The Wired Hop

[RumorConsumer]

Hey hey

The wired hop, or "hope" is more like it.

Please see: https://documentation.meraki.com/MR/WiFi_Basics_and_Best_Practices/Extending_the_LAN_with_a_Wireless...

Very last section mentions the wired hop - a method to basically use one AP's wireless connection, connecting it to a switch, and then connecting another AP to the switch which uses the same connection to avoid a second wireless hop. Sounds *amazing*.

I tried this once with a MR52 (1) to a gigabit switch then out to another MR52 (2). I don't think it worked. I think it might be because the 1's POE+ port was used by an injector and then I used the OTHER port on 1 to go to the switch. 2 kept trying to get its own connection or just didn't work well. Maybe the right approach is to use a POE+ switch and connect both devices to it without using the second jack on either. Thoughts? How does Dashboard inform you if your wired hop is working properly aside from comparing connection speeds and seeing if they are equivalent like the doc says they will be? 

Update: reading the install guide confirmed I boofed this one and tried to use the LACP port for LAN. Whoops. 

Checked out @MerakiDave 's post at https://community.meraki.com/t5/Wireless-LAN/Can-i-connect-a-PC-in-the-second-ethernet-port-of-a-Mer...

Where he says regarding using the 2nd port for LAN-

"Correct, you may use port profiles for this functionality.  Port profiles are available by default on the MR30H AP, and it's the same mechanism on APs with 2 physical ports (MR52/53/84 today).  The AP must not be a mesh repeater, and the feature needs to be enabled by Meraki Support.  Hope that helps!"

But if I don't care about link aggregation as my traffic will be WAY under 1gbps it just seems like I should use the single port for all things. 

[BrechtSchamp]

Assuming you don't have a PoE+ switch I'd try it like this:

[RumorConsumer]

I assume that thingy in the middle on the right is a regular switch? I do have a PoE+ switch I’ll be putting between them to simplify the whole thing. Why use more hardware than you have to, right?

[BrechtSchamp]

It is indeed. I haven't tested this setup yet, so I can't tell you whether it's supposed to work with a non-Meraki switch but, I think it most probably does.

Do mind these notes from the docs:

• "It is important to not have any other computers or network services such as DHCP running on this switch or the relays will change to gateway mode causing unpredictable network behavior. "

• "IP communication outside of the proprietary mesh traffic will be blocked by the MR repeater thus remote IP access to switches will be lost. In order to mix IP and mesh extension, a router would need to be introduced as described above."

[RumorConsumer]

Yeah got that. No other traffic won’t be a problem. I think you sent another response and deleted it, right? I saw it come on over email.

[BrechtSchamp]

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@RumorConsumer wrote:

I think you sent another response and deleted it, right?

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I did, I remembered just too late that this was something I had misunderstood wrong due to the drawing in the past. So I deleted it to avoid confusion. I find the drawing a bit confusing, because on it, it seems that the mesh traffic is still sent wirelessly which isn't really the case if you read the description.

[RumorConsumer]

The wired hop is live, and it is good.

[RumorConsumer]

Should it matter at all what number order of ethernet ports the APs are plugged into on the access point side of things? I have this situation where an AP with a sector antenna should (and has) been getting a MUCH better signal than a patch antenna pointed at a totally different angle on another device, but for some reason the patch antenna is making the mesh. Its so weird and frustrating.