Orbi WiFi 7 RBE973
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Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

radesix78
Guide

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

SPC is not active for me to disable.  When I brought the 2nd router home I never set it up.  And I have factory reset both the first and second Orbi routers. It made no difference in either scenario.

Message 26 of 85
BenjaminNYC
Apprentice

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

Incredible. Guess I won't do it then!

Message 27 of 85
BenjaminNYC
Apprentice

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

It is clearly stored in our Netgear account somewhere.

Message 28 of 85
radesix78
Guide

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

That’s exactly what I concluded. The router is looking out to our account and seeing a flag that has been set when we activated the SPC trial. Unfortunately the flag isn’t being reverted when the trial/subscription is cancelled or expired.

That flag either needs to be manually reset by Netgear and/or a firmware update needs to occur to prevent the router from looking at the flag incorrectly.

The challenge is getting L3 to reach the same conclusion and provide a real fix.
Message 29 of 85
KevinLiT
NETGEAR Moderator

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

Hello @BenjaminNYC ,

 

Thank you for your post!

 

I understand that you are aware of solving this issue by toggling off the SPC in the Orbi app and then factory resetting your router. Were you able to implement this solution?

 

Best,

Kevin

Community Team

Message 30 of 85
BenjaminNYC
Apprentice

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

Agreed. Please report back!

Message 31 of 85
BenjaminNYC
Apprentice

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

@KevinLiT he already reported that that does not work.

Message 32 of 85
radesix78
Guide

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

Kevin

What you are suggesting does not work. If it did I wouldn’t be here posting.
Message 33 of 85
KevinLiT
NETGEAR Moderator

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

Hello @radesix78 ,

 

Thank you for your post!

 

I understand that you are having difficulties with disabling the SPC on your Orbi router. 

 

When navigating to the following: Orbilogin.com> ADVANCED> Access Control. 

Does it direct you to use your Orbi app?

 

Best,

Kevin

Community Team

Message 34 of 85
radesix78
Guide

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

Actually to be a bit more clear, those steps might allow you to again see the Access Control GUI… but it doesn’t enable the Access Control functionality.

I can see the page and I have it set to block all new devices. The problem is devices show up in the list as blocked but they aren’t actually blocked. Also trying to pause the devices in the Orbi app does not block traffic to and from the device.

So the conclusion is that the Access Control still doesn’t work. Seeing the GUI and having it “appear” to work isnt a final resolution.
Message 35 of 85
radesix78
Guide

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

SPC was never active on this router. I took the original router back and got a new one. When I setup the new router I did not activate SPC

Let me repeat…
1) it was never active on the current router
2) I can see the Access Control GUI.
3) The Access Control functionality is set to block all new devices from joining the network
4) devices show up as blocked - but are not blocked
5) Pausing the device in the Orbi app also has no effect.
6) Access Control is not working

 

@KevinLiT   If you have access to support tickets please see the ticket in L3 support.  I've been working with Bella and as of today Bernard.  

 

@ChristineT Please feel free to join the party! 🙂 Bernard mentioned you as well.

Message 36 of 85
KevinLiT
NETGEAR Moderator

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

Hello @radesix78 ,

 

Thank you for your post!

 

I am looking into the progress of your ticket.

 

Please do not post ticket numbers.

 

Best,

Kevin

Community Team

Message 37 of 85
radesix78
Guide

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

Sorry, I didn’t realize ticket numbers were not allowed… and thanks for the extra eyes and help on the case.
Message 38 of 85
BenjaminNYC
Apprentice

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

@KevinLiT yes it tells me to use the Orbi app, which is one of numerous problems having SPC enabled on my account.

Message 39 of 85
radesix78
Guide

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

@BenjaminNYC Based on my experience - even if you could get the Access Control GUI to show up - the underlying functionality won't work.

 

It would just appear to work... until your kid comes home with a new device from school and has no problem attaching to the network and surfing the internet even though the access control status would show blocked for that device. Then you could go to the Orbi app and try to pause said device and watch in frustration as your kid continues to surf the web, play games, and use social media unhindered. 

 

Then your only option is to resort to physical access control by taking the device away and hiding it somewhere in the house where he can't reach or think to look... like in the safe 🙂

 

But i'd rather just have access control do what its supposed to do.

Message 40 of 85
KevinLiT
NETGEAR Moderator

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

Hello @radesix78 ,

 

Are these devices iOS based?

 

Best,

Kevin

Community Team

Message 41 of 85
BenjaminNYC
Apprentice

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

Got it. So, @KevinLiT, what we need is SPC removed from our account. Not from our router, but from our account. As evidenced by @radesix78's experience, even getting a new router will not fix the issue, because SPC is registered onto our account. Therefore, factory reset is not a viable nor effective solution. Thank you.

Message 42 of 85
radesix78
Guide

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

@KevinLiT Not exclusively... we do have iOS devices in the house but the school issues Chromebooks and it doesn't block them either.  He has a friend that came over the other day with an Android phone and I noticed it too was on the network.

 

The chromebooks are the real problem. They cant just come up with a new iOS device but they have figured out they can tell IT at school there is something wrong with the Chromebook and get issued a new one. 

Message 43 of 85
KevinLiT
NETGEAR Moderator

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

@radesix78 ,

 

Thank you for verifying this for me. 

 

Best,

Kevin

Community Team

Message 44 of 85
BenjaminNYC
Apprentice

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

A friend on Reddit, facing the same issue, has DM'ed me his solution, which he said worked.

 

High level, it involves canceling your Netgeat account, creating a new one, registering the system to the new account, then downgrading/upgrading the firmware to rid any remnants of SPC.

 

He investigated the code, and confirmed that there is a flag in our accounts that triggers SPC, even if you have new equipment. Netgear seems incapable or unwilling to address this, so this may be the only way.

 

Here are the steps:

  1. First things first you’ll want to unregister your products from your Netgear account.
  2. Afterwards make a new Netgear account with a new email.
  3. Delete and reinstall Orbi application.
  4. Login under new account, it should automatically register your router to your new account.
  5. Then delete your old account completely (check registration page once more to be sure the product is fully unregistered).
  6. Now delete the Orbi app once more.
  7. Next up routers.
  8. If you were on latest firmware you would have to revert, and go forward, which I had to. Thankfully you are on old firmware. (He was referring to me.) So you get to skip the revert process.
  9. Factory reset your router on your old firmware (the one you currently have).
  10. Do so as well for your satellites.
  11. (DON'T FORGET TO BACKUP YOUR OLD SETTINGS IF YOU HAVE CUSTOM NAMES AND OTHER TEDIOUS STUFF YOU DONT WANT TO RECONFIGURE.)

  12. Now setup from scratch on random setting, your access page still won’t work but you are prepping the environment for a proper firmware upgrade.
  13. Now upgrade your firmware on satellites first, then your router. Manually, of course.
  14. Once complete, even access page will now be working, do another factory reset. To rid yourself of any remaining code from the previous firmware.
  15. Now setup your router and satellites to your liking.
  16. Once everything is synced up and connected you DNS and Access Page will work just fine. Same with Orbi app.
  17. And finally make sure to never use any subscription services such as Armor or Parent Control, or this time you’ll have to do it all over again.

New firmware: https://kb.netgear.com/000065263/RBRE960-RBSE960-Firmware-Version-6-3-7-5

 

And if you break it again accidentally, here’s the old one for future reference: https://kb.netgear.com/000064563/RBRE960-RBSE960-Firmware-Version-6-0-3-85

 

A personal note: It is extremely frustrating that (1) Netgear has programmed SPC this way, and that (2) even L3 support is so incompetent that they are unable to realize this solution. Netgear makes amazing hardware, but their software is absolutely garbage.

Message 45 of 85
radesix78
Guide

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

Wow… that’s quite a process. I’d almost rather switch to another manufacturer. Let me kick around whether I want to do this or not. I have other products like a ReadyNAS and another Orbi network so it isn’t just moving one device to a new account. Thanks for the potential solution.
Message 46 of 85
BenjaminNYC
Apprentice

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

100%. But it’s really just:
1. New Netgear account
2. Downgrade/upgrade firmware
3. Factory reset.

I’m still hopeful for an official solution. Not going down this path now. For me, there is no other mesh hardware besides my 960 that can get through my 1 foot thick concrete walls.
Message 47 of 85
radesix78
Guide

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

But I have to move other devices too… and I paid for premium support which is also attached to the current account. It sounds straight forward but I see the potential for more headaches given the extra variables for me.
Message 48 of 85
BenjaminNYC
Apprentice

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

Totally. Let’s see what “L3” yields. So far, crickets.
Message 49 of 85
TSNosredna
Tutor

Re: To use Access Control, please use the Orbi App

I just ran into this issue today in my efforts to "block new devices" and I have the RBK763S (RBR760) setup.

 

I find this all horrifying (though not at all unusual from my experiences with Netgear home devices over the years), but I just barely fell for the carrot of $29 for a year subscription and thought I'd give it a try (no, I never would have done that if I knew about this ahead of time).

So, here I am now, and I do love the amount of detailed info I can get from the parental controls. 

So, I may have figured out a kludgy work-around and wanted to see what you all thought.  I have 100s of devices and I KNOW this is a crappy option, BUT, if you're kinda stuck and don't want to switch brands...

 

In the Orbi App's Parental Access, what if you create a new profile (call it "MyHome" or whatever), and move all of the devices currently in the "Home" profile to that, then pause the "Home" profile's internet access?

 

My thought is that any new device will continue to get assigned to the default "Home" profile (and thus be "blocked").  Once you approve the device, you can move it to your new "MyHome" profile (or wherever they "should" be) and life will continue on.  At least until the day you let your subscription expire and Netgear has either fixed this or you are stuck doing the whole "setup a new Netgear account, backup current config, downgrade firmware, factory reset, upgrade firmware, restore saved config" thing.

 

Just a thought...

Message 50 of 85
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