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RBR750 Guest network intermittent connection issues
Hi,
I have purchased the RBR750 over 3 months ago and still working with netgear support to fix this issue but luck. Hence trying the community to see if anyone else has noticed this issue.
I have been using the older Orbi for over 3 years now and decided to upgrade. Everything worked fine for about a few weeks since I never connected the guest network but when friends started visiting, they used the guest network and kept complaining that suddently they cannot access the internet and then few mins later, everything works fine and then again it randomly repeats so very erractic and intermittent. Then I connected to the guest network and same issues. So opened a support case, its been over 3 months, they asked me to try so many thing which I did and still the same issues. Eventually they said they are escalating to engineering and after a month, I got an update stating that the latest firmware is out and we should try that, did that but still same issues. Some of the things we tried, removed password for guest network, changed channels, sent multiple debug logs from router and satellites, static IP's, etc, etc
I'm not sure when they say they are escalting to engineering, it actually happens and someone is really looking at it or they just wait for the next firware update arrives and hope that somehow fixes the issue.
Then they thought it was may be a bad unit, so I went ahead and purchased another RBR750 and its still the same issue. So I'm not sure if anyone else is seeing this or is this somethign unique to me. By the way my old orbi, the guest network works totally fine.
Any help is appreciated.
I can confirm it was fixed after a week. 😄
48 Replies
Has a factory reset and setup from scratch been performed since last FW update?
What Firmware version is currently loaded?
What is the Mfr and model# of the Internet Service Providers modem/ONT the NG router is connected too?What is the size of your home? Sq Ft?What is the distance between the router and 📡 satellite(s)? 30 feet or more is recommended in between RBR and RBS📡 to begin with depending upon building materials when wirelessly connected.What channels are you using? Auto? Try setting manual channel 1, 6 or 11 on 2.4Ghz and 40 to 48 channel on 5Ghz.
Any Wifi Neighbors near by? If so, how many?I would power OFF the ISP modem for 1 minute. Factory reset the Orbi router and power it off. Power ON the ISP modem and let it sync. Then power ON the Orbi router and walk thru the setup wizard again using a wired PC and a web browser.
My current firmware version is - 4.6.3.7
My ISP is Xfinity, my download speed is about 500mbps and upload is 15 mbps, I have an Arris T25. My current(old) working Orbi is RBR50.
Home size is about 5000 sq ft and both satellites are less than 30ft from the router. With netgear support, we tried setting multiple different channels based on least used by neighbor's and that did not help either.
After the latest firmware, I don't recall if we did yet another factory reset - did this multiple times earlier, I will try this next.
Thanks
Support reached out to stating that I needed to download another firmware 4.6.3.16. I did ask them if they wanted me to factory reset and they said no. Even after this firmware update I'm still facing the same issue.
So is it fine for me to factor reset with this firmware even though they said no and try it out?
Thanks
Prem
I have the exact same problem. I have an RBR750 with 2 sattillites that i purchased through costco. the main network works great. but the guest network loses connection every 5-30 mins normally. but i've had periods where it goes longer. I've spent many hours with tech support and we tried everything. now they want to replace it. I don't think that's going to help. but they told me they haven't had any calls about the guest network having problems. that's BS. i really need a guest network. i will try replace the whole thign and see if that helps but this sounds more like a FW problem.
- As I mentioned, they refuse to really take a look at the problem. I don't think support is talking to engineering and passing it on, they ask for all the details, debug logs, etc, etc just wait for the next FW version and still unresolved. I have tried I think 2 or 3 FW version and no luck. After many years of being an Orbi fan I moved over to Deco now. I felt bad that I had to return all the Orbi to Costco, since all of them had the issue, no definitely not a hardware problem.
I think I'm going to do the same. Hopefully, Costco will still take it back even though its been 5 months. What version of Deco did you get Deco60? 90? Is it like Orbi where it has the same ssid for 2.4 and 5 and automatically connects the device to 2.4 if it can't do 5?
As of February 2021, the problem is still with us. Worked with support, and they eventually said to replace the units. The same problem still happens with the new units (no surprise to me).
Equipment:
- RB750 Base unit
- RB750 Satelite unit - wireless connection to the base unit, signal is: good
- ISP connection: Wireless from the house to the local node (yes you read that right, I have a dish pointing to the local node which is powered over ethernet), IP supplied by the ISP. Conection to the RB750 is a normal CAT6 cable.
Symptoms:
- Guest network periodically stops talking to the internet, then starts talking again (annoying as all get out when watching a movie).
- WiFi connectivity remain strong
- Guest network time: Always
Note: this can only be set in the mobile app, support did not appear to know this - Main network continues to connect to the internet without issues
- Wired connections on the router continued to connect to the internet without issues
- The satelite is connected to the base wirelessly.
- The wired connections hung off of the satelite continue to talk to the internet without issues.
Things Tried (none of these fixed the issue):
- Power cycling the router
- Power cycling the satelite
- Changing the WiFi channels (I also have an app on my phone which sniffs out nearby WiFi signals, so I can find the channel with the least interference).
- Checked the firmware - is the latest
- Reflashed the firmware for both router and satelite (done at the direction of support)
- Full reset to factory setttings, reload saved configuration
- Full reset to factory settings, minimal config to make it work in our environment
- Replaced full system (done at the direction of support, saying it was a hardware problem)
Final test configuration: old router in place of RB750, RB750 in AP mode. This configuration is not sustainable because the old router does not have the reach needed on its own for the guest network.
My guess (and it is just a guess) is that the problem is likely in the code which manages the guest network time. I would say it is an easy fix, but I have been in the software business for (mumble) years, and know that is rarely the case.
I have not found a way to know this is truely sent to engineering, since I cannot get any sort of bug/ticket/problem number for the request in engineering. It also means I cannot check on the status of the problem.
sigh...
mlewert wrote:
- Guest network time: Always
Note: this can only be set in the mobile app, support did not appear to know this - Main network continues to connect to the internet without issues
Thanks for pointing out this setting for the guest WiFi network. Just wondering: how would a person interpret that setting? Does it mean:
- When Guest WiFi is enabled, this is how long it stays enabled before the SSID is taken down? (and then it stays down until the user activates it again?)
- When a specific device connects to the Guest WiFi, this is how long that specific device is allowed before it is disconnected?
Ordinarily, I recommend that people click on that nearly invisible arrow at the bottom of the screen to pull up a description of what the screen does. With this feature of guest WiFi not appearing in the User Manual, there is zero chance it will be on the Help Screen.
When a device connection to guest WiFi is interrupted:
- How long is it before the connection is restored?
- Does an entry appear in the Orbi log showing that the device was issued an IP address with DHCP after the interruption?
p.s. I would put money on Engineering having no idea about this problem report.
CrimpOn wrote:
mlewert wrote:- Guest network time: Always
Note: this can only be set in the mobile app, support did not appear to know this - Main network continues to connect to the internet without issues
Thanks for pointing out this setting for the guest WiFi network. Just wondering: how would a person interpret that setting? Does it mean:
- When Guest WiFi is enabled, this is how long it stays enabled before the SSID is taken down? (and then it stays down until the user activates it again?)
- When a specific device connects to the Guest WiFi, this is how long that specific device is allowed before it is disconnected?
Ordinarily, I recommend that people click on that nearly invisible arrow at the bottom of the screen to pull up a description of what the screen does. With this feature of guest WiFi not appearing in the User Manual, there is zero chance it will be on the Help Screen.
When a device connection to guest WiFi is interrupted:
- How long is it before the connection is restored?
- Does an entry appear in the Orbi log showing that the device was issued an IP address with DHCP after the interruption?
In answer to your questions:
The Guest Network time is supposed to be the amount of time the guest can connect to the internet, as far as I can tell. That said, I did not see any documentation on it, and I am interpeting tht setting from the way other vendor's units work. I would be way off base here.When the connection to the internet is broken, the connection to the WiFi remains. I base this on the messages I received from a streaming device, an iPod, and another device in the house. None of them lost WiFi, just the connection to the internet thourgh the Orbi.
How long is the connection to the internet broken? No more than a minute or two I think. The movies I was streaming froze, but then eventually picked up where they left off. The app did not completely give up and say it could no longer play, so the restoration of internet was within the period where it tried to continue the stream.
Log: I did not check, and I should have done so...I know better.
- Guest network time: Always
- Guest network time: Always
What Firmware version is currently loaded?
I don't know. My notes don't say, and I was working with technical support at the time. I have since returned the unit, so I am not able to chase it down that way either.
sorry,
Would be worth try and see if the v5 FW works or not.
FURRYe38 wrote:Would be worth try and see if the v5 FW works or not.
Sure for anyone who wants to try it. That's not me since I don't have time. I will keep using the official v4.6.5.14_2.0.54 from Netgear's internal updater with this annoying issue. Also, my disconnections are random and varies on times. :(
I'm having the exaxt same issue on the RBR850. Main network is working fine and no dropped Internet at all. I have like 30 devices on the main network and none of them ever complain about no Internet. My guest WiFi drops internet almost daily. I have to disconnect the WiFi from the device and reconnect to get Internet back. I work in IT and have tried everything to fix it. Can't get it to work and it's really frustrating. I wish Netgear would address this issue since it seems to be a common issue amongst multiple devices.
What Firmware version is currently loaded?
PhantomPhreak53 wrote:
I'm having the exaxt same issue on the RBR850. Main network is working fine and no dropped Internet at all. I have like 30 devices on the main network and none of them ever complain about no Internet. My guest WiFi drops internet almost daily. I have to disconnect the WiFi from the device and reconnect to get Internet back. I work in IT and have tried everything to fix it. Can't get it to work and it's really frustrating. I wish Netgear would address this issue since it seems to be a common issue amongst multiple devices.
FURRYe38 wrote:What Firmware version is currently loaded?
PhantomPhreak53 wrote:I'm having the exaxt same issue on the RBR850. Main network is working fine and no dropped Internet at all. I have like 30 devices on the main network and none of them ever complain about no Internet. My guest WiFi drops internet almost daily. I have to disconnect the WiFi from the device and reconnect to get Internet back. I work in IT and have tried everything to fix it. Can't get it to work and it's really frustrating. I wish Netgear would address this issue since it seems to be a common issue amongst multiple devices.
Firmware Version
V4.6.3.16_2.0.51I have tried factory resetting, reinstalling Firmware, removing guest WiFi and adding it back.
Oooh, firmwares came out finally but I am not ready to upgrade yet since people are using the Internet. I hope it finally fixed the guest network issue. Did anyone try it yet?
