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notCB's avatar
notCB
Aspirant
Aug 01, 2026

Two devices can't ssh or ping

I have two devices, a Mac and a raspberry pi, that are connected to the same orbi satellite on the same main wifi ssid and same subnet using DHCP. The Mac is connected at 6Ghz and the pi is connected at 5Ghz. After several hours both can ping the Orbi router but they cannot ping or ssh to each other. 

 

If I switch the Mac to the IoT SSID and then back to the main SSID both can ping and ssh to each other. Sometime just restarting the Mac's wifi connection works. Wait a few hours and the same thing happens again. This behavior is seen on other devices on the network. I've changed the wireless channel from auto to a specific channel but that doesn't seem to help. 

 

Both Orbi devices are up to date. Is there anything I can do to maintain a stable connection? 

 

orbi 970 series

6 Replies

  • HappyCat's avatar
    HappyCat
    Luminary
    Aug 01, 2026
    notCB wrote:

    After several hours both can ping the Orbi router but they cannot ping or ssh to each other. 

    What is the error message that indicates ICMP (ping) or ssh is not successful?

     

    When networking between devices on the network, I have found that assigning IP addresses to them make the process go more smoothly.  This feature is found in the web management system, Advanced tab, LAN Setup.  The hardware MAC address of each device is associated with a specific IP address.  (for example, my last five desktop printers have all been 192.168.1.4.  So, it's automatic.  "The printer is 4".  The Raspberry Pi is "30". etc.)

  • notCB's avatar
    notCB
    Aspirant
    Aug 01, 2026

    I'm using channel 6 for 2.4 and channel 40 for 5. Changed to 1 and 40. The distance apart is about 50 ft and 2500 sqft. The local orbi web page is not showing any new patches. 

     

     

    Model NameDevice NameCurrent Firmware VersionStatus
    RouterRBE971RBE971V12.1.10.12No New Firmware Available
    SatelliteRBE970Orbi Satellite-1V12.1.10.12No New Firmware Available
    • FURRYe38's avatar
      FURRYe38
      Guru - Experienced User
      Aug 01, 2026

      Your system may not be in the auto update service list. So it won't see it. NG pushes updates out in small batches so will be more time or manually update as meantioned. I prefer to manually update systems my self. 

  • notCB's avatar
    notCB
    Aspirant
    Aug 01, 2026

    I have RBE971 and RBE970 with firmware V12.1.10.12_5.3.16. Have not tried disconnecting the satellite to connect to the router. Currently testing with the Mac hardwired to the satellite. The mac is using private wifi addressing (MAC address randomization). I can turn that off as the next test. Also, while the problem was occurring, I tried flushing arp cache on both devices and also rebooting both. That did not help. 

     

    My Sony TV and a few other devices randomly loses their wireless network connection. Not sure if that is related. Have not had the time to study it. 

     

    By the way, I have a fair amount of experience in networking and software development. As far as i can tell right now, this setup should work and it does work for a few hours. 

     

    Thanks.