The Problem

Omada controller based networks do not allow the removal of the default vlan from any gateway ports, making using multiple uplinks from the core switch extremely difficult, especially so as it is impossible to create a tagged-only switch port profile.

 

I have tried every combination of ways i can think of to avoid making dummy vlans, but it seems that under omada, if any vlan is shared amongst two ports that go to the same device, regardless of whether or not the port its plugged into actually carries that vlan, you end up with loops and/or port blocking or really weird stuff hapenning with the controller.

 

This could all be resolved if TP-Link allowed us to actually set gateway ports as we see fit, rather than having vlan1 forced as untagged on every single port, and allowed us to set tagged only switch ports, just like we can in standalone.

 

Without using a different brand, or omada switch in standalone mode as a middle-man between gateway and core switch to filter vlans from the gateway ports, you cannot easily achieve multiple uplinks to spread the load from your vlans to the gateway, leading most users to end up with a Router-on-a-stick situation will all vlans on one single trunk link.

 

This is problematic for users with only 1gbit ports and high bandwidth internet access as it can lead to link saturation and reduced performance.

 

The Solution!

The following is a OC200 controller based guide and has been thoroughly tested in-field on a large business network.  In my example, i want to spread my network load across 4 links to the gateway for improved efficiency.  You can adjust this as you see fit.

 

Step 1:

TAKE AN OMADA BACKUP.

 

Plan how many uplink trunks you want, and we will need to create that number - 1 new "dummy" vlans.  In my case i want 4 links, so i need to make 3 extra dummy lans, as INTERFACE, with very seperated IPs from the rest of the networks.  Leave yourself one spare port on the gateway that you can use as a complete trunk with all vlans while configuring.  we will disconnect that later.  Do not connect anything to any of the gateway ports we are setting up at this time.

 

 

In my case, i want to have vlan 1 & 6 on the first uplink, 10 on the second, 100 & 1000 on the third and 1010 & 1020 on the fourth.

 

We need to set each network we actually want to use to each gateway port we want to use as the uplink for that vlan ,AND the spare all-vlans trunk port while configuring.  In this case, i want vlan6 as uplink on LAN8, and the configuration all-vlans port is LAN7.  Repeat for each network

 

 

Now, set up the ports for the Dummy vlans we set up earlier.  Do not set up a Dummy vlan on the uplink port carrying your vlan1 / management vlan.  Each uplink port MUST

have a DIFFERENT dummy vlan attached to it.  Do not assign the same dummy vlan to more than one gateway port!

 

 

 

Step 2:

Now we need to set up the switch profiles

The first one, which carries your vlan1 / management vlan, must be configured as follows.  In my case that uplink port will also carry vlan6 as tagged

 

And we continue with the others.  All the uplink ports need a seperate switch profile, and set the untagged/native vlan of the profile to the DUMMY vlan you intend for that port, the rest of the networks it carries should be tagged.

 

 

Continue and make the rest of the port profiles.

 

Step 3:

Now we assign each port profile to our core switch, on the ports you want each uplink to be active on

 

 

Step 4:

Now we need to set the PVID of each gateway port being used as these uplinks.  The port carrying vlan1/management vlan MUST be set to PVID 1.  The rest must be set to the Dummy VLAN assigned to that port

 

 

Step 5:

Unplug the all-vlans-in-one link from your gateway to your switch.  Now, connect each uplink you have configured between the switch and gateway, starting with the one carrying vlan1/management vlan.

 

After a few seconds while the switch learns the new port layout, all your vlans should now be spread across multiple uplink ports for a more efficient network.

 

If you encounter any problems, disconnect the uplinks and use the allvlans-in-one port you set aside for teting and configuration and check all your settings.