× Introducing the Orbi 970 Series Mesh System with WiFi 7 technology. For more information visit the NETGEAR Press Room.
Orbi WiFi 7 RBE973
Reply

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

Leea
Tutor

EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

I recently returned a Linksys AC1200 wifi extender because it kept dropping the wifi connections and LAN connections every 20 minutes or so for about 30 seconds before coming back up. (Worked really well apart from this) Thought I would spend 2x as much on the Netgear EX7000 hoping to get rock solid performance. Not so fast!

 

My wifi around the house is fine from my main router. I only really bought this to plug my NAS into and have it available on the wifi network.

 

The first time I set it up, it asked me to update the firmware. OK, lets do that. Set that going and then have some lunch. Come back. No internet connection. Turn off/turn on. Factory reset and try that again.

 

No internet connection when logging into the _EXT networks.

 

www.mywifiext.net - cannot connect to the extender.

 

Log into my router (Using the main wifi). I can see the extender connected with the IP address 192.168.0.254

Log into the extender through the main wifi using the IP address and 

 

IMG_1230.jpeg

 

Called Netgear support.

1. Factory reset and follow all the steps in the setup sheet.

2. Factory reset and follow all the steps in the setup sheet.

3. Factory reset and follow all the steps in the setup sheet.

”It must be your router”

”OK....It’s Netgear”

”You will need to call your ISP”

”Ok....Why?”

”You will need to change your wifi channels”

”Oh, ok, just a second I can do that now” Brings up router login.

”No, you will need to contact your ISP and ask them which channels have the least interference”

”But the wifi connection is not the problem”

”We have come to the end of the troubleshooting for the EX7000 Wifi extender, you will need to contact your ISP”

”So, it’s a router problem?”

“We have have come to the end of the troubleshooting for the EX7000 Wifi extender, you will need to contact your ISP”

”So if I change the channels and it still does not work?”

”We have come to the end of the troubleshooting for the EX7000 Wifi extender, you will need to contact your ISP”

”OK, thanks for your time”

Bangs head on desk. There may have been tears.

 

  • EX7000
  • Firmware Version: V1.0.1.78_1.0.14

Goes to the Amazon returns page....

 

 

Model: EX7000|AC1900 WiFi Range Extender
Message 1 of 13

Accepted Solutions
Leea
Tutor

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

I have finally, after two days, managed to get the EX7000 to work as advertised by downgrading the firmware to the previous version. I am not sure why this would work. Why would Netgear release a new firmware without proper testing? I am assuming that the new version adds security features that are not compatible with my Netgear router.

Now to see if the connection remains stable.

 

Firmware version that I downgraded to: V1.0.0.66_1.0.126

View solution in original post

Model: EX7000|AC1900 WiFi Range Extender
Message 4 of 13

All Replies
schumaku
Guru

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

Just curious - have rebooted your Telstra router?

 

Had any kind of address reservations (IPv4<->MAC binding) in place on the router on the DHCP server (not issuing IP addresses to non-registered units)?

 

Any trusted-device-only scheme in place o the Telstra router (denying the access for non-trusted MAC addresses)?

 

"No internet connection when logging into the _EXT networks." Do the systems get a valid IP config from the Telstra router DHCP, or do these fall-back to self-assigned Zeroconfig 169.254.x.x addresses?

"www.mywifiext.net - cannot connect to the extender." some systems (like mobile OS) have to be allowed to stay on a connection without Internet access, otherwise they fall-back to other configured wireless networks.

 

FWIW - if using the extender as a pure bridge for the LAN ports, the wireless AP could be disabled. Just in case the Netgear support is still convinced there is any interference.


Afraid, no recent practical experience (with the new firmware) on the EX7000 in extender mode.

 

Message 2 of 13
Leea
Tutor

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

Hi Schumaku,

Thanks for taking the time to provide your suggestions. Very much appreciated. Unfortunately, I still don't have a resolution. I have been able to access the internet when directly connecting the extender to the router and using the extender as an access point.

 

Just curious - have rebooted your Telstra router?

 Yes, a few times now.

 

Had any kind of address reservations (IPv4<->MAC binding) in place on the router on the DHCP server (not issuing IP addresses to non-registered units)?

Wifi access list is set to 'Allow Any'

No IP addresses have been reserved.

 

Any trusted-device-only scheme in place o the Telstra router (denying the access for non-trusted MAC addresses)?

 No - Allow Any is set

Firewall set to 'None' and DOS protection is enabled.

 

"No internet connection when logging into the _EXT networks." Do the systems get a valid IP config from the Telstra router DHCP, or do these fall-back to self-assigned Zeroconfig 169.254.x.x addresses?

I am not sure. Should each of the _EXT networks have their own IP address in the router. At the moment, I can only see an IP address for the actual extender.

"www.mywifiext.net - cannot connect to the extender." some systems (like mobile OS) have to be allowed to stay on a connection without Internet access, otherwise they fall-back to other configured wireless networks.

I have used my Win10 laptop. The connection is secured with no internet. IPad refuses to connect without internet.

 

FWIW - if using the extender as a pure bridge for the LAN ports, the wireless AP could be disabled. Just in case the Netgear support is still convinced there is any interference.

I have plugged the extender directly into the router and set it up as an access point only. I can now connect to the extender wifi and see the internet. What is this telling me?

 

My internet connection is downstairs. My office is upstairs. I am not able to run an ethernet cable between the two areas. The idea was to have the NAS available on the wifi for both IPad use and SmartTv media streaming (which is ethernet to the router)

I can ping the extender from the router without a problem.

I just find it strange that I cannot even log in to the extender using either of the _EXT wifi names using www.mywifiext.net, www.mywifiext.local or 192.168.0.254. But I can log in going from the main wifi network to the router and then to the extender.

 

If you have any other suggestions, please let me know.

Thanks

Model: EX7000|AC1900 WiFi Range Extender
Message 3 of 13
Leea
Tutor

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

I have finally, after two days, managed to get the EX7000 to work as advertised by downgrading the firmware to the previous version. I am not sure why this would work. Why would Netgear release a new firmware without proper testing? I am assuming that the new version adds security features that are not compatible with my Netgear router.

Now to see if the connection remains stable.

 

Firmware version that I downgraded to: V1.0.0.66_1.0.126

Model: EX7000|AC1900 WiFi Range Extender
Message 4 of 13
dfraser
Initiate

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

Hello, I had the exact same experience and after 8 hours I gave up and rolled back to the previous firmware version also and it all started working again.  Firmware version 1.0.1.78_1.0.140 is wonky and will not connect. This is a serious oversight especially since it prompts you to update to this new version. 

Model: EX7000|AC1900 WiFi Range Extender
Message 5 of 13
BillBen
Initiate

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

I had exactly the same issue. When I initially set up the extender it worked fine, I could connect all devices to it and access the internet no problem. I could also log into the extender via phone, pad or laptop. After a while I logged into the extender and updated the firmware to the latest version, 1.0.1.78. It installed OK but then I found that I couldn't connect any devices to the internet via the extender. The phone was showing error "Failed to obtain IP Address". I did a factory reset and set up the extender again, but the problem persisted because the firmware had been set to the 1.0.1.78 version. I could log into the extender via Firefox browser, but not through Chrome as before because I was getting a JavaScript error, even though my Chrome browser is set up to allow JavaScript for all websites. 

With the help of Netgear Support I did manage to fix it though, and now it's working just fine. 

 

Solution : on your PC or laptop (mine is a Windows laptop) connected to your main home router/wifi hub, download the file containing the factory version of the firmware, 1.0.0.66. The link is https://kb.netgear.com/000059563/ 5      

Unzip the file on your laptop so that you have file EX7000-V1.0.0.66_1.0.126.chk  available to install on your extender. 

Do a factory reset on your extender, then connect to the NETGEAR_EXT extended wifi source using your laptop/PC/Mac. Log into the extender (in my case using Firefox browser) and update the firmware, selecting the previously downloaded .chk file as the source. Then follow instructions. 

Worked like a dream for me.       

 

Model: EX7000|AC1900 WiFi Range Extender
Message 6 of 13
ltoons1462
Tutor

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

I had the same experience with the 1.0.1.78 firmware.  I have two of the EX7000s and have been using them for a long time with no issues.  When I updated them to the 1.0.1.78 firmware, nothing connecting to them could get an IP Address.  Both were configured to use the FastLane connections where they are connected to my Nighthawk X8 on the 5 ghz band only and then broadcast only the 2.4 ghz band for connections.  Each had its on SSID.  I even tried factory resets after the upgrade, reconfigured and still can't obtain an IP address.  I had to roll back to the V1.0.0.66_1.0.126 of the firmware, do a factory reset and reconfigure to get it working again.

 

I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND UPDATING to the 1.0.1.78 firmware.

 

Very dissappointed with this firmware release.  I've used Netgear components for many years and have even beta tested for them.  I've never had one make a piece of gear unusuable before.  Hopefully, they will identify the problem and put out a hotfix for this version.

Model: EX7000|AC1900 WiFi Range Extender
Message 7 of 13
SammiM
Guide

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

I continue to have this issue with my iOS devices. I've had my extender now for about 2 years without issue until recent firmware upgrade (it seems). I have reset my extender and uploaded older versions. Seemingly working and then when I visit certain web sites, I am presented with "Safari cannot connect...." I found this article indicating that the extender is not assigning proper IP address, and sure enough the IP addresses on my iOS devices are off. I tried renewing the lease, to no avail.  Unfortunately the article is closed for replying. Anyone has any other ideas?

Model: EX7000|AC1900 WiFi Range Extender
Message 8 of 13
StephenB
Guru

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet


@SammiM wrote:

Anyone has any other ideas?


If you are running 1.0.1.78 firmware, try downgrading to 1.0.0.66  https://kb.netgear.com/000059563/EX7000-Firmware-Version-1-0-0-66

Message 9 of 13
SammiM
Guide

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

I have but unfortunately, while seemingly having internet connection, some apps and websites will work/connect (Facebook, CNN website), but others will NOT work/connect (Word 2 app, Amazon website).
Model: EX7000|AC1900 WiFi Range Extender
Message 10 of 13
JMW001
Star

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

I'm having exactly same issues .... Netgear even replaced my EX7000 out of warranty to try and prove it was hardware related but the new one is suffering exactly the same.... this has never even had '78' firmware ... stopped at 66 but it's still failing after a couple days each time i restart it.

 

Message 11 of 13
StephenB
Guru

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet


@SammiM wrote:
I have but unfortunately, while seemingly having internet connection, some apps and websites will work/connect (Facebook, CNN website), but others will NOT work/connect (Word 2 app, Amazon website).

I'm not seeing how the extender could selectively block web traffic.

  • Do you have parental controls enabled in the router that might be kicking in?
  • Have you tried setting the DNS server entry in the router to 8.8.8.8?
Message 12 of 13
SammiM
Guide

Re: EX7000 Range Extender will not connect to the internet

No, I do not have parental controls.

 

Having done more Google searches and reading many more community threads, I decided to take one advice to upgrade firmware to current version (v1.01.1.78_1.0.14) before downgrading. Surprisingly, immediately after upgrading to current version, my iOS devices connected without issue accessing internet sites I previously could not access. I checked IPV4 addresses on my iOS devices and they were all within range (192.168.xxx.xx). Excited everything was working I decided not to downgrade. Rather, I then moved my extender further away from the router (about 50 feet away), connected, and once again iOS devices failed to access certain internet sites and more telling the assigned IPV4 addresses were now out of range (169.254.xxx.xx). At that point, I decided to manually enter IPV4 addresses and everything is working. However, this is not ideal. I am awaiting for support to call me. 

Model: EX7000|AC1900 WiFi Range Extender
Message 13 of 13
Top Contributors
Discussion stats
  • 12 replies
  • 30528 views
  • 18 kudos
  • 8 in conversation
Announcements

Orbi WiFi 7