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Orbi 970 - A New Firmware ? 9.13.1.5 ?
Hello to All I saw a message in Reddit regarding a new firmware for 970 series : V9.13.1.5_1.3.30 Does anybody have this version installed automatically ? If yes, any feedbask ? https://www.reddit.com/r/orbi/comments/1n77hec/app_cant_login_after_firmware_update_orbi973/I am having awful issues with dropping connections with Fios
I am not an expert so thanks for the help... I am having awful issues with dropping connections with Fios. Android devices but also more recent laptops also. No apple house. Netgear has been working to find problem for over a month. Setup is 971rbe with two satellites. Orbi in router mode, direct Ethernet to FiOS Ont. Both Netgear and FiOS confirmed connection is ok although Netgear support has given two different answers. One you must use the FiOS router in bridge mode and the other direct connect is absolutely ok.i recognize most of the symptoms people listed here... The admin logs just streamed with DHCP to Mac address connections, many times the ip listed multiple times immediately after each other. Went drop internet access, WiFi says it is connected but no Internet access. Disconnect and reconnect 9 of 10 times it reconnects until the next drop which is frequent. I put in access point mode put FiOS router back in path and did not lose connections but speed was degraded significantly. The initial day I had reconfigured to Orbi in router mode I was getting okla speed tests (not via Orbi app) and getting mid 800 to 900mbs speed. After a day and after drops started to occur it literally dropped at one point to 30mbs to 50mbs up and down. Netgear support had me start running debug app so I have all the debug logs and details including configs. I've tried private dns', random Mac addresses off, adaptive connectivity off and none work, spread distance between router and satellites, shut one off, plugged directly into the wall instead of a surge protector. All of these recos from NG. Would I be better off shutting ipv6 off on the router or just making this a glorified antenna system as access points until these are resolved? From what I read but being a novice everything you all spoke of lines up to my exact issues. Thank you for any tecos I can try... MikeFaulty reset button
I purchased the Orbi 970 Series Router and Satellite in early 2024 for approximately $1,800. Last week, I powered down my system temporarily to replace security cameras. When turning it back on, the router could no longer be recognized. After troubleshooting, I was informed by the Netgear rep that the reset button is faulty and that nothing can be done to repair or service the unit. Which is absolutely unacceptable for a premium system at this price point. I invested in the Orbi 970 because of its performance and reputation, but to hear that a small component failure renders the entire unit useless, with no repair option or support solution- is both frustrating and disappointing. Please escalate this issue to a supervisor or engineering support team. I would like to know what remedies Netgear offers in situations like this—whether through warranty coverage, repair service, or product replacement.I have the same issue and am also in the USA
I have the same issue and am also in the USA. I contacted support about this and they tried telling me that I bought it (the orbi) from a seller that was selling products intended for Canada. I refuted the claim by this rep by provided an inadvertently included packing slip from Netgear in California showing it being sent to my seller (Amazon) in Beloit, WI. So long story short, Netgear has a problem with these newer ORBI 970 and won't do anything about it. The rep said, the region is hardcoded to the firmware and can't be changed. From what I have read, you used to be able to change the region, but they have locked that down in the newest firmware. I am guessing a bunch of US bound Orbi 970 units were accidently flashed with the Canada only firmware and that Netgear doesn't want to acknowledge it, or they just didn't know it happened. As for what is the difference between the regions? From what I read, it will cripple some frequencies, but it is not clear what frequencies. I was going to exchange my unit, but I am guessing that the replacement would have the same problem, and it would be a pain in the but to re-set up every wireless device on my network again.
Device flipping to celllular/disconnecting when on WiFi? Read this for possible solution!
Technical Analysis and Repeatable Evidence of DHCP/Routing Bug in Netgear Orbi 971 (Router Mode) Summary of Issue In environments using the Orbi 971 system in router mode, certain iOS/iPadOS devices (tested: iPhone 16 Pro Max and iPad Pro 2024) sporadically exhibit a failure state in which the device: Remains physically connected to the Orbi Wi‑Fi network (SSID displays as connected), Maintains a strong Wi‑Fi signal with excellent throughput (700–1200 Mbps), Yet silently fails over to the cellular interface (e.g., 5G), with no data traversing the Wi‑Fi path. Others on the Netgear forums over the past months have posted similar failures, using both Apple and Android devices. My analysis and solution may be correct for other non-Apple devices and other Orbi routers. This failure is not associated with actual signal loss and does not trigger any user notification other than the UI-level switch from Wi‑Fi bars to a 5G indicator. It self-recovers after 1–2 minutes. No other devices on my network (macOS, smart TVs, Windows laptops) display similar behavior. Summary of Solution For any device exhibiting drops/flips to cellular when on a good WiFi signal, change IPv4 address to a manual address, outside the router’s DHCP range. Also, change DNS address to a manual entry – it can either be your router (192.168.1.1 usually) or a 3 rd party DNS server of your choice. Finally, you must disable IPv6 on the 970 router – Advanced tab, expand the Advanced section in the sidebar, choose IPv6 and disable. To learn more as to what the problem may be, read on. My Environment Netgear Orbi 971 (Wi-Fi 7), latest stable firmware (9.13.1.2) as of July 2025. Router mode (default DHCP and NAT). IPv6 disabled at the router level. iPhone and iPad running latest iOS/iPadOS 18.5. Orbi system is sole DHCP and DNS provider on LAN. WAN is Comcast/Xfinity (stable, no packet loss during tests, 2100/300 dl/ul plan). Orbi clients tested within 15 feet of router or satellite in clear line-of-sight — eliminating signal strength as a factor. Problem Behavior When in default DHCP configuration (automatic IP and DNS): iOS devices periodically experience a silent failover to cellular (5G). Devices retain visible SSID connection. Internet connectivity is routed over cellular until the issue self-resolves. The issue is sporadic, occurring 1–5 times per week for me (others have seen higher failure rates) under default conditions. Disruptions have been reported on non-iOS devices on the Netgear forums. I wrote and tested an Apple Shortcuts automation that will trigger when the Apple device it is running on does a Wi‑Fi disconnect. It does not fire, confirming that SSID association is intact. Testing Methodology and Key Finding I conducted controlled testing to isolate the failure cause. After numerous incidents in DHCP mode, I applied the following configuration to both iPhone and iPad: Manually assigned IPv4 address within the LAN’s valid range (outside the DHCP pool to avoid collision). Manually assigned IPv4 DNS server set to 192.168.1.1 (Orbi’s own LAN IP). IPv6 explicitly disabled at the router. This configuration has now been running for over 5 consecutive days as of the date of this posting, with no recurrence of the issue. Devices have remained on Wi‑Fi, and no visible or functional failovers to cellular occurred. Why Disabling IPv6 Was Critical On iOS and iPadOS, users cannot manually configure IPv6 addresses or DNS servers via the system interface. As a result, if IPv6 remains enabled on the network: iOS will continue to obtain IPv6 connectivity using SLAAC or DHCPv6 (often via Router Advertisements from the Orbi), Even if IPv4 is statically assigned, IPv6 may still be selected for outbound traffic when iOS considers it preferred (which is often), This reintroduces reliance on the Orbi’s IPv6 DHCP or routing stack, which in prior testing exhibited instability and routing failures, often leading to connectivity loss or fallback to cellular. Thus, disabling IPv6 at the router level is a necessary precondition to ensure the device fully relies on the statically configured IPv4 path — eliminating Orbi-managed DHCP lease/route state from the equation entirely. Theory: Root Cause Analysis I propose the following sequence of events under default DHCP operation: iOS frequently initiates DHCP lease renewal or INFORM messages more aggressively than other OSes (due to roaming, sleep/wake cycles, and Apple’s proactive network health checks). The Orbi 971’s DHCP server intermittently fails to respond promptly (or at all) to these renewal or rebind requests. During this silent DHCP stall, the iOS device: Still has a valid SSID association and a cached IP, But considers the Wi‑Fi interface non-functional due to: Missing or expired lease, Failure to renew default gateway, Unsuccessful DNS resolution, Or failure to receive HTTP 204 from captive.apple.com. iOS silently switches to cellular, even with Wi‑Fi Assist disabled (which I did a long time ago), because it considers the Wi‑Fi path “connected but unusable.” Eventually, the Orbi responds again, routing is restored, and iOS resumes Wi‑Fi traffic — all without disconnecting or notifying the user. Supporting Factors No failure symptoms observed under static IPv4 + DNS configuration with IPv6 disabled. Monitoring showed no WAN outage or SSID drop during incident periods. When using dynamic DHCP/DNS, the issue persists in high signal-strength environments, ruling out RF-related causes. IPv6 had previously been associated with similar instabilities and was disabled early in the test cycle. Recommendations to Netgear Engineering I recommend the following areas be prioritized for investigation: DHCP Server Responsiveness Analyze handling of frequent DHCP RENEW/INFORM messages from Apple devices. Investigate whether ACK or lease confirmations are being dropped or delayed. Internal Lease Table Integrity Confirm whether memory or timing issues affect DHCP state or ARP caching. Routing Table Consistency Validate propagation of default routes across mesh nodes, especially post-roaming or post-sleep. IPv6 Handling (if re-enabled) Evaluate Router Advertisement stability and DHCPv6 consistency. Provide user-accessible controls for IPv6 lease time and DNS relay. Debug Logging Tools Enable deeper client-specific DHCP logging in future firmware versions to support field diagnosis. Conclusion The silent failover of iOS devices to cellular, despite strong Wi‑Fi signal, appears to be rooted in intermittent failures of DHCP IPv4/IPv6 or routing state management by the Orbi 971. Disabling IPv6 and bypassing DHCP/DNS with manual configuration eliminated the issue so far — confirming the failure lies not in radio or ISP connection, but in the Orbi’s handling of dynamic IP and DNS lease logic under typical iOS behavior. I welcome the opportunity to collaborate on further testing or provide supplemental logs to support engineering review.Orbi 970 startup issues with 4 or 5 satellites
We purchased an Orbi 970 with 3 satellite and added 4 all connected through a netgear 10g ethernet switch. We noticed some issues on boot up where they may boot up as wireless, or stuck in config sync or not found, and every once in awhile out of sync We added 5 as wireless and it got really bad where maybe only 1 out of 20 reboot would all come up as good. We have done the reset and resync etc etc. We have also notice the list of connected devices on the remote login or app is not accurate and question even if the boot up state information on the app is accurate or not because a satellite will be blue but it will say not found? Any ideas? Is there a setting or a why we need to change the balance between wired and wireless that would make this boot up every time? Any way to get accurate data in the app and remote login?
