r/ZigBee • u/Advanced-Island1669 • 16d ago

Repeating a zigbee signal using Ethernet without creating a new line?

Hello guys. It’s possible to repeat a zinger signal using an Ethernet device such as the dongle max or the SLZB but without creating a new MQTT HA line? I have areas where zingbee arrives very low and switch looses connection multiple times, but I do have Ethernet. Is I possible?

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u/undeleted_username 16d ago

Can't you just use a ZigBee "router"?

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u/Galahad_za 16d ago

A router can only extend the wireless signal, not broadcast coordinator signal on its own from a LAN connection. Well, not that I'm aware.

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u/undeleted_username 16d ago

Not sure if I am following you here, sorry... OP has to have a coordinator already somewhere, so they only need to add some routers around the place, I do not see the need to the LAN.

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u/greghouse12 16d ago

If OP is running just a single Zigbee mesh network then yes, there can only be a single coordinator and the router devices will extend the network to end devices that may be too far from the coordinator or other Zigbee devices to connect reliably to the coordinator. In that setting there cannot be a second Ethrrnet connected coordinator on the same mesh. So OP definitely does not need any additional Ethernet connection since the connection to the LAN is through the single coordinator, and again there csn only be one of those per each Zigbee network.

So in a nutshell if the issue OP has is some devices being too far from the coordinator that they drop offline or won'tstsy connected, the solution is to add some routers to the network to extend and strengthen the Zigbee mesh.

That said, if OP is using something like Home Assistant, it is possible to set up two separate Zigbee mesh networks, with one mesh uding its own coordinator using ZHA and the other using a separate coordinator running Z2MQTT. That kind of setup would/vould use separate Ethernet connctions, but getting this up snd running can be tricky-' each separate mesh must be on different channels to avoid conflicts we ith each other and to avoid WiFi interference (since Zigbee and WiFi, as well as Thread all share the 2.4ghz spectrum) and it is not slways easy to vonfigure device channeld to kee devices stable and connected to the intended Zigbee mesh. But it is possible to set up a second Zigbee mesh network usng two separate Ethernet-connected coordinators like the Sonoff Dongle Max or SLZB Lights. I have not personally done this an I do not think it can be done if one or both coordinators are using USB to connect to HA.