Orbi Routing Problem

[Bandito]

I ran into a really weird problem my RBR50 yesterday.  It stopped routing packets to my fixed IP address components.  I have DHCP set up to issue x.x.x.11 - .199 addresses and then have several cameras, a NAS, and a server at fixed IP addresses above x.x.x.200.

I went to login into the NAS and it was unreachable via both http and ssh.  Very strange.  I then tried logging into a couple of cameras and couldn't reach them either.  So, a troubleshooting I began.  Eventually, I moved the NAS to it's second LAN port and then it pulled an address via DHCP and suddenly I could access it again via the new address!  Went back to the fixed port and got nothing, so I figured that the fixed-address port must have gone bad.  Even though I thought I had everything figured out and all Internet access was working from several systems, I thought that I'd go ahead and reboot the Orbi router just for the heck of it.  After the Orbi came back up, I could suddenly access the NAS over the fixed IP address again!

Apparently, the router had stopped routing traffic outside of the DHCP range as I couldn't get to any of the fixed IP addresses that I tried to access.  Has anyone run into this kind of a problem before?

Other that this issue, the only other thing that I've encountered is that one of the satellites will drop its throughput way down.  Normally I can get about 300 mbps downloads, but when the satellite runs into issues, the throughput drops down to about 40 mbps.  Upload speed of about 24 mbps is not affected.  It is very consistent in repeating this behavior after several days of running normally.  A reboot of the satellite gets it back to full speed again and the the cycle starts over.

I am running the current version of the firmware ending in .210 on both the router and both satellites, so I'm not sure why this routing issue happened unless it's a new bug with the current firmware.  The satelite dropping its throughput rate is something that I've been batlling since I purchased the system well over a year ago.  A replacement satellite has not fixed this slowdown issue.

I'd appreciate any thoughts or comments on these problems.  I have tried replacing the Orbi's with a couple of other mesh routers, but they either didn't achieve very good throughput or had other failures of their own, so I've come back to the Orbis as they have been the most stable of the systems that I have tried.

[FURRYe38]

What is the Mfr and model# of the ISP modem the NG router is connected too?
What is the Mfr and model# of the ethernet switch if one is in the configuration.

I presume static IP addresses are set ON the devices and not the router correct? 

Try setting a 192.168.1.100 to .200 IP address pool size then use the IP addresses at the front of the pool and test. I'm using this kind of configuration and have 3 cameras, NAS and 3 printers set for static IPs on the devices. No issues seen. 

Try disabling the following and see:
MIMO, Daisy Chain, Fast Roaming, IPv6 and Set 20/40Mhz Coexistence to 40Mhz only. Save settings and reboot the router and satellite(s).

If you updated to recent FW v.210, try enabling Daisy Chain. Some have mentioned that this seems to be working in reverse order, enabling means disabled actually.

After FW was updated, has the Orbi system been powered OFF for 30 seconds then back on or a factory reset and setup from scratch?

[Bandito]

The modem is not the issue.  If I connect directly to the router (via WiFi) I get a full speed connection.  It is only when I connect to the one satellite that the connection slows.

It happened again today after about four days of running normally, when I went to download app updates I noticed that they were slow.  A speed test showed the satellite at a max download of 25 Mbps when it should have been 300 Mbps.  I checked both the router and the other satellite and they were fine.

Everything was updated and set up per Netgear’s recommendations.  I have no plans of disabling the advanced features that provide the high-speed throughput that the Orbis are known for.  That makes no sense.  If Netgear can’t make the features work as advertised, then they should refund our money.

I’m thinking that the problem with not routing to the fixed IP addresses was a crazy fluke, but the speed degradation is definitely an ongoing problem that I wish could be fixed.

[Bandito]

Out of continued frustration with the Orbi system, I went out and picked up an eero system with three of their full second generation routers.  I set it up in the same locations as the Orbis were and proceeded to test it out.  Unfortunately, it doesn’t work nearly as well as the Orbis.  From the same positions that I normally use many of my devices, I was only getting about ⅓ the speed of the Orbis.  So, where I would normally get my full Internet speed of 300 Mbps, I was only able to get a little over 100 Mbps from the eero system.  Ouch!

Needlees to say, the eero system is going back and the Orbis are back online.  Perhaps I’ll have to invest in a timer to regularly reboot the satellite for me before it flakes out on its own.  I really wish that the Orbi system was more stable.

[Bandito]

I forgot to mention one other thing that I noticed with the eero system.  When connecting to the network, the connection was almost instantaneous.  The WiFi symbol would pop up immediately.  On the Orbi system it takes between 5-10 seconds to make the connection.  Significantly different.  

[st_shaw]

Sounds like the satelite backhaul signal is not strong and consistent enough at the locations you are using.  You might get better results if you try a different location for the problematic satellite and/or the router.  

[Bandito]

I have tried it in a couple of different locations, but that doesn’t seem to make any difference.  After a few days, the one satellite will develop the slower connection, even though the backhaul signal is listed as good.

I wish that the setup interface gave more detailed information about the backhaul status.  It would sure make determining what might be going on a lot simpler to determine.

[st_shaw]

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@Bandito wrote:

I wish that the setup interface gave more detailed information about the backhaul status.  It would sure make determining what might be going on a lot simpler to determine.

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Yes, that would be a welcomed feature.