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Forum Discussion
Intermittent DNS Errors and WiFi Issues
I have had the Orbi AX6000 for a few months now. While there are many things I love about it (great wifi coverage, great speed, looks nice, software, ease of setup, etc.), there are two very frustra...
So over this weekend I have reverted to using my Virgin Media Superhub as my main router, and configured my Orbi as an access point. Everything is now working fine and I have no DNS issues any more. Wireless speeds are at least as fast as they were before (in fact the Orbi app is reporting slightly faster link speeds for many of my devices). I've got all my wired devices coming into my Orbi so I can still use the Orbi app to monitor what is attached to my network; the only functionality I've lost is the ability to control internet access on a per-device basis, which isn't something I will particularly miss.
I'm frustrated I've had to do this but at least my network is all working now and I still have the mesh functionality of the Orbi for my wifi connections. Good luck to everyone else out there still struggling with this very significant fault with the Orbi equipment.
(Weirdly, the first time I set this configuration up, my Xbox was reporting Double NAT issues. That should have been impossible with my Orbi set to AP mode. I factory reset everything and set it all up carefully in the right order one device at a time, and now it's all working OK. There is something very strange going on here, maybe some incompatibility between the Virgin Media equipment and the Orbi, but I have no idea what it might be).
To date the only things that provide a workaround are:
1 - Use IPv6 for clients that support it (doesn't work for IPv4 clients, which include many TV's, media players, thermostats, BBQ grills, home automation, internet filters and other IoT devices)
2 - Bypass/disable DNS functionality of the Orbi system entirely. (Basically using another system for DNS such as your internet router/modem, or manually assigning DNS servers on each client which has it's own downsides)
(FYI, My much older Orbi RBR50 system has none of these DNS issues, it's just slower.)
RUSHING WIFI6 SYSTEMS TO MARKET is the root cause of these problems.
Other companies have also rushed their code development in the goldrush to sell consumers WiFi6 gear. I tried Asus's incredible mesh wifi system and the interface and controls were unreal... light years beyond the Orbi interface and far better security. But the entire system reset several times per day, dropping every client off of the network due to it's own bugs (NTP/time issues causing router to reset date and blow it's own mind).
Apparently also the Alien mesh system from Ubiquity has it's share of stability problems as well.
This is what happens when you rush products to market, thinking you'll just fix the issues in later code. That is easier said than done.
Netgear, it's time to fix this. Everyone still in the free 90 day support window should open a support case with Netgear on this.