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Netgear R8000 AC3200 dropping device connections
Hi everyone, I'm hoping that you can help me diagnose connection issues that may be related to our Netgear R8000 router. We have been having issues with connecting to the internet for a few months n...
Re: Netgear R8000 AC3200 dropping device connections
@AB2002 wrote:We have been having issues with connecting to the internet for a few months now.
What are those issues?
Connection to the internet is lost for seconds to a few minutes randomly throughout the day.
I am suspecting an issue with the router as the internet connection light stays on on the router, but sometimes I can't access the internet on any of my devices connected to the 5 GHz Wifi.
What symptoms do you see? What actually happens? Any error messages?
Internet connection becomes unstable and then drops entirely. Internet indicator light stays on (does not turn amber). Wifi stays connected as far as I can tell. Only error message is that internet speed tests fail and I can’t connect to the internet.
Firmware is 1.0.484.
If you mean 1.0.4.84 there is a more recent hotfix:
R8000 Firmware Version 1.0.4.88 - NETGEAR Support
interesting as the Nighthawk app tells that the firmware is up to date.
AB2002 wrote:
interesting as the Nighthawk app tells that the firmware is up to date.
The on-board check – with a mobile app or the GUI – is not reliable. The best check is to compare the installed version with the support library.
In this case, the new firmware is a "hot fix". These don't always make it on to the update server, for reasons that I have never understood.
The new one is dates 06/03/2024. In Netgear speak this probably means last month – the unzipped file date confirms this. (In the real world it would be March this year.) It claims to be a security thing, but who knows what else is in there?
It can be a pain, but a reset is the first thing that Netgear is likely to suggest when you seek help. You can make is slightly less gruesome by creating a backup of the current configuration.
The general advice is not to restore that after an update, but if you find that the same problem persists even with the new firmware that would suggest that the issue is something else.
Screen grabs of key settings can also make it easier to reconfigure the router after a reset.
Thank you so much! I will give that a try!
I've updated the router with the new firmware, but I'm still experiencing drops. At this point I am tethering my iPhone over LTE to my computer to do Zoom calls as that is much more reliable that going through the Netgear router and my regular ISP. We have completed extensive troubleshooting from the ISPs side and no longer believe that that is the problem.
I talked to a Netgear dealer and they said that at 7 years old, it could be that the router is starting to give up and this would be a typical sign. Drops last for just a few seconds.
I'm considering upgrading to a new Nighthawk unless someone has any other suggestions. I searched everything I could find for error logs and network connection settings and did not succeed to fix the issue.
I noticed that rebooting the router helped in such a case a few days ago. It took awfully long to reboot and reconnect the Wifi.
AB2002 wrote:
We have completed extensive troubleshooting from the ISPs side and no longer believe that that is the problem.
ISPs have a habit of washing their hands of problems. It is always easier to pass the buck and blame user's router than it is to try to work out what is happening.
You never did tell what modem/gateway/ONT sits between the R8000 and the outside world.
I noticed that rebooting the router helped in such a case a few days ago. It took awfully long to reboot and reconnect the Wifi.Awfully long? It isn't a rapid process but it shouldn't take for ever. And when you do that it is better to booth the whole caboodle:
Be sure to restart your network in this sequence:
- 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.
You can miss out the computer bits.
If you are a regular zoomer, a wired connection is better than wifi. Less likely to fall over in the middle of an important call. Did you try that to see if wired connections also drop? You still haven't ruled out wifi issues on the receiving end.
I talked to a Netgear dealer and they said that at 7 years old, it could be that the router is starting to give up and this would be a typical sign.That is true. The R8000 came out in 2015 and a lot has changed since then, especially on the wifi front. On the replacement front, it depends on what you need, the area that you want to fill with wifi and the size of your wallet. Oh, and your approach to aesthetics. The R8000 is one of those horrid techie designs. There are alternatives around. I'd start by plugging my needs into the product pages,
WiFi Routers | Wireless Routers | NETGEAR
Don't be conned into buying "the latest and greatest". There is no point in buying a router that does 6 GHz wifi or superfast ethernet if you don't have devices that can use them.
Hi Michael,
thanks again for the response.
i had included the info on the modem in my reply earlier, but it probably wasn’t obvious. It says Switching Gigabit Power Supply on it, model #GP-J240-030G. Looks like the brand is ULCOM. From that little brick the cable goes to an antenna on the roof to connect to fixed wireless internet service.
it took almost 5 minutes for the R8000 to reboot last time. I don’t remember it taking that long in the past. The lights came on very faint after plugging it in again for a few seconds. What makes me suspect the R8000 is that in the past it would show the internet connection as off (red light) on the router when I experienced an outage, but now it stays white and yet I can’t connect neither through WiFi nor through ethernet cable.
yes, the ISP definitely tried to dismiss any responsibility until I made a complaint to the government. I have had a network tech check it remotely since and a tech also came into our office twice since.
I have connected my main computer by ethernet cable again before the last Zoom call on Thursday and I still got kicked out. Again, internet connection light on the R8000 stayed white.
I couldn’t care less about the aesthetics. I just want a router that works as well as the R8000 did for years.