Having read the comments below, it seems like having these in the house and using them effectively is a tech minefield when things don't go smoothly.; and they have shortcomings that cannot be solved, too - no WPS, no Tenda customer support, for example. I happen to be a computer klutz attracted to the idea of mesh, so found this video very useful in helping me decide not to buy this MW6 kit. Thanks.
Thank you so much dude. Top quality video, well explained. Thank you for going into all the settings detail, glad I know to set it up into bridge mode for my Sky broadband now.
You don't need to enable fast roaming for AES security. Provided the devices have the latest firmware the default security configuration moves away from AES/TKIP to just AES.
@@FrimleyComputing hi. That was not my experience. I found this demo while looking for a solution to the constant “Weak Security”. Label associated with my WIFi connections. I had updated tge firmware. In fact I reset and reinstalled the system. My units were bought in late 2019 so perhaps an undocumented hardware change but there is a number of references to this on other sites. I’m not trying to be right here but I felt it was important to let readers know that some of us were unable to enable aes security until fast roaming enabled first. In fact I just toggled the fast roaming option off and the weak security message came back.
@@gerrystafford7055 I agree that people should know all the options, however I've not personally had that and the "weak security" stated on Apple products when connected to WiFi has only ever been present on initial firmware on some Tenda devices that I've installed, After a firmware update that gets removed with the update and security change to AES. However that's just my personal experience of them. On the whole they're pretty good, however the performance does tend to drop off when you start connecting wired devices (specifically via a network switch) via the LAN port on the router unit.
@@FrimleyComputing Thank you for responding. I would like to revise the wording of my original comment to "Some people have found that they needed to enable "Fast Roaming" to get aes security. It really is quite strange. I winder if it has anything to do with UK versus North American ISP standards? I am in Vancouver Canada. Like you I also found that I was better off to leave devices on wifi where I had the choice particularly those devices that are not badly effected by bandwith e.g. printers, security cams etc. That being said I love my Tenda mesh system for it's performance versus cost. I live in a 3 story house of wood frame construction approx 900 sq ft per floor. After various experiments with location I now have the base unit on the upper story near the geometric centre and on the floor I located both auxiliary units on the middle floor but in the windows front and rear. This provides good connectivity in both the front and back gardens when I work outside. I find that I still have plenty of signal strength in the lower (recreation) floor. I had initially places one in the centre of each floor but my signal speed suffered in the back garden without appreciable benefit to signal strength on the lower floor. My approach may not work as well in the UK. I do recognise that the attenuation effect of typical American wood frame construction is considerably less than that of concrete or brick with is more the norm in the British Isles.
Great video. I bought the Tenda Nova and it seemed to work but the primary node's green light switched off. Also my Sky Q Mini wouldn't connect. And I couldn't figure out how to change my NowTV Router to modem. So had to return the Nova. Wish the instructions were more comprehensive to help less techy ppl such as myself.
Great video. Just one question, my SKY box is connected to my SKY router. If I added these MW6 to the system, will I have to reconnect my SKY box or will it continue using the SKY router? Also will I be able to continue to use the SKY router as normal in the other rooms? Apologies if I have not explained it properly as I am a novice to this kind of tech. Just want to have better Wi-Fi in my conservatory which is about 9-10 mtrs away.
Thank you for the detailed explanation. I was looking to get into the admin webpage, instead of the mobile application. I tried the default gateway, nothing is prompted. Any idea the full url /admin or /setup ?
Very nice, thanks. Unfortunately, the MW6 failed to live up to my expectation. On the secondary node on the 2nd floor with excellent signal, I'm only getting half the speed from the first floor where the router is. Oh well.
I hope someone here can help me with this. I have four MW3 mesh3F nodes and one mesh3 node, which I believe is a MW6? My question is which node is best to use as the main one connected to the router. One of the mesh3F or the mesh3? Or doesn't it make a difference.
thanks for this! is there a way to force a mesh to connect to connect to another extender rather than the controller? I have one far away from hub in detached garage and want it to chain connect
Hi. Thanks for the useful video. I've just set mine up but I have one question. Do I need to keep the first hub connected to the modem using the Lan cable or can I move it a few metres away?
I wanted to add another NOVA device using a wired connection but that seems to be rocket science. When going through the "Add nova" option, it will connect the second device via wifi instead. Any way it can be configured via the wired connection?
Hi, great video so far, but I cant get past connecting to my router. They look the same as the ones in your video, but mine is model Mesh3 not 6. I have tried all 3 cubes connected to my router plugged into the port with the little blue planet. All three begin with a flashing green light, two change to a red light and one no light at all. Any ideas? Thank you in advance.
Hi, I had to reinstall the app, once I did this all my settings in the app have disappeared even though I had logged into my account. 😢 Do I need to reset the first nova and so on restarting the the whole process 🤔. As I cannot connect to the Nova as my mesh is already setup. Thanks.
@@2BGGG Factory reset all Novas using the PIN reset on the base of the units, then once all reset unplug all of them from the power. Then connect the first nova to the power and ethernet to the router. Once the main Nova is booted up use your mobile to connect to the SSID listed on the base of the Nova unit and then once you're connected to the Nova specific WiFi use the app to setup the unit. The important bit is making sure the factory reset works, then waiting till it's reset and then power the units off before starting to reset up only a single unit as the main unit.
Right now i have this system connected to my external router as a bridge. 1 tp cabel to lan 1 port on my router. Will it be better if i also put a tp cabel from lan 2 on router to another node? I can go via the roof but just want to know if its worth the speed
@@PNELSEMesh Wifi is a great solution and avoids the need for network cabling with access points. I've done loads of mesh wifi installations for Virgin Media Hub3 users as the WiFi is so flakey on those routers.
@@karlassr Once your hub is in modem modem, switch it off, wait 10 seconds, then switch it back on again making sure the Tenda router is connected in the top rj45 port on the hub beforehand and you're connecting the RJ45 cable into the WAN port (blue globe symbol). Use the Tenda app on your phone to connect to the Nova SSID and then once you've done that you'll be able to configure the device & WiFi. Once you've configured the WiFi you need to reconnect to the new WiFi name that you created on your phone and then the app will continue the setup.
Hi sir, here in Tenda MW6 there is no Whitelist and only a Blacklist, it is possible that it can be bypass using WiFi QR Code scanner from the device that is already connected. My question is, if I set it in Bridge Mode, because there is a Blacklist and at the same time there is Whitelist also, if I set it to Bridge Mode do the Whitelist works there to specify only the device that is in Whitelist to exclude from connecting to Mesh WiFi? Thank You, hope you understand my English because it is so bad 😅
Is there a way to change the time zone settings? Using an android and can't see where the time setting is. In the Parental Control is where I need it. It looks like it's set to 1 hour behind.
I have a philips hue bridge and other smart home devices in my modem/router, so if I would buy this nova I have to set it in bridge mode to not reconfigure everything? And it will work perfectly? Even if the nova's have a different name than the router/modem?
Hi, I have a question if you could help with? If you have say 2 connected in wireless mesh mode, is it possible to connect the 3rd node to the satellite node using the ethernet ports, so essentially extending the network. Ie “MasterNode” “SatelliteNode1” “SatelliteNode2”. If so how would it be done and which ports would you use on the nodes?
Hi. I have Lila connect full fibre and it comes with a zyxel router that just isnt powerful enough for home, which is why i bought the nova mesh kit. Im having issues with connectivity though. i think i may have it set up wrong. I have the primary node plugged straight into the ISPs SSD (wall mounted box) and have removed the zyxel router. I can access the internet from most devices but am having some issues with apps and various other things like smart home conncetivity. I'm thinking what i should be doing is connecting the priamry node to the zyxel routers LAN ports and the zyxel router should be the only thing connected to the SDD. Any advice on this would be appreciated!
What great video and so helpful. I have my MW6 working on my new VM router and set it up as modem and the Tenda hubs picked up without any issues. Just one question if you dont mind. Is it possible to connect a small 8 port hub to each Tenda node and if so what is the downside? Thanks
Although this'll work, you'll get severely degraded throughput. Ideally you only want to connect a single device to the LAN port on the unit, such as a TV if they're using the WiFi to backhaul the traffic.
IPv6 is not currently supported on the Nova MW6, however Tenda are working on this so it may appear in either future models, or via a firmware update - there's no news on when though.
Hi, thanks for the video, very informative. Quick question… I have a CAT 6 cable leading from the back of my VM Router all the way to my outhouse (10m away). Can I just purchase one MW6 and plug the CAT 6 cable into to effectively extend the Wi-Fi?
You Can, BUT you'll need to set the Nova to "Bridge mode" so you pick up IP addressing from your VM router. Also set the SSID & Passphrase to the same as the VM wifi details and you'll be able to "roam" between access points. Happy Christmas and Happy WiFi 🙂
If they are showing on the Tenda app on the phone then you can remove them, then factory reset each of the units and when the come online you'll get prompted to add them to your existing system.
My WiFi speed on any of my devices (phone, laptop) connected to the nova is max 100Mbps, when connected directly to router Wifi is up to my 300Mbps. I am.on bridge mode. Any ideas how to reach the maximum wireless speed?
On the MW3 variety you're connecting to the main router using the Nova "Fast Ethernet" port the maximum throughput speed you'll get is 100Mbps. On the MW6 variety the ports are gigabit so you should be getting the full capacity of your ISP speed. Distance between units is a factor too so making sure they have a good strong signal between units is key. The other thing to check is what LAN port speed your ISP router has. If you're connecting in to a 10/100Mbps port, then you're limited to that speed, which I suspect is the case.
You need to hold the reset button in for around 20 seconds unit the light turns white... Once it's reset you can connect to the SSID that's listed on the base of the unit. 👍
After all this technology, Tenda still hasn't got a WPS function to connect a printer. Same with earlier models (Actually 2 years old) can't connect a printer as it needs WPS. Also why do Tenda have to use a smartphone app to set it up? What if you don't have a smartphone but just a laptop? If it wasn't for the fact everything else works (except the BRAND NEW PRINTER) I would trash the whole lot and go back to running 3 Access Points manually
If you get one of the Tenda units that constantly disconnects I would factory reset all devices are reconfigure everything from scratch. If your property has solid walls, ie not partitioned walls then ideally the units need to be no more that two rooms away from each other. If you use the app on the phone you should be able to determine the best places to position the devices.
Thanks for a great video. I have a few questions. 1st ln my app and devices the save if location keeps failing. Any ideas? 2nd is there anyway to ensure devices that can use the 5Ghz band? For example my fire cube sometimes connects at 2.4 and is then much slower. Finally when I turned my Virgin Hub 3 to modem mode i lost the ports on the back acting like a switch. Would i lose a lot if o kept that as the router but turned off its wifi? Oh and just a note for others i found it really hard to get the sequence of power on and resets etc.. for my nova device to connect properly when this was in modem mode.
In addition i added my older bright box 2 in bridge mode to act as a switch. I was going to disable the wifi. Before i did i connected to its 5ghz network and found the speed much faster than anything i am getting via the Nova network. I was the only device on it and that was connected back to the Nova router. It gave 120 mbs. I connected to my brightbox 2.4 network and it was similar to the Nova 15mbs. Even once i disconnected and reconnected to the Nova it seems to max at 60 mbs... is this it throttling me to share bandwidth?. So essentially because i can't seem to isolate the 5ghz with Nova i am getting slower speeds. Maybe also the 60 vs 120 is actually it sharing the bandwidth with others on my network?
Setting the location name for the devices can be done once all the units are connected. It seems to save them then. Putting your Virgin Hub into modem mode does disable the ports and your Nova router needs to be connected into the top port. If you kept the VM hub in routing mode and disabled the WiFi then you need to setup the Nova units in Bridge mode or Access point mode, otherwise you'll end up have 2 different subnets/LAN and will also incur double NAT'ing.
If the Nova units are set correctly and are in perfect range of each other then they are capable of around 140Mbps - 200Mbps throughput. They do use the 5Ghz band for backhaul if you're not daisy chaining the units via rj45 cable so expect to loose some bandwidth, however they are the lowest cost mesh systems. There is no throttling, however you do need to make sure you have the right settings for your use case. As an alternative you could try the TP-Link M5 mesh WiFi - I've also used both systems and the TP-Link seems to be more stable with it's throughput.
Can you use the Virgin Superhub 3 as the router and set to bridge mode? I can’t find a way within the app to port forward a range of ports, only one by one and I need to do over 80, within the Virgin router you can do a range of forwarding at once. Having major issues with packet loss so suggestions online are port forwarding but the nova app makes this almost impossible.
You can connect to the Nova router via a web browser too. All you need is the IP of the Nova router. This won't work if they're set to bridge mode though and you'll need to factory reset the Nova router device first.
Yes, you can use the VM Hub as the router and have the Nova router set to bridge mode. The port forwarding would then be done via the VM hub. You'll need to make sure the device you want to PF to has a fixed local IP.
any advice on hard wiring 2 of the tenda nodes to the internet for greater speeds and efficiency? I believe I should be hard wiring from one node to the main node connected to the modem to support the backhaul process? can this be done using the 2 ports. I am planning on using the WAN (globe pic) from my secondary node into the () port on the primary node.
Hi. I’m trying to set up my MW6 as my home has big issues with internet strength and signal. Recently had the Virgin Hub3 installed and was advised to get the nova system to boost the signal. Following your video is helpful but I’ve just hit a dead end. I’ve changed the hub to modem mode and then reset it. But now I’m getting zero internet through to the actual Hub3. Signal is poor at my location so even trying to use 4G to find what the problem is, is very difficult. If you could help or advise in any way that would be massively appreciated as I’m pulling my hair out now.
The hub is a problem when setting to modem mode. You should do the following in order. 1 set the hub to modem mode. Once it's booted up and showing the magenta colour on the light then you can switch off the hub, wait 10 seconds and switch it back on. Now setup your Nova router device using the app, with it connected to the WAN port on the Nova unit. It should pick up the WAN IP from the Internet and set itself for DHCP. Follow the setup process on your phone app to complete and it should work. If you still can't get an internet connection, switch off the virgin hub, wait 10 seconds and then switch it back on again. Make sure your RJ45 cable is connected to the TOP port on the back of the Virgin Hub and connected to the WAN port on the Nova unit.
Thank you great video. Can I ask if you set up with VM Hub 3 can this just extend wifi (ie: can still use hub for wifi to) if so which setting would you connect it to, would it PPOE so it would just be extending strengthing wifi signal you already have plse? Thanks.
You can use it to "extend your wifi", however the Virgin hubs have poor WiFi. If you really want to do this then you can connect the 1st Nova unit to the Virgin hub using a LAN cable to any port on the back of the VM hub. You then need to go into the Nova settings and set the connection type to "bridge". This then tells the Tenda Nova system to utilise all the settings from the Virgin Hub. Once that's done you can then power on the other Nova units so they establish their connections to the main Nova unit.
@@FrimleyComputing I have recently added a Nova MW3 connected to my BT SH2 via a LAN cable as the node, plus 3 other MW3 devices. I have set my MW3's to bridge as recommended in your video (great vid btw). I can now access either my existing BT WiFi or my new MW3 WiFi. What do I do pls?
@@322425 The 1st MW3 should be connected as the Nova router (get that set up 1st with it's wifi configured and then set it to bridge mode), then add the other 3 MW3's (they'll pick up the configuration from the MW3 router). Update the firmware on all MW3's and then once you're happy things are setup correctly then you can login to the BTHub and disable the WiFi. You'll then only have the one WiFi via the Nova mesh. 🙂
Having read the comments below, it seems like having these in the house and using them effectively is a tech minefield when things don't go smoothly.; and they have shortcomings that cannot be solved, too - no WPS, no Tenda customer support, for example. I happen to be a computer klutz attracted to the idea of mesh, so found this video very useful in helping me decide not to buy this MW6 kit. Thanks.
Thanks for one of the best videos on the Nova system I’ve seen fantastic details
Thank you. Both my secondary nodes have been solid red for a few days and I forgot how to reconnect. Thanks
Thank you so much dude. Top quality video, well explained. Thank you for going into all the settings detail, glad I know to set it up into bridge mode for my Sky broadband now.
Great video and helped me get set up with zero hassle at all!
Useful and thank you for this. One item missing you must Enable "Fast Roaming" for AES security.
You don't need to enable fast roaming for AES security. Provided the devices have the latest firmware the default security configuration moves away from AES/TKIP to just AES.
@@FrimleyComputing hi. That was not my experience. I found this demo while looking for a solution to the constant “Weak Security”. Label associated with my WIFi connections. I had updated tge firmware. In fact I reset and reinstalled the system. My units were bought in late 2019 so perhaps an undocumented hardware change but there is a number of references to this on other sites. I’m not trying to be right here but I felt it was important to let readers know that some of us were unable to enable aes security until fast roaming enabled first. In fact I just toggled the fast roaming option off and the weak security message came back.
@@gerrystafford7055 I agree that people should know all the options, however I've not personally had that and the "weak security" stated on Apple products when connected to WiFi has only ever been present on initial firmware on some Tenda devices that I've installed, After a firmware update that gets removed with the update and security change to AES. However that's just my personal experience of them. On the whole they're pretty good, however the performance does tend to drop off when you start connecting wired devices (specifically via a network switch) via the LAN port on the router unit.
@@FrimleyComputing Thank you for responding. I would like to revise the wording of my original comment to "Some people have found that they needed to enable "Fast Roaming" to get aes security.
It really is quite strange. I winder if it has anything to do with UK versus North American ISP standards? I am in Vancouver Canada. Like you I also found that I was better off to leave devices on wifi where I had the choice particularly those devices that are not badly effected by bandwith e.g. printers, security cams etc.
That being said I love my Tenda mesh system for it's performance versus cost. I live in a 3 story house of wood frame construction approx 900 sq ft per floor. After various experiments with location I now have the base unit on the upper story near the geometric centre and on the floor I located both auxiliary units on the middle floor but in the windows front and rear. This provides good connectivity in both the front and back gardens when I work outside. I find that I still have plenty of signal strength in the lower (recreation) floor. I had initially places one in the centre of each floor but my signal speed suffered in the back garden without appreciable benefit to signal strength on the lower floor.
My approach may not work as well in the UK. I do recognise that the attenuation effect of typical American wood frame construction is considerably less than that of concrete or brick with is more the norm in the British Isles.
I am about to buy this very specific router. This info is very helpful for me to decide if I want to invest in it or not.
Great video. I bought the Tenda Nova and it seemed to work but the primary node's green light switched off. Also my Sky Q Mini wouldn't connect. And I couldn't figure out how to change my NowTV Router to modem. So had to return the Nova. Wish the instructions were more comprehensive to help less techy ppl such as myself.
Great video. Just one question, my SKY box is connected to my SKY router. If I added these MW6 to the system, will I have to reconnect my SKY box or will it continue using the SKY router? Also will I be able to continue to use the SKY router as normal in the other rooms? Apologies if I have not explained it properly as I am a novice to this kind of tech. Just want to have better Wi-Fi in my conservatory which is about 9-10 mtrs away.
Thank you for the detailed explanation. I was looking to get into the admin webpage, instead of the mobile application. I tried the default gateway, nothing is prompted. Any idea the full url /admin or /setup ?
Very nice, thanks. Unfortunately, the MW6 failed to live up to my expectation. On the secondary node on the 2nd floor with excellent signal, I'm only getting half the speed from the first floor where the router is. Oh well.
How can i select which devices i want on each box, it doesn't automatically connect to the nearest nova. Im using bridge mode by the way.
Thanks for sharing. How can I configure Nova router in Windows 10?
I hope someone here can help me with this. I have four MW3 mesh3F nodes and one mesh3 node, which I believe is a MW6?
My question is which node is best to use as the main one connected to the router. One of the mesh3F or the mesh3? Or doesn't it make a difference.
mesh3 as primary node because LAN support Gigabit 1000mbps
Thank you for this tutorial 💯💯💯
thanks for this! is there a way to force a mesh to connect to connect to another extender rather than the controller? I have one far away from hub in detached garage and want it to chain connect
Hi. Thanks for the useful video. I've just set mine up but I have one question. Do I need to keep the first hub connected to the modem using the Lan cable or can I move it a few metres away?
I wanted to add another NOVA device using a wired connection but that seems to be rocket science. When going through the "Add nova" option, it will connect the second device via wifi instead. Any way it can be configured via the wired connection?
I couldn't find a way to split the 2.4 and 5Ghz. Any ideas please?
Hi, great video so far, but I cant get past connecting to my router. They look the same as the ones in your video, but mine is model Mesh3 not 6. I have tried all 3 cubes connected to my router plugged into the port with the little blue planet. All three begin with a flashing green light, two change to a red light and one no light at all. Any ideas? Thank you in advance.
How do you fix this problem I have 3 mesh but only 1 is connecting
@Jordan Osborne no one has replied with any suggestions. I had to buy some BT Discs .
Hi, I had to reinstall the app, once I did this all my settings in the app have disappeared even though I had logged into my account. 😢 Do I need to reset the first nova and so on restarting the the whole process 🤔. As I cannot connect to the Nova as my mesh is already setup. Thanks.
i need help my tenda cw6 stop working and the light is red cant find the tenda network but the lan still working what should i do to fix it?
I'd factory reset the devices and re-set them up from scratch.
@@FrimleyComputing i tried resetting but it wont light green
@@2BGGG Factory reset all Novas using the PIN reset on the base of the units, then once all reset unplug all of them from the power. Then connect the first nova to the power and ethernet to the router. Once the main Nova is booted up use your mobile to connect to the SSID listed on the base of the Nova unit and then once you're connected to the Nova specific WiFi use the app to setup the unit.
The important bit is making sure the factory reset works, then waiting till it's reset and then power the units off before starting to reset up only a single unit as the main unit.
@@FrimleyComputing do you have a step by step video on how to do that
I have the same problem. The light is red.
Right now i have this system connected to my external router as a bridge. 1 tp cabel to lan 1 port on my router. Will it be better if i also put a tp cabel from lan 2 on router to another node? I can go via the roof but just want to know if its worth the speed
Really useful video, many thanks for posting.
Glad it was helpful!
I agree with Jim. Great content.
@@PNELSEMesh Wifi is a great solution and avoids the need for network cabling with access points. I've done loads of mesh wifi installations for Virgin Media Hub3 users as the WiFi is so flakey on those routers.
Hi I've tried to install and put virgin hub on modem mode but it doesn't connect. No wifi at all
@@karlassr Once your hub is in modem modem, switch it off, wait 10 seconds, then switch it back on again making sure the Tenda router is connected in the top rj45 port on the hub beforehand and you're connecting the RJ45 cable into the WAN port (blue globe symbol). Use the Tenda app on your phone to connect to the Nova SSID and then once you've done that you'll be able to configure the device & WiFi. Once you've configured the WiFi you need to reconnect to the new WiFi name that you created on your phone and then the app will continue the setup.
about ssid and password, is there the need to set all three? or just the master?
hey, whenever i connect it, it says i have a great connection but i am getting 0 upload and download speed. any help?
Hi sir, here in Tenda MW6 there is no Whitelist and only a Blacklist, it is possible that it can be bypass using WiFi QR Code scanner from the device that is already connected.
My question is, if I set it in Bridge Mode, because there is a Blacklist and at the same time there is Whitelist also, if I set it to Bridge Mode do the Whitelist works there to specify only the device that is in Whitelist to exclude from connecting to Mesh WiFi? Thank You, hope you understand my English because it is so bad 😅
Do you need to register in spp to setup the nova
Having upgraded to latest firmware there is still no option for WPA2 security
Is there a way to change the time zone settings? Using an android and can't see where the time setting is. In the Parental Control is where I need it. It looks like it's set to 1 hour behind.
Do you have to use a mains socket for the box that’s connected to router, or is it ok to plug it into an extension lead. Tia
Tenda provide no support, do not reply to emails. Not worth doing business with company that does not support their products
Perfect, made setting up a breeze.
My printer doesn't connect to the wifi, how I can connect it ?
I have a philips hue bridge and other smart home devices in my modem/router, so if I would buy this nova I have to set it in bridge mode to not reconfigure everything? And it will work perfectly?
Even if the nova's have a different name than the router/modem?
Hi, I have a question if you could help with? If you have say 2 connected in wireless mesh mode, is it possible to connect the 3rd node to the satellite node using the ethernet ports, so essentially extending the network. Ie “MasterNode” “SatelliteNode1” “SatelliteNode2”. If so how would it be done and which ports would you use on the nodes?
Hi. I have Lila connect full fibre and it comes with a zyxel router that just isnt powerful enough for home, which is why i bought the nova mesh kit. Im having issues with connectivity though. i think i may have it set up wrong. I have the primary node plugged straight into the ISPs SSD (wall mounted box) and have removed the zyxel router. I can access the internet from most devices but am having some issues with apps and various other things like smart home conncetivity. I'm thinking what i should be doing is connecting the priamry node to the zyxel routers LAN ports and the zyxel router should be the only thing connected to the SDD. Any advice on this would be appreciated!
Can I put the VPN on the Nova? What do I need to buy a VPN router first?
How do we hide the ssid name?
What great video and so helpful. I have my MW6 working on my new VM router and set it up as modem and the Tenda hubs picked up without any issues. Just one question if you dont mind. Is it possible to connect a small 8 port hub to each Tenda node and if so what is the downside? Thanks
Although this'll work, you'll get severely degraded throughput. Ideally you only want to connect a single device to the LAN port on the unit, such as a TV if they're using the WiFi to backhaul the traffic.
How do I make 3rd node connect to second. 3rd tries to connect to first and therefore not a great signal
IPV6 protocol isn’t present ont he router MW6. Its possible to configure?
IPv6 is not currently supported on the Nova MW6, however Tenda are working on this so it may appear in either future models, or via a firmware update - there's no news on when though.
Can i directly connect via lan cable to the router?
For connection type, mine doesn't offer "Dynamic." Only PPPoE, DHCP, and Static.
Dynamic = DHCP so use that one. 🙂
Hi, thanks for the video, very informative. Quick question… I have a CAT 6 cable leading from the back of my VM Router all the way to my outhouse (10m away). Can I just purchase one MW6 and plug the CAT 6 cable into to effectively extend the Wi-Fi?
You Can, BUT you'll need to set the Nova to "Bridge mode" so you pick up IP addressing from your VM router. Also set the SSID & Passphrase to the same as the VM wifi details and you'll be able to "roam" between access points. Happy Christmas and Happy WiFi 🙂
Thanks men this helped my so much 😉
Really useful
Didn’t you go from unboxing to find the nova box? There was no instruction to connect the box?
Mines won't connect anymore for the past week or so, only the main one connected to the router, the other 2 boxes have red lights!
If they are showing on the Tenda app on the phone then you can remove them, then factory reset each of the units and when the come online you'll get prompted to add them to your existing system.
Thank you very much.
The minute I put my router into modem mode I have lost all internet and the lights on the boxes have gone red 🤷♂️
My WiFi speed on any of my devices (phone, laptop) connected to the nova is max 100Mbps, when connected directly to router Wifi is up to my 300Mbps. I am.on bridge mode. Any ideas how to reach the maximum wireless speed?
On the MW3 variety you're connecting to the main router using the Nova "Fast Ethernet" port the maximum throughput speed you'll get is 100Mbps. On the MW6 variety the ports are gigabit so you should be getting the full capacity of your ISP speed. Distance between units is a factor too so making sure they have a good strong signal between units is key. The other thing to check is what LAN port speed your ISP router has. If you're connecting in to a 10/100Mbps port, then you're limited to that speed, which I suspect is the case.
after reset, i can't configure the node in the application, it keep on connecting. never goes through ssid and password part. any idea? thanks!
You need to hold the reset button in for around 20 seconds unit the light turns white... Once it's reset you can connect to the SSID that's listed on the base of the unit. 👍
Great video thanks
Hi, thanks for the video. Do you know what is the category of the ethernet cable that came with the mesh kit?
It's normally a flat cat5e and does the job of connecting without issues.
I need some help
I assume when connecting to BT hub or similar you need to turn off wifi on the hub?
Indeed, or alternatively just use a vdsl modem with the PPOE details and connect that to the Tenda router.
After all this technology, Tenda still hasn't got a WPS function to connect a printer. Same with earlier models (Actually 2 years old) can't connect a printer as it needs WPS. Also why do Tenda have to use a smartphone app to set it up? What if you don't have a smartphone but just a laptop? If it wasn't for the fact everything else works (except the BRAND NEW PRINTER) I would trash the whole lot and go back to running 3 Access Points manually
My other unit keeps disconnecting even though its less than 5 meters away what should i do?
If you get one of the Tenda units that constantly disconnects I would factory reset all devices are reconfigure everything from scratch. If your property has solid walls, ie not partitioned walls then ideally the units need to be no more that two rooms away from each other. If you use the app on the phone you should be able to determine the best places to position the devices.
When they are all connected will they be one name in the wifi?
That's correct. One WiFi name that you set via the app on your phone.
Thanks for a great video. I have a few questions. 1st ln my app and devices the save if location keeps failing. Any ideas? 2nd is there anyway to ensure devices that can use the 5Ghz band? For example my fire cube sometimes connects at 2.4 and is then much slower. Finally when I turned my Virgin Hub 3 to modem mode i lost the ports on the back acting like a switch. Would i lose a lot if o kept that as the router but turned off its wifi? Oh and just a note for others i found it really hard to get the sequence of power on and resets etc.. for my nova device to connect properly when this was in modem mode.
In addition i added my older bright box 2 in bridge mode to act as a switch. I was going to disable the wifi. Before i did i connected to its 5ghz network and found the speed much faster than anything i am getting via the Nova network. I was the only device on it and that was connected back to the Nova router. It gave 120 mbs. I connected to my brightbox 2.4 network and it was similar to the Nova 15mbs. Even once i disconnected and reconnected to the Nova it seems to max at 60 mbs... is this it throttling me to share bandwidth?. So essentially because i can't seem to isolate the 5ghz with Nova i am getting slower speeds. Maybe also the 60 vs 120 is actually it sharing the bandwidth with others on my network?
Setting the location name for the devices can be done once all the units are connected. It seems to save them then.
Putting your Virgin Hub into modem mode does disable the ports and your Nova router needs to be connected into the top port. If you kept the VM hub in routing mode and disabled the WiFi then you need to setup the Nova units in Bridge mode or Access point mode, otherwise you'll end up have 2 different subnets/LAN and will also incur double NAT'ing.
If the Nova units are set correctly and are in perfect range of each other then they are capable of around 140Mbps - 200Mbps throughput. They do use the 5Ghz band for backhaul if you're not daisy chaining the units via rj45 cable so expect to loose some bandwidth, however they are the lowest cost mesh systems.
There is no throttling, however you do need to make sure you have the right settings for your use case.
As an alternative you could try the TP-Link M5 mesh WiFi - I've also used both systems and the TP-Link seems to be more stable with it's throughput.
does it work inn laptops?
Can the nova act as a configureable DHCP server while connected to a vm hub in modem mode with DHCP disabled?
Yes the Nova unit provides DHCP to clients.
Can you use the Virgin Superhub 3 as the router and set to bridge mode? I can’t find a way within the app to port forward a range of ports, only one by one and I need to do over 80, within the Virgin router you can do a range of forwarding at once.
Having major issues with packet loss so suggestions online are port forwarding but the nova app makes this almost impossible.
I don’t think there’s any way to interact with them without the app
You can connect to the Nova router via a web browser too. All you need is the IP of the Nova router. This won't work if they're set to bridge mode though and you'll need to factory reset the Nova router device first.
Yes, you can use the VM Hub as the router and have the Nova router set to bridge mode. The port forwarding would then be done via the VM hub. You'll need to make sure the device you want to PF to has a fixed local IP.
@@FrimleyComputing That's great, thanks
What should I buy
Tp link deco or Tenda Nova?
Personally I'd go for the TP-Link Deco, slightly more expensive than the Tenda Nova but have a few more features. Throughput is also slightly better.
Don't laugh, potentially stupid question. On a 5g router(as in 5g sim), do I just connect this to one or the available LAN ports?
yes, it will work as long as it has an IP address
any advice on hard wiring 2 of the tenda nodes to the internet for greater speeds and efficiency? I believe I should be hard wiring from one node to the main node connected to the modem to support the backhaul process? can this be done using the 2 ports. I am planning on using the WAN (globe pic) from my secondary node into the () port on the primary node.
Here's a really useful guide on wired backhaul ==> confusedbird.com/thread-70.html
Link blocked due to un-secure host. Any other way of getting it? Plain text or screen shot.
Hi. I’m trying to set up my MW6 as my home has big issues with internet strength and signal. Recently had the Virgin Hub3 installed and was advised to get the nova system to boost the signal. Following your video is helpful but I’ve just hit a dead end. I’ve changed the hub to modem mode and then reset it. But now I’m getting zero internet through to the actual Hub3. Signal is poor at my location so even trying to use 4G to find what the problem is, is very difficult. If you could help or advise in any way that would be massively appreciated as I’m pulling my hair out now.
The hub is a problem when setting to modem mode. You should do the following in order. 1 set the hub to modem mode. Once it's booted up and showing the magenta colour on the light then you can switch off the hub, wait 10 seconds and switch it back on. Now setup your Nova router device using the app, with it connected to the WAN port on the Nova unit. It should pick up the WAN IP from the Internet and set itself for DHCP. Follow the setup process on your phone app to complete and it should work. If you still can't get an internet connection, switch off the virgin hub, wait 10 seconds and then switch it back on again. Make sure your RJ45 cable is connected to the TOP port on the back of the Virgin Hub and connected to the WAN port on the Nova unit.
Why the hell do I have to connect it with an ethernet cable? I only have a hotspot, and use no ethernet at my home
Do you have to have 3 units?
You don't need to purchase a 3 unit system. You can also purchase 2 unit systems or individual devices.
@@FrimleyComputing thank you for your response... I just heard someone said that for this mesh system to work properly, you need to have 3 units
Thank you great video. Can I ask if you set up with VM Hub 3 can this just extend wifi (ie: can still use hub for wifi to) if so which setting would you connect it to, would it PPOE so it would just be extending strengthing wifi signal you already have plse? Thanks.
You can use it to "extend your wifi", however the Virgin hubs have poor WiFi. If you really want to do this then you can connect the 1st Nova unit to the Virgin hub using a LAN cable to any port on the back of the VM hub. You then need to go into the Nova settings and set the connection type to "bridge". This then tells the Tenda Nova system to utilise all the settings from the Virgin Hub. Once that's done you can then power on the other Nova units so they establish their connections to the main Nova unit.
@@FrimleyComputing I have recently added a Nova MW3 connected to my BT SH2 via a LAN cable as the node, plus 3 other MW3 devices. I have set my MW3's to bridge as recommended in your video (great vid btw). I can now access either my existing BT WiFi or my new MW3 WiFi. What do I do pls?
@@322425 The 1st MW3 should be connected as the Nova router (get that set up 1st with it's wifi configured and then set it to bridge mode), then add the other 3 MW3's (they'll pick up the configuration from the MW3 router). Update the firmware on all MW3's and then once you're happy things are setup correctly then you can login to the BTHub and disable the WiFi. You'll then only have the one WiFi via the Nova mesh. 🙂
Can anyone in the family put in the password and use
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