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Forum Discussion
Installed Orbi and data usage quadrupled!
I purchased and installed an RBR50 AC5000 with a Satellite RBS50 on July 5. It worked great. I had much more coverage for our house/property and all our devices were able to connect from everywhere and get better coverage. We have 4 people (2 adults, 2 kids). There's Xbox, Nintendo Switch, 2 laptops, iphones, ipads, roku tvs with sling and netflix (cut the cord years ago), thermostat, apple airport expresses, etc. I think at any one point in time there are about 12-15 devices connected. Anyway, with comcast/xfinity my data usage for the last 6 months with this same device list has been 470GB, 473GB, 590GB, 593GB, 691GB, 744GB (July, first month with Orbi), and 2188GB (this month!!). WTH! Comcast has a cap at 1024GB, above which it costs $10 per 50GB. They give me 2 courtesy months, and obviously I've used the first. Problem is our consumption habits haven't changed that much to account for an extra Terabyte and a half! Sure, this was the last month of summer when the kids are home, but I would expect it to be more in line with June and July (~700GB), not nearly quadrupled for 1 month! I feel I'm left with couple options after reading a bit here to try to figure this out and solve the issue:
1. Fire up my older replaced router (Netgear WNDR3700v4) and try to install DD-WRT or something like that to try to pinpoint which devices are consuming all this data. Unfortunately this expensive Orbi setup can't even tell me that (just overall date usage). That's a big pain as it doesn't seem that easy to flash some 3rd party firmware on old hardware and then run it for a month to determine high data culprits. Lots of time and effort...
2. Try and find out if the Orbi firmware I'm running has something to do with the extreme usage. I've read a couple posts here about people complaining about similar issues and a few saying a fix for them is reverting to an old firmware version. I'm currently running firmware version 2.1.4.16. Does anyone know more about this or have suggestions how to revert to old firmware? I'd almost rather try #2 first before all the time and effort #1 would take. Suggestions on which firmware version to try?
Thanks!! Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!
57 Replies
Just a guess.... your iPhones may have noticed that they can do voice over WiFi via the Orbi and now you're making calls that cost you data. There's an iPhone setting which allows you to disable WiFi calling.
- I had the same issue. If you’ve enabled Circle, disable. I monitored traffic and saw GB of data per day heading to Circle.
Have you tried to use the XFi app. It requires a lot of setup since you have identify all or most of the devices that are using your Xfinity connection. It works for wired and wireless connections, although they imply only wireless. But since I've assigned all my devices, I can tell that my security cams take up about 47% of my total bandwidth, one daughter about 10%, son about 15%, my own usage about 12%, and all others the remainder. I did go over my cap for couple months, and monitor this closely. There's supposedly an unlimited option from Comcast for $50 a month, but that's not the solution you should seek, IMHO.
Are you sure you weren't hacked in the sense that someone is camping on your network, downloading stuff by being in the vicinity? Or like others pointed out, some new device going crazy with erroneous usage. I don't think Wi-Fi calling can be that much... but maybe something that's trying to cache the internet by predicting your needs? What about web browsers left open with YouTube running on automatic play next?
I was just about to consider Circle so that gives me pause if it creates traffic on it's own...
I've now turned off wifi calling on all our iphones and disabled Circle (I didn't find the free version to be that useful anyway). I don't have an Xfinity branded modem (I hate paying the monthly rental fees) so I don't think the XFi app will work for me given I'm not using one of their gateway routers. I don't have any security cameras running either. I've got my network locked down pretty well, and I don't suspect outsiders (the one thing I liked about Circle is it notified me of every new device as it connected to the network. I knew them all). Maybe this month was a complete fluke, but I find that hard to believe. I guess I'll try flashing my old router with a firmware that allows for device usage monitoring and swap out my Orbi for a month. That should tell me if it was any one device. If usage goes back to normal, I suppose that points back to the Orbi itself as the culprit...
Not sure this will help anyone, but I might as well share my solution. I did end up flashing an old netgear router with the opensource firmware DD-WRT and then ran the very helpful YAMon script for a couple weeks. My Orbi was offline that whole time as I ran everything back through the old router. Turns out I was able to immediately isolate the traffic to one of my laptops and once I dug into that laptop found a rogue backgound process running. The backgroud process "calendaragent" was out of control and downloading dozen's of GB of data per day. I killed that and rebuilt the online shared calendars and it's been ok since. I've since put my Orbi back online and things seem back to normal (this month's data usage is back in line with all my previous months). I did change a few things on the Orbi when bringing it back online like I turned off wifi calling for our phones and I disabled Circle (while a neat tool, it really wasn't that helpful). I still wish Orbi's firmware supported network traffic monitoring at a device level. That would be VERY useful for tracking down similar occurences in the future. In retrospect, I should have started with the computers on my network and just run something simple like Activity Monitor to view the network traffic. I'd have easily seen the rogue process there and would have saved a lot of headache.
I am experiencing the EXACT same issue. My data usage has remained very consistent for several years and then suddenly, after installing Orbi, my data usaged has skyrocketed and for the first time EVER, I have exceeded my data allowance and nothing else on my network, users or usage has changed, and there are only 2 adults here.
Has anyone determined what is causing this and more importantly, how to fix it?
Please ensure that the Orbi unit(s) are on the latest firmware. Please let me know if the issue persists.
~Christian
Netgear should enable monitoring of Data usage PER DEVICE. We can see it for the entire Orbi router (today, yesterday, this week, this month, last month), so the capability is there. I can turn off internet per device. If the Firmware could just log data usage per device, that would be a significant help in sniffing out these problems!
I also have the same issue that after installing the RBK43 system my data usage went from 250gb/month to 2.2tb/month. How do I fix this? My network is down more than it is up because of it.
What FW is currently loaded?
What is the Mfr and model# of the ISP modem the NG router is connected too?
What is the Mfr and model# of prior router used?
What is the size of your home? Sq Ft?
What is the distance between the router and satellite(s)? 30 feet is recommended in between them to begin with depending upon building materials.
What channels are you using? Auto? Try setting manual channel 1, 6 or 11 on 2.4Ghz and any unused channel on 5Ghz.
Any Wifi Neighbors near by? If so, how many?
Try disabling the following and see:
MIMO, Daisy Chain, Fast Roaming, IPv6 and Set 20/40Mhz Coexistence to 40Mhz only. Save settings and reboot the router and satellite(s).Have you enabled Traffic Meter?
mikepcdoc wrote:
I also have the same issue that after installing the RBK43 system my data usage went from 250gb/month to 2.2tb/month. How do I fix this? My network is down more than it is up because of it.
Did you guys ever find a solution to this or identify the issue?
I picked up the Orbi system on Black Friday, and for the first time ever hit data caps in both December and January. The Orbi app shows consistent 20GB+ usage a day - there are only two adults living in my house, and we both work during the day. We use internet quite a bit and we stream Netflix and whatnot in the evenings, but not nearly 20GB worth a day. Really wish Orbi gave the option to see by-device usage versus overall usage so I could do some basic troubleshooting. As it is, I'm probably just going to return this system and shoot for Google if no one has identified a cause/fix.
What FW is currently loaded?
What is the Mfr and model# of the ISP modem the NG router is connected too?Has the system been factory reset and setup from scratch by chance?
Whats connected to the system?
Is Guest Network enabled?
Zaggles wrote:
Did you guys ever find a solution to this or identify the issue?
I picked up the Orbi system on Black Friday, and for the first time ever hit data caps in both December and January. The Orbi app shows consistent 20GB+ usage a day - there are only two adults living in my house, and we both work during the day. We use internet quite a bit and we stream Netflix and whatnot in the evenings, but not nearly 20GB worth a day. Really wish Orbi gave the option to see by-device usage versus overall usage so I could do some basic troubleshooting. As it is, I'm probably just going to return this system and shoot for Google if no one has identified a cause/fix.
I am having this exact same issue.
Anyone know of a way to check what is causing this data usage? I'm at 1.2TB in 4 weeks, up from 300GB last month. Nothing new added, current firmware etc.
Purchase the Orbi AC3000 on Black Friday. I also have Comcast/Xfinity wifi modem. My data usage is now 3x. I hit the 1TB in Dec and Jan. I unplug the Orbi in February and my usage went back to normal, which was less than 300mb. Does anyone know what is going on? Is there something I need to do with the Xfinity modem in my account? I really like this unit, but I may have no choice and try to return it and buy buy the xfinity extenders.
What FW is currently loaded?
What is the Mfr and model# of the ISP modem the NG router is connected too?What devices do you have connected to the Orbi system?
Richsmol wrote:
Purchase the Orbi AC3000 on Black Friday. I also have Comcast/Xfinity wifi modem. My data usage is now 3x. I hit the 1TB in Dec and Jan. I unplug the Orbi in February and my usage went back to normal, which was less than 300mb. Does anyone know what is going on? Is there something I need to do with the Xfinity modem in my account? I really like this unit, but I may have no choice and try to return it and buy buy the xfinity extenders.
This is continued and resulted in various overage charges from ISP. Luckily I was able to return the system and get my $450 back after 10 months of paying extra to my ISP.
I've installed a Cisco Meraki system in my home, which shows analytics and data usage per device. I'm seeing about 1/10 the usage since yesterday. I wish I would've put the Meraki system "in front of" Orbi to see what it was sending, but too late for that...
Netgear has lost a customer here.
I'm curious, how did you manage to return this after 10 months?
- One word... Costco :)
The Orbi makes three types of requests from the router itself:
- makes a request to www.netgear.com every 5 minutes to check if the router has an internet connection.
- makes a request to updates1.netgear.com hour to check for new firmware updates.
- on the latest version, makes a request to nimbus.bitdefender.net every 1 minute. Netgear repackage bitdefender for the Armor security product but who knows why it needs to sent day every minute even when not enabled.
Since the excessive data usage problem does not occur for everyone and occurred before the latest release, I suspect the problem is that the router has the stored the incorrect firmware version (that is the version it's tracking does not match the actual installed version) and is consistently downloading firmware in an attempt to update it. If so, then updating to the latest version, 2.3.0.32, should fix the problem since firmware updates are no longer automatically downloaded.
If updating to the latest firmware is not an option, try disabling the auto update, https://community.netgear.com/t5/Orbi/Disable-auto-update-of-orbi-firmware-additional-steps-needed/m-p/1576010You might try a full factory ERASE on the RBR and setup from scratch to see if this continues after updating FW.
I presume the system should not be needing to make all these requests in such short order.
yata001 wrote:
The Orbi makes three types of requests from the router itself:
- makes a request to www.netgear.com every 5 minutes to check if the router has an internet connection.
- makes a request to updates1.netgear.com hour to check for new firmware updates.
- on the latest version, makes a request to nimbus.bitdefender.net every 1 minute. Netgear repackage bitdefender for the Armor security product but who knows why it needs to sent day every minute even when not enabled.
Since the excessive data usage problem does not occur for everyone and occurred before the latest release, I suspect the problem is that the router has the stored the incorrect firmware version (that is the version it's tracking does not match the actual installed version) and is consistently downloading firmware in an attempt to update it. If so, then updating to the latest version, 2.3.0.32, should fix the problem since firmware updates are no longer automatically downloaded.
If updating to the latest firmware is not an option, try disabling the auto update, https://community.netgear.com/t5/Orbi/Disable-auto-update-of-orbi-firmware-additional-steps-needed/m-p/1576010- 900GB+ per month with Orbi.
This month without Orbi, I’m at 334GB with one week left.
Usage is pretty much cut in half.
yata001 wrote:
The Orbi makes three types of requests from the router itself:
- makes a request to www.netgear.com every 5 minutes to check if the router has an internet connection.
- makes a request to updates1.netgear.com hour to check for new firmware updates.
- on the latest version, makes a request to nimbus.bitdefender.net every 1 minute. Netgear repackage bitdefender for the Armor security product but who knows why it needs to sent day every minute even when not enabled.
I get the first two... but the last one is unsat if true. If you have Armor disabled, why would they take it upon themselves to continue to ping bitdefender at all!?
Can this information be verified?
Chuck_M wrote:
yata001 wrote:
The Orbi makes three types of requests from the router itself:
- makes a request to www.netgear.com every 5 minutes to check if the router has an internet connection.
- makes a request to updates1.netgear.com hour to check for new firmware updates.
- on the latest version, makes a request to nimbus.bitdefender.net every 1 minute. Netgear repackage bitdefender for the Armor security product but who knows why it needs to sent day every minute even when not enabled.
I get the first two... but the last one is unsat if true. If you have Armor disabled, why would they take it upon themselves to continue to ping bitdefender at all!?
Can this information be verified?
It would be nice if the users who have posted about data usage give feedback on the questions presented and if a factory reset helped or not. Also there is new FW out as well since they posted.
This issue only seems to be effecting a few users. Maybe those who have not seen this data usage on there Orbi's chime in as well.
I'll bite!
What I did to fix mine is return the Orbi. Get a new one.
Then, did some research... found out that the Nividia Shield I have was using some of the data that caused me to go over. Not too much but in combination with all the other streaming devices it adds up.
The changes I made are the following:
1. Ditch the Nvidia shield. (going to add back in April to test data usage)
2. Stop my sons xbox one from auto updating. (Auto updating games non stop kills data, he now does it manually prior to playing).
3. Switch Netflix from auto streaming 4K (this is the real issue and I tested this by doing one at a time). This requires logging into your Netflix account via web, making the changes. I switched mine to 720, dont really notice the difference.
These changes switched my data usage from 1.3TB to under 1TB (about 800GB).
Hope this helps.
What FW version are you using?
So you did exchange the 1st Orbi for another Orbi system?
Have you done any kind of reset since the new system went online?
Thank for this information. Seemed like there was some other items that were causing some data usage. Ya, not a fan of the auto update or stream anything. I swear the entire industry wants on connected ALL the time. :smileyfrustrated:
Thanks for responding.
josepie wrote:
I'll bite!
What I did to fix mine is return the Orbi. Get a new one.
Then, did some research... found out that the Nividia Shield I have was using some of the data that caused me to go over. Not too much but in combination with all the other streaming devices it adds up.
The changes I made are the following:
1. Ditch the Nvidia shield. (going to add back in April to test data usage)
2. Stop my sons xbox one from auto updating. (Auto updating games non stop kills data, he now does it manually prior to playing).
3. Switch Netflix from auto streaming 4K (this is the real issue and I tested this by doing one at a time). This requires logging into your Netflix account via web, making the changes. I switched mine to 720, dont really notice the difference.
These changes switched my data usage from 1.3TB to under 1TB (about 800GB).
Hope this helps.
