64 device limit

[Bren11]

I believe there is a 64 device limit on sly services.

I have a lot of IOT devices (more than 64)

I would like this removed. How do I get sky to do this?

I run my own high powered router in AP mode which has more than enough powerto handle 200 devices.

Brendan

[TimmyBGood]

@Bren11 

Any such hard limit (which I don't believe has ever been confirmed) is not something which could be 'removed' by an ISP because it would likely be inherent to the design of the device.  If a subscriber doesn't want to be constrained by the inevitability budget nature of an ISP-provided router, they need to source and configure their own.

[Lisa-P1987]

We have a limit because Sky is a Domestic ISP, having something like 200 devices is very much out of the norm for a domestic household. Unfortunately you cannot remove the limit. 

[Bren11]

Lisa, 

Many thanks. Do you acutally know the limit to number of devices? Nobody in Sky seems to know, or can confirm the details. Your statement, while facutal, does seem to be a general statement. I am not attacking you, just seeking a factual confirmation of the limit. At the moment I have about 70 devices, mostly IOT like switches ,lights etc which are very low bandwidth. These are handled by a high end router in AP mode with seperate 2.4/5GHZ netoworks without problem. The Sky router simply acts as DHCP with my router doing the main of the work.

I suspect the number of IOT devices will steading increase in the average household. Knowing the device limit per Sky connect would be a useful fact to know. I would appreciate it, if you or someone in Sky could confirm this limit.

Many thanks.

Brendan

[Bren11]

Many thanks for your thoughts. It all makes good common sense. I used a high powered router in AP mode which handles many IOT devices without problem. I just would like Sky to tell me if there is a limit to number of devices connect through the Sky "pipe". Theoretically 254, but nobody in Sky seems to be able to confirm.

Thanks again.

Brendan

[TimmyBGood]

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@Bren11 wrote:

 Theoretically 254, but nobody in Sky seems to be able to confirm.

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254 would be a limit on IP addresses available using a 255.255.255.0 subnet mask, not anything to do with a 'pipe', and I suspect 64 is just quoted due to it being one of those 'magical' computer numbers based on multiples of eight.  The likely actual limit is either the point where a register overflows or the chipset runs out of steam.

[JPR007]

@Bren11 There is no hard "limit" set by Sky or any ISP, i'm not quite sure where or why you were quoted that or what it's in relation too. Some figures get banded round based on experience of how many devices the ISP router can handle, and 30-40 is considered the upper reasonable limitation before you start running into problems. What you will find is Sky (and other ISP's) will have a ball park figure that they would give as a limit to the number of devices for a domestic connection, as @Lisa-P1987 has mentioned.

The theoretical technical limit as has been mentioned already is 254 devices, but the chipsets in standard ISP hardware would long crash/explode/meltdown trying to handle that many devices. This is where as you have already said, proper 3rd party kit is required with the necessary horsepower. 

Any kind of limitation would be the amount of data you are trying to pull down your connection, but if you max it, you max it, Sky can't limit how many devices you connect on the end of it, you will just get frustrated. It's perfectly possible to max a connection with 1 device, or you could run a 100 and they don't even use half of your capacity. Any limits is really driven by how you use your connection.

[mlblondon]

We are going to have to leave SKY because of the 64 device limit on the router spec. It is a genuine limit, having viewed the connected devices page it never goes beyond a total of 64 when IPV4 and IPV6 are combined.

We have smart plugs, laptops, consoles, phones, and other IoT bits and bobs and regularly exceed 64 connected devices in part because some of these devices will connect twice, via 2.4GHz and 5GHz registering as two devices on the router. The way the router deals with this is unpredictable, it can boot some devices off the network or overheat and simply crash. It's not a very solid piece of tech if pushed beyone the most basic of set ups.

In 2022 a maximum capacity of 64 connected devices is no longer realistic, or enough.

Unless there is a new, higher performing SKY Q Hub in the pipeline that resolves this, we'll have to switch to a new ISP and buy a MESH setup that is fit for purpose.

[mae-3]

@Bren11 

The best way to achieve that is buy your own router, and don't use Sky's router it is after all poor.

[TimmyBGood]

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@mlblondon wrote:

Unless there is a new, higher performing SKY Q Hub in the pipeline that resolves this

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Um, the Q Hub (early 2016) hasn't been the most recent model since late 2019 .  However, the Sky Broadband Hub appears to support a similar maximum number of client devices.

There will undoubtedly be a successor model simply to keep up with changing technology (WiFi 6 and WPA 3) and hardware from competitor ISPs but arrival time is entirely unknown.

[Chrisee]

@mlblondon the current ER115 "Sky Q hub" and the SR203 hub "Sky Broadband Hub" have no hard 64 wifi device limit according to Sky and there is no reason not to believe them. The very old white Sky hubs did have limits but Sky will replace these if asked. However the processor in the free units does run out of puff and speeds drop etc sell before the 64 unit address limit.

Any device that overheats or dies due to wifi connection is faulty and almost certainly does not meet UK regulations and therefore should not be sold here. The IOT market is plagued with cheap counterfeits so be careful where you buy from. Most well specified devices will link to dualband SSID but some wont in which case separate the bands see Split Sky WiFi bands.

There is a huge market for third party wifi kit for a reason the freebie routers given away by ISPs are built to a price and will only suit basic set ups. You can pay many hundreds on better kit expecting a freebie to offer similar power is simply not going to happen.It is similar with most other ISPs but you can link most third party kit to your Sky broadband service it can be tricky but the forum can advise. 

[mlblondon]

Hi Chrisee, thank you for taking the time to post such a comprehensive reply.

The only thing I disagree with you on is that I think the 64 device limit is documented and real, you can check for yourself (if you have more than 64 devices connecting) by viewing, and frequently refreshing the attached devices page on the relevant router config page. The sum of IPV4 and IPV6 devices will never exceed 64, even when I know there are 70+ devices attempting to connect. What we also see, which is very frustratring is that a new device connecting if it's device number 65 for example will sometimes cause an already attached device to be booted off the network.

I think the ISPs will have to raise their game on the robustness of their tech as homes accumulate more and more connected devices. Some do invest in decent routers, Zen Internet for example have always provided decent kit with their FRITZ box which can cope with hundreds of simultaneous devices and also has built-in DECT capability.

[Tom-W19]

Hi mlblondon

Just to add to what Chrisee and Lisa have said previously i can confirm the device limit on the latest Sky Hub SR203 is around 128 devices (64 on 2.4ghz and 64 on 5ghz).

Hope this helps.

[mlblondon]

@Tom-W19 Hi Tom, thank you for this info. How might I go about upgrading my hub please? We currently have the ER110 model.

Many thanks

[Tom-W19]

Hi @mlblondon 

You can upgrade to the SR203 Hub by taking the Sky Broadband Boost subscription.

You will be able to find relevant offers on your account for this.

Hope this helps.