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Orbi RBR50 No connection to ethernet wired devices
Firmware 2.7.2.104 MacOS computers. 3 or 4 days ago, my orbi lost connection with all of my ethernet hard wire devices. Has there been a recent firmware upgrade? I've noted that any hard wired de...
Where does the mysterious 168.254.xxx.xxx IP address appear?
- In the iMac?
- In the Orbi web interface Attached Devices screen?
Does the iMac continue to insist that it has no internet?
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The 168.254 address appears on the iMac when the iMac is attached to the Orbi via an Ethernet connection. The Orbi supplies the address when the device (iMac) is set to get an IP via DHCP.
Unfortunately this address does not allow the iMac to access the internet.
In Network settings on the iMac, these are the settings that show up:
Status: Connected
Ethernet has a self-assigned IP address and
will not be able to connect to the internet
Configure IPv4: Using DHCP
IP Address: 169.254.11.165
Subnet Mask: 225.255.0.0
The 168.254 address does not show up on the Orbi. NONE of the hard wired Ethernet attached devices in the house on the network are showing up in the attached devices on the Orbi.
Unless the iMac is attached via Wi-Fi to the Orbi. It will insist it has no internet.
roborbi
roborbi wrote:In Network settings on the iMac, these are the settings that show up:
Status: Connected
Ethernet has a self-assigned IP address and
will not be able to connect to the internet
Configure IPv4: Using DHCP
IP Address: 169.254.11.165
Subnet Mask: 225.255.0.0
This is the important clue. 168.254 is a valid IP address, although not one that an Orbi would assign.
169.254 is an IP address that a device self-assigns to itself when it cannot reach a DHCP server.
It did not come from the Orbi.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Link-local_address
Is the iMac connected directly to the Orbi? (not through any type of switch or in-wall cabling?
That iMac goes through two switches that will be fairly easy to take out of the loop.
I can do this tomorrow, test, and get back to you with the results.
The other ethernet connections in the house also go through a switch that feeds the entertainment room equipment.
Let's see how tomorrow's test goes.
roborbi
Hi CrimpOn,
Just finished my testing with all ethernet switches out of the system and every ethernet cable disconnected from the orbi except the one ethernet direct to the iMac.
I did an orbi reboot and an modem reboot to get the system back up.
Unfortunately there has been no change in the status of the ethernet connections from yesterday.
Direct ethernet connections still not happening.
roborbi
So is the iMac the only device not getting an IP address. If so, I would review the configuration and hardward of the iMac. Possible the LAN port or adapter card with in the iMac has gone bad. Connect the iMac via wireless or get you a USB to ethernet adapter and test. There fairly inexpensive.
What generation iMac do you have?
What OSX version is loaded?
Is this Orbi still within the one year warranty?
If more than one ethernet device fails to connect directly to the Orbi LAN ports (no switches, no cabling, no wall jacks, different ethernet cables), this is an obvious case for a warranty replacement.
From post #1, it appears that everything was working until recently, and this is not a case of "I updated firmware to 2.7.2.104 and immediately my LAN ports failed to work."
Although it is a chore and I see no logical reason why it should accomplish anything, there is no harm in manually loading a previous firmware on the Orbi, such as v2.5.2.4. That is:
- Save a copy of the current configuration.
- Download v2.5.2.4 for the router from the Netgear support site:
https://kb.netgear.com/000062319/RBR50-RBS50-Firmware-Version-2-5-2-4 - Also download a copy of 2.7.2.104 for the router
- Use the Advanced Tab, Administration menu, Firmware Update, Manual Update tab to load 2.5.2.4 on the Orbi router.
Do not do anything to the satellites. - When the router reboots after the firmware update, test the ethernet LAN ports before doing anything else.
- If the LAN ports now work, then it was something about the firmware.
- If the LAN ports continue to fail, then I fear a hardware failure.
Hi Furrye38,
Thanks for your response.
Unfortunately this is not an issue with just the one device (iMac). It is an issue with every device connected to the Orbi via an ethernet connection. I have 6 - 7 such devices in my home network.
The iMac is an iMac Pro. Only a couple years old. Latest version of Mac OS.
Unfortunately, I think the issue goes beyond the individual computer.
CrimpOn,
Unfortunately the unit is out of warrenty. More than a couple years old.
Thanks for the instructions on how to downgrade the firmware. I will consider.
I'm fairly certain the upgrade to the latest firmware happened 3 months ago however.
And up until 5 days ago all was working well.
My gut tells me it's a hardware failure.
Been looking for an excuse to go Wi-Fi 6.
I guess the orbi gods have answered. : > (
roborbi
Any chance you have a spare router? Something you can swap in to check this with a different router?
Yes. I have a new RBK852 Wi-Fi 6 unit arriving tomorrow. I'll let you know how the switch over goes.
roborbi
All,
I have a final update on this issue.
Unfortunately I experienced the same weird IP address issues, even after switching out the RBR50 for the RBK852 router.
Going back to square one, I eventually tracked the issue down to a faulty ethernet connection on an old Blue-ray player in my entertainment system.
Hard to believe that one bad ethernet port could cause such havoc. While it didn't bring down the whole network, it did bring down any ethernet hard wired device on the network. Turns out that neither the Orbi nor an Orbi update was to blame.
So . . . after switching over to the RBK852, as I said, I was still having issues getting any internet connection on any device using ethernet.
The issue was hard to track down.
At first I thought I had lost the entire ethernet switch that was feeding my entertainment system. What I learned from CrimpOn earlier in the thread was that one bad ethernet connection was all it might take the throw things off. So . . . by slowly connecting and disconnecting one device at a time on the switch, I was able to narrow the issue down to the ethernet port on the Blu-ray player being the culprit. Hook the BR player up via ethernet and strange 168.254 IP addresses started appearing. Take the Blu-ray out of the loop and bingo, ethernet was working properly again.
Kudos to CrimpOn. This nugget of information from him also helped solve the problem:
>> 168.254 is a valid IP address, although not one that an Orbi would assign.
169.254 is an IP address that a device self-assigns to itself when it cannot reach a DHCP server.
It did not come from the Orbi. <<
Thanks CrimpOn for sticking with it, offering advice, and continuing to ask the right questions.
Also thanks to Furrye38 for his helpful suggestions and support. We are lucky to have this community of experts that is willing to offer their
time and support and show an interest in helping solve our problems. You have made me feel validated by not treating me like the novice I know I am.
Roborbi
