iamdresden wrote

I'd like to be able to connect my my second Deco (on the middle floor) to my old laptop via ethernet cable ... I've tethered my mobile to the laptop many times via USB cable, so I know there's nothing wrong with the cable.

@iamdresden 

Can you clarify, if you are trying to use Ethernet cable to connect laptop to Satellite Deco M5, or USB cable?

Also:

1. Did you buy Deco M5 to just improve WiFi coverage, or to also use advanced Deco functionality such as parental controls, QoS, etc.?

2. Do you run Deco mesh in Router (default) mode or in Access Point mode?

I find the Deco nodes on the first and ground floor do provide a noticeably slower upload and download connection when compared with the 'main' one on the second (top) floor of the property.  It's all still usable, but we're talking 180Mbps DL / 12Mbps UL via the 'main' Deco on the top floor and around 24Mbps DL / 6Mbps UL via the other two Decos.  Again, is there a setting I can tweak to provide vaguely equal speeds throughout the house, or is there always a degradation of this level?  The house isn't *huge* - the 'main' Deco and the second one are about 4 metres apart (admittedly separated by a floor), and the third one downstairs is around 10 metres away diagonally (on the other side of the house through another floor).

There is no specific setting to improve throughput, and what download/upload speed you can get does depend on many things. 

One thing you can test: power off Satellite Decos on first and ground floor, leave just Main Deco on. Walk to where one of your Satellite Deco is, and using smartphone (tablet, laptop) that is WiFi connected to Main Deco run speedtest from that location. Run it few times during few hours. What speeds are you getting?

Repeat same test at location of your another Satellite Deco.

Whatever speeds you'll be getting in speedtest, these will be the best speeds your devices connected to Satellite Decos will be getting in ideal situation, because they will never be faster than speed between Satellite and Main Decos you just found with this test. 

Suggestions to improve download and upload speeds:

- disable 2.4GHz WiFi band in Deco Main network. Devices running on 5GHz usually show faster speed, because there is usually less interference on 5GHz channels;

- run Deco mesh in Access Point mode if you do not need advanced Deco functionality such as parental controls. That will reduce Deco hardware overhead and might improve download and upload speeds

- perhaps, you would consider returning Deco three pack M5 and buying Deco three pack M9 Plus instead. Deco M9 Plus are more expensive, but they provide better WiFi signal and they use dedicated channel for WiFi backhaul, which might improve communication between Decos in your house. M9 Plus is like a big brother of M5.

@Alexandre. Thanks for the response. 

I'm using an ethernet cable to connect to the Satellite Deco M5.  The ethernet cable has been used to connect the laptop to other routers etc previously, so it isn't at fault. 

I bought the Decos just to improve coverage, so I've no need for parental locks etc. 

And I'm currently running the Mesh in default Router mode. 

Any further assistance on getting the satellite Deco sharing the internet signal via ethernet to the laptop would be appreciated! 

@iamdresden 

Well, then you have it easy. Just change your Deco mesh to Access Point mode. In Access Point mode there are no settings to control Deco Ethernet ports behavior, they should work just like regular Ethernet ports.

If laptop is not getting network connectivity after that, reply here and I'll offer troubleshooting steps. 

Access Point mode can be configured from Deco app: