What does "Connected via Orbi" mean in my wi-fi connection & is it a problem "via Orbi" is now gone?

[BrianG_Simi]

I was struggling with the Samsung "Couldn't Authenticate Connection" error and went through a number of different ways to remove and recreate my current wi-fi connection.

At some point in the "reset" process, I got in a state where even though I had deleted my connection, when I restarted my phone my wifi connection was there and connected, with a message saying "Connected via Orbi".

After a few more disconnections and "Forget Network"s and removing / reinstalling the Orbi app and phone restarts, I'm at a pretty solid place in regard to the authentication error (knock on wood / keeping fingers crossed), but the network connection now just says "Connected", with no "via Orbi".

How did I get the "via Orbi" in the first place and is it a problem I'm not seeing it ("via Orbi") now?

[schumaku]

Probably is shows the network with this "via Orbi" somewhere in the Orbi App - on plain Android (or Apple iOS) only the network name (SSID) will be shown.

[BrianG_Simi]

Just to be clear, the "Connected via Orbi" was showing in the Android (Samsung One UI 3.1) wifi screen, not within the Orbi app.

I was hoping it has some significance and provides a clue to the authentication errors I was seeing. I can't seem to duplicate it. Perhaps, it's related to creating the network directly from the main router vs a satellite?

[CrimpOn]

An internet search for "Samsung One UI 3.1 WiFi" turned up numerous issues with connecting to WiFi after the Samsung update.

I did not locate a post that specifically mentions the term "via", but I gave up pretty quickly.

My guess is that since this appeared on the phone, the answer lies with Samsung, not Netgear.

[BrianG_Simi]

I'm sure the "authentication" issue is with Samsung, but that's really not my question - I think I've got the authentication issue "solved".

What I'm wondering is what the mechanism would be for my Samsung connection to be "aware" that I was connected "via Orbi". Is the router advertising itself in a way that Samsung / Android can pick up? Is this something that's just standard in the WiFi spec or something special between Samsung \ Android and Orbi? Was it somehow related to having the Orbi app installed? Most importantly, is there any downside to no longer seeing "via Orbi"?

[CrimpOn]

---

@BrianG_Simi wrote:

What I'm wondering is what the mechanism would be for my Samsung connection to be "aware" that I was connected "via Orbi". Is the router advertising itself in a way that Samsung / Android can pick up? Is this something that's just standard in the WiFi spec or something special between Samsung \ Android and Orbi? Was it somehow related to having the Orbi app installed? Most importantly, is there any downside to no longer seeing "via Orbi"?

---

The WiFi SSID was not "Orbi", correct?

During the WiFi connection process, devices share their hardware MAC address. A lot of products use the MAC address to guess what is being connected, often with puzzling results.  Devices also share their capabilities.  It could be that Netgear Orbi has a combination of MAC address and capabilities that makes it unique.  I have put a WiFi adapter into "monitor mode" and captured the dialog between device and access point, and a lot of information is shared before the device does the actual connection.

"Any downside?"  Having never seen a comment like this on any device, my guess is "not at all."

[BrianG_Simi]

Right - SSID was NOT "Orbi".

What was odd and I can't reproduce is that this showed after I "forgot" the network and restarted my phone. When that happened, the network connection that I had forgotten before restarting was suddenly back and connected without my having to provide the password.

I thought maybe it was the Orbi app automatically adding my network back for me, but that doesn't seem to be the case - at least, I can't reproduce it. If I forget my network now and restart my phone, even with the Orbi app installed and connected prior to the forget/restart, the network stays forgotten and I have to provide the password. However, I'm almost certain that every time that it said "via Orbi", it connected "magically" without my having to provide the password, even after I supposedly "forgot" the network and restarted my phone. Another curious thing that I can't verify, but I'm almost certain was happening was that I didn't have a "forget" option for the the "via Orbi" connection - only a "disconnect" option. My other thought was that Samsung was somehow keeping a copy of my forgotten network and that I hadn't truly forgotten it, so I kept repeating forget/disconnect and restart until I was prompted to provide the password, at which point "via Orbi" stopped being displayed and "Disconnect" was no longer an option, only "Forget". This all seems like "Samsung" kind of behavior, but, honestly, I think the Netgear community is much more likely to have useful information on what might actually be happening.

I'm kind of afraid to keep experimenting, as I've finally, after months, gotten a stable connection. 🙂 It's really just out of curiosity at this point. I'd certainly have to agree that if nobody in this community knows more about it ("via Orbi"), it's probably not functionally relevant. Just playing the "one of these things is not like the others" game when working with an issue - often, it's just a red herring, but sometimes it's a thread someone with more deep knowledge can latch onto, so I tend to lean towards oversharing.

I only found one thread on Reddit related to "via Orbi" where someone asked basically the same question (is it a problem that I don't see that anymore?) but no answers there. Maybe now that there's a discussion here, more people will have something to say about it.

Nobody should lose any sleep over it and it certainly doesn't seem like a problem with the Orbi.