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Forum Discussion
Client Isolation between Router and Satellites?
I upgraded to an Orbi Router (RBR50) and two Orbi Satellites (RBS50) to get coverage for my house, and the backchannel speed is as great as advertised. That said, I am running into odd network issues...
Greystorm64 wrote:
>>There is a bug in the current Orbi firmware, where the attached devices list incorrectly shows where devices are attached. Most devices show as connected to the RBR. So, you believe all your devices are attached to your router, but that is almost certainly NOT the case.
Not so sure.... I agree, there are some connected to the RBS... because if you look at the Device List in the RBR, the very far right column labled "Connected to Orbi" shows 2 devices connected to Orbi Satellite-1, while ever other device shows connected to the Orbi Router.
So, while I know that an empty list on the RBS doesn't indicate no devices are connected to it, the Router itself only shows 2 devices coming from the Satellite and the rest direct to the Router. It never changes either, no matter where I go in the house or how long I stay there.
Its always the same 2 devices list as Orib Satellite-1 that were first to connect yesterday morning when I shut everything down and brought it all back up 1 at a time.. all 40 devices.
No other device ever shows listed on Satellite-1. Also, I can sit with my phone with an app that measures single strength RIGHT next to the RBS.. it should show 100%... but it shows 45%, as its connecting back to the router which is upstairs and a way from me.
In the Orbi phone app, you can view signal strength. of all the devices that are in range of the RBS (and out of range of the RBR - or at least futher away) all show low signial strength... no matter how close they are to the RBS, which if they were connected to the RBS, the signal strength would be a lot higher that ~40%.. since I have 12 devices withing 8-10 feet of the RBS and NONE of them show over 50%.
So, this single SSID for multiple AP's just doesn't seem to be working. Since, no devices will connect to the RBS except for the very first 2 I turned on yesterday. and one of those 2 is hard wired.
I would agree with your assessment of the ~40% signal strength indicating you are not connected to the nearest Orbi RBS. Turn your WFi off then on again on you phone and check the strength again. If your phone does not connect to the nearest satellite, then there could be something wrong with your satellite.
In any case, maybe what I wrote wasn't clear, so let me say it another way... There is a bug in the Orbi firmware that causes the attached devices list on the router to show devices that are truly connected to the SATELLITE to appear in the list as connected to the ROUTER. I am saying this could be the reason why you believe almost all your devices are connected to your router. As I write this, my Macbook is connected to the satellite, but it appears in the Orbi list as connected to the Router. The right hand column you are referring to is inaccurate. You cannot rely on it.
Here is one way you can tell for sure where a device is connected. Run a WiFi scanning application and record the mac addresses of your Orbi and satellites (there are two mac addresses per Orbi device--one for 2.4 and one for 5 Ghz), then check on your devices' network properties which mac address they are connected to. On OSX you option-click the WiFi icon to see the mac address of the associated WiFi access point. I'm not sure how to do this on Windows.
Thanks for the recommendations. I did understand your explanation regarding how devices are showing up in the RBR device list, even though they are actually connected to the satallite.
The device list in the RBR does actually show if its connected to the router or a satallite in the last colum.
Unfortunatly, it only shows 2 devices and never another, and those were the first 2 to connect when I reset my entire network.
No new devices show up as connected to a satalite.
I have been testing, everything still only connectst to the RBR. very very annoying. I have a a case open with Netgear, but they don't seem to be in a hurry to fix it.