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Orbi RBK53 ethernet backhaul issue
I have upgraded my Orbi router and satellites to the latest firmware (2.1.2.18) and I am seeing some weird behavior with regard to what's shown on the "Connected Satellites" section of the orbi route...
OK, my RBK53 Orbis seem to be solid now. I have them in AP mode behind a dedicated router, and plugged into a managed switch to use ethernet backhauls. From Flash008's post (he is The Man) I looked into the STP settings of my managed switch. Though it is RSTP capable, it is in fact already using STP, with a priority of 32768. So that wasn't the problem. The problem was that the ports were set to Auto Edge mode by default. Not good. The Orbis would only sometimes use their ethernet backhaul. I disabled Auto Edge mode, and enabled Admin Edge mode. Reboot everybody, and BAM! the Orbis are happy to use their ethernet backhaul. For the past 24 hours I'm getting solid, stable connections, with good Wi-Fi speeds throughout the sprawling house. That was the whole reason for pulling out Asus Wi-Fi routers that I was running as APs. They were unstable, with mediocre speeds.
I do recommend to "Enable Implicit BEAMFORMING", and "Enable MU-MIMO". I'm not certain about the "Enable Fast Roaming" setting yet.
PS--
I don't believe the pretty lights. They lie. . . . I think. I use the Sync button, per the documentation, and training videos, but the lights are saying the devices aren't synced. Yet, all APs seem to work fine. I've read in some other threads that this could be a bug in the firmware. I'm running V2.1.4.16 at the time of this post.
FYI, It was reported by other users that when using managed switches with Orib systems, IGMP protocols need to be disabled. This helped Orbi systems and managed switch work better:
https://community.netgear.com/t5/Orbi/Orbi-MR-2-1-Update-3-23-18/m-p/1553749/highlight/true#M30673
https://community.netgear.com/t5/Orbi/Using-Router-Configured-as-Access-Point-Cannot-see-Satellites-in/m-p/1612052/highlight/true#M37974
https://community.netgear.com/t5/Orbi/Orbi-Ethernet-Backhaul-with-Managed-Switches/m-p/1613897#M38123
Sounds like you got yours working good though. IGMP is something to keep in mind.
https://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wireless/wireless-features/33195-wi-fi-roaming-secrets-revealed
https://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wireless/wireless-features/33196-wi-fi-roaming-secrets-revealed-part-2
https://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wireless/wireless-features/33197-wi-fi-roaming-secrets-revealed-part-3
https://www.smallnetbuilder.com/basics/wireless-basics/33180-how-to-fix-wi-fi-roaming
https://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wireless/wireless-features/33100-why-you-don-t-need-mu-mimo
NetNoggin wrote:
OK, my RBK53 Orbis seem to be solid now. I have them in AP mode behind a dedicated router, and plugged into a managed switch to use ethernet backhauls. From Flash008's post (he is The Man) I looked into the STP settings of my managed switch. Though it is RSTP capable, it is in fact already using STP, with a priority of 32768. So that wasn't the problem. The problem was that the ports were set to Auto Edge mode by default. Not good. The Orbis would only sometimes use their ethernet backhaul. I disabled Auto Edge mode, and enabled Admin Edge mode. Reboot everybody, and BAM! the Orbis are happy to use their ethernet backhaul. For the past 24 hours I'm getting solid, stable connections, with good Wi-Fi speeds throughout the sprawling house. That was the whole reason for pulling out Asus Wi-Fi routers that I was running as APs. They were unstable, with mediocre speeds.
I do recommend to "Enable Implicit BEAMFORMING", and "Enable MU-MIMO". I'm not certain about the "Enable Fast Roaming" setting yet.
PS--
I don't believe the pretty lights. They lie. . . . I think. I use the Sync button, per the documentation, and training videos, but the lights are saying the devices aren't synced. Yet, all APs seem to work fine. I've read in some other threads that this could be a bug in the firmware. I'm running V2.1.4.16 at the time of this post.