Nest wifi pro not working with unmanaged network switch

[vernificus]

Basically title.  Upgraded to the nest wifi pro, hooked it up, everything working great for a day or so.  I've got 4 devices hooked into an unmanaged 4 port switch that worked perfectly with the previous generation of router and a Verizon router.  Now, it will work for a few minutes after a total power off of both the nest wifi and the switch.  I've tried changing Ethernet cables, plugging in one device at a time, and assigning static IP addresses.  Not sure what else to try. 

[PatrickP_Viking]

Not knowing all the details of the setup, I'll give some generic troubleshooting to try. I have two unmanaged Trendnet switches and have not had any issues with connectivity, although I haven't upgraded to the new Nest Wifi Pro yet. I'm using the Google Wifi mesh connected via Ethernet to the switches and subsequently the 2nd device (access point).

• Make sure the modem is connected directly to the Nest Wifi Pro
• Connect the switch from the Nest Wifi Pro to Port #1 on the switch; leave everything else unplugged from the switch
• Power off the switch, Nest Wifi Pro, and then the modem, wait 30 seconds or so, and plug them back in one at a time and allow them to fully power up before moving to the next device
• Plug each device into the switch one at a time and test connectivity before moving to the next device
• If you still cannot get data flow through the switch after plugging up the first device, connect the cable from the Nest Wifi Pro to a laptop or other device to test connectivity from the router. If you do have connectivity directly from the Nest Wifi Pro then you likely have a setting off or the switch has picked an inconvenient time to die, or isn't compatible with the Nest Wifi Pro, possibly due to the capable speeds (same reason older devices can't be meshed with the newest Nest Wifi Pro).
• If there isn't any connectivity at the Nest Wifi Pro, then connect the same laptop or device directly to the port on the modem and test. If there's data flow then the router and modem are not connecting which could be that they are not bridging or due to incompatibility. You might need to contact Support to assist (either Google or ISP).

Let me know if any of this helps.

Found this also in Nest Wifi support that also includes a section about switches: Hardwire Wifi devices with Ethernet 

[olavrb]

What exact switch? There exists unmanaged switches with features that would conflict with Nest Wifi, like anti looping detection/ prevention, SPF (spanning tree protocol).

[Jhonleanmel]

Hey folks, 

We appreciate your help here, @PatrickP_Viking and @olavrb.
@vernificus, I wanted to follow up and see if you are still in need of any help. Please let me know if you are still having any concerns or questions from here, as I would be happy to take a closer look and assist you further.

Thanks,
Mel

[Dan_A]

Hi folks,

@Jhonleanmel, @olavrb, @PatrickP_Viking, thank you for the help.

@vernificus, I'm chiming in to ensure you've got the answer you're looking for. Feel free to let us know if you have more questions about this.

Regards,

Dan

[aatienza]

Hey everyone,

Just checking in to make sure that you've seen our responses. Please let me know if you have other questions or concerns as I will be locking this in 24 hours if I won't hear back from you again. Feel free to start a new thread and we'll be happy to help.
 

I appreciate the help, Jhon and Aldriano.

Thanks,
Archie

[TJR]

I have the same problem!

I just replaced a 3-point Nest WiFi system with the 3-point Nest WiFi Pro system this week. In both situations, I have connected the primary router to an unmanaged 8-port TP-link Ethernet switch (model TL-SG108E). Originally with the original Nest WiFi it worked like a charm.

But now the new Best WiFi PRO system is seemingly having issues - my clients connected by Ethernet no longer have Internet access.

Is there a known issue here? Or an update perhaps?

(I've tried basic troubleshooting steps, short of a full factory reset)

[olavrb]

TP-Link TL-SG108E is a managed / smart switch with loop protection/ detection. Disable that functionality on the switch.

Specs:

• https://www.tp-link.com/us/business-networking/easy-smart-switch/tl-sg108e/

[Jhonleanmel]

Hey folks, 

@olavrb, appreciate your helpful response. 
@TJR, chiming in to ensure everything is good here. Have you had the chance to try the suggestion above? If yes, how is it?

Best,
Mel

[TJR]

Thanks @olavrb -- I've done that now and am just monitoring. Will update again 24-48 hours if no issues. 

Curious -- would an UNMANAGED switch be a better option with the Nest Wifi Pro?

But generally, don't I WANT loop protection/detection (or is that a no-no w/ mesh networks generally speaking)?

[olavrb]

Unmanaged switches are recommended, but there exists unmanaged switches with loop detection built in that can't be disabled, like QNAP. So the featureset is more important, "unmanaged" in itself isn't neccessarily good enough.

MichaelP in here, MickeyElephant on Reddit has some great replies on this from earlier. Do a Google search if you need more info. This reply for example:

• https://www.reddit.com/r/GoogleWiFi/comments/ghkqnz/google_wifi_ethernet_backhaul_problem_and/fq9uwn...

But in short, Nest Wifi has STP built in, it's needed to prevent loops in a mesh network.

Edit: This post has some useful info too:

• https://www.reddit.com/r/GoogleWiFi/comments/qpurq8

My go to is Netgear GS108. TP-Link TL-GS108 should be good too. 🙂

[AbigailF]

Hi everyone,

We haven't heard from you in a while so we'll be locking this thread if there is no update within 24 hours. If you have any new issues, updates or just a discussion topic, feel free to start a new thread in the Community.

Best, 
Abi

[TJR]

Update: in roughly a week since I implemented the recommended fix (disabling the loop detection function in my managed switch, the ) I've had no known issues despite heavy work-from-home usage of the WiFi portion, and all media streaming via ethernet clients through the switch. Thanks to @olavrb again for the help!

[AbigailF]

Hey TJR, 

Awesome — glad to hear that your issue is fixed. It looks like we can consider this one complete, so I will lock the thread shortly unless I can help out with anything else. 

Best, 
Abi

[vernificus]

Hi! Thanks for the responses. I am using an unmanaged TP Link switch .

I've discovered that everything works fine as long as my Chromebook is either awake and connected to Ethernet or I disconnect the Chromebook from Ethernet before putting it to sleep.  The Chromebook is an Acer 516 GE. 

[Jhonleanmel]

Hey there, 
 

@olavrb, thanks for the useful links.

@vernificus, awesome — glad to hear that your issue is fixed. It looks like we can consider this one complete, so I will lock the thread shortly unless I can help out with anything else. 

Best, 
Mel

[vernificus]

Well sort of fixed.  It doesn't work as it does on every other router/modem I've used. I've found a work around, but there's still obviously an issue 

[Jhonleanmel]

Hi vernificus,

Thanks for the update. I'm glad that the situation has improved. I'd love to help you out if you have other concerns or questions.

Best,

Mel

[AbigailF]

Hey vernificus,

Checking back in should you still have some questions here. Let us know by replying to this thread. 

Best, 
Abi