Satellite only connects with 5Ghz

[bhidevivek]

I have an NETGEAR Orbi Tri-Band Whole Home Mesh WiFi System, with Wall Plugs (RBK33) for more than and year. I no problem with the range but what I have found is, the both satellites always connect with 5 GHz. There is no issue with that but I have quite a few smart devices at my home which only works with 2.4 Ghz. That puts pressure on main router. e.g. I have one of the satellites in garage where I have my smart garage door opener. It keeps going offline even after being few feet away from satellite. When checked the n/w map, I found that it always tries to connect to main router frequently and eventually drops off. I was expecting that the connection to router or satellite mainly depends on its distance from the device and supported frequency. Does this indicate that there is a problem with my satellites? I don't know where to look for.

[CrimpOn · Accepted solution]

You have discovered one of the most common issues with mesh router systems.  There is an 802.11 standard protocol where the device and the WiFi access point inform each other of their capabilities and the device then decides where to connect.  It seems that devices which are not designed to "roam" (like garage door openers) tend to "stick" to the access point they first connect to, even if there is another access point which would give better service.

What most people suggest is to (a) reduce the transmit power on the relevant frequency band (in this case 2.4G), (b) go to the configuration of the device (the opener), (c) have it disconnect from the Orbi WiFi, (d) search for and connect again.  With the access point in the garage giving better service, the opener should connect to it (and then resist moving, just like before).

Can you give this a try and report how it goes?

[CrimpOn · Accepted solution]

You have discovered one of the most common issues with mesh router systems.  There is an 802.11 standard protocol where the device and the WiFi access point inform each other of their capabilities and the device then decides where to connect.  It seems that devices which are not designed to "roam" (like garage door openers) tend to "stick" to the access point they first connect to, even if there is another access point which would give better service.

What most people suggest is to (a) reduce the transmit power on the relevant frequency band (in this case 2.4G), (b) go to the configuration of the device (the opener), (c) have it disconnect from the Orbi WiFi, (d) search for and connect again.  With the access point in the garage giving better service, the opener should connect to it (and then resist moving, just like before).

Can you give this a try and report how it goes?

[FURRYe38]

What Firmware is currently loaded?

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 RBR and RBS to begin with depending upon building materials when wirelessly connected. https://kb.netgear.com/000036466/How-far-should-I-place-my-Orbi-satellite-from-my-Orbi-router

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

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@bhidevivek wrote:

I have an NETGEAR Orbi Tri-Band Whole Home Mesh WiFi System, with Wall Plugs (RBK33) for more than and year. I no problem with the range but what I have found is, the both satellites always connect with 5 GHz. There is no issue with that but I have quite a few smart devices at my home which only works with 2.4 Ghz. That puts pressure on main router. e.g. I have one of the satellites in garage where I have my smart garage door opener. It keeps going offline even after being few feet away from satellite. When checked the n/w map, I found that it always tries to connect to main router frequently and eventually drops off. I was expecting that the connection to router or satellite mainly depends on its distance from the device and supported frequency. Does this indicate that there is a problem with my satellites? I don't know where to look for.

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[bhidevivek]

@CrimpOn Thank you for providing problem explanation and things to try

I found that, I did have 3 days left on my support with Netgear and connected to one of their specialist right after putting a question on community. Surprisingly he gave me the exact opposite steps to try (reducing transmit power on 5 Ghz) and setting 2.4 Ghz channel to 11. All other steps remained same. I tried that and the problem still persisted. Today morning, I also contacted the smart garage door opener company and they issued a firmware upgrade after which I see that it has been consistenly connected to the satellite in my garage (something that you were also expecting to happen after I follow the steps you provided). So the problem might be with garage door opener itself. Do you think that reducing the 5Ghz transmit power, will have any adverse effect on coverage or speed?

Irrespective of that, your explanation have me good insight about the possible problem. I will try the steps you provided and will let you know if things work out.

Thank you again !!

[bhidevivek]

@FURRYe38 : My satelllites are correctly situated and have correct/expected disntance between them

What channels are you using? Auto? Try setting manual channel 1, 6 or 11 on 2.4Ghz and any unused channel on 5Ghz. - Did that.. channel 11 is now set to 2.4 GHz where its 50 for 5 Ghz

Any Wifi Neighbors near by? If so, how many? - Quite a few.. almost 6

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

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) - Done

As mentioned in my previous comments, the garage door opener is working fine after the company issued firware upgrade. I will keep an eye on the connectivity before confirming if the problem is now fixed

Thank you!!

[FURRYe38]

If you have quite a a few neighbors near by, and if they are close, try turning down the power on the RBR from 100% to 75% or 50% next time you have or notice problems. 

Be sure to let us know actual distances for approximate distances. Correct or expected distance can be relative and not informative enough to let us know distances. Distances between RBR and RBS a key factory in ensuring the Orbi system is working well. 

Good Luck. 

[CrimpOn]

Reducing transmit power will reduce maximum range. I would not do it without a good reason.

[bhidevivek]

@CrimpOn  and @FURRYe38  : thank you for all your help and troubleshooting steps.. After the reduce the transmit power for 2.4Ghz to 50% and reconneted the garage door opener.. everything is working fine and there are no more offline products

@FURRYe38 Regarding the position of the satellites, they are around 30 feet and 45 feet away from main router. With the satellite themselves about 20 feet apart with multiple solid wall in between (They form a triangle)

[FURRYe38]

Thanks for letting us know. 

Enjoy.