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R8500 Latest Firmware Version V1.0.2.154 Broke DNS!
Hello, the latest firmware version V1.0.2.154 for the R8500 router appears to have broken DNS! I have to refresh pages multiple times to get them to load. Attached is the most common error. DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN
This is happening with nearly every other website. The DNS is not resolving and requires multiple page refreshes. Happens in all browsers and other applications such as VPN/VDI software. I have tried multiple different DNS servers, including my ISP's (Spectrum) no change. This started happening IMMEDIATELY after applying firmware version V1.0.2.154. Please fix this!
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You can downgrade the firmware to the prior version.
Simply download the older version, extract it, then follow the manual firmware update process and use the older firmware.
then just disable auto-updates
Thanks, I might need to do this. Unfortunately, the biggest reason for upgrading was .144 crashed! Never had this router crash, figured it was a problem with the firmware and updated to .154.
"crashed" doesn't tell us a whole lot.
What actually happened?
sometimes a simple factory reset can clear out bad settings/issues that might cause a "crash".
I'd try the downgrade, factory reset, and reinstall. See how it goes.
This is the router issue. I have the same and my ISP is for sure different. Now downgraded to 144 and hope for the best. Netgear must definitely look into the problem and check what their QA is doing.
I am having exactly the same issues... tested direct through PC to provider and all fine, this is a router firmware issue
downgraded firmware to 144 and the issue has instantly gone.
Will Netgear ever fix this? I have to decide whether to buy a new router from a company that addresses issues on a timely basis.
Doesn't look like it. Users seem to need to revert FW to 144 to fix it for now:
Fixes don't come over night and do take time. Happens with all router mfrs.
robberdobber wrote:
Will Netgear ever fix this? I have to decide whether to buy a new router from a company that addresses issues on a timely basis.
I have reverted - however the updates show to address security issues which could make me vulnerable.
robberdobber wrote:Will Netgear ever fix this? I have to decide whether to buy a new router from a company that addresses issues on a timely basis.
I would not be so sure about that. This model is old, well out of warranty and listed as "end of life" product. Besides, it is not the only model they broke with firmware update, so I simply lost my trust with netgear.
tdebug wrote:
I would not be so sure about that. This model is old, well out of warranty and listed as "end of life" product.
Even EOL devices, some of them, get firmware updates.
If Netgear produced a recent update that broke something, then it is likely to come up with a fix. But who knows when?
Then again, I see no sign that rthe R8500 is EOL.
This bug seems to have hit several different models. If you want to keep ahead of developments, you could watch the support pages for your router.
Fill in your model number.
That page will have any firmware for your device, including previous releases which some people have used as a temporary fix for this bug.I suggest watching that because new firmware can arrive there before it lands on the update server. There may even be a hotfix which is sometimes an early release of new firmware that has yet to go through all the stages needed to prepare it for official release.
- I too am having the DNS issue. Plus BOTH 5G radios will not function. I can see them and connect, but it tells me I'm connected but no internet? I have a netgear range extender ex6200 I believe, that I can connet to the R8500 but will not connect to the Internet. When I log in via the internal IP I can change some settings like say the device name and priority, but it gives an error about the device image not being valid. There are several other issues like this going on with build 154. My son's Windows 10 pc that he uses exclusively for remote learning will not connect to the edgenuity website and stay stable. I wiped the box, put a new wireless card and hard drive in it to no avail. Sometimes on my Samsug S20 FE I'll try to connect but it won't see the wireless router for several attempts. I reloaded the firmware 3 times and reset all security settings, turned off qos and still have issues. I really don't want to revert to sub revisions that have security vulnerabilities as a tradeoff for functionality. For what I paid for this unit I would think there would be a little bit better QA involved. I realize it takes some time to patch the holes, but to almost brick the functionality of the router to rush a fix out doesn't quite get it. Please fix the firmware asap and restore the full operating capabilities of this unit. Thanks in advance.
Users seem to need to revert FW to 144 to fix it for now:
Contact NG support and open a support ticket and let them know what your seeing.
Guru1911 wrote:
I too am having the DNS issue. Plus BOTH 5G radios will not function. I can see them and connect, but it tells me I'm connected but no internet? I have a netgear range extender ex6200 I believe, that I can connet to the R8500 but will not connect to the Internet. When I log in via the internal IP I can change some settings like say the device name and priority, but it gives an error about the device image not being valid. There are several other issues like this going on with build 154. My son's Windows 10 pc that he uses exclusively for remote learning will not connect to the edgenuity website and stay stable. I wiped the box, put a new wireless card and hard drive in it to no avail. Sometimes on my Samsug S20 FE I'll try to connect but it won't see the wireless router for several attempts. I reloaded the firmware 3 times and reset all security settings, turned off qos and still have issues. I really don't want to revert to sub revisions that have security vulnerabilities as a tradeoff for functionality. For what I paid for this unit I would think there would be a little bit better QA involved. I realize it takes some time to patch the holes, but to almost brick the functionality of the router to rush a fix out doesn't quite get it. Please fix the firmware asap and restore the full operating capabilities of this unit. Thanks in advance.
1.0.2.154 has been working great for the past 2 weeks now on both my Macbooks. Noticed less lags/lower latentcies even when it's busy. .144 firmware has been crashing occasionally - 5Ghz signals would disappear from time to time until it gets rebooted.
Unit is on Access Point mode - and DHCP is running on a separate router/fw.
.144 was really dissapointing. I was going to ditch Netgear for good and go with other brand name. But .154 seems to be running great so far.
stealth18 wrote:
1.0.2.154 has been working great for the past 2 weeks now on both my Macbooks. Noticed less lags/lower latentcies even when it's busy. .144 firmware has been crashing occasionally - 5Ghz signals would disappear from time to time until it gets rebooted.
Good evidence. Nice to have feedback. But, unlike most users, your R8500 router is in AP mode.
Did you see the same problems as everybody else with the earlier firmware in AP mode? If not, then your experience may not apply to those in router mode.
I haven't been following up much on .144 issues. Could you be give a little more detail(s) on the issues?
This is the same behavior I've seen. 144 faster than 154 (though 144 is not as fast as previous firmwares so clearly something was done to DNS) And on occasion 144 crashes router.
the same results I had ..
...we are behind 2 firmware revisions...I work from home and cant play around.
Just installed this firmware and unhappy to report I have this same DNS issue. Came looking for answers and found this thread.
If I read correctly this issue has been ongoing for months.
I would have hope for better support.
CaledonKen wrote:
Just installed this firmware and unhappy to report I have this same DNS issue. Came looking for answers and found this thread.
If I read correctly this issue has been ongoing for months.
About right.
The release notes say 07/29/2021, which is 29th July in real money.
Thanks for posting this! I had the same DNS issue sporadically occur and it was driving me nuts! Rolled back the firmware back to 144. Seems to be working well. I'm very surprised that Netgear hasn't addressed this already. Not impressed. The product has been pretty solid for me until this last firmware. Hopefully it's not downhill from here otherwise I will definitely jump ship.
- Does that revision properly log more than dhcp renewals ?
Is the ISP handing off DNS or are you entering it? Try entering just 1 DNS server leave the other blank.
I do remember that I did clear the config and re enter it after the initial update - I'm sorry i do not remember why.
Hi all,
I upgraded my Netgear firmware of the R8500 also to V1.0.2.154 some weeks ago and noticed the DNS problems of the R8500 not right away, because they are not present on my wireless connected devices and also not on my Windows 7 wired and wirless connected devices. However, on my Windows 10 wired connected devices they are very present (one DNS resolving failure every two minutes surfing) and really annoying.
As all other devices do not have this problem I did not expect a infrastructur problem like from being the router and thought it must be a Win10 problem. Also because of the randomness of the error occurring, I spent hours in searching and even reinstalled Windows on one computer...
Today I spent another couple of hours till I noticed it has to be a router problem and figured out the R8500 firmware is the problem thanks to this thread! So thank you very much for writing this problem in this forum and shame on you, Netgear, that you did not fix this problem in over two months!
As a workaround I now configured on my two Win 10 clients the DNS manually, which solved this problem. However, this is still a workaround. I hope the fix for this problem is comming soon, as I am currently not sure, if my next network devices will be from Netgear, although I bought all network devices in the past 15 years (or even longer) from Netgear and that is a double-digit amount. A bug in a firmware can happen (but should not, as this problem should have been detected if the firmware would have been properly tested before release), but over two months waiting for a bugfix is a really long time.
Also that no official communication form the Mods/Admins of this forum is present in this thread is also not satisfying, despite an ETA of a fw release that fixes this bug.
Kind regards from a guy who wasted about two days in investigation of the error because of this firmware bug,
DanielI also tried firmware R8500-V1.0.2.156_1.0.105 today (Nov 6 2021). Same issue : (
Rollback to R8500-V1.0.2.144_1.0.99 that was released January 2021.
Thanks for posting results. Save us all a lot of time.
- I have also encountered the same problem with my wired pc kept thinking it was a windows problem as it would load edge browser but constantly having problems with internet connectivity even though computer says it’s connected was about to drive me bonkers glad for your post as I’m upgrading my mobo and cpu in advance of windows 11 since my cpu isn’t compatible hope they update the fw soon getting irritated trying to get things done
