Articles on: Wi-Fi Lifeguard

Create a mesh network with multiple Wi-Fi Lifeguard routers

If you have more than one Wi-Fi Lifeguard router, you can create a mesh network which extends your Wi-Fi Lifeguard network signal. All Wi-Fi Lifeguard routers that are meshed together will share a single Wi-Fi network name (SSID) for broadcasting the 2.4 GHz band and the 5 GHz band. This means that the Wi-Fi Lifeguard mesh network will automatically choose the best option for each device that connects to the mesh network.

1. Plug in power and WAN Ethernet





When referring to a Wi-Fi Lifeguard mesh network, the Wi-Fi Lifeguard with an Ethernet cable plugged in to its WAN port is called the Main Router (Lifeguard Base). The other Wi-Fi Lifeguard routers without an Ethernet cable plugged in to their WAN port are called Sub Routers (mesh stations).

2. Pair routers





You can pair two Wi-Fi Lifeguard routers to extend the Wi-Fi Lifeguard network signal throughout your house. All Wi-Fi Lifeguard routers must be within a meter of each other during the entire mesh process. To begin this process, press for five seconds the mesh (right) button on the front of the Main Router and then release. Once the mesh LED starts blinking on the Main Router, press for five seconds the mesh button on the front of the Sub Router and then release. The mesh process may take a few minutes to complete. Once the mesh LED is solid on both routers, the mesh network is ready to use. If you wish to add an additional Sub Router to the network, repeat the process by starting an additional mesh with the Main Router.

3. Mesh network





The mesh network works across Wi-Fi Lifeguard routers when the mesh LED light on each Wi-Fi Lifeguard is solid. Thick walls and long narrow layouts can affect your Wi-Fi signal. Depending on signal, you may need an additional Wi-Fi Lifeguard to achieve full coverage throughout your house.

Once the mesh process has completed, you can power off Wi-Fi Lifeguard mesh stations to re-locate them to an optimal position in your house. Once they have powered on again, they will re-mesh and organise to ensure the best network performance possible.

Signal strength will be affected by various factors, such as your Internet-connected device's distance to the closest Wi-Fi Lifeguard, internal/external walls, and 2.4 GHz-sharing electronic devices such as microwaves, cordless landlines, and Bluetooth devices.

If a Wi-Fi Lifeguard mesh station's signal strength drops below 30%, we recommend re-locating your Mesh Station to be physically closer to the nearest Wi-Fi Lifeguard device belonging to the mesh network.

You can configure your mesh setup by visiting the Wi-Fi Lifeguard administration panel. Ensure that you are connected to your SafeSurfer-XXXX network and open 192.168.8.1 in your favourite web browser.

Enter in the email address and password that belong to your Safe Surfer account. If you have not made an account, the Wi-Fi Lifeguard administration panel will prompt you to create one.

Wi-Fi Lifeguard administration panel login page

Navigate to System > WiFi Setup. From the Mesh Setup Settings page, you can configure various settings related to the Wi-Fi broadcast your Wi-Fi Lifeguard mesh network is providing. From this menu you can change the network name and password, and disable wireless bands:

Mesh Setup Settings page (top)

Disable wireless band toggle switches

From the Mesh Nodes page, you can find statistics of devices that are connected to your Wi-Fi Lifeguard mesh network:

Mesh Nodes page (top)

Mesh Nodes page (bottom)

From the Mesh Nodes Tree Map page, you can find a visual logical representation of devices connected to your Wi-Fi Lifeguard mesh network:

Mesh Nodes Tree Map page

Updated on: 13/05/2022

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