Enable Email Logging and Router Reboots

[FURRYe38]

NOTICE:

For ANY users seeing mysterious reboots of there 7 or 8 series RBR routers rebooting at random or at specific time frames, we'd like to ask you to enable Email Logging of the RBR and configure it to send email logs to a email account of your choosing:

https://kb.netgear.com/29909/Configuring-Email-notification-on-your-Nighthawk-Router-using-auto-dete...

After the Orbi is configured, observe and monitor the received logs and monitor the RBR's IPaddress/debug.htm web page for System Uptime. Take notice of the current time and observe this web page for next 24-72 hours. Observe and monitor any wireless or wired disconnections or any application pause or application disconnections during this time frame. 

Gmail Email Configuration:

I use Gmail on mine and on May 31st Google disabled and removed Allow Less Secure apps on there services so if you use Gmail, you need to enable 2FA on your Gmail account profile then as for a 3rd party application Password thats generated by Google. Input this in to the RBRs email configuration. Password given will be a random 16 character (???? ???? ???? ????) format.

https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/185833

Take note of better or worse behavior. What FW Version your using.

Let us know what you observe please. 

[FURRYe38 · Accepted solution]

Ok, enabling email logs seems to help stop the RBR mysterious rebooting. Mines been online for 4+ days:

Uptime would have been more however we had a brown out last Wednesday. 

[Timothy88]

Any ideas when Netgear will fix this?

[FURRYe38]

Nope. 

We are currently in testing of this issue to see if this is the main reason we are seeing these mysterious reboots. So far my RBR850 has been online for 2+days now with Email logging enabled with zero reboots. Where as before, it was rebooting every 6-7 hours. 

We've advised NG of what we are seeing and the details is all. 

[00_Jenn]

Where do you get the 3rd party google pw?

[FURRYe38]

With in the Google profile account under Security and Privacy I believe. Should be in same section as 2FA. 

[00_Jenn]

Got 2FA set up but can’t find that. Just 8 digit backup codes or option to use authenticator app that scans a QR code.

[00_Jenn]

I set it up with a non-gmail email account, because I honestly can’t tolerate another day of this rebooting every few hours nonsense. However, I’m still interested in how to setup with google per your instructions, as I’d rather have my gmail connected to this.

[cdp1276]

I just enabled this today, however I was on an almost every 12 hour random reboot schedule for weeks. However I have been up solid for 7 days now without any changes. So I was reluctant to enable the email settings but anxious for more stability here as this past year plus has been insanely bad for netgear software.

[cdp1276]

Is it common to get multiple emails if only setup for a daily email of logs when no reboot occurred? The details in the logs are pretty limited too in just showing: [DHCP IP: (192.x.x.x)] to MAC address xx:xx:xx Monday, Jun 13,2022 08:14:47 [DHCP IP: (192.... and repeats for just a few of my attached devices but not all of them. Is this what others are seeing?

[TC_in_Montana]

@cdp1276 

It is common to get "off-schedule" E-Mails of the logs when scheduled for daily.  This usually signifies that the router log is full and it should mail the log and clear itself.   We are seeing that the log file is not clearing itself correctly so it is filling back up quickly.

Unfortunately, the short logs (just a few lines, and sometimes out of order) is what others are seeing as well.

Both of these issues have been identified and have been brought to the attention of the engineers.

[Timothy88]

In the line under 2FA you should see 'App Passwords'  If you click the > it should ask you to enter your google password. Once you are in there choose 'select app' and you can create a custom name like OrbiMail for example and it should generate the 16 character passcode.

[FURRYe38 · Accepted solution]

Ok, enabling email logs seems to help stop the RBR mysterious rebooting. Mines been online for 4+ days:

Uptime would have been more however we had a brown out last Wednesday. 

[cdp1276]

I've been up for 15+ days and agree something has helped stabilize at the moment as I was almost every 12 hours previously and I knew there was no need to go into AP mode as my setup used to work solid for years!

[FURRYe38]

Glad it's working. Be sure to save off a back up configuration to file for safe keeping. Saves time if a reset is needed.
https://kb.netgear.com/000062080/How-do-I-back-up-the-configuration-settings-on-my-Orbi-WiFi-System
Enjoy. 📡

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@cdp1276 wrote:

I've been up for 15+ days and agree something has helped stabilize at the moment as I was almost every 12 hours previously and I knew there was no need to go into AP mode as my setup used to work solid for years!

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[UlkaFett]

FURRYe38:

Thanks for continuing to support us at this level. Enabling e-mail logging has corrected the reboot issue for me in the same manner as the others. this is the best the system has worked for me since version 4 was released. I am currently on V4.6.8.2 with this correction in place. 

[FURRYe38]

Glad it's working. Be sure to save off a back up configuration to file for safe keeping. Saves time if a reset is needed.
https://kb.netgear.com/000062080/How-do-I-back-up-the-configuration-settings-on-my-Orbi-WiFi-System
Enjoy. 📡

[FarmerBob1]

No Reboots Here on RBK853 . . .

Let me start off by saying all FW Updates have been and are installed via "tDFWI" or if after install an issue arises I run a 30/30/30. If necessary, I'll reinstall the FW which at that point is no big deal. Through out the years, I have used DDWRT, Tomato and other third-party FW on my Netgear Routers. So the intense install process was part of it all along.

From day one I have had eMail Notification Turned On with all Options Selected. I have been using it since it was first introduced. I have had VoIP service and questionable, until lately, ISPs where I needed to watch what is going on with my connection and who was/is trying to, at one time constantly contacting my VoIP ATA's. Lots of DDoSs.

So part of my initial installation of the RBR850 on an RBK853 system was to setup the eMail Notification. For a short time it wouldn't work. Once I reviewed the settings, I realized that the Outgoing Port was set wrong for the type eMail I was wanting to use. Once I changed that from the default, every thing has worked great since. And has since except when I put all my IoT on my Guest Network. I started getting my set eMail at Midnight and now 3 others throughout the day depicting the Guest Network Shuffle. I wish I could turn that off. Although the eMails range from the whole Guest Network IP range of devices shuffling to one or two entries when a device(s) dropped off or lose their way. I wish I could do IP Reservations for GN Devices.

Through all this I have had "No Reboots". Except those I initiated or expected.

RBR: System Uptime: 10 days 12:29:09
RBS1: System Uptime :12 days 18:15:9
RBS2: System Uptime :12 days 18:15:28

[FURRYe38]

I've not used email notifications for my Orbi systems. Until it was suggested to try this. 

I only use the ERASE button on the RBRs UI for a factory reset. Press the reset button the RBS for 15 seconds then release. 

Would be interesting to see if your system sees any mysterious reboots with a factory reset, setup from scratch and don't enable email logging. However, I believe we have enough feedback in regards to what users have been seeing with out email logs enabled initially so at least email logs are now helping to keep users systems more stable. 

I've disabled email logging on my 8 series last nite to see what happens. So far, no reboots. I presume that if I did a FR and setup from scratch with out enabling email logging, the RBR may exhibit the mysterious reboot. 

NG has been advised of this. 

[SeaRefractor]

For those wondering where this is in Google,

1. you login into your Google account settings.

2. Click on "Security" on the left-hand tab

3. Click on "App Passwords" under "Signing in to Google".

4.Select App "other" give it a name and click on "Generate".

This is your 16 character code to use besides your username to login to your Gmail account.

I've enabled this on my own Orbi RBK753 setup.   Interested in seeing if this provides the solution from the frequent reboots.   Will update in a couple days based on my experience.

[codejanitor]

I enabled email logging by adding incorrect email configs and credentials. It seems to bring stability still, so just enabling it without working is enough.

[quaywe]

This solution is looking good for me.

Basic Information
Firmware Version: V4.6.8.2_2.1.9
dumaos: v3.0.410
seal: v2.1.5.37-2
seal_services: v2.1.5.12-0
armor-bd: v2.2.100.3
spc-circle: v3.25.0.2
System Uptime: 5 days 19:29:04

[codejanitor]

When will NG come up with the firmware update that will fix the issue instead of having this ridiculous workaround? I don't want to configure my Orbi to send out emails to fix a bad firmware release.

[FURRYe38]

NG doesn't publish when FW updates for forth coming. Sorry. 

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@codejanitor wrote:
When will NG come up with the firmware update that will fix the issue instead of having this ridiculous workaround? I don't want to configure my Orbi to send out emails to fix a bad firmware release.

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[dtay]

It's ridiculous that we have to "beta test" what is a production firmware and to come up with "workarounds" just to fix Netgear's lack of quality control.  Should we just hold off on this firmware update?  I'm still on V4.6.8.2_2.1.9 which I had to do a factory reset/restore config to fix the web admin/app admin lock out fiasco.

[codejanitor]

If this was any other company, they will be burning the midnight oil to find and fix the issue. With NG we will be lucky to get a "fix" in about 2 months optimistically.