I'm unable to mark this as "unresolved". Seems like mark...

[till]

I'm unable to mark this as "unresolved". Seems like @shaw-tony marked this as answered, even tho it is not.

[till]

The hidden networks do interfere with my network. They are taking up precious channels, especially the lower 5Ghz ones.

[mdk]

@till - They are taking up precious channels, especially the lower 5Ghz ones.

Multiple WiFi devices can co-exist on the same channel.

If you don't have any Shaw WiFi "pods" that are actually sending/receiving on a channel, your device will have "full" usage of the channel.

[till]

Ah, so even tho those channels taken up by the XB6 have a strong signal, because nothing is transmitted, there is no interference?

I'll probably just build a faraday cage around it, but would it work to switch OUT of bridge mode, change the channels and switch to VHT20 and then switch back into bridge mode?

[mdk]

@till -  so even tho those channels taken up by the XB6 have a strong signal, because nothing is transmitted, there is no interference?

The XB6 does not "take ownership" of the channel, for its "exclusive" usage.

There really never is a "nothing is transmitted" situation -- the two devices "chat" back and forth, to confirm that the channel still is "open".

Through "multiplexing", multiple devices can share a channel -- like a pair of "doubles" tennis players, their half of the tennis-court is like the channel, and both players USUALLY never try to hit the incoming ball at exactly the same time -- they try to avoid "interference" with each other's return-stroke.

> would it work to switch OUT of bridge mode, change the channels and switch to VHT20 and then switch back into bridge mode?

In "bridge" mode, the Shaw cable-modem totally disables its built-in WiFi -- thus NOT using any channel on any band.

[till]

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In "bridge" mode, the Shaw cable-modem totally disables its built-in WiFi -- thus NOT using any channel on any band.

I wish that was true, but unfortunately it's not.

My XB6 is in bridge mode and WiFi is shown as off with a white on red X, however a "hidden network" is still broadcasted from the XB6.

[langley834721]

My XB6 is broadcasting five (5) hidden SSID's in bridged mode (2x 5 GHz and 3x 2.4 GHz).
It is not supposed to. It is supposed to be a Modem only releasing IP's to my router and nothing more....

The only way I could make Shaw turn off this broadcast was by chatting with them, Shaw putting the Modem
in bridge mode on their end, that stopped the broadcast...
As soon as I use the Modem GUI to disable/enable bridge mode the hidden broadcast is back, evil!...
Its a sad thing to say but at this point I do NOT trust Shaw, I pretty much consider the XB6 a totally untrusted device. As a rule, I can't trust any device that I don't have full control over... 

My suggestion to Shaw would be to release a "simple" gigabit cable modem with 2 Lan ports enabled by default but without any routing and Wi-Fi capabilities.
How many people are using routers these days? I think quite a few...

[langley834721]

Update a couple month later.
The hidden SSID disappeared, go figure! 

[mdk]

@langley834721 --  go figure! 

Maybe, Shaw pushed an update to the modem's firmware.

Maybe, there was a power-outage inside your home, causing the modem to restart.

Maybe, you disconnected the AC power, and reconnected it, causing the modem to restart.

[sabi_saanich]

Hi guys,

I appreciate your concerns. Wifi for me is a necessary evil to achieve certain things like work and entertainment. I unplug my modem when not needing it.

Question: Does unplugging the modem from the power source when not in use (while leaving the modem connected to the cable outlet) stop all transmissions? Or do transmissions continue when the cable is still connected?

Thanks!