Assistance with dual router setup
Assistance with dual router setup
You have a Fiber router and an older ADSL2+ router. To boost your network coverage inside the house while keeping the Archer C20 as the primary router, consider upgrading or optimizing the older device.
I’ll start by noting that not every gateway device works for your needs. You may need to experiment, but keep expectations realistic. To prevent double-NAT and other network issues, stick to one router on a straightforward home setup. I treat “router” as a general term rather than a specific model, because some dedicated wireless routers can operate in AP mode with functional Ethernet ports—similar to a wireless switch. This effectively disables routing and firewall capabilities. However, gateway devices (like modems, routers, switches, or APs) often don’t support this setting. Refer to the emulator guide for the W8960N: you can launch the Quick Setup Wizard, select “Ethernet WAN” and “IPoE” as your WAN link type. I recommend assigning the W8960N a static IP within the same subnet as your main network (but outside the DHCP range), and connect it to your Archer C20’s LAN IP as the gateway and DNS server. Configure your Wi-Fi settings as desired. Then, run an Ethernet cable from the C20’s LAN port to the W8960N’s LAN/WAN port, apply the configurations on the W8960N, and restart the device. Remember that TP-Link treats the LAN/WAN port as a Layer 2 WAN interface, which can cause double-NAT challenges.
You're questioning whether you truly need this upgrade. It seems the new router will offer significantly faster performance than the current one. The previous model was quite outdated at its launch.