Is it possible to run two routers on one network?

[#1]

Hello folks

As the title says, I am trying to figure out how to run two routers at once, sharing the same connection - without WIFI.

I hope to run ethernet cables in 2 rooms, from the routers to various devices: One in the living room for the TV, and the other in the computing room.   

I would rather not go down the route of getting work down in my house to get wired up, as you would normally for a wired connection setup. 

... Can it be done? 

Thank you!! 

[#2]

Welcome to the forums, @_Pythaeometry_ . In a word - no. You can have two router/modems,  but only one can actually be directly connected to the outside world, the other must be set as an access point only.

I'm not an expert on this subject, but if I tag @Baldrick1 , hopefully he will pick this up and explain the details.

[#3]

Hi @_Pythaeometry_ 

I would rather not go down the route of getting work down in my house to get wired up, as you would normally for a wired connection setup.

Deleted my post as it conflicts with this statement

Dan

[#4]

@_Pythaeometry_ 

Let's start with the basics. You cannot run two 'routers' from one telephone line connection, period.

What you can do is convert a router into an Access Point  (AP) and use this is conjunction with the main 'router' (actually a modem/router or Hub), which should be located at the master socket. When connecting to your new AP the Ethernet cable should be connected between the Hub to the AP using LAN sockets at both ends. It's then a case of how to get data from your Hub to your AP. The best way to do this is to run an Ethernet cable between the two. An alternative solution is to use the mains network through Powerline devices. These can be problematic but work for many people. I have done some tests with these, the results might give you a clue whether they might give you problems, see:  https://community.plus.net/t5/Tech-Help-Software-Hardware-etc/Powerline-Unit-Performance/m-p/1607450...

To convert a router into an AP first check the menu, it might have this as a standard configuration. If not you need to switch off DHCP and give the router an IP address in the range 192.168.1.2-63. Come back with the router model that you have if you want more detailed instructions.

[#5]

@_Pythaeometry_ 

What you can do if required is to add a giga switch to the remote powerline adapter to allow for more wired devices to be connected, the powerline to powerline adapters would form a 'backbone or backhaul' between them.

I have used powerline adapters for years and have successfully used them across RCD and connected to power extension  cables with some speed loss but not enough to cause any issues, even with Netflix  or BBC iplayer streaming.

Dan.

[#6]

Hi there,

Could you let us know what your end objective is:  Is it to link loads of devices that happen to be in 2 rooms, or is it to create 2 separated (and protected) networks.

Looking at the first case:

You can have only 1 interface to your telephone line which I assume is your ADSL modem-router and which is connected to telephone line master socket.

To expand the number of devices connected to your modem-router you need to have an Ethernet switch which is either embedded within your modem-router (in which case you will have several Ethernet connections on the back of it), and/or, you will have to add an external Ethernet switch (external to the modem-router that is).

You can daisy chain Ethernet switches as long as your modem-router can handle the work load and supply the number of DHCP addresses if you are working that way.

An alternative to this is use Powerline devices by plugging each User device into a Powerline Ethernet adapter, that talks to another Powerline device that connects to one of the Ethernet ports on the back of your modem-router.  Basically, you are using the mains to 'backhaul' from each device to the modem-router.  However, if you have lots of devices (e.g. greater that 5 or 6) this can quickly can become expensive even if you use a Powerline device that has 3 or mode Ethernet ports on it.

The hybrid arrangement could also be to use a Powerline device in each room and then use a cheap Ethernet switch on both of them.  This will avoid the need for Ethernet cabling, but note that you will be limited by the speed of the slowest device that will now be shared - most likely the Powerline device.

The second case of 2 separated networks:

Again you can have only 1 interface to your telephone line as the above.

If you are trying to build 2 separate/protected networks, then you can use an Ethernet Router (no modem part) which takes in one Ethernet (or LAN) connection (from your Modem-Router and its associated Ethernet Switch) and provides several Ethernet outputs to your various devices.  In this case you are getting a whole lot more complicated particularly if you want devices on each of the networks to communicate)

Hope this helps,

Mike

[#7]

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@_Pythaeometry_ wrote:

Hello folks

As the title says, I am trying to figure out how to run two routers at once, sharing the same connection - without WIFI.

---

Not both plugged into the phone line no. Only one device can be used like that.

However going by the rest of your post, you can use an additional spare router as a normal network switch without using it AS a router. That's relatively easy. Just plug a network cable in between one and the other and the second one will work as a network switch in the other room automagically. Or you could just activate the wifi on it with the same SSID as the main router and it'll work as an access point.

So if that's what you're wanting to do (just one cable to the other room with multiple ethernet sockets) then yes, you can do that but you can't plug both into the phone line.

I always keep old routers for this very reason - if you can get em free / cheap they work well as network switches even if you can't login to the control panel. It's often cheaper to use an old locked out router than pay for a new network switch.