NETGEAR is aware of a growing number of phone and online scams. To learn how to stay safe click here.
Forum Discussion
CM600 firmware not upgraded by Time Warner Cable
I wanted to upgrade the existing firmware (V1.01.05) of my cable modem (CM600). Netgear website says that for Time Warner Cable (TWC) I should have V1.01.12 and that I cannot upgrade manually. I h...
Hi Sponger - you're right about the signal dropping out. That's what got me started with all this "updating" nonsense. At first, I updated my Intel, Microsoft and Dell drivers and that helped a lot in stopping the dropouts. But, I'm still having problems and wanted to finish the project by updating my new store-bought modem. That's when I found out about the firmware updating nightmare. Keep posting. You have a keener mind than I and you expressed yourself and the problem in a concise and clear manner. You've also made it to Tech Support which no one else has managed to do.
Hello sponger85
With all modems on cable internet none of them can be manually updated the ISP updates all the modems and the manufacturers of the modems all send there FW to the ISP to approve and make changes and the ISP pushes it via there servers when they are ready to. But if you are having disconnect issues you should check your power levels and snr. Another thing to check is the modems logs if you are seeing T4 and T3 timeouts show up when you are losing internet this says there is a line issue of some sort and you should get the ISP to check the lines. Also if you have cable splitters on the modem try to remove them and connect the modem directly to the outlet see if the connection improves.
DarrenM
Hi Darren -
What you say is the same as the Netgear website - BUT IT ISN'T TRUE. Read the complaints. Netgear won't update our modems and Time Warner Cable says they can't update them either. As for my power levels, about the same time that I bought the modem, I had a TWC technician out to check on another problem. He replaced all my cable from the street and into my house. He even installed a 0db amplifier to make sure my levels were strong and consistent. You cannot escape the fact that Netgear is selling a product that can soon become obsolete as the cable companies update their drivers and the Netgear modem can't keep up. It's the same as if we were running Windows XP and trying to surf the Internet. There are too many updates security and otherwise that would make us vulnerable to poor service.
One other point from the Netgear website, I haven't checked specifically but I think SOME modem models CAN be updated by Netgear. It's just that THIS CM600 model cannot. They should tell customers upfront which models can and cannot be updated before we waste $100.
TonyinCNY wrote:Hi Darren -
What you say is the same as the Netgear website - BUT IT ISN'T TRUE.
Tony, what Darren said is true. There are zero (modern) cable modems from ANY manufacturer that are user upgradable. All of them require the firmware update to be installed via the cable interface. So, even if you did manage to get the firmware image somehow, you wouldn't be able to install it via the ethernet interface.
Netgear provides the cable company with the firmware, and the cable company will upgrade if they feel the need to. Comcast seems to keep up to date with firmware releases. Other cable companies usually take the 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' approach. They will only push a firmware update if it fixes a specific problem being experienced by the customers.
What problem are you having and why do you think a firmware upgrade would help?
I challenge you to find a single DOCSIS 3.0 compatible modem - from any manufacturer - that is upgradable by the end user.
My original problem was horrible Internet dropouts. I would lose connection for 50% of the time that I was surfing. After some Internet research, I updated my Dell computer, Microsoft Windows and Intel drivers and that cured most of the dropout problem. But, I still get pages that don't load fully and slow changeover to other websites. I'm supposed to have the 50 Mbps speed but it has never been better than 37 Mbps. Most of the time, I can fix the slow page loading and any other problems by unplugging my modem for a minute and then turning it back on. I think a technician told me that my side of town gets "bad" service and doing the off and on sometimes gets a better "connection".
After I upgraded all my other drivers, I noticed that my NETGEAR modem was not at the most current level as specified on the NETGEAR website for service with TWC-Spectrum. In fact, I'm about three updates below what I should be. So, I wanted to be current to eliminate any and all problems that I could.
