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Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

pugwonk
Tutor

Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

I have a network set up with an RBR50, RBW30 and RBS50. It works great most of the time. However.... I have two computers plugged into the RBS50 via ethernet and every so often (twice a day or therabouts) both computers will drop the ethernet connection to the RBS50. I initially thought the RBS50 was rebooting but I'm not so sure about that, as the two machines immediately connect to WiFi instead and I'm 99% sure from the signal strength that it's WiFi on the RBS50 that they're getting.

 

All firmware versions are up to date. Any idea what might be causing it? Searching the web didn't help very much and unfortunately I've got no obvious way of reproducing the behaviour.

 

Any help appreciated,

 

Chris

Message 1 of 33

Accepted Solutions
pugwonk
Tutor

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

About a week in now and, for me at least, I can confirm that the V2.5.0.38 firmware fixed this issue. Amusingly this firmware update arrived the same day as the 100ft ethernet cable I was about to run up the main stairs in the house, much to the annoyance of my wife...

View solution in original post

Message 30 of 33

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FURRYe38
Guru

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

What Firmware is currently loaded?
What is the Mfr and model# of the ISP modem the NG router is connected too?
Is the Orbi system operating in Router or AP mode?
What is the Mfr and model# of the ethernet switch if one is in the configuration.

 

What is the size of your home? Sq Ft?
What is the distance between the router and satellite(s)? 30 feet is recommended in between them to begin with depending upon building materials when wirelessly connected.

 

Is Daisy Chain enabled? Try with it disabled...

Message 2 of 33
CrimpOn
Guru

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

It would be useful to know how the satellites are connected to the Orbi router.  (I am assuming using the WiFi backhaul, not "wired".)

The Daisy Chain is an interesting possibility.  If each satellite is connected directly to the router, even over the WiFi backhaul, there is no reason to have Daisy Chain enabled.  (It should not "hurt", but one never knows.)

 

The part that intrigues me is the ethernet connection dropping and the computers immediately doing a WiFi connection to the satellite.  I have a Windows 10 laptop with both connections, and it does the same thing when I pull the ethernet cable.  This is because I have the Orbi WiFi connection set to "Automatically Connect."  What happens if you set the Orbi WiFi connection not to connect automatically?  What I believe should happen is the computer will announce, "Connection lost.  Connections are available."

 

Sad that you probably wll not be watching the next time this happens, because I also assume that whatever caused the connection to drop is temporary and once (whatever the cause is) goes away, the ethernet link will come back up again.  Although, if that were the case, you probably wouldn't know about it switching to WiFi, either.  This is a mystery to me.

Message 3 of 33
pugwonk
Tutor

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

Hi folks - thanks for taking a look!

I don't think the modem model will make a difference, as other machines connected to the same hub do not lose connection (and as far as I can see WiFi from my satellite works fine through all this). The satellite that's disconnecting ethernet is about 30 feet from the main hub. Both satellites are indeed connected via the WiFi backhaul.

I've tried disabling Daisy Chain - I think that's quite a good idea as I was already a bit suspicious that the one outside was somehow ending up between the hub and my satellite. I'll report back here if it works.

Message 4 of 33
CrimpOn
Guru

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

(I am really slow.  Please bear with me.)  I am fascinated to hear more about "how you know" that "something has happened."  My (brief) experiment showed that my Windows 10 laptop which had both an ethernet cable and a WiFi definition would immediately connect to Orbi WiFi if I pulled the ethernet cable, but would also immediately go back to the ethernet link when I plugged it back in.  This was when I had the WiFi set to "connect automatically".  When I did not have it set to connect automatically and pulled the ethernet cable, the laptop would bring up "Connection lost.  Connections available."  And, if I did nothing but plugged the etherent cable back in , the laptop would cheerfully (it's a Lenovo, they are happy) resume the ethernet connection.

 

What, exactly, do you see with your two computers?

Message 5 of 33
pugwonk
Tutor

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

Hi CrimpOn - the computers both behave exactly as though I'd pulled the ethernet cable and put it in again very quickly (i.e. they briefly connect to WiFi, then a few seconds later reconnect to Ethernet). I can tell one of them not to connect automatically to WiFi, but I'm 99% sure it'll just behave the same as yours does.

 

Because the disconnect is so brief, I only really know something has happened because my conference call dies and then I look and see the connection status go to WiFi then to wired again.

 

It's really rather odd.

Message 6 of 33
pugwonk
Tutor

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

It seems turning off Daisy Chain does not in fact fix this (though I liked the idea!).

Message 7 of 33
Edd79
Initiate

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

I have the same issue. 

 

I only have 2 devices (RBR50 and RBS50). Router and satellite 10 feet apart with ~400Mbit link between. 2 Ethernet devices (both on RDS50) disconnects ethernet for 1-2 seconds a few times a day, windows event viewer logs a standard loss of link, same as if the cable is plugged and inserted right away.

 

Disabling daisy chain in the advanced option does not help. Upnp is off. Latest firmware.

Model: RBR50|Orbi AC3000 Tri-band WiFi Router
Message 8 of 33
FURRYe38
Guru

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

What is the Mfr and model# of the ISP modem the NG router is connected too?

 

30 feet is recommended in between RBR and RBS to begin with depending upon building materials when wirelessly connected.

 

Has a facotry reset and setup from scratch been performed on the RBR and RBS? 

 

uPnP should be enabled. 

 

Try enabling Beamforming and MIMO(MIMO may or maynot be needed) and WMM. Under Advanced Tab/Advanced Settings/Wireless Settings

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


@Edd79 wrote:

I have the same issue. 

 

I only have 2 devices (RBR50 and RBS50). Router and satellite 10 feet apart with ~400Mbit link between. 2 Ethernet devices (both on RDS50) disconnects ethernet for 1-2 seconds a few times a day, windows event viewer logs a standard loss of link, same as if the cable is plugged and inserted right away.

 

Disabling daisy chain in the advanced option does not help. Upnp is off. Latest firmware.


 

Message 9 of 33
Edd79
Initiate

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds


@FURRYe38 wrote:

What is the Mfr and model# of the ISP modem the NG router is connected too?

 

30 feet is recommended in between RBR and RBS to begin with depending upon building materials when wirelessly connected.

 

Has a facotry reset and setup from scratch been performed on the RBR and RBS? 

 

uPnP should be enabled. 

 

Try enabling Beamforming and MIMO(MIMO may or maynot be needed) and WMM. Under Advanced Tab/Advanced Settings/Wireless Settings

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



No modem, just a fiber media converter. It's built into a metal black box so i cannot see anything on it.

 

The internet connection doesn't drop tho. All wireless devices are unaffected. It's only the two devices connected via ethernet to the RDS50 that drop out, and only for 1-2 seconds.

 

Setting all the settings as described above didn't seem to affect anything, i've had 2 dropouts since last night. The units are new so they're just installed a few days ago.

Message 10 of 33
FURRYe38
Guru

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

What are these two devices that are dropping for a short period of time? 

Try setting up a IP address reservation ON the RBR for these two devices. 

Swap LAN cables out on these two devices and the RBR. 


@Edd79 wrote:

@FURRYe38 wrote:

What is the Mfr and model# of the ISP modem the NG router is connected too?

 

30 feet is recommended in between RBR and RBS to begin with depending upon building materials when wirelessly connected.

 

Has a facotry reset and setup from scratch been performed on the RBR and RBS? 

 

uPnP should be enabled. 

 

Try enabling Beamforming and MIMO(MIMO may or maynot be needed) and WMM. Under Advanced Tab/Advanced Settings/Wireless Settings

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



No modem, just a fiber media converter. It's built into a metal black box so i cannot see anything on it.

 

The internet connection doesn't drop tho. All wireless devices are unaffected. It's only the two devices connected via ethernet to the RDS50 that drop out, and only for 1-2 seconds.

 

Setting all the settings as described above didn't seem to affect anything, i've had 2 dropouts since last night. The units are new so they're just installed a few days ago.


 

Message 11 of 33
cahiatt
Tutor

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

Pug and Edd, 

 

Ya'll aint't crazy. I see the same thing. To me it seems to tie in to a wifi device getting handed off from the RBR to the RBS or vice-versa. Anything wired to the RBS will show a very brief connection loss during this handoff. I'm on a wired backhaul also. The only improvement I've had is turning off fast roaming. The issue is still there, just not as frequent.

 

https://community.netgear.com/t5/Orbi/RBS50-temporarily-loses-connection-during-wifi-handoff/m-p/177...

Message 12 of 33
pugwonk
Tutor

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

In an attempt to better diagnose when this is happening, I wrote a small program to monitor network state changes. You can download the executable here. It just displays on the screen whenever there are network interface changes, e.g.:

 

2019-09-11 09:18:54 Network status changed to False
2019-09-11 09:18:54 Ethernet 3 is Down Wi-Fi 6 is Down
2019-09-11 09:18:54 Network status changed to True
2019-09-11 09:18:54 Ethernet 3 is Down Wi-Fi 6 is Up
2019-09-11 09:18:58 Ethernet 3 is Up Wi-Fi 6 is Up

It strips out any network adapter that doesn't contain "Ethernet" or "Wi-Fi". Ran it last night and it recorded a couple of drops at random times (I was sort of hoping it might be on the hour or something but perhaps not!).

 

Not sure if it will help anyone else, but you're welcome to try it so we can try and diagnose this a bit further!

Message 13 of 33
DocWyrick17
Aspirant

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

I found this thread by searching high and low and do not mean to high jack it at all but I am experiencing this same issue. I can be just chugging along, playing a game and just lose connection for a few seconds and get booted entirely. It just started happening within the last 2 weeks and is highly frustrating. I have tried every fix I know. I have plugged in directly to my fiber optic line and experience 0 issues. Tried an older N router I had before the Orbit, 0 issues. I just want to know how to fix it!

Model: RBR50|Orbi AC3000 Tri-band WiFi Router
Message 14 of 33
FURRYe38
Guru

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

What Firmware is currently loaded?
What is the Mfr and model# of the ISP modem the NG router is connected too?

What is the size of your home? Sq Ft?
What is the distance between the router and satellite(s)? 30 feet is recommended in between them to begin with depending upon building materials when wirelessly connected.

 

What channels are you using? Auto? Try setting manual channel 1, 6 or 11 on 2.4Ghz and any unused channel on 5Ghz.
Any Wifi Neighbors near by? If so, how many?

 

Try enabling Beamforming and MIMO(MIMO may or maynot be needed) and WMM. Under Advanced Tab/Advanced Settings/Wireless Settings

 

Try disabling the following and see:

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


@DocWyrick17 wrote:

I found this thread by searching high and low and do not mean to high jack it at all but I am experiencing this same issue. I can be just chugging along, playing a game and just lose connection for a few seconds and get booted entirely. It just started happening within the last 2 weeks and is highly frustrating. I have tried every fix I know. I have plugged in directly to my fiber optic line and experience 0 issues. Tried an older N router I had before the Orbit, 0 issues. I just want to know how to fix it!


 

Message 15 of 33
DocWyrick17
Aspirant

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

What Firmware is currently loaded? 2.3.5.30
What is the Mfr and model# of the ISP modem the NG router is connected too? No ISP modem. Ethernet runs directly from ISP network card into Orbi. I have a fiber optic connection and it feeds into the network card on side of house, cable then runs inside.

What is the size of your home? Sq Ft? 
What is the distance between the router and satellite(s)? 30 feet is recommended in between them to begin with depending upon building materials when wirelessly connected. 30-40 feet between the two.

 

What channels are you using? Auto? Try setting manual channel 1, 6 or 11 on 2.4Ghz and any unused channel on 5Ghz.
Any Wifi Neighbors near by? If so, how many? Using channel 6 for 2.6Ghz and using an unused 5 Ghz channel.

 

Try enabling Beamforming and MIMO(MIMO may or maynot be needed) and WMM. Under Advanced Tab/Advanced Settings/Wireless Settings

 

Try disabling the following and see:

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

 

I have tried every combination of enabling and disabling these per previous posts. The disconnection occurs regardless of Ethernet or WiFi. I have tried on multiple devices to play games online and get disconnected on them all. Once I bypass the Orbi router and hardwire directly into my PC, I ran for 4 hours with no issues. Plugged back into Orbi and experienced a drop every 20-30 min. Currently I have bypassed the Orbi and have no WiFi BUT my connection has worked all day today with no drops.

 

I should add this started about a week and a half to two weeks ago.

Message 16 of 33
FURRYe38
Guru

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

Has a factory reset and setup from scratch been performed since last FW update?  


@DocWyrick17 wrote:

What Firmware is currently loaded? 2.3.5.30
What is the Mfr and model# of the ISP modem the NG router is connected too? No ISP modem. Ethernet runs directly from ISP network card into Orbi. I have a fiber optic connection and it feeds into the network card on side of house, cable then runs inside.

What is the size of your home? Sq Ft? 
What is the distance between the router and satellite(s)? 30 feet is recommended in between them to begin with depending upon building materials when wirelessly connected. 30-40 feet between the two.

 

What channels are you using? Auto? Try setting manual channel 1, 6 or 11 on 2.4Ghz and any unused channel on 5Ghz.
Any Wifi Neighbors near by? If so, how many? Using channel 6 for 2.6Ghz and using an unused 5 Ghz channel.

 

Try enabling Beamforming and MIMO(MIMO may or maynot be needed) and WMM. Under Advanced Tab/Advanced Settings/Wireless Settings

 

Try disabling the following and see:

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

 

I have tried every combination of enabling and disabling these per previous posts. The disconnection occurs regardless of Ethernet or WiFi. I have tried on multiple devices to play games online and get disconnected on them all. Once I bypass the Orbi router and hardwire directly into my PC, I ran for 4 hours with no issues. Plugged back into Orbi and experienced a drop every 20-30 min. Currently I have bypassed the Orbi and have no WiFi BUT my connection has worked all day today with no drops.

 

I should add this started about a week and a half to two weeks ago.


 

Message 17 of 33
DocWyrick17
Aspirant

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

I have done factory reset on both main and satellite and setup from scratch. Still experiencing issue. 

Message 18 of 33
FURRYe38
Guru

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

I would try downgrading the RBR to v44 first. After loading v44, factory reset and setup from scratch. I would first turn OFF The RBS and just test with the RBR alone and see if the problem still continues or not. 


@DocWyrick17 wrote:

I have done factory reset on both main and satellite. 


 

Message 19 of 33
DocWyrick17
Aspirant

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

How do I downgrade v44?

Message 20 of 33
FURRYe38
Guru

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

Manually download the RBR FW file from NG support site:

https://www.netgear.com/support/product/RBR50.aspx


Use a wired PC, IE11 or Firefox or Opera browser to log in to the RBRs web page and Under Advanced/Administration/Firmware you'll have a section for Manual. Unpack the .zip file and select the FW update file. 

 

You can do this with the RBS as well. Try this first if your not having problems with the RBR. 

Message 21 of 33
cahiatt
Tutor

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

This problem existed for me on v44 and older firmwares also. Pretty much all of them. I'm using the Orbi setup as a dumb AP with the RBR connected directly to the LAN and the RBS hardwired directly to the RBR. Only the devices hardwired through RBS show the momentary disconnect. Anything directly on the physical LAN is not affected.

 

For me it feels related to wifi devices getting handed off between them and a communication stall when this negotiation happens. I can check if something is on wifi with the RBR or the RBS. When I see that disconnect I can go back and see that at least one of the wifi devices has switched from one to the other.

Message 22 of 33
DocWyrick17
Aspirant

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

I saw someone mention the handoff between the two possibly causing the issue on another thread. However, I have powered off the RBS and just run the RBR and still experienced the same issue. I have turned off 2.4 Ghz when running just the RBR and I still have the issue. So I don't think that is it, at least on my end. I don't think it is firmware related but I am going to try a downgrade and hope for the best. At this point, I just think something is wrong with my router. Like maybe it took a power surge or something and is acting wonky.

Message 23 of 33
FURRYe38
Guru

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

Can you try connecting the RBS wirelessly to the RBR and see if the same problem is seen? I so, I make contact with NG support and ask about an RMA. 


@cahiatt wrote:

This problem existed for me on v44 and older firmwares also. Pretty much all of them. I'm using the Orbi setup as a dumb AP with the RBR connected directly to the LAN and the RBS hardwired directly to the RBR. Only the devices hardwired through RBS show the momentary disconnect. Anything directly on the physical LAN is not affected.

 

For me it feels related to wifi devices getting handed off between them and a communication stall when this negotiation happens. I can check if something is on wifi with the RBR or the RBS. When I see that disconnect I can go back and see that at least one of the wifi devices has switched from one to the other.


 

Message 24 of 33
pugwonk
Tutor

Re: Orbi satellite RBS50 dropping ethernet for a few seconds

Just continuing some diagnosis on this - it seems it happens for me approximately 5 times a day. Also, it turns out something is happening with wireless connectivity too during these events - while I don't lose WiFi signal, I do experience a few seconds of drop if I'm on a video call or such like (I've a feeling it's switching to connect to another Orbi in my house instead). It's odd though, because the time it drops for is not enough time for the RBS50 to reboot.

 

I performed a factory reset on the RBS50 to see if that helped. Which it didn't.

Message 25 of 33
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