Configuration of Metal 9 Routers using RouterOS for wireless bridging

RouterOS Beginner Basics
1

Hi All,

I purchased two Metal 9 routers from Mikrotik and I am having a hard time to configure routerOS for a wireless bridging application.

Basically, my intent is this

  1. Setup one Metal 9 as an access point (wireless Access Point)

  2. This Access Point need to bridge the wired ethernet port to the wireless network (ie, both should be on the same “LAN” domain, no WAN domain is needed )

  3. The Access point needs to have a DHCP server running for automatic IP allocation to clients that connect to it. DHCP leases shall be provided on both the wireless and the wired interface

  4. Setup the other Metal 9 as a simple wireless bridge that bridges the wired ethernet connection to the wireless network. This “client” shall scan and automatically connect to the Access point mentioned above

  5. There shall be no DHCP server running on this client. Any request for IP allocation comming from the wired ethernet interface shall be allocated from the DHCP server running on the Access Point device mentioned above

So far I have

  1. Upgraded the Firmware to the latest stable release 6.41.3
  2. I have configured the access point as follows
  • Create a bridge interface
  • Added ports ether1 and wlan1 to this bridge interface (At this point, ether1 is set to designated port and wlan1 as disabled port (why disabled? what does it mean? does it matter ?)
  • Configure the DHCP server to run on “bridge1” interface
  • Setup the security profile on wlan1 to use WPA key
  • Configured the wireless interface to “any” - Actually what is the preference here ? nv ? any? or the standard 802.11 [ with metal 9 in mind ]

My question right now is as follows:

  • Why is wlan1 configured as disabled port ?
  • Is my progress correct or did I make a configuration mistake ? Suggestions are welcomed !

I have not yet configured the client, I will let you know of my success or if I have any more questions