I have a CCR1009 that we are using for a concentrator/DHCP Server/Router to connect several Access Points to our backbone via a SFP fiber uplink on the CCR1009 going to another Mikrotik Router.
My question is rather than connect an external switch to one of the 10/100/1000 routed ports on the CCR can I combine or bridge 3 Ethernet ports so they are on the same Layer 2 network but still are routed by the CCR and use each separate port for a different AP but on the same subnet. Is this possible or advisable? If it is, what is the procedure to set this up?
I usually have 1-4 as a LAN switch and use 5 for wan1, 6 for wan2 and so on. The fiber port may be used as downlink for another LAN switch that needs to be electrically isolated/insulated.
Nice, I did not know any ports had a hardware switch chip. I’m assuming it would be possible to software switch the other ports, but ports 1-4 would be preferred because they would be hardware switched. Also is there any performance disadvantage to using ports 1-4 as routed ports since they have a switch port chip? Also, do other CCR’s and routerboards have switch chips or are they software switched?
If I set ports 1-3 to use port 4 as the master switch port can I physically use port 4 for a 4th AP or do I need to leave it unplugged?
For routing to the rest of the Mikrotik ports from the switch ports do I assign the IP Address for the switch port segment to the master port or some other port/etc?
You can use the master port no problem. Usually 1 is the master port. If your LAN is flat and the AP is part of the same network you can have it as part of the same switch. Some solutions require the port to be isolated and use routing rules to provide access to the other services.