1

Is there some "light switch" or anything else what can indicate its state to a router.

In more detail:
I am searching for a simple Wi-Fi or Ethernet device, presence of which in the network can be quickly turned on and off in simple way – physically – to make a router recognize some external condition.

For example: When the device is switched on, it can reply to ping at static IP address 192.168.31.31 and the MikroTik router (using its scripting language) knows that in turn it should enable for example guest Wi-Fi. Once the device is switched off, ping of 192.168.31.31 no longer returns a reply so the router will disable the feature.

Ideally it should be a passive device or one with very low power consumption, low maintenance (i.e. not an older mobile phone which needs to be maintained charged and has a lengthy bootup/shutdown). The device does not need to be portable. If plugging/unplugging an Ethernet cable somewhere solves the problem, it would be also acceptable.

Improve this question
3
  • May I have any explanation for a down vote? What has to be improved?
    – miroxlav
    Commented Sep 28, 2020 at 17:24
  • The question itself is sound, and the way it is written is understandable. The downvote was unfair. As for the answer, there are a massive range of possibilities only limited by how much time you want to spend. You could use an ESP32 running copy+pasted sample code, or set up a fully-fledged wall panel with a touchscreen indicating status etc. This is "beyond 100%" doable, and thanks to the IoT device revolution, *extremely easily* doable, to the point that most answers would include the stylistic/aesthetic preferences of the person answering.
    – i336_
    Commented Sep 30, 2020 at 13:45
  • @i336_ – Thank you for the comment. I think I am able to program this using Arduino etc. but maybe there is already a simple five-dollar thing suitable out-of-the-box for such a purpose. So if someone could drop me a simple non-programming answer, that may be helpful because I am not very oriented in recent world of IoT devices.
    – miroxlav
    Commented Sep 30, 2020 at 18:50

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
1

If what you're specifically trying to do is turn wifi on and off remotely, that can be done with a small 5-port managed network switch and wifi access point, and sending port configuration commands to it via SSH.

Router -> Managed switch -> Wifi access point

You would write a script that then remotely configure the port to enable or disable it.

Turn off:

  • connect to managed switch
  • login user / password
  • configure port 7
  • disable
  • logout

If the router accepts commands via SSH, then you can probably do the same to remotely turn the guest wifi on and off, and without having to buy anything extra.

Turn off via SSH:

  • connect to router
  • login user / password
  • configure guest wifi
  • disable
  • logout
Improve this answer
1
  • It is not so simple. If you disable port to AP, how could you check if it is back to enable it?
    – Sylwester Zarębski
    Commented Oct 29, 2020 at 20:18

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.