Hi TP-Link Support — I’m reaching out after two days of trying to get my Deco mesh system working as the primary router behind my AT&T BGW320 fiber gateway. Despite following all setup steps and confirming passthrough is active, the Deco is still getting a private IP.

 

 

 

 

🔧 System Setup:

 

 

• ISP: AT&T Fiber 1000 Mbps
• Modem/Gateway: AT&T BGW320
• Mesh System: TP-Link Deco (3-unit system; main unit hardwired)
• Mode: Deco is set to Router Mode
• Internet Type: Dynamic IP (DHCP) selected during setup

 

 

 

 

 

✅ My Goal:

 

 

• I want Deco to act as the sole router in my home.
• I’m trying to use IP Passthrough from the BGW320 so Deco receives the public IP and manages all traffic (no double NAT).

 

 

 

 

 

🔁 What I’ve Already Done:

 

 

1. Reset all Deco units and factory reset BGW320
2. Set BGW320 to:
   • IP Passthrough Mode: Enabled
   • Passthrough Type: DHCPS-fixed
   • MAC Address: Selected Deco from device list
   • Saved and rebooted
3.  
4. Disabled AT&T Wi-Fi radios (2.4 & 5 GHz)
5. Main Deco connected to BGW320’s yellow LAN port
6. Power cycled in proper order: unplug Deco → reboot BGW320 → wait 2–3 mins → plug Deco back in
7. Waited for full boot and checked Deco’s internet IP

 

 

 

 

 

⚠️ Problem:

 

 

• Deco never gets the public IP from AT&T. It always shows a private IP like 192.168.1.75
• Meanwhile, the BGW320 shows passthrough is active, and displays the correct public IP (45.17.16.127)
• Deco is the only LAN-connected device during setup (no switches, no other active connections)
• I also unplugged my Vivint Smart Drive, which was previously on the network, in case it was grabbing the lease

 

 

 

 

 

📷 What I See:

 

 

• On BGW320:
  • IP Passthrough: On (public IP address)
  • IP Passthrough Address: 45.17.16.127
•  
• In Deco app:
  • IP address is always 192.168.x.x (private) — never updates to public IP
•  

 

 

 

 

 

❓My Questions:

 

 

1. Is there a known issue where Deco doesn’t accept a public IP via passthrough from AT&T gateways?
2. Could there be a DHCP timing conflict where Deco isn’t requesting the IP fast enough?
3. Is there a way to force Deco to release/renew WAN lease or spoof a MAC address to match the one BGW320 expects?
4. Does Deco require any VLAN tagging or other custom config for this to work on AT&T?

 

 

Any help would be appreciated. I’d love to avoid having to bypass the BGW320 altogether if I can get this working properly through standard passthrough.

 

Thanks in advance.