Installing TP Link Deco mesh

Yes, you do hook the WAN port of the Mesh to a LAN port of the BGW, but yes, you should also set up IP Passthrough to the Mesh:

1. Ensure that your Mesh router's LAN is set up on a different IP subnet than the Gateway
2. Connect the WAN port of your router to a LAN port of the Gateway (probably avoiding port 1)
3. Connect some device with a browser to a LAN port of the Gateway (probably avoiding port 1)
4. use that browser to go to http://192.168.1.254
5. Go to Firewall > IP Passthrough, enter the password from the sticker on the side of the Gateway when prompted
6. Select "Passthrough" for Allocation Mode
7. Set "Fixed" for Passthrough Mode
8. Select your router in the drop down for the MAC address
9. Hit Save
10. Power off your Gateway and Router
11. Power on the Gateway after 30 seconds
12. Power on the Router after 5 minutes
13. Check that the router's WAN address is something other than 192.168.1.x
14. Test everything out
15. Turn off the Wi-Fi on the Gateway (Home Network > Wi-Fi)

I added a tplink deco mesh to my BGW320 connecting the from port 1 to the Ethernet port. The uverse dvr recordings are freezing and skipping portions of the shows. I assume it is a conflict with the uverse network and the Deco network. My goal was to leave the uverse network alone and add the deco mesh for the tablets, laptops, Alexa, phones etc. 

i had a router using the tplink one mesh prior to going to the deco mesh version without this issue that I was aware of. 
thx for help in advance

Hi, @henrydallas, we would be happy to assist with your U-verse issues.

We recommend you first restart your TV receiver by holding the POWER button down for 10 seconds then pressing it again to restart. This process takes 5-8 minutes and will impact any DVR recordings in progress.

We then suggest restart your Wi-Fi Gateway by removing the power cord for one minute then plugging it back in. This will interrupt all of your AT&T services, including phone and TV.

Following that, you should run the U-verse receiver through the U-verse Troubleshoot and Resolve tool.  You can do so through the following steps:

1. Press Menu on your U-verse TV remote control. 
2. Use the arrow keys and scroll down to Help, then press OK.
3. Scroll down to Information and press OK.
4. Scroll right and select Troubleshoot & Resolve.
5. Select TV from the top menu.
6. Choose DVR and follow the prompts.

If  these steps do not resolve this, you may need to follow the steps previously provided by our ACE, @JefferMC to make sure you have IP Passthrough properly setup.

If after doing all of the above, we recommend restarting the troubleshooting process with the devices disconnected from the third party equipment to determine if the issue lies with the AT&T equipment, or the third party network.

Please get back with us and let us know if the steps provided were able to help resolve this for you.

Daniel, AT&T Community Specialist

Does what jeffermc suggests, achieve the goal of having 2 networks?

one for uverse and one for the other’s devices?

Hello @henrydallas, we understand you want to know if jeffermc suggestion will help. 

The answer to your question is no. IP pass-through will not create 2 different networks, it will just have your 3rd party equipment take over. If you'd like to have 2 different networks, you may want to look into band steering. If you disable this feature, you can connect different devices to each WI-FI band.

Please let us know if this helps you. 

DemetriaC, AT&T Community Specialist

The at&t uverse equipment will remain on a subnet with the gateway.  Your router will control a separate network for your internet. 

Thx, went with jeffermc directions and not getting the issue any longer. 

Well it didn’t last long. The next day the freezing and skipping returned on U-verse. I disconnected the tplink deco mesh and returned it and reset the system back to original settings. Very disappointed with the help provided thus far. 
Running with just the bgw modem/router and interruptions are minimal. 
I need to be able to add some extended Wi-Fi capability

Help would be appreciated. 

Unless you were plugging the Mesh router TP Link Mesh router into the same switch you had the AT&T WAP, DVR or wired receivers on, it really shouldn't have affected your TV viewing significantly.

I did as you suggested. I plugged the mesh router into port 2. The mesh was originally plugged into port 1, as was the prior basic Wi-Fi router tplink ac7. 
We were having the same issue with the ac7, but the freeze/delay was only about second or so. After the changes to the mesh and before and after the port/settings, the freeze/delay was more often and longer, as in 5 minutes or more. Now without any additional router it does not appear to be occurring.