SAC2V1K Wave router, can't get custom DNS to work

RatherLoopy

I'm a new internet subscriber and am trying to configure my Wave 2 router to use a local DNS (PI-Hole @ 192.168.1.25) running on my LAN, but nothing I try seems to cause DNS queries from my LAN devices to go through the local DNS (at least those queries don't show up in the DNS log at all). The only reason I need my local DNS is so that my local *.lan domains will resolve (i.e. tandem.lan > 192.168.1.94, etc.).

Are there any special tricks to implementing a custom DNS with this router?

RatherLoopy

Really? No one? I chatted into tech support and asked them, and they were completely clueless… all they could do was send a useless reset signal to my router. You'd think that if they were going to dumb down this "advanced" router to only four or five configuration options, they could manage to support those options. Custom DNS does not work, and I need help identifying/debugging the problem.

Mo_S

Good afternoon @RatherLoopy,

While we do allow the default DNS setting to be changed to one of your choice, we wouldn't be able to provide support for any issues with using your own or those outside the defaults. Did you need to create an IP reservation for the device running your custom DNS to prevent that IP from changing perhaps? You may also find helpful setup information here.

As this is a primarily a peer support forum, your post remains available to other users that may have any suggestions to contribute to further assist.

HT_Greenfield

Just curious if Manage Existing IP Reservations has a way to edit/change an existing one to any other address you want within the dynamic pool:

🔗 https://www.spectrum.net/support/internet/advanced-wifi-advanced-settings

But even if it does, if you're not finding any LAN/DHCP-specific DNS options, i take it that the router only supports Internet/WAN DNS:

🔗 https://www.reddit.com/r/Spectrum/comments/wvpjr7/comment/ilgqpwd/

🔗 https://discourse.pi-hole.net/t/spectrum-wifi-router-not-an-active-client/60870/3

🔗 https://www.snbforums.com/threads/difference-between-wan-and-lan-dns-settings-options.80269/

Mo_S

@RatherLoopy

Correct, you have the option to reserve the current IP assigned, but not choose what is assigned to a device.

RatherLoopy

Thanks for your reply @Mo_S. Am I correct in thinking I can't reserve a specific IP for a device, only the device's current IP as assigned by DHCP?

For instance, I have a computer that I need to always be at 192.168.1.25, but its currently assigned DHCP address is 192.168.1.92. Looking at IP Reservations, my only option seems to be OFF & ON, and there's no place to define a specific IP for the device so I assume the ON position will only lock the device to 192.168.1.92, correct?

RatherLoopy

@HT_Greenfield Thanks for those links! They were really helpful even if they didn't solve my problems, and DNS on the WAN port only makes a lot of sense given my results. I went so far as to set up a Control-D (controld.com) private DNS server and the spectrum router will use it, but for some reason the router doesn't pass my *.lan domain lookups to the DNS. I also spun up a Digital Ocean droplet running AdGuard (adguard.com) and got exactly the same result… the Spectrum router ignores queries for *.lan.

So… I give up. I'll set each of my devices to use my Pi-Hole DNS and bypass the router's DNS entirely, and that'll get me where I need to be; it just won't be as easy to administer going forward.

Thanks again!