Do You Need a Special Router for Internet Failover?

Introduction: Not All Routers Are Built for Failover

You’ve added a second internet line. Maybe you’re considering LTE backup or satellite. But here’s the catch—if your router can’t manage both connections automatically, you’re not getting the protection you think you are.

Failover isn’t just about having two ISPs—it’s about the intelligence to switch between them in real time. And not every router supports that.

This article breaks down whether you need a special router for internet failover and what to look for if you're deploying this at a single location or managing dozens of sites as an MSP.

What Makes a Router “Failover-Ready”?

A failover-capable router has specific capabilities that allow it to:

• Monitor link health across multiple WAN interfaces
  
  
• Instantly route traffic through a secondary connection when the primary fails
  
  
• Maintain active sessions during the switch
  
  
• Support dual WAN inputs (wired, LTE, or both)
  
  
• Run network health  probes (ICMP, TCP, HTTP)
  
  

Many off-the-shelf routers don’t do this—or require advanced configuration to support it.

Common Router Limitations

Here’s what we see most often in the field:

• No dual-WAN ports: Consumer routers often support only a single WAN input
  
  
• Lack of health checks: Routers may not detect link degradation or partial failure
  
  
• Manual switching only: Users must log in and manually swap connections
  
  
• No IP continuity: Dynamic IPs reset apps, VPNs, and sessions during failover
  
  

If your router doesn’t support these features, you don’t have internet failover—you have manual redundancy.

Why It Matters for MSPs and Multi-Site Environments

Managed service providers (MSPs) and distributed teams need more than just “two ISPs.”
They need:

• Remote monitoring and management (RMM) access
  
  
• Consistent provisioning at scale
  
  
• Failover logic that works across LTE, fiber, cable, or Starlink
  
  

Choosing the right router becomes a foundational decision that affects every branch, home office, or pop-up site you support.

Summary: The Router Still Matters—But Smarter Tools Exist

You don’t need a “special” router in the traditional sense—but you do need one that supports the features required for real failover.

Whether you achieve that through hardware, software overlay, or a hybrid approach depends on your network and use case. But with Big Network, the answer is simple, scalable, and smart.

Want to see our Routers  in action? Contact us or request a demo.