r/HomeNetworking • • May 03 '26

Posting FAQ (retry link if it fails)

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11 Upvotes

r/HomeNetworking • • May 03 '26

Home Networking FAQs (retry link if it fails)

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7 Upvotes

r/HomeNetworking • • 2h ago

Retiring a legend

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142 Upvotes

My office was moving to a new space and my company was gonna toss this legend in the e-recycling bin. I couldn’t stand to see it suffer that fate, and gave it a good home where it can be comfortable in retirement.


r/HomeNetworking • • 3h ago

What connection type is this cable configured for?

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38 Upvotes

This is a pre-made cable but I dont understand the configuration and also why it works as a straight through cable. I plan on using a klein ethernet tester tomorrow.


r/HomeNetworking • • 5h ago

Can anyone identify these unbranded managed PoE switches?

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30 Upvotes

I got a bunch of these from work after they were replaced. Some have 8 ports, some have 24. There's no manufacturer name anywhere and the web UI is pretty terrible. Are they any good?


r/HomeNetworking • • 10h ago

Advice New house AKA spaghetti factory

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37 Upvotes

So I’m in NE Dallas TX and I’ve purchased a house built in 2021. Supposedly it has fiber internet, currently provided by Spectrum but I plan to go with Frontier since I’m already a customer with them.

Unsurprisingly, I’ve got questions…

First pic is an exterior wall where on the other side is the garage. Is this where the “fiber” comes up? I ask because to me that looks like Cat5 or Cat6 cable.

Second pic is the “spaghetti” mess of an interior panel very close to being perfectly in the center of the home, in a laundry room to be exact. Does anyone here see an actual fiber optic cable, perhaps close to the Spectrum box (FOT?) towards the bottom of the panel?

I plan on purchasing Frontier 5gb fiber service, so I’m curious how all this will work out if that’s cat5/6 running to the house and not actually fiber?


r/HomeNetworking • • 8h ago

Advice Intermittent Cat5e run, tester shows pins 1–2 shorted but still links at 1 Gbps. Where’s the fault?

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11 Upvotes

I’ve had an intermittent connection on a builder-installed Cat5e run to my home office for a while. The builder terminated the wall keystone and I crimped the basement end myself. I always blamed the switch; after swapping it, things have mostly been stable and the link negotiates 1 Gbps every time.

I recently bought a FNIRSI LPM-10A tester (prepping for PoE APs and cameras) and decided to check this run properly.

What I’ve found:

  • The tester’s included patch cord passes, so I’m using it at the keystone.
  • QC test on my basement crimp passes (both ends are wired T568A; the tester just labels it B).
  • Cable test shows pins 1 and 2 shorted, with the same result from either end. The diagram doesn’t seem to flip, so I can’t tell which end is the problem.
  • Length test: 3-6, 4-5 and 7-8 all read about 540 in. Pair 1-2 read 0 in once, then 519 in on every later test from both ends, so no clear location there.
  • I re-punched the keystone and kept the tails well apart. Same result.
  • Despite all that, the link still negotiates 1000 Mbps full duplex.

Plan for tonight:

  1. Get iperf3 running against my NAS to see if there are real throughput problems or retransmits.
  2. Pull 1 and 2 off the keystone and check continuity with a multimeter. If they’re still shorted, cut off the crimp and test again to narrow it to the jack, the crimp, or the cable in the wall.

Questions:

  • Has anyone seen this tester flag a 1-2 short on a run that still links fine at gigabit? Could it be a high-resistance or partial short rather than a dead one?
  • Any better way to locate it before I start cutting?
  • If it’s in the wall, is it worth trying to fix, or should I just pull a new run?

Photos of the tester screens and the keystone are attached.


r/HomeNetworking • • 3h ago

Advice Recent lightning strike near my house now the internet is spotty.

5 Upvotes

Recently there was a lightning storm near my house and a tree very close to the house was struck. Ever since then, the internet has been a little spotty.
It still works most of the time, but every now and again, the internet speed just slows to a halt for about ten seconds, then it's back to normal.

It doesn't happen too often, maybe once or twice within a 2 hour period, and it doesn't impact all devices as once. For example my phone may start stuttering, but my computer is working fine.

I tried unplugging the router and the modem and plugging them back in, but the issue persists.

Any trouble shooting advice on how to diagnose and fix?


r/HomeNetworking • • 1h ago

Internet speeds down to near unusable levels today and LAN port stopped working on modem on top of it

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• Upvotes

So as the titles say seems my internet speeds are down to an average of 0.5Mbps down and 1Mbps up. Before this morning it was averaging about 900Mbps down and 35Mbps up. I have a Motorola MB8600 as my modem of choice connected to a MSI GRAX66 with Mediacom as my ISP. When i got home noticed the internet was down and the lights on the ethernet weren't flashing on the modem. After some troubleshooting i pulled off the sticker on the back to access the 3 other ports. They managed to connect to the router and had internet again but it was as slow as stated above. Even direct wired into my pc and still same speeds.
So my main question is it a modem issue which needs replacement or is it something external like the drop?
Included the channel bonding if that provides any info


r/HomeNetworking • • 4h ago

Advice Router Recommendation

2 Upvotes

Have the following router in mind to buy in the next week or so:

ASUS ROG Strix GS-BE12000

ASUS ROG Strix GS-BE7200

ASUS RT-BE88U

Home is around 1300sf. ATT gateway is behind 2 walls. 1 Gbps service. Devices are a mix of iphone 16s and an old work laptop with an Wireless-AC 9260 wireless card.

They are similarly priced $250-300. the BE88U is the only dual band while the others are tri band.

I know the ROG are more gamer focused, but basically the a router at the end of the day.


r/HomeNetworking • • 1d ago

Advice Is this okay for Ethernet cord?

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103 Upvotes

I just ran about 60ft of Ethernet into a bedroom. This is really the only spot I’m worried about. The plastic clips aren’t too tight I don’t think and I have the rest spooled up loosely near the router. The door has plenty of space too btw so it’s not going to snag. Thank you!


r/HomeNetworking • • 2h ago

Advice High ping (100–600ms) on both Ethernet and Wi-Fi, but only on my PC

1 Upvotes

Hey everyone, I'm having a frustrating issue with my internet ping, and I can't figure out what's causing it.
Sometimes it is averaging in the mid 60ms on Ethernet for like 30 minutes, then suddenly either mid game or on startup, it spikes to 100-600ms with jitter in the 50ms-65ms range.
My ping is consistently high on both Ethernet and Wi-Fi, but only on my PC. Other devices on my network don't seem to have this problem.
Here are my PC's specs and what I've tried so far.

My ping test results:
Pinging my router :
Minimum: 0ms
Maximum: 1ms
Average: 0ms

Pinging Cloudflare (1.1.1.1):
Minimum: 35ms
Average: 140ms
Maximum: 251ms
Packet loss: 0%

Traceroute results:
My router responds in under 1ms.
The second hop responds in approximately 4–7ms.
3-14 : request time out
15: 117ms -195 ms (1.1.1.1 Cloudflare)

Things I've already checked:
The issue happens on both Ethernet and Wi-Fi.
No VPN is running.
Windows proxy settings are off.
My network drivers are up to date.
Pinging my router shows a stable connection with virtually no latency.

All test were done on ethernet

My questions:
Why would my ping to the internet be so high when my ping to the router is practically 0ms?
Could a Windows setting, background program, or network configuration be causing this?
What tests should I run next to identify the cause?

I'd really appreciate any help. I've been trying to troubleshoot this for a while and don't know what else to check.

Im not really knowledgeable on this stuff so help is greatly appreciated, Thanks!


r/HomeNetworking • • 6h ago

Deco X55 V1 - new firmware 1.11.1

2 Upvotes

Has anyone upgraded to this? Is it stable? Why the huge gap from 1.8.0 - the previous release?

More to the point are there any features worth updating for?

Why do they always forget to update https://www.tp-link.com/uk/support/download/deco-x55/v1/#Firmware


r/HomeNetworking • • 10h ago

Advice 10GbE upgrade: RTL 8127 or AQC 113?

5 Upvotes

Hey everyone! I’m upgrading to 10GbE and have narrowed it down to two PCIe cards from my local reseller. It’s a bit hard to find good comparisons between the two chips, so I figured I’d ask here.

From what I’ve seen, the RTL8127 runs cooler and draws less power, but I’m wondering about driver stability and whether an x2 card can hit full 10G speeds.

System: MSI MPG X570 Gaming Pro Carbon WiFi, free PCIe 4.0/3.0 x4 slot, Ryzen 5800X3D, Windows 11.

Cudy PE10G (AQC113), PCIe 3.0 x4 per Cudy’s spec sheet:
https://www.galaxus.ch/en/s1/product/cudy-10g-pci-express-adaptermarvell-aqc113-mini-pci-express-network-cards-49840182

Zyxel XGN100C V3 (RTL8127), the listing says x4 but I think it's actually an x2 card:
https://www.galaxus.ch/en/s1/product/zyxel-xng100c-v3-10g-rj45-pcie-netzwerkkarte-mini-pci-express-pci-e-x4-pcie-network-cards-70741762

Has anyone used either one on Windows, which one would you guys pick?


r/HomeNetworking • • 12h ago

Advice Home Network Setup

4 Upvotes

I need help creating a setup for best performance in speed without breaking the bank.

My ISP is Fidium and have 2 GB plan. I use their ONT and I currently have a Netgear RAXE300 router. I have the multi gig port enabled on the router.

I have a lot of wifi items that include items that need the 2.4 ghz band (wifi lights etc). I also have three items hard wired to the router (xbox series x, apple tv 4k, wifi light bridge).

Would the best setup be adding in a switch (TP-Link Model TL-SG608S-M2) between the ONT and router and then plug the xbox etc into the switch along with the router into the switch?


r/HomeNetworking • • 6h ago

Home Lab Build- Looking for (Network Racks/Equipment on the cheap)

2 Upvotes

Does anyone know of where I can go or look at to find free or sold for cheap network equipment, especially racks, in the Birmingham, AL or nearby areas?


r/HomeNetworking • • 4h ago

Advice ISO router recommendations for my 150+ year old 3000sqft house

0 Upvotes

Long story short, my signal coverage throughout my house has been inconsistent. Not sure if it’s because of the thick original walls or what. So far, I have tried these:

- nighthawk x6s (strong coverage when close by, but quickly loses coverage when walking away from it)

- TP-Link Deco x55 AX3000 (currently using, have the three pack setup, but WiFi is still very inconsistent and usually have to disconnect from it for my phone to load whatever it’s loading)

Any recommendations or suggestions to improve what i’m currently using are appreciated! Thank you!


r/HomeNetworking • • 4h ago

Advice Advice for a new homeowner

1 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

Since you all have been so helpful before, I am back to ask another question!

Brand new home with Cat6e throughout the house. I crimped all the ends coming out of the house and for now have only connected the line from the modem to my office outlet... Just so my gaming PC is hard wired in.

Anyways, its about time I connect all the outlets to the modem so all the outlets can work.

So my question is, what do I need to purchase and install to get all the outlets in the house working? Is it called a switch or something? There are 6 outlets in the house, so I need one at least that big.

My main problem is, there is no outlet or any kind of electrical inputs anywhere near where all the cords all connect. I am probably eventually going to hire a contractor to move them inside, but that's not in the cards just yet. Also why I have only connected the main line with my office, a simple connector doesn't require any power.

Any solutions to my problems and any products I should look into would be great. Thanks!


r/HomeNetworking • • 4h ago

Getting Wi-Fi to a metal shop 150ft away (TP-Link HX510 / CPE Bridge / Old Google Mesh)

1 Upvotes

​Alright, I’m probably overthinking this, but I’d appreciate a sanity check on my setup plan. ​I'm trying to get reliable Wi-Fi out to my metal shop, which sits about 150ft from my main house. Inside the house, I’m running TP-Link HX510 mesh routers. Unsurprisingly, the metal building acts like a giant Faraday cage—as soon as the shop doors close, I lose all signal. If I roll two of the doors open, I can pull 2–3 bars, so the signal is reaching the exterior of the building.

​I looked into using an outdoor directional AP—specifically a TP-Link CPE210/510 or CPE710—mounted on the outside of the shop, set to Client Mode to grab the house Wi-Fi, and then running Ethernet inside the shop to a router/AP.

​Before I start buying gear and drilling holes, I have a few questions:

  1. ​Will a single CPE510/710 in Client Mode actually work well here? Since I'm already getting 2–3 bars at the shop doors from the house's indoor HX510s, can I get away with just one CPE on the shop pulling that signal, or do I really need a matched pair of CPEs (Point-to-Point) on both buildings?

  2. ​Seamless roaming / Same SSID: If I wire the CPE into an interior AP/router inside the shop and give it the exact same SSID and password as the house network, will my phone seamlessly hand off between the house and the shop, or is it better to just set it up as its own dedicated shop network?

  3. ​Repurposing old gear: I have some older 2nd Gen Google Nest Wi-Fi mesh routers sitting in a box. Could I hook one of those up to the CPE inside the shop to act as the indoor AP (in bridge mode) so I don't have to buy another router, or is mixing the Google hardware with the TP-Link setup going to cause headaches?

​Note: Running burial-grade Ethernet/fiber isn't on the table right now, so I'm sticking to wireless options. Thanks in advance for the input!


r/HomeNetworking • • 5h ago

Unsolved How would I identify a network problem as on my end or the ISP/Building infrastructure?

1 Upvotes

Howdy,

So the current situation is a storm rolled through my town 4 days ago. Since then I've been having internet issues, but not just normal outage but specific upload problems.

My internet is Coax, 1Gbps down, 40Mbps up. Internet speeds all currently reflect this and don't show any slowdowns. Ping, bufferbloat, and packet loss tests all shown as fine. ISP testing from their end show that the modem is connected and fine, along with the connection health.

However:

Through video calls and online gaming, I'm having issues. I'm not noticing any lag on my end, everything appears and moves normally, however to others (and verified through many others) I am lagging quite a bit. Sometimes it would be so bad where the call/match would time out and I would be kicked.

This implies to me that there's an upload problem?

Since then I've done these things to attempt to isolate the problem to no avail:

* Brand new Modem and Router

* Different device usage, both wireless and Ethernet to the network

* Connected desktop PC directly via Ethernet to the modem, excluding the router

* Fresh install of Windows 11

* Reinstall of all network related drivers

* ISP rebooting/refreshing the connection multiple times

The only thing left I can imagine doing is getting an ISP technician out here, but like I said above the ISP help desk says they see absolutely no issues on their end via the software.

Are there things I can do to identify the problem more specifically? Ways to test my infrastructure to see if its problematic?

I live in an apartment block so I don't know if there is an issue somewhere else in the building line wise.

Thank you


r/HomeNetworking • • 5h ago

Unsolved Packet loss on high speed ethernet

1 Upvotes

Getting 900 mbps through ethernet. I have never gotten packet loss and now when i play Fortnite i get random packet loss stutters. I need help figuring out the issue. Definitely not the Ethernet cable i switched through a fee and its still the same issue.

For context i am using a spectrum 1 gig plan with a asus rog ax11000 pro router


r/HomeNetworking • • 5h ago

The router isn't reading the SIM card

0 Upvotes

Hi, I’m reaching out with a request. I’ve had a SIM card router for about a year—it worked the whole time, but now it’s not working. I read that the SIM card might have damaged gold contacts, but it worked in my cell phone and was recognized, so I replaced it anyway, and the router still won’t read it—even though it reads a different SIM card from another carrier, so I just don’t get it. Router: Strong 5grouterax3000; O2 SIM card—it’s a Czech brand. Please advise; I don’t want to buy a new router when it seems to be working fine.


r/HomeNetworking • • 5h ago

Advice VDSL 50 mbps wifi,mercusys h30g (3 modules) or h70x(2 modules)?

1 Upvotes

Yeah I know that my wifi is absolutely horrendous. No 5g box wifi wasn't much more better enough to justify paying more with a monthly limit aswell.

it's a 2 story house, we see around 40 ish downstairs and very low (5 mbps) speeds upstairs but it is okay for scrolling reels. The real problem is with my new laptop, it's a thinkbook 16p with a Be200 wifi7 card and it basically can't get any wifi upstairs and it is a quite bit slower than my phone downstairs too. When I connected it to my phone's hotspot and my phone to wifi it worked a bit faster so I figured the culprit was the wifi 4 2.4 GHz router.

So long story short, which makes more sense? H30g is wifi 5 and ik 50mbps is nothing for wifi 5 and even 4 but idk maybe it'll still help and maybe my laptop could get along better with it? But maybe having 3 might be better?

Also I don't think new routers have VDSL, AI told me that I should use the old router as a bridge or something, that will work and cause no issue yeah? (The router was a airties 5650)


r/HomeNetworking • • 6h ago

Advice Is a Mesh Router Actually Worth It for a ‘Regular Guy’?

0 Upvotes

Title says it all. For more context, I’m just trying to get away from my Cox panoramic gateway to drop the $15/mo charge. Moved into a new house with a pre-existing Nokia modem I believe, purchased the Flint 2 router and set up last night only to find out my speeds are about half the level I was already getting (signed up for 1 gig speeds, generally get 300-500 mbps, Flint 2 giving me max 150 up and down). Not to mention I know next to nothing about how to get the most out of the thing, but that’s a skill issue I guess.

So, wondering if a mesh WiFi system is actually worth it here. I know folks love hardwiring and I get it, but I’m not in a position to either run wires thru my house or hire someone to do it; my question is, would something like the Netgear Orbi mesh system be a legitimately good idea instead of, say, a “regular” Asus router?

Router is in the basement of a ~2600 sqft two-story house, so not expecting perfection regardless, but just need to know if essentially a “plug & play” mesh system is superior here to a more conventional router.

Appreciate the help, can’t stand to look at one more “Best Router of 2026” list!


r/HomeNetworking • • 14h ago

Advice Home mesh system

4 Upvotes

Hey,

So I have fibre broadband in the UK. 1gb upload and download speed. One of the newer xyxyel routers. I have 5 tenda nova mw12. One is plugged into the router other 4 dotted around the house with one plugged into a laptops.

I have an old house with thick brick walls.

Issues

Intermittent WiFi speeds
Getting 200-350mb speeds
Signal drop from nodes go into flashing mode, sometime reconnect other times they go red and I’m running round the house to reset all.

Which means I could go a night with no cctv coverage with ring camera.

What do you suggest?

I’m open to another mesh system.