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R6400v2 Router has no Internet after an outage last night
We lost internet briefly last night, possibly due to a cable modem update (TBD). Our R6260 Netgear router on this modem reconnected fine, BUT our R6400v2 which serves our primary LAN cannot connect to the internet.
So far we cannot determine anything useful.
The R6400v2 has the latest firmware release, but we do not know when this auto update was installed. Maybe last night?
Is a factory reset and along with the previous firmware version our best bet for working internet?
Our "main" router has the "inside" IP 192.168.1.1. It is plugged into the cable modem. It serves a LAN with the address 192.168.1 with DHCP and a static IP table.
The second router is an in an adjacent building, and is plugged into one of the "main" router's LAN ports via a buried cable. It has a static IP of 192.168.1.3, so is part of that LAN, and can be access from devices connected to this wifi.
This 2nd router has an "inside" IP of 10.0.0.1, and serves a wifi of 10.0.0 with DHCP and a small IP reservation table.
We have one desktop PC plugged into one of the second router's LAN port with the static IP 10.0.0.3. From here I can log into and manage either router, which is handy.
We want the wifi's to be separate, for our two smart hubs and Google Nest, etc. It is more convenient for us this way.
Clearly this is no security within/across the two LANs, but we have never had anyone but family on our wifi networks as far as we know...! We just want the smart hubs and Google to treat each building as a separate smart home, and to have decent performance.
And I do not see how an AP would benefit us particularly, but perhaps I don't fully understand APs.
10 Replies
ptartist wrote:
We lost internet briefly last night, possibly due to a cable modem update (TBD). Our R6260 Netgear router on this modem reconnected fine, BUT our R6400v2 which serves our primary LAN cannot connect to the internet.
Have you started the network in the correct order?
- Turn off and unplug modem.
- Turn off router and computers.
- Plug in and turn on modem. Wait 2 minutes for it to connect.
- Turn on the router and wait 2 minutes for it to connect.
- Turn on computers and rest of network.
Are you saying that you have two routers behind an anonymous modem? If so, that is a recipe for chaos.
Two routers on your network can cause headaches. For example, you can end up with local problems with address on your network. Among other things, the other router can misdirect traffic to addresses that the Netgear router usually handles, such as routerlogin.net or the usual default IP address for a router, 192.168.1.1.
This explains some of the other drawbacks.
What is Double NAT? | Answer | NETGEAR Support
Unless you have specific reasons for using two routers – to create two separate networks for example – it is often easier to use just one router and then to set up the second router as a wifi access point (AP) with a wired connection to the main router. Netgear advises this, as does just about every site you will visit.
The R6400v2 has the latest firmware release, but we do not know when this auto update was installed. Maybe last night?
Not, sadly a reliable guide. If you used the Nighthawk app or a web browser and the graphical user interface (GUI) they can miss updates, especially when you are a long way behind the latest.
The best way to check is to look at the GUI or the Router Information page in the Nighthawk App and check the firmware version reported there. Then visit the support pages for your device and to look at the library of available updates. There may be a newer version there.
Support | NETGEAR
Feed in your model number and look for firmware for your device.
The release notes should also tell you how to manually update the firmware.Or read this:
How do I manually upgrade firmware to my NETGEAR router? | Answer | NETGEAR Support
Our two router two buildings two LANs setup has been copasetic for many years. No conflicts.
There was a brief outage overnight, and I suspect the cable company (WAVE/Astound) changed/updated the modem settings. Customer reps say they don't have access to that info.
After a few tries, then a serious 30/30/30 factory reset I was able to login in as admin and setup the R6400v2.
Sadly it seems NOW the cable modem will only provide internet to one router at a time.
I have changed plugs for testing, and each router works fine alone, but when both are plugged in, only my Netgear R6260 gets the Internet, which network plug used.
And as previously stated, this configuration has been absolutely fine for many years, multiple updates, etc.
So probably not a Netgear problem, but a cable company issue...
I did have considerable trouble resetting the R6400v2: I lost our admin password, but the default password did not work until I tried the 30/30/30 trick BUT it may have all been a flaw in the nighthawk app that if you tried a bad password first you were doomed for that session ...
ptartist wrote:
Our two router two buildings two LANs setup has been copasetic for many years. No conflicts.
When you set up a network, a router will look for other devices on the network and adapt its settings accordingly. If one router sees another router on the network with Netgear's preferred default address (192.168.1.1) the new one will pick something that doesn't clash (usually 10.0.0.1). The devices can then coexist. If something odd happens, like a power outage or a modem update, that can break that cosy relationship.
By the way, cable modems rarely get updates. Your ISP certainly should be able to tell you if that happened.
I have changed plugs for testing, and each router works fine alone, but when both are plugged in, only my Netgear R6260 gets the Internet, which network plug used.
The last bit of that sentence is a bit of a puzzle. Does "which network plug used" mean "no matter which network plug used"?
Sadly it seems NOW the cable modem will only provide internet to one router at a time.No matter, that behaviour smells like a double-NAT issue. It is hard to tell without any details about your cable modem. Maybe it is also a router. Many are.
We still don't know what firmware is on your routers, although it probably doesn't make much difference.
By the way, your suggested that there was an autoupdate to your R6400v2. This is a pretty basic, and somewhat aged, router that may predate the autoupdate feature, unless it was added in a firmware update.
Now that you are in something of a pickle – messing around with 30/30/30 is a bad idea unless you have broken firmware – you might like to set up your network in a way that does not leave you open to these problems in future.
How to fix issues with Double NAT | Answer | NETGEAR Support
There are other options, but without more information about your network, it is hard to tell.
