Can't Access Devices on the Network

[turquato]

My Equipment:

 

    * Modem/Router - FiberHome GPON ONU AN5506-04-FA (provided by my ISP)

    * Network Switch - TP-Link TL-SG1016DE 16port Smart Switch

    * 5 Desktop Computers (all connected to the Network Switch)

    * 1 Smartphone

    * 1 Raspberry Pi Zero W

 

 

My Problem:

    * I have noticed that devices connected via ethernet cable are the only ones listed on the network. I am able to ping their individual IP Addresses and they are able to access both the Modem/Router & the Network Switch.

    * The same can be said with devices connected to WIFI.

 

My Question:

    * What can I do to have both Wired & Wireless Connections share my files and be on the same network?

[TheBean]

love the drawings. when people post networking stuff and its all very complicated, i always have to ask them for a visualization. thanks A LOT. for the pc's running windows 10,  turn on network discovery. not sure about the ras pi. for the phone (i assume android) you can probably get some app to be able to share files. 

 

you can, according to your router manual, connect a hard drive to the usb on the router to share files too. 

[turquato]

18 minutes ago, Saksham said:

love the drawings. when people post networking stuff and its all very complicated, i always have to ask them for a visualization. thanks A LOT. for the pc's running windows 10,  turn on network discovery. not sure about the ras pi. for the phone (i assume android) you can probably get some app to be able to share files. 

 

you can, according to your router manual, connect a hard drive to the usb on the router to share files too. 

Thanks for the reply and you are most welcome. I thought to myself that a visual representation would best help me describe my network setup.

For My Desktop Computer, Windows 10 Pro is installed and for the other four (4) desktops, Windows 7 is installed. A Android Smartphone.

I have turned on the network discovery for all windows devices and they all see each other. I did install an App for the Android Phone but it still wasn't able to see any wired device on the network.

My Android Device can access the Raspberry Pi Zero W using SSH / VNC / RaspiCast. However, any of the five (5) desktop computers were not able to successfully Putty-in to the Raspberry Pi Zero W.

I haven't tried adding an HDD into my router and I probably won't. Why you might ask? I just don't feel like doing.

[TheBean]

1 minute ago, turquato said:

I thought to myself that a visual representation would best help me describe my network setup.

nobody understands how much this helps. 

 

just to clarify, windows can see windows, phone can see ras pi, ras pi can see phone. but windows cannot see phone or raspi?

[turquato]

38 minutes ago, Saksham said:

just to clarify, windows can see windows, phone can see ras pi, ras pi can see phone. but windows cannot see phone or raspi?

That is correct. Also Windows can see phone & Pi IP Address when using an IP scanning tool. However, I cannot ping the Phone & Pi's IP Address and returns Host Unreachable and I cannot access shared folders.

In my use case scenario:
1. I want to access files and folders from different devices. (partially fulfilled but limited to WIRED to WIRED devices and WIRELESS to WIRELESS devices. I would like this to be WIRED to WIRELESS and vice-versa.)

2. I want to SSH into my Raspberry Pi Zero W using my wired W10 desktop

3. I want to control my RPiZeroW using my phone & desktop for updates and upgrades (this is partially fulfilled by the phone)

 

I just needed them to communicate from wired device to wireless device and vice-versa.

 

EDIT: the IP Address are all in 192.168.1.XX so they should be able to see each using an IP scanner and should also be ping-able right?

[TheBean]

18 hours ago, turquato said:

That is correct. Also Windows can see phone & Pi IP Address when using an IP scanning tool. However, I cannot ping the Phone & Pi's IP Address and returns Host Unreachable and I cannot access shared folders.

1

 

18 hours ago, turquato said:

EDIT: the IP Address are all in 192.168.1.XX so they should be able to see each using an IP scanner and should also be ping-able right?

I may be wrong, but i think that to be able to ping devices, there needs to be software on the device that runs the ping program on both ends. A smartphone may not have that (I tried it on mine and i did not work either). 

 

edit: unfortunately, this is the end of my networking knowledge in this area. I dont know how to help you further. 

Edited March 26, 2019 by Saksham

[turquato]

On 3/26/2019 at 11:17 AM, Saksham said:

windows can see windows, phone can see ras pi, ras pi can see phone. but windows cannot see phone or raspi?

Your assistance is highly appreciated. Your question (the same as mine) got me thinking about why were they limited to seeing machines connected wired or connected wireless and not wired to wireless

 

1. Apparently the cuplrit was my modem/router's LAN & WAN weren't in the same network. I was able to configure it but then I would not have a connection to the internet. It allowed all my devices to be connected to the same network while being resricted to connect to the internet.

 

2. I have disabled the modem/router's WiFi capability so that it only accepts a wired connection.

 

3. I have borrowed another router installed with DD-WRT which was set up as an access point for both wired & wireless connections.

 

4. Both wired and wireless machines are now able to communicate properly

 

It took me quite a while to figure out this fix and a bit more to find someone willing to lend me a router (a bonus with it having DD-WRT)

[TheBean]

so this was just an issue with your isp router/modem combo?

no wonder. they always give you trash stuff. I always suggest to buy your own if you can afford it. 

[turquato]

On 3/31/2019 at 8:02 AM, Saksham said:

so this was just an issue with your isp router/modem combo?

no wonder. they always give you trash stuff. I always suggest to buy your own if you can afford it. 

Yes, I never had problems with my previous ISP with regards to hardware but I unsubscribed to them due to very poor service (internet and customer services).

With my current ISP, Internet & Customer Service is excellent. However the equipment was a let down because the LAN and WAN are configured differently. I did manage to obtain the credentials for a full admin access but was unable to disable the LAN & WAN isolation option.

Your suggestion is duly noted. And I've considered the cheapest solution would be to purchase a used (but in good condition) WIreless Router rather than brandnew. I'm tight on a budget and would be considered as a temporary solution (but if it doesn't break easy, then it would probably be a long term solution).

[Alex Atkin UK]

What do you mean by LAN and WAN aren't in the same network?

 

LAN is your local network, WAN is the Internet.  They SHOULDN'T be the same network by definition!

However the WiFI should be bridged to the LAN and thus IS the same network.  Although it may also be a second guest LAN or have client isolation that stops WiFi clients talking to each other.

[turquato]

On 4/12/2019 at 7:27 PM, Alex Atkin UK said:

What do you mean by LAN and WAN aren't in the same network?

 

LAN is your local network, WAN is the Internet.  They SHOULDN'T be the same network by definition!

However the WiFI should be bridged to the LAN and thus IS the same network.  Although it may also be a second guest LAN or have client isolation that stops WiFi clients talking to each other.

I'm sorry for this very late reply.

While I was browsing the internet I found an (and forgot which) article saying that my modem has a hidden option called LAN & WAN isolation. This option disables ports 2-4 on my modem router and apparently the link between WIRED and WIRELESS. If I were to follow the instructions provided I will be able to see the option of enabling or disabling the LAN & WAN isolation and thus allow me to use all four (4) Ethernet Ports on the modem router and establish a link between WIRED and WIRELESS.

On 3/26/2019 at 10:24 AM, turquato said:

On this illustration above you can see that I am just using the modem/router provided by my ISP. My problem with this setup is that, all WIRED devices were the only ones seeing each other (able to ping, transfer files etc.). The same can be said with the WIRELESS devices (Android Phone, RPi0W). I am unable to connect using a WIRED device (Windows PC using Putty/Remote Desktop) to a WIRELESS device (RPi0W using Putty/Remote Desktop) and vice-versa (no ping, no shared folders/files).

The WIRED to WIRED Configuration was able to connect locally and to the internet and

the WIRELESS to WIRELESS Configuration was also able to connect locally and to the internet.

But WIRED to WIRELESS network connectivity was not possible

 

So I guess the LAN & WAN isolation function being referred to here is just the isolation of WIRED and WIRELESS Networks (or as you have mentioned the WiFi --- LAN bridge).

 

The next illustration shows that I have disabled my modem/routers WiFi (scratched and marked by black lines) and added a Router.

 

Works good to date

On 3/29/2019 at 9:24 AM, turquato said:

The Modem/Router my ISP provided was the limiting factor here. They have disabled Ports 2, 3, & 4 and disabled the WiFi to LAN bridge. It also forced me to purchase (used) switch and a separate router which thankfully didn't burn a hole in my pocket.

[Alex Atkin UK]

Did you look at this? https://www.mobilarian.com/showthread.php?t=1471749
 

They seem to correctly refer to it as AP isolation and suggest there may be a way to disable it, depending on if you can get find a way into the right settings.  No idea if you are on the same ISP and obviously different ISPs could lock things down and use different passwords.

 

It seems to suggest specific details are at the discord link in that post.

[turquato]

On 7/7/2019 at 10:38 AM, Alex Atkin UK said:

Did you look at this? https://www.mobilarian.com/showthread.php?t=1471749
 

They seem to correctly refer to it as AP isolation and suggest there may be a way to disable it, depending on if you can get find a way into the right settings.  No idea if you are on the same ISP and obviously different ISPs could lock things down and use different passwords.

 

It seems to suggest specific details are at the discord link in that post.

Just came to check for replies. I remember to have read the thread you have linked. I also tried reaching out to them on discord with my problem but the isolation was still there. I even went to my ISP to acquire the suggested administrator credentials to no avail.

Thank you @Alex Atkin UK for helping me out with my query. At the moment, I am sticking with my first solution. Will give updates whenever I find a better, less costly, solution.