Poweline issues

Dave Burton · 25 Jun 2020 at 12:43

Hi all,

On the back of a recent thread here, I obtained a number of TP Link TL-PA4010P units, to distrubute ethernet around the house, as I thought I had compatability issue with an older TL-PA2010P unit, it seems this is not the case.

The issue I have is that if I connect a unit downstairs, then run the ethernet to a TP-Link wifi extender, it completely shuts down the entire network, LAN and WiFI, so must be causing issue at the router level.

I'd assumed that you could set them up in this manner, using the powerline to send ethernet to the wifi extender however this is giving me massive grief, has anyone encountered similar issue?

To confirm, up and downstairs are on the same rail on teh distribution board, with a seperate MCB for up/downstairs, and other powerlines installed for the TV etc work ok, it only seems to be when I connect the WiFi extender to the LAN port that it all goes pear shaped.

Any ideas?

TA.

the-evaluator · 25 Jun 2020 at 13:46

What wifi extender do you have? Normally with a wifi extender they don't connect to the LAN by a cable, the connect to the existing wireless access point and (badly) extend the signal from there.

The ethernet port is usually for connecting a wired device to. Say you have a network printer that doesn't have wireless, you could connect the printer to that LAN port on the extender to give it network connectivity.

Does the same thing happen if you connect the extender directly to the router?

I'm thinking that by connecting the extender to the cable that's creating a loop in the network which will cause what you're seeing.

Dave Burton · 25 Jun 2020 at 14:01

the-evaluator said:
What wifi extender do you have? Normally with a wifi extender they don't connect to the LAN by a cable, the connect to the existing wireless access point and (badly) extend the signal from there.

The ethernet port is usually for connecting a wired device to. Say you have a network printer that doesn't have wireless, you could connect the printer to that LAN port on the extender to give it network connectivity.

Does the same thing happen if you connect the extender directly to the router?

I'm thinking that by connecting the extender to the cable that's creating a loop in the network which will cause what you're seeing.

Hiya, forgot to show part number for the extender, its a TL-WA850RE, this works perfectly fine so long as it's not attached to the ethernet, but from what you say that's likely to be the issue, if both are effectively outbound ports though I'm pretty sure the blurb did state it could be connected to the ethernet for better data tranmission speeds. I'm trying to reach TPlink directly but they must be low staffed as I've not had any response, hence my posting here

TY for the info

the-evaluator · 25 Jun 2020 at 14:13

I had a quick look at the manual and it says that if you want to use the extender as a wireless access point then you can connect the ethernet cable to your LAN. But you're using it as an extender (ie, a device that connects wirelessly and then broadcasts another network) so when using it this way don't connect the ethernet port to the LAN.

When you're using it as an extender, have a read of section 1.2.2 of the manual, it says this about the ethernet port - "Connect your Ethernet-only device to the Ethernet port of the extender to join the network"

It's worth seeing what performance you get when you're using the thing in wireless access point mode rather than extender mode. Depending on how good the Powerline connection is that may be better than something extending the wireless network.

Dave Burton · 25 Jun 2020 at 14:28

the-evaluator said:
I had a quick look at the manual and it says that if you want to use the extender as a wireless access point then you can connect the ethernet cable to your LAN. But you're using it as an extender (ie, a device that connects wirelessly and then broadcasts another network) so when using it this way don't connect the ethernet port to the LAN.

When you're using it as an extender, have a read of section 1.2.2 of the manual, it says this about the ethernet port - "Connect your Ethernet-only device to the Ethernet port of the extender to join the network"

It's worth seeing what performance you get when you're using the thing in wireless access point mode rather than extender mode. Depending on how good the Powerline connection is that may be better than something extending the wireless network.

It was purchased to try and extend the WiFi range to alleviate connection issue to a Ring doorbell, which was on the borderline for signal due to being behind a double skin brick wall, and for that purpose it's absolutely spot on, showing a massive boost in that area so can't fault it for that. I'm a trypical bloke in that the instructions are there to pad the box, I should really try reading them next time...

KPG · 25 Jun 2020 at 16:33

Sorry to jump in, but rather than start another thread on the same subject...

As experienced users of TP-Link powerline adapters you may be able to help. I have a pair of PA4010s (AV600) that have played nicely together for years, creating a wired connection between my router and an Xbox in another room. Just lately, however, they will not pair. I have unplugged both, reset both, tried several times, but the magic middle light will not come on. Does this suggest they are kaput? Is there anything else I can try before I buy a new pair?

Many thanks for your help.

the-evaluator · 25 Jun 2020 at 16:34

You could try a firmware upgrade.

It might also be worth trying to pair them whilst they're sitting in the same socket.

KPG · 25 Jun 2020 at 16:59

Dumb question - do they need to be connected to any other device via ethernet when pairing them in the same socket, or is it enough just to plug them in as they are?

the-evaluator · 25 Jun 2020 at 17:27

If they've got a physical pairing button on them, then there's no need to have any devices connected.

KPG · 25 Jun 2020 at 17:56

Thanks, that's useful to know.

KPG · 29 Jun 2020 at 16:21

Pairing the plugs on a double socket seems to have done the trick, so thanks again for the tip. They do still lose sync occasionally, but I think that may be caused by Xbox Live or a particular game server.