Your home Wi-Fi is working great! 😊 Let me know if you need any help.
Your home Wi-Fi is working great! 😊 Let me know if you need any help.
I’m sorry for the lengthy update, but here’s what I understand. You currently use three Deco M5 mesh Wi-Fi pods for your home network, which are operating at roughly 350 Mbps. Your ISP suggested a higher-speed plan of 1.1 GBps, which would be cheaper than your present service. You’re aiming for two reasons: first, you want a 2.5 GB Ethernet connection to your PC (which your motherboard supports), and second, you’d like to make the most of the faster Wi-Fi upgrade. There are a couple of ideas you’ve considered, but I’m not sure if they’ll work as intended.
Solution 1: Connect your ISP modem to a 2.5 GbE switch, run an Ethernet cable from there into your room for a new router like the ASUS TUF Gaming AX3000 V2. This would give you the 2.5 GbE speed you want.
Solution 2: Connect your ISP modem to the same switch and link the Deco M5 pods to it, plus another Ethernet port for your PC. This setup could potentially provide 2.5 GbE when the upgrade is available from your ISP to your PC.
I’m not certain if these approaches will function as expected, but I’d appreciate any advice or alternatives you might have. Your router setup might need a bit of tweaking—let me know what you think!
The ISP box performs well for WiFi coverage. Adjusting option 1 allows you to connect via Ethernet directly to your room, use the switch in your space, and run a TP Link Mesh device as an AP into the network. This setup is only necessary if the ISP gateway is poor. If the box supports solid WiFi, you can skip the switch and just plug in the Ethernet cable to your PC. Avoid using the switch unless you require devices that need 2.5 Gbps speeds. Keep in mind, achieving Gigabit speeds over WiFi remains challenging even with WiFi 6; 6E could help but few devices support it.
The second choice is ideal when you aim for a 2.5GbE connection to your PC, though you can combine different options. You might pair the Deco M5s in AP mode with Ethernet connections to the switch for optimal performance. This configuration maximizes potential speeds. Still, achieving real-world results like 1Gbps on WiFi or even 867Mbps is unlikely. Switching the M5s to wireless mesh mode sacrifices one antenna band for backhaul while using it for client communication, which reduces speeds. Generally, you won’t fully utilize your internet bandwidth over WiFi unless you invest in advanced multi-AP upgrades. Regarding replacing the ISP router, this depends on Virgin’s policies. The Hub 5 functions as an internet gateway with its own built-in router, switch, and AP, and it connects to the ISP network. Unless you have a compatible router authorized by Virgin, stick with your current setup. Notably, your diagram appears to suggest a different purpose than simply swapping the router. It implies using it as another network node, which isn’t recommended due to double-NAT issues and potential DHCP conflicts since two routers would manage one network. For a purely wired link, use a switch; for a wireless endpoint, use an AP. If you need both, convert an existing wireless router into AP mode.