Best firmware for R7000P?

[leilamuthu]

What is the best firmware version for R7000P?

After about 1 year of using my R7000P Nighthawk with no issues, all of a sudden 5Ghz decides to drop out 5-7 times a day. The logs show nothing of interest, just the usual DHCP IP calls and admin logins (me).

When the 5Ghz band drops out, both wired and the 2.4Ghz band remain fine and those devices stay connected to the internet (NBN).

I have tried power cycling and factory resets, but the problem continues.

I was running firmware 1.3.1.64_10.1.36 and the admin console was telling me that it was the latest version. However, when I checked the netgear site, it appears that there is a later firmware 1.3.2.124_10.1.64 which I have just upgraded to.

Predictably, not even 24 hours later, the wifi is back to dropping out again 😞

I've seen many posts here instructing people with similar issues to me, to update/change their firmware to "the .42" - I tried to find this here, but was unable to:

https://www.netgear.com/support/product/R7000P.aspx#download

What is the equivalent of "the .42" for the R7000P, and where do I find it?

[leilamuthu · Accepted solution]

Currently stuck using v1.3.0.20.

I've also had to switch some critcal devices to the 2.5GhZ network as I can't risk those devices continually dropped off on the 5GhZ network.

A real shame that this Netgear product has been a waste of hundreds of dollars 😞

[plemans]

The ".42" version is for the R7000. Which is a different router from the R7000P.

The R7000P did get the netgear armor update.

A couple things you can try.

1. Rinstall the 1.3.2.124 firmware over an ethernet connection, factory reset the router after the reinstall/reboot, and then manually re-install the device (not from backup).

if it still has the issue, then:

2. Install version 1.3.0.20.  This is the version prior to netgear armor. Not all devices played nice with Armor. maybe yours is one. Again, install over a hardwired connection, reset back to factory afterwards, and then manually reinstall it. 

[leilamuthu]

Thanks plemans, I'll give that a try and report back.

[leilamuthu]

Okay, the router is now on v1.3.0.20.

After flashing with this firmware, I did a factory reset and configured it all manually.

Fingers crossed!

Now we wait....if there's been no further dropouts in another 24-48 hours, I'll happily accept your solution!

I feel sick in my stomach that I can't rely on Netgear hardware though 😞

[leilamuthu]

Sadly, no luck with firmware V1.3.0.20_10.1.1 😞

After only about 2.5 hours, the 5ghz wifi dropped out again.

The only thing in the logs at the time (not the real MAC addresses):

[Admin login] from source 192.168.1.3, Thursday, Aug 13,2020 16:58:32
[DHCP IP: (192.168.1.4)] to MAC address xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx, Thursday, Aug 13,2020 16:42:44
[DHCP IP: (192.168.1.3)] to MAC address xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx, Thursday, Aug 13,2020 16:42:25
[DHCP IP: (192.168.1.4)] to MAC address xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx, Thursday, Aug 13,2020 16:40:06
[DHCP IP: (192.168.1.3)] to MAC address xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx, Thursday, Aug 13,2020 16:39:39
[Admin login] from source 192.168.1.3, Thursday, Aug 13,2020 14:03:27

Do I continue to work my way backwards in firmware versions to pre-V1.3.0.20_10.1.1?

[plemans]

You could try a 3rd party firmware like ddwrt. but if the 5ghz is dropping on the .20 firmware and the newest, it might be a hardware failure. But worth trying

[leilamuthu]

Thank you. I'm hesitant to go the ddwrt/openwrt route in case it causes even more complexity.

I'll keep it as a last resource.

Next, I might try flashing with even earlier firmware, all the way down to v1.0.0.44...

And then, I will try activating the warranty process on the grounds of hardware failure, which I am still covered for.

Thank you for your help so far!

[leilamuthu · Accepted solution]

Currently stuck using v1.3.0.20.

I've also had to switch some critcal devices to the 2.5GhZ network as I can't risk those devices continually dropped off on the 5GhZ network.

A real shame that this Netgear product has been a waste of hundreds of dollars 😞

[Bookgeezy]

Any luck? Same issue and I just got mine. Not one email back from Netgear. Disappoints me because i used to believe in them..slowly losing confidence.

I've put so much tome in it that my wife is complaining. Its like everyday, all weekend now for 2 weeks. I had read about the drops but i said..by now they have to had addressed them. Super mad with a sad face lol.

[leilamuthu]

No more luck here - also super mad + super sad face too. 

Still running on one of their earliest firmware versions and the 5GhZ network still drops out multiple times every hour.

My whole household has now permanently stopped using the 5GhZ network. Which is such a waste of money - the dual band functionality is the only reason why I spent a couple of hundred dollars on this Netgear.

I'm going to call NetGear today and claim against the hardware warranty.

[hh736]

Hi  leilamuthu,

Turn off the Smart Connect feature of the router. I have the same router and it works for me. My FW version is: V 1.3.1.64_10.1.36

Thanks.

[leilamuthu]

Thank you hh736 for your suggestion.

However I can confirm that the Smart Connect feature is turned off; I've never used it.

[Retired_Member]

I'm glad I checked here first - was thinking of switching back to try the new firmware (v1.3.2.124).

Yet in this case maybe I can offer some hope. I had the same issues on 1.3.1.64 with 5ghz dropping randomly and can confirm issue has not occured even once since I moved to use DD-WRT firmware.

So it seems to confirm a software issue and not the hardware. It was easy enough to do. Happy to talk more directly if something you may consider...

[hh736]

I've tried to switch back to v1.3.0.20 on my R7000P, but the extenders dont work for some reason - they just extend the -2G and -5G, but no internet connection...So, I updated the router with the latest firmware (from Netgear downloads site), and everything works good for now.

I'll update my review after a couple weeks.

[timdugan19]

Can anyone provide the link for firmware to upgrade to?  Just want to ensure right one. I have th Nighthawk R7000P and just in the past week have I had issues with the 5G connection dropping about once a day. Currently I have been on the V1.3.1.64_10.1.36 firmware and have not had any issues with it in about 8 months until now...  Thanks in advance. 

[hh736]

Just go to Download center and type R7000P in the promt for product and you' get there:

https://www.netgear.com/support/download/

The latest version is 1.3.2.124

[timdugan19]

Got it. Can anyone confirm if this latest firmware will resolve issue with the 5G wifi dropping intermittently? 

[leilamuthu]

The latest firmware () didn't solve it for me.

I've also tried downgrading and currently on 1.3.0.20, but still experiencing 5g drop outs 4-6 times every day.

[plemans]

after the downgrade, did you factory reset and then set it back up without using a backup configuration?

[leilamuthu]

Hi @plemans 

Yes, I did the following each time:

• Clean Install of Latest/Earlier Firmware with factory reset before and after (reset-flash-reset-reconfigure)
• Power Cycle
• Factory Reset
• Manually Reconfigure

Thanks.

[plemans]

Have you tried turning the power output down on the 5ghz radio?

[timdugan19]

I have not tried that. Mine is set to 100%. What will turning this down do and any downsides to it? Thank you.

[plemans]

Never know. If you've tried everything that @leilamuthu (the OP) has then its an option. Maybe the 5ghz is overheating/going bad. Running it at 75% power might let it run longer. It might cause some reduced distances/speeds. 

[hh736]

You can use the free home version of Acrylic WIFI to see yours and your neighbors WIFI networks, and then pick up a channel, which has the lowest traffic and best signal:

For example - as you see from the picture all my networks on 2.4GHz are on channel 8, because my neigborrs and Xfinity are using 1, 6 and 11.

[hh736]

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@hh736 wrote:

You can use the free home version of Acrylic WIFI to see yours and your neighbors WIFI networks, and then pick up a channel, which has the lowest traffic and best signal:

For example - as you see from the picture all my networks on 2.4GHz are on channel 8, because my neigborrs and Xfinity are using 1, 6 and 11.

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Not sure what happened to the snippet - I'll try again.