will work with SDK6 ARM routers like Asus RT-AC68U, or Netgear R7000. \\ (Wireless Ethernet Bridge mode is also possible). | + | |
| - | * IPv4 and IPv6 communication will work \\ (Wireless Ethernet Bridge supports only IPv4, except dual-core SDK6 ARM models, which support IPv6). | + | * MB mode will work with SDK6 MIPS routers like the Asus RT-AC66U, |
| + | * MB mode will work with SDK6 ARM routers like Asus RT-AC68U, | ||
| + | * IPv4 and IPv6 communication will work. | ||
| - | \\ Do NOT use Virtual Interfaces, such as Virtual Wireless networks or VLANs when in Media Bridge mode. | + | \\ **Do NOT** use Virtual Interfaces, such as Virtual Wireless networks or VLANs when in Media Bridge mode. |
| \\ | \\ | ||
| Line 52: | Line 71: | ||
| Media Bridge mode (MB) will work for: | Media Bridge mode (MB) will work for: | ||
| - | | + | \\ |
| + | |||
| + | | ||
| * SDK6.37 (ex. RT-AC68U, R7000) | * SDK6.37 (ex. RT-AC68U, R7000) | ||
| * SDK7 (ex. RT-AC3200, R8000) | * SDK7 (ex. RT-AC3200, R8000) | ||
| Line 60: | Line 81: | ||
| Wireless Ethernet Bridge (WEB) mode will work for: | Wireless Ethernet Bridge (WEB) mode will work for: | ||
| + | |||
| + | \\ | ||
| * SDK5.10 (ex. WRT54GL, RT-N16) | * SDK5.10 (ex. WRT54GL, RT-N16) | ||
| Line 69: | Line 92: | ||
| ===== Media Bridge Notes and Troubleshooting ===== | ===== Media Bridge Notes and Troubleshooting ===== | ||
| - | ==== Troubleshooting ==== | + | Once you've finished configuring settings, adjust your PC's IP address back to that of the primary network. Clear any static IP addresses and set DHCP back to " |
| + | |||
| + | \\ | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Media Bridge mode is primarily for //home networks//. If you're trying to connect to an untrusted WiFi network, Ethernet Bridge Mode or Wireless Bridge Mode are better options to keep trusted devices on their own sub-network, | ||
| \\ | \\ | ||
| - | **In case of issues such as connectivity loss:** | + | **In case of Connectivity Loss:** |
| - | - Try lowering the Wireless Client connection check time (affects | + | - Try lowering the Wireless Client connection check time (supported in Media Bridge/Wireless Client/Wireless Ethernet Bridge |
| root@FreshTomato-WlClientMode:/ | root@FreshTomato-WlClientMode:/ | ||
| root@FreshTomato-WlClientMode:/ | root@FreshTomato-WlClientMode:/ | ||
| root@FreshTomato-WlClientMode:/ | root@FreshTomato-WlClientMode:/ | ||
| </ | </ | ||
| - | - Additional improvements exist. See this Media Bridge mode commit that started with release 2023.4 \\ [[https://bitbucket.org/pedro311/ | + | - Additional improvements exist. See this Media Bridge mode commit that started with r2023.4:\\ [[https://github.com/FreshTomato-Project/ |
| \\ | \\ | ||
media_bridge.1730415772.txt.gz · Last modified: by hogwild
Page Tools
