NETGEAR is aware of a growing number of phone and online scams. To learn how to stay safe click here.
Forum Discussion
RBE971 AP: Wi-Fi drops, wired stable, QCN9224 SSR & 6GHz fatal errors
Hi all, I am looking for help/visibility from Netgear staff/engineering. I have been having this issue since around the time of the Hardware / Firmware Model: Orbi RBE971 (single unit used as ...
I am having quite similar issues, that I believe also began with the update to the V9.13.2.1_1.3.35 firmware (although I cannot be 100% certain of this).
Network Topology
- Model Orbi RBE971 operating in Router mode behind a cable modem using the V9.13.2.1_1.3.35 firmware
- 3 RBE970 Satellites not hardwired using same firmware version.
- RBE971 provides internal DHCP/routing
Symptoms
- My symptoms are also Wi‑Fi only.
- On average about once every day, (or 2-3 days at the most) all 3 satellites disconnect from the router at once, all Wi-Fi clients disconnect at the same time, and there doesn't appear to be any Wi-Fi being broadcast from the router. This occurs at random times of the day (at first I thought it might be a scheduled thing or something one of the clients was doing to trigger it on a regular basis, but the times are definitely random).
- When the event occurs I usually will gracefully reboot the router via the web management interface and then the satellites will reconnect (occasionally one of them has to be rebooted as well but usually they will reconnect organically after the router reboot). I have not waited long enough to observe the Wi-Fi radios restarting on theirown/Satellites reconnecting without a router reboot. The longest I have tolerated waiting to see if that occurs is 10-15 minutes, but so far it has not in my case.
- Ethernet continues working, wired devices remain connected throughout (outside of when the RBE971 is rebooted of course), and also the RBE971 remains reachable via wired (web) management during events (as well as via anywhere access through the app via cellular coming in from external), again apart from the duration of the manual reboot.
What the logs show
- The web management interface logs do not show anything leading up to and immediately prior to the event other than normal DHCP lease renewal events. I have not attempted to gather anything via shell access outside of the the web management gui.
Questions: I too am extremely interested in the same things travisivart asked:
- Is this a known issue with V9.13.2.1_1.3.35?
- Are there recommended mitigations while waiting for a fix (disable 6 GHz, disable MLO/Wi‑Fi 7 features, reduce channel width, etc.)?
- Is there a newer firmware (or a known-stable prior version that I can downgrade to) that addresses QCN9224 SSR / WLFW disconnect issues?
Needless to say this is extremely frustrating, and my family is quite irritated with the entire thing and are ready to throw the Orbis in the trash and get something more reliable from somewhere else. I am not yet at that point since this was a costly upgrade from the RBK50 and I don't want to eat the cost of switching yet again, but I did keep the old hardware *just in case I needed something to fall back to and that is looking more and more like an option, at least until there's some confirmation that new firmware fixes this (or I can downgrade to more stable firmware).
What is the brand and model# of the Cable modem?
What all devices are connected to the system?
Is IPv6 enabled on the RBR?
Happens with out the RBS turned ON?
Try downgrading FW to see if this issue continues?
Size of home in sq feet please?
Channels used on the RBR?
Has a factory reset been performed since last FW update? This should be performed if it hasn't been yet.
I am having quite similar issues, that I believe also began with the update to the V9.13.2.1_1.3.35 firmware (although I cannot be 100% certain of this).
Network Topology
Model Orbi RBE971 operating in Router mode behind a cable modem using the V9.13.2.1_1.3.35 firmware
3 RBE970 Satellites not hardwired using same firmware version.
RBE971 provides internal DHCP/routing
Symptoms
My symptoms are also Wi‑Fi only.
On average about once every day, (or 2-3 days at the most) all 3 satellites disconnect from the router at once, all Wi-Fi clients disconnect at the same time, and there doesn't appear to be any Wi-Fi being broadcast from the router. This occurs at random times of the day (at first I thought it might be a scheduled thing or something one of the clients was doing to trigger it on a regular basis, but the times are definitely random).
When the event occurs I usually will gracefully reboot the router via the web management interface and then the satellites will reconnect (occasionally one of them has to be rebooted as well but usually they will reconnect organically after the router reboot). I have not waited long enough to observe the Wi-Fi radios restarting on theirown/Satellites reconnecting without a router reboot. The longest I have tolerated waiting to see if that occurs is 10-15 minutes, but so far it has not in my case.
Ethernet continues working, wired devices remain connected throughout (outside of when the RBE971 is rebooted of course), and also the RBE971 remains reachable via wired (web) management during events (as well as via anywhere access through the app via cellular coming in from external), again apart from the duration of the manual reboot.
What the logs show
The web management interface logs do not show anything leading up to and immediately prior to the event other than normal DHCP lease renewal events. I have not attempted to gather anything via shell access outside of the the web management gui.
What is the brand and model# of the Cable modem?
Motorola Docsis 3.1 MB8611What all devices are connected to the system?
A mixture of normal home devices. Windows and Mac systems, phones, a printer, apple TVs, a thermostat. The Satellites and a couple of the devices I have given (internal) static IPs outside of the DHCP range. I have one or two things on the IoT network.
Is IPv6 enabled on the RBR?
NoHappens with out the RBS turned ON?
Have not and will not try running without the Satellites for any length of time waiting for the issue. That is not really an option.
Size of home in sq feet please?
2500 ish not including garage/patio/exterior. I know this question relates to if the satellites are stepping on each other/placed too close. They are mainly in opposite sides of the house although I have tinkered with placements here and there. The furthest one is on the complete opposite corner of the house with many walls in between it and the router and is usually daisy chained, it was obtained to try and improve fairly poor performance in the farthest area away from the router. Changing the position of the router in relation isn't really a viable option.
Try downgrading FW to see if this issue continues?
The netgear support/firmware downloads page is 404. Where are older FW to obtain? The reason for posting was in the hopes that netgear support was going to post an answer to Travisivart's questions
Channels used on the RBR?For 2.4GHz - auto. IoT network 2.4GHz only. For 5GHz I have tried 40, 44, 48 and even tried a couple of the DFS channels as well just to see if anything changed. The problem has persisted across each and no I don't live near known radar sources.
I have tried 20/40MHz Coexistence on and off. I normally have it on.
I have tried Long Preamble and Auto.
I have tried MLO 240 on and off.
No change in symptoms when the event occurs.
Has a factory reset been performed since last FW update? This should be performed if it hasn't been yet.Factory resets were done on the Satellites but not on the RBR. Frankly that is an annoyance and one that shouldn't really be necessary as a default go-to "have you done this yet" troubleshooting step after any/every firmware update on such an expensive piece of gear just in the off chance that solves the problem. A problem with very similar symptoms to travisivarts. If the problem can be solved via a firmware upgrade/downgrade or another mitigation in the settings as travisivart asked then I'd rather save factory reset as a last resort. And tbh If I reach that point then I'm about one repeat of the problem away from ditching orbi/netgear forever for something more reliable.
Has a factory reset been performed since last FW update? This should be performed if it hasn't been yet.
Factory resets were done on the Satellites but not on the RBR. Frankly that is an annoyance and one that shouldn't really be necessary as a default go-to "have you done this yet" troubleshooting step after any/every firmware update on such an expensive piece of gear just in the off chance that solves the problem. A problem with very similar symptoms to travisivarts. If the problem can be solved via a firmware upgrade/downgrade or another mitigation in the settings as travisivart asked then I'd rather save factory reset as a last resort. And tbh If I reach that point then I'm about one repeat of the problem away from ditching orbi/netgear forever for something more reliable.When a FR is needed, ALL units need to be triggered for the reset. Can't just do RBS and not the RBR. There may be issues at the RBR that could continue if not checked by a FR.
Size of home in sq feet please?
2500 ish not including garage/patio/exterior. I know this question relates to if the satellites are stepping on each other/placed too close. They are mainly in opposite sides of the house although I have tinkered with placements here and there. The furthest one is on the complete opposite corner of the house with many walls in between it and the router and is usually daisy chained, it was obtained to try and improve fairly poor performance in the farthest area away from the router. Changing the position of the router in relation isn't really a viable option.For this size of home, on the RBR and just one RBS would be needed. Having two RBS deployed will be problematic. Try testing with just one RBS ON for now.
What is the brand and model# of the Cable modem?
Motorola Docsis 3.1 MB8611What all devices are connected to the system?
A mixture of normal home devices. Windows and Mac systems, phones, a printer, apple TVs, a thermostat. The Satellites and a couple of the devices I have given (internal) static IPs outside of the DHCP range. I have one or two things on the IoT network.
Is IPv6 enabled on the RBR?
NoHappens with out the RBS turned ON?
Have not and will not try running without the Satellites for any length of time waiting for the issue. That is not really an option.
Size of home in sq feet please?
2500 ish not including garage/patio/exterior. I know this question relates to if the satellites are stepping on each other/placed too close. They are mainly in opposite sides of the house although I have tinkered with placements here and there. The furthest one is on the complete opposite corner of the house with many walls in between it and the router and is usually daisy chained, it was obtained to try and improve fairly poor performance in the farthest area away from the router. Changing the position of the router in relation isn't really a viable option.
Try downgrading FW to see if this issue continues?
The netgear support/firmware downloads page is 404. Where are older FW to obtain? The reason for posting was in the hopes that netgear support was going to post an answer to Travisivart's questions
Channels used on the RBR?For 2.4GHz - auto. IoT network 2.4GHz only. For 5GHz I have tried 40, 44, 48 and even tried a couple of the DFS channels as well just to see if anything changed. The problem has persisted across each and no I don't live near known radar sources.
I have tried 20/40MHz Coexistence on and off. I normally have it on.
I have tried Long Preamble and Auto.
I have tried MLO 240 on and off.
No change in symptoms when the event occurs.
Has a factory reset been performed since last FW update? This should be performed if it hasn't been yet.Factory resets were done on the Satellites but not on the RBR. Frankly that is an annoyance and one that shouldn't really be necessary as a default go-to "have you done this yet" troubleshooting step after any/every firmware update on such an expensive piece of gear just in the off chance that solves the problem. A problem with very similar symptoms to travisivarts. If the problem can be solved via a firmware upgrade/downgrade or another mitigation in the settings as travisivart asked then I'd rather save factory reset as a last resort. And tbh If I reach that point then I'm about one repeat of the problem away from ditching orbi/netgear forever for something more reliable.