About this Page
This page addresses the topic of building a Light Show Network. I am going to focus on the simplest and most reliable way to build a light show network*.
I am inferring you are not a Computer Network Engineer and do not want to spend more time than needed to get your light show network setup. If you are running Layer 3 Switches or multiple VLANs, then this page is not for you.
NOTE: While there are numerous videos on this topic that often present a range of options for building a light show network from using a second router, proxy, wireless+wired, second network IP range, etc. I will not go through these. Instead I will cover a simple and reliable method for creating a residential light show network that will work for the vast majority of folks.
The Problem of Convenience vs Reliability
The big concern is to keep the network traffic from your home and light show separated while also allowing connectivity between them for convenience. You don’t want your family screaming at you if the light show causes Baby Shark’s Christmas Special to glitch while the light show is on. Conversly, you don’t want your light show to glitch when your kid fires up Call of Duty at 1 billion frames per second either.
Its very useful having your xLights computer on your home network to be able to push configuration and sequences to your light show player and controllers. It is also convenient for your light show player and controllers to be able to access to the Internet for updates and for viewer interaction capabilites (i.e. FPP/Remote Falcon).
Flat Show Network (FSN)
The simplest light show network will be a flat design utilizing network switch(es) to keep traffic separated between home and light show devices.
In the network diagram above you can see the light show equipment is connected to a switch and the home devices are connected to another switch. Both switches are connected to the home router. The xLights computer can still talk to the light show equipment, but there is no chance of light show traffic or Netfilx/home traffic from flooding each others switch.
There is additional information in the Networking 101 deck* including information on network cabling.
Definitions
Network – A group of interconnected computing devices (like light show players & controllers) that can exchange data with each other.
Cat5E/6 Cable – Types (or categories) of cabling used in a computer network. For outdoor light shows I recommend Cat 5E or Cat 6, UV/Outdoor rated, Pure copper, UTP (unshielded twisted pair) wire.
Non-Routable IP Addresses – There are three IP address blocks that are used for private networks. These IP numbers are not routable over the Internet and are typically used for home and corporate networks. Your router most likely uses one of these IP address blocks for your home network.
- 10.0.0.0 – 10.255.255.255 (10.0.0.0/8)
- 172.16.0.0 – 172.31.255.255 (172.16.0.0/12)
- 192.168.0.0 – 192.168.255.255 (192.168.0.0/16)
IP Address – An IP address is made up of a Network ID and a Host ID. The Network ID is the part of the IP that defines which network the device is on and the Host ID is the specific number of the device on that network.
Each device on the network gets its own IP address which is typically assigned automatically from your home router.
MAC (Medica Access Control) Address – Is a unique physical address assigned to each device on a network. The MAC addresses are permanent and never changes on their own. They are hard coded by each manufacturer into the Network Interface Contoller (aka Network Port) on the device.
Network Switch – We will use unmanaged (cheap ~$20 Gigabit Network Switches) which use the MAC address to determine how to send data to devices on the network.
Router – A router connects multiple networks together. Most households have a single router that connects their computing devices to the Internet. The router maybe a combo device that does one or all of these: Internet modem / Router / Wifi / Switch. The router is also typically the device that listens for DHCP requests and hands out IP addresses when devices ask to join the network.
*Big thanks to @WolfCreekIslandTemecula for use of the
Networking 101 deck from the March 2023 webinar sponsored by Christmas Expo.