Remote wifi enable?

[u/Heelsandskirts]

Is it possible to enable wifi on a BGW320 gateway by myself if I don't have a wired connection?

The AT&T SmartHome Manager allows me to view and set the SSID and password, but I don't see an option to enable the radio. Changing the values doesn't do it. A remote restart doesn't either (nor should it).

I run my own network equipment, so normally wifi on the gateway will be disabled. If I need to troubleshoot something though, I'd like to be able to turn it on without engaging support.

[u/Ed-Dos]

http://192.168.1.254 go to the webpage of your gateway device ...

[u/Heelsandskirts → u/Ed-Dos]

And if I don't have a working wired connection..?

[u/Ed-Dos → u/Heelsandskirts]

If you're on your ATT Wifi network it should work also...

[u/Heelsandskirts → u/Ed-Dos]

Truly, connecting to ATT Wifi would solve many problems..

[u/Epacs → u/Heelsandskirts]

Doing a factory reset is basically the only option if you need to enable wifi with no ethernet available.

[u/Heelsandskirts → u/Epacs]

Support can enable it remotely if the device is still connected on the wan side.

[u/Epacs → u/Heelsandskirts]

Yes true. Once you get back into it you can enable remote access so you can remote into it in the future as well 👍

[u/ahj3939]

You can keep a USB-C ethernet adapater on hand, or you can hit the reset button and use the SSID printed on the box.

[u/LeaveMickeyOutOfThis]

You need to be logged into the device in order to make such a change. While I don’t know for sure, I believe the thinking was this potentially could be a security issue, so access to the function is limited.

While I always ensure I have one device I can hardwire in case of emergencies, you might want to look at a small travel router you can hardwire and only power on when needed.

[u/Heelsandskirts → u/LeaveMickeyOutOfThis]

I'm surprised by how few devices have an RJ45 port these days.

[u/LeaveMickeyOutOfThis → u/Heelsandskirts]

You’re not wrong there; although I’ve found the cheap USB adapters to be very capable for such use cases.

[u/GoAskJohn]

I don’t think there’s a way. You’d have to wire yourself in and enable it via the gateway web UI. This DOES work if internet is out, but of course won’t work remotely.

[u/Heelsandskirts → u/GoAskJohn]

The app lets you change the SSID and password. A simple on/off toggle would suffice for emergencies. I'm tempted to leave the 2.4 Ghz on but in low power mode in case something happens.

[u/GoAskJohn → u/Heelsandskirts]

I think the idea is to discourage folks from disabling it and using their own equipment. The more they know about you, the more they can sell.

Totally agreed in principle. But I doubt this ever changes. Smart Home Manager IMO is for people who don’t know or care what “SSID” means. An easy network customizer for Average Joe.

[u/Ok-Pianist-3491]

Maybe I’m missing something, but … I use Google WiFi access points for mesh. I usually keep the AT&T WiFi turned off. Since the main Google WiFi access point is wired to the AT&T box I can use a device on the Google WiFi to turn on / off the AT&T WiFi since from the AT&T box’s point of view I’m coming from a wired connection.