Netgate Discussion Forum
    • Categories
    • Recent
    • Tags
    • Popular
    • Users
    • Search
    • Register
    • Login

    Want to Access Switch from a Different Subnet.

    Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved General pfSense Questions
    subnetrouting
    23 Posts 8 Posters 5.2k Views
    Loading More Posts
    • Oldest to Newest
    • Newest to Oldest
    • Most Votes
    Reply
    • Reply as topic
    Log in to reply
    This topic has been deleted. Only users with topic management privileges can see it.
    • GertjanG
      Gertjan @aeboi80
      last edited by

      @aeboi80 said in Want to Access Switch from a Different Subnet.:

      I could assign the switch an IP in the 10.10.0.0 range and that would solve this,
      is it not possible to access the web interface of the switch at all from the 10.10.0.0 network?

      ?
      When assigned into the 10.10.x.y range, it's possible to access the device in the 10.10.x.y ....

      No "help me" PM's please. Use the forum, the community will thank you.
      Edit : and where are the logs ??

      A 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • JKnottJ
        JKnott @aeboi80
        last edited by

        @aeboi80 said in Want to Access Switch from a Different Subnet.:

        is it not possible to access the web interface of the switch at all from the 10.10.0.0 network?

        You could create an alias address on pfSense and then allow routing. But as soon as you try to connect to the switch, pfSense will give you an ICMP redirect, telling you to connect directly to the switch. An alias on the computer should work, but that has nothing to do with pfSense. Creating an alias in Linux is easy enough, but I don't know about Windows.

        PfSense running on Qotom mini PC
        i5 CPU, 4 GB memory, 32 GB SSD & 4 Intel Gb Ethernet ports.
        UniFi AC-Lite access point

        I haven't lost my mind. It's around here...somewhere...

        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • stephenw10S
          stephenw10 Netgate Administrator @stephenw10
          last edited by

          @stephenw10 said in Want to Access Switch from a Different Subnet.:

          You can add a virtual IP to the pfSense LAN in the 192.168.0.0 subnet that will allow it to route traffic to it. You will end up with an asymmetric route if it's all on the same interface though.

          If you also add an outbound NAT rule for 10.10.0.0 to 192.168.0.0 on the LAN interface that will work around asymmetric routing and allow you to access the switch.
          It's a useful technique to access some device when you have no way to change it, something stuck at it's default config for example. But be sure you understand what is happening there, it's a bit if an ugly hack. I would not want to use it permanently, it will probably come back to bite you if you do. ๐Ÿ˜‰

          Steve

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • JKnottJ
            JKnott
            last edited by

            @stephenw10 said in Want to Access Switch from a Different Subnet.:

            If you also add an outbound NAT rule for 10.10.0.0 to 192.168.0.0 on the LAN interface that will work around asymmetric routing and allow you to access the switch.

            I bet an ICMP redirect is more likely. PfSense will see that both the switch and computer IP addresses are on the same network and will tell the computer to connect directly. And yes, I have experienced that years ago, when I tried something similar.

            PfSense running on Qotom mini PC
            i5 CPU, 4 GB memory, 32 GB SSD & 4 Intel Gb Ethernet ports.
            UniFi AC-Lite access point

            I haven't lost my mind. It's around here...somewhere...

            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • stephenw10S
              stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
              last edited by

              That might happen but since neither the client or the switch have an IP in the others subnet....

              Mmm, in fact that should not end up asymmtreic in that case. ๐Ÿค”

              JKnottJ 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • johnpozJ
                johnpoz LAYER 8 Global Moderator
                last edited by johnpoz

                Im not really getting how you have this all connected together... WTF is layer 2+ ?? ;)

                Sounds a bit like your wanting to run multiple layer 3 on the same layer2? If your switch is on the the 10.10 layer 2, then it should have an IP on the 10.10, if you want to route to a different network with 192.168 - then yeah you can easy route to that.. But it needs to be a different layer 2 network.

                An intelligent man is sometimes forced to be drunk to spend time with his fools
                If you get confused: Listen to the Music Play
                Please don't Chat/PM me for help, unless mod related
                SG-4860 24.11 | Lab VMs 2.7.2, 24.11

                NogBadTheBadN A 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • JKnottJ
                  JKnott @stephenw10
                  last edited by

                  @stephenw10 said in Want to Access Switch from a Different Subnet.:

                  That might happen but since neither the client or the switch have an IP in the others subnet....

                  I assume you're referring to my post. If you set up an alias on pfSense, then it will have 2 addresses on the same network. When the computer tries to reach the switch or vice versa, pfSense will see they are on the same wire and should be able to reach the destination directly, without going through the router, and send the redirect. The only way to do this is to add an alias on the computer. That way the computer will send out the packets, with the correct address to reach the switch, with absolutely no involvement by pfSense.

                  PfSense running on Qotom mini PC
                  i5 CPU, 4 GB memory, 32 GB SSD & 4 Intel Gb Ethernet ports.
                  UniFi AC-Lite access point

                  I haven't lost my mind. It's around here...somewhere...

                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • NogBadTheBadN
                    NogBadTheBad @johnpoz
                    last edited by

                    @johnpoz said in Want to Access Switch from a Different Subnet.:

                    Im not really getting how you have this all connected together... WTF is layer 2+ ?? ;)

                    Sounds a bit like your wanting to run multiple layer 3 on the same layer2? If your switch is on the the 10.10 layer 2, then it should have an IP on the 10.10, if you want to route to a different network with 192.168 - then yeah you can easy route to that.. But it needs to be a different layer 2 network.

                    Knew I'd seen a brand somewhere saying L2+ lol its Netgear.

                    Screenshot 2019-09-17 at 15.19.07.png

                    Andy

                    1 x Netgate SG-4860 - 3 x Linksys LGS308P - 1 x Aruba InstantOn AP22

                    JKnottJ 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • JKnottJ
                      JKnott @NogBadTheBad
                      last edited by

                      @NogBadTheBad said in Want to Access Switch from a Different Subnet.:

                      Knew I'd seen a brand somewhere saying L2+ lol its Netgear.

                      That still doesn't say what L2+ is. Is it VLANs? Routing? Something else?

                      PfSense running on Qotom mini PC
                      i5 CPU, 4 GB memory, 32 GB SSD & 4 Intel Gb Ethernet ports.
                      UniFi AC-Lite access point

                      I haven't lost my mind. It's around here...somewhere...

                      NogBadTheBadN 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • stephenw10S
                        stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                        last edited by

                        You can route between layer 3 subnets on the same layer 2 segment. You shouldn't do it.... but you can. ๐Ÿ˜‰

                        However the switch would need to be using whatever VIP address you add to pfSense as it's gateway in order to have a route back. It probably doesn't have that so adding the outbound NAT rule will allow it to reply.

                        I say any of this only because:
                        @aeboi80 said:

                        ... but for the sake of learning something...is it not possible to access the web interface of the switch at all from the 10.10.0.0 network?

                        Steve

                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                        • NogBadTheBadN
                          NogBadTheBad @JKnott
                          last edited by

                          @JKnott said in Want to Access Switch from a Different Subnet.:

                          @NogBadTheBad said in Want to Access Switch from a Different Subnet.:

                          Knew I'd seen a brand somewhere saying L2+ lol its Netgear.

                          That still doesn't say what L2+ is. Is it VLANs? Routing? Something else?

                          I tried to look exactly what they meant by L2+, gave up after a few mins.

                          Andy

                          1 x Netgate SG-4860 - 3 x Linksys LGS308P - 1 x Aruba InstantOn AP22

                          GertjanG 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • GertjanG
                            Gertjan @NogBadTheBad
                            last edited by

                            @NogBadTheBad said in Want to Access Switch from a Different Subnet.:

                            L2+

                            Easy : ISO 2 and above (?) โ˜บ

                            No "help me" PM's please. Use the forum, the community will thank you.
                            Edit : and where are the logs ??

                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                            • P
                              pfSense4ME
                              last edited by

                              Layer 2 vs Layer 3: What Makes Layer 3 Switch Different?
                              When comparing the Layer 2 switch to a Layer 3 switch the first thing to look at is what additional software functionality you are getting. When a switch supports Dynamic Routing Protocols, itโ€™s no longer a strictly Layer 2 switch. Because static routing allows traffic to be routed between VLANs. In fact, the switches that add only Static Routing to their software features are considered to be somewhere between a Layer 2 and full Layer 3 switch. Sometimes called Layer 2+ or Layer 3 Lite. Unlike Layer 2+ switch, Layer 3 switch is Dynamic Routing ,which are used to link large networks together and share routing tables between them. They can also allow for dynamic routing of multicast traffic on the network.

                              Google search:
                              layer 2 vs "layer 2+" switch

                              Source:
                              Link_Info.jpg
                              *Sorry for the pic but when I tried to input the url as a link or plain text it kept getting flagged as spam. If the link / pic is not acceptable (because it voilates a rule - apologies) please remove or correct.

                              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                              • A
                                aeboi80 @Gertjan
                                last edited by

                                @Gertjan Yes

                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • A
                                  aeboi80 @johnpoz
                                  last edited by

                                  @johnpoz said in Want to Access Switch from a Different Subnet.:

                                  WT

                                  This is the switch - https://www.tp-link.com/us/business-networking/smart-switch/t1600g-28ps/

                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                  • stephenw10S
                                    stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                                    last edited by

                                    Mmm, so static routing between segments/subnets. That's layer 3 in my opinion. ๐Ÿ˜€
                                    I guess I can see why they wanted some in-between label.

                                    Steve

                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                    • johnpozJ
                                      johnpoz LAYER 8 Global Moderator
                                      last edited by

                                      Hehehe - dude really? There is layer 2, and then there is layer 3 ;) There is no layer 2+ heheheh

                                      These stupid marketing nonsense terms.. If you want to call it layer 3 lite would be better than layer 2+

                                      Where is this drawing of your network? Do you need some color+ crayons to use? ;)

                                      While it is technically feasible to route multiple layer 3 on the same layer 2 - it would be the technical term BORKED if you actually do something like that ;)

                                      An intelligent man is sometimes forced to be drunk to spend time with his fools
                                      If you get confused: Listen to the Music Play
                                      Please don't Chat/PM me for help, unless mod related
                                      SG-4860 24.11 | Lab VMs 2.7.2, 24.11

                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                      • DerelictD
                                        Derelict LAYER 8 Netgate
                                        last edited by

                                        A Layer 2+ switch generally has things like DHCP snooping but can't actually be configured as a router like a Layer 3 switch.

                                        Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA
                                        A comprehensive network diagram is worth 10,000 words and 15 conference calls.
                                        DO NOT set a source address/port in a port forward or firewall rule unless you KNOW you need it!
                                        Do Not Chat For Help! NO_WAN_EGRESS(TM)

                                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                        • johnpozJ
                                          johnpoz LAYER 8 Global Moderator
                                          last edited by johnpoz

                                          So a smart/managed layer 2 then ;)

                                          BTW, if your going to route and your wanting to access something on your downstream from a IP that is on your transit network you are always going to run into asymmetrical problems..

                                          asymmetrical.png

                                          If you want to route to other networks on your downstream, then that needs to be connected to your upstream router via a transit network.. If you going to want to get to it from devices on your transit network.. Then you need to host route on them, or you run into the above asymmetrical problem.

                                          Connect your upstream to your downstream via transit network (no hosts on it) and your asymmetrical issues are gone
                                          17216.png

                                          Also if you created your SVI on the L2 that your 10 network is on, then its IP would be in the 10 nework.. If you created put the svi on a different L2, then you need to route it via a transit or host routes or your going to have the asymmetrical problems.

                                          An intelligent man is sometimes forced to be drunk to spend time with his fools
                                          If you get confused: Listen to the Music Play
                                          Please don't Chat/PM me for help, unless mod related
                                          SG-4860 24.11 | Lab VMs 2.7.2, 24.11

                                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                          • First post
                                            Last post
                                          Copyright 2025 Rubicon Communications LLC (Netgate). All rights reserved.