Need help setting up Edgerouter 4

tony22

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Nov 4, 2019
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So I’ve been using a TP-Link router off of my Arris SB8200, but decided to replace it with an Edgerouter 4 since Ubiquiti products seem to be in such high regard in the computer based audiophilia world. Besides, I already use a Ubiquiti wireless access point and have been very pleased with it. I didn’t want to go with a wireless router.

The Edgerouter 4 is not quite as straightforward to set up as either the WAP, or my current TP-Link. Help needed. The first thing I noticed is that - unlike every other router I’ve ever used, this one does not automatically bridge all ports to be on the same selected Subnet. So, for example, if I use Eth0 initially to set up the router to operate on a new Subnet - say 129.168.50.x, only Eth0 will operate on that Subnet, and if I don’t select Bridging as an option, then Eth1 will automatically be set to the .51 Subnet. I have no idea what will happen to the other ports. I’ve read that Bridging is not recommended on these Edgerouters as it does impact performance, to some degree.

But even before this, in order to even setup the Edgerouter initially, once I set the new Subnet / IP address on Eth0, it seems I have to then disconnect from that port then hook up the switch to Eth1? Is that correct? If so, then what on Earth is Eth0 good for from that point forward?

Guidance from anyone who’s done this is greatly appreciated.
 

djsina2

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May 30, 2019
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On the LAN side you don't want to set up anything on the specific physical ports. There is a logical interface called switch0. Assign the LAN subnet to this and then associate your physical ports to switch0. If you want more than one LAN subnet, such as a home network and an audio network, enable VLANs and assign two different subnets to switch0 such as switch0.10 (VLAN 10 - home network) and switch0.20 (VLAN 20 - audio network).

Keep in mind you will need to setup DHCP for the LAN subnet(s) and also setup NAT for the port going to the ISP. For the port to the ISP set it to receive an address via DHCP.
 

tony22

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Nov 4, 2019
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So if I’m using the Basic Setup Wizard, how would I do this switch0 part?

I’m going to use the sfp as the port to the ISP.
 

djsina2

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May 30, 2019
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I haven’t used the setup wizard before so I don’t know what that looks like. Maybe exit out of that and use the web interface? I would make sure it’s running the latest firmware before configuring. Ubiquiti is notorious for shipping product with ancient firmware that doesn’t work.
 

tony22

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Nov 4, 2019
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Okay. I’m reading up on switch0 now. Thanks.
why would I want to do a single subnet, then VLAN’ing, as opposed to just having separate subnets set up on the router ports?
 

djsina2

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May 30, 2019
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If you have a single subnet then you don’t need or want different VLANs. If you have everything off one port you can put the subnet under the physical port. However, if you have devices off multiple ports you want the subnet assigned to the switch0 interface so it can be accessed by any port that needs it.
 

tony22

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Nov 4, 2019
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Hmm. I think I understand, but I have to read up on this a bit.
 

tony22

Well-Known Member
Nov 4, 2019
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The Edgerouter 4 does not have a switch0 capability. It is a Layer 3 router only. No switch chip inside.
 

tony22

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Nov 4, 2019
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Unfortunately this seems to be the case. Or maybe not unfortunately. I guess the Edge 4 was designed for cases where the routing ports would be connected to switches as or if needed.

So on the Edge 4 it seems I can bridge all of the LAN ports, in effect creating a SW version of a switch, I guess, or keep the ports on their own subnets.
 

tony22

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Nov 4, 2019
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I didn’t get the ER-X-SFP because I didn’t need the PoE pass-thru, and I already had a Netgear GS310TP standing by to handle switching and PoE duties. Besides, I think the Edge 4 is supposed to be more kick-a$$ on the inside. I think. Faster and more powerful processor. It’s certainly more expensive. And the review ratings were higher. So I think I’ll just create separate subnets to keep the audio side separate from everything else. Maybe another subnet for my PoE security cameras. Separate switches for each subnet.
 
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