How to Set Up a Wireless Bridge in Nebula – Root and Repeater AP Configuration

This guide shows how to set up a wireless bridge using Zyxel Nebula Access Points. The wireless bridge links a repeater AP to a wired LAN through a mesh connection, allowing wired devices to connect via the AP’s LAN port. 

Please note: This article covers the Wireless Bridge feature, not Smart Mesh. Although both technologies are designed to expand or connect network coverage wirelessly, they are fundamentally different in operation and typical use cases.

Wireless Bridge is commonly used to connect separate wired segments over a wireless link (point-to-point or point-to-multipoint), ideal for environments where running Ethernet cables is not feasible. In contrast, Smart Mesh is designed to wirelessly extend Wi-Fi coverage by automatically forming mesh links between access points within the same network.

If you are looking for information about Smart Mesh instead, please refer to the links below. You can also explore our virtual labs to see how each technology works and determine which is most suitable for your environment.

• How to Configure Smart Mesh in Nebula – Setup, Monitoring, and Troubleshooting

• SMB Office Nebula-Based Network Topology with WAN Backup and Wireless Bridge
• SMB/Home Office Setup with Firewall, Switch and Smart Mesh

You'll learn how to:

• Enable Smart Mesh and Wireless Bridge on both APs

• Position and power the repeater AP correctly

• Verify mesh status and signal strength

• Connect a switch or other LAN devices to the repeater AP

This setup lets you extend your wired network without additional cabling, while keeping WiFi service active.

Configure Wireless Bridge

A wireless bridge is bridging your traffic from a mesh system to a wired LAN system.

Connect the Repeater AP to the network

Connect both APs on the wired cable and deploy them to the locations after below configuration is up to date.

Enable Smart Mesh & Wireless Bridge on both APs

Make sure that both APs have Smart Mesh & Wireless Bridge enabled by going into 

"Access Point -> Access Point, and then going into the configuration of both APs. 

You can find the Smart mesh and Wireless bridge configuration under "Status" section and click on the little "paper & pencil" to edit the configuration:

Enable Smart Mesh and Wireless Bridge

Click on "Enabled" to enable the Smart Mesh:

Click on "Enabled" to enable the Smart Mesh:	Click on "Enabled" to enable Wireless Bridge

Place the AP where you want it 

After you enabled smart mesh & wireless bridge, make sure you wait -7-10 minutes for the AP to get the new configuration you configured in NCC and then disconnect the Repeater AP from the network.

Setting Up the Repeater AP (with power cable or PoE)

Relocate the Access Point
Move the access point to its intended location where it will function as a repeater. Ensure the location is within wireless range of your main mesh network.

Connect Power
Plug in the power adapter and turn on the access point.

Automatic Mesh Connection
Once powered on, the access point will enter autonomous mode. It may take up to 15 minutes to automatically detect and connect to the existing Mesh network.

Rejoin the Network
After the mesh connection is established, the access point will integrate into the network and resume normal operation. No manual pairing is required.

Under Side-wide -> Monitor -> Topology, you can see the status of the topology (Pro Pack feature):

Successfully Connected!

When the mesh link is connected, you will see that the Repeater AP has a white symbol with green details. The root AP will have a green symbol with white details. 

Check the signal strength of the mesh connection

Before you continue, we highly suggest you to take a look at the wireless link strength, which is of high importance for the stability of your mesh system. 

Go to:

Site-wide > Devices > Access Points

Then click on the little paper in the right-hand side of the webpage. Then mark the uplink signal.

Now you have the uplink signal (and Uplink Tx/Rz rate if you also want to see the uplink capacity of the link):

Please refer to this picture to see if you have a good signal or not:

Reference: https://chetnet.ltd.uk/wireless/wifi-signal-strength/

Connect your switch (or other network equipment) to the AP's LAN port

Now, connect your switch (or other network equipment) to the AP's LAN port (NOT uplink port) and then you have now successfully configured the Wireless Bridge in Nebula.

Under Site-Wide > Topology you can see that the our Repeater AP is successfully connected to the switch.

Note! Both APs (root & repeater) need to support Wireless Bridge for the bridge to LAN to work.

You can still use the WiFi of the mesh-link because it dedicates 1 band (e.g. 5GHz) to the mesh-link and the WiFi users will be load balanced to the other band (e.g. 2,4GHz)