Error after R7960P Firmware Upgraded to 1.4.2.84_1.3.42

[BubbaW]

My short story....Please pass this on to Tech support even tho it concerns R8000P AC4000....Thanks !

*Purchased R8000P AC4000 Dec 2020 Firmware 1.4.1.50

--Router worked satisfactorily  and chose to attempt to update firmware in Feb.....unsuccesful as manyyyyy are aware !

--revisited updating months later since router was still working satisfactorily and VIA these support forums discovered the problem with

Firmware 1.4.1.50

--On 11/29/21 after re-reading many new threads concerning the flaw, chose to re-try the 4 steps I ran across earlier in year

1* updating thru router menu

2* manual download of newer firmware chk file

3 *attempted thru Netgear app

4 *by following How to upload firmware to a NETGEAR router using TFTP client? | Answer | NETGEAR Support

Gave in this past tues 11/30 and called Customer service...

* Dealt with first agent, very cordial/helpful....tranferred to next tech

* Informed 2nd tech(Ashish) of issue, also vey cordial/helpful...was informed I would be contacted in 24/48 hrs to further my case

* 12/2 rcvd email approving free replacement with refurbished unit....RMA # 3683766 Case ID 45391292. I personally chose $17 shipment whereby they send unit when available.

* 12/3 Rcvd unit

* 12/4 placed refurbished unit into service and for next few days dealt with DNS and page loading slowness issues. Checked issues on my end, changed DNS servers to google servers....8.8.8.8/8.8.4.4 with no sucess

* 12/6 ran across this thread and others threads concerning V1.4.2.84_1.3.42 DNS issues

* Today 12/7, reverted back to V1.4.1.68_1.3.28 and so far have had no DNS issues and page loading is back to as it should be.

Personal lesson learned....will not up date firmware until I check these support forums for satisfactory firmware update !

Thanks,

Bob Williams

[mjcyber]

Downgrading to a vulnerable firmware is not a solution.
Firmware V1.4.2.84_1.3.42 has buggy DNS and no amount of toggling, resetting and tweaking will fix it.
Netgear needs to properly support their product and provide a firmware that doesn't break everyone's DNS.

[FURRYe38]

You'll need to contact NG support and let them know what your experiencing.

https://my.netgear.com/support/contact.aspx

In meantime, either downgrade or use it as is. 

---

@mjcyber wrote:

Downgrading to a vulnerable firmware is not a solution.
Firmware V1.4.2.84_1.3.42 has buggy DNS and no amount of toggling, resetting and tweaking will fix it.
Netgear needs to properly support their product and provide a firmware that doesn't break everyone's DNS.

---

[flamebait]

I think the poster's point is that this thread has 1579 views, and having this issue marked as solved is not helping to potentially bring it to Netgear's attention. Netgear obviously pay almost no attention to their own forums, but trending issues like this at least have a chance of catching notice if they don't have a big green tick incorrectly suggesting the issue is resolved. I'm not sure what correct forum etiquette is about that.

You're right of course that each of us need to report it directly to Netgear. Others will presumably find as I did that official support has no interest in discussing a firmware problem with a product not purchased in the past 90 days. Ultimately I have had to replace my router and won't ever return to Netgear (Netgear broke DNS on multiple models 6 months ago and have not acknowledged let alone fixed this), only commenting here because I got an email about activities on threads I still cared about when I used the product.

My observations on this issue fwiw:

• It does not appear to affect Macs, so there appears to be an interaction with Windows. This is true across multiple browsers (Brave, Chrome, Edge), that they were fine on Mac on not PC.
• It is repeatably a problem after bring a Windows machine out of sleep.
• The impact is really under-estimated by those commenting on it without experiencing it. Interactive activities, like posting a web form, or completing a banking transaction, are particularly likely to fail because the different steps in the process use different DNS. Some failures are hard to attribute to this until you track them down (e.g. multiplayer servers on Xbox failing because of DNS when already connected in the game). These are high user pain scenarios, where you lose what you were working on, or transaction fails and reattempting has unknown consequences or is not possible, or the user is not in control of re-attempts. This bug is a disaster and makes the router pretty much unusable, hence the anger at it not being fixed.

I had to give up on Netgear and move on, but I won't be a customer again.

[FURRYe38]

Thanks for the feed back. 

Good Luck. 

[SSDCarroll3]

Two weeks ago installed firmware update V1.4.2.84_1.3.42 and I have had nothing but trouble with my internet connection since. I am receiving the same messages with message saying "This site can't be reached" and to check if there is a typo in the address. These are sites I go to many times a day and have never had an issue until now. 

I have have my internet company replace the modem and I have no problems using my computer direct to the modem, nor do I have these issues when using other people's networks. The issue is definitely my router.

My question is, how do I uninstall the most recent firmware update and go back to an earlier version? I have done a factory reset on my router and it brings me to the newest firmware update that started this issue.

Thanks in advance

[c627627]

Find firmware R7960P-V1.4.1.68_1.3.28 which is not buggy, downgrading to this version resolves this horrible bug.

At this point we have to consider that Netgear knows about this bug and has left it in place, to do damage every day, wasting people's time. How frustrating must it be for so many people who trusted Netgear...

To what end is Netgear doing this and why?

[hornywell]

All you have to do is to download the lower version 1.4.1.68_1.3.28, and upload to your router, so that it will have this (older) version.

I hesitated in the beginning, fearing downgrading to a lower verison will brick my router. But actually, we are just refreshing the firmware, which the router will happily take. It just works fine with no problem with lower version.

Good luck and Godspeed!

[c627627]

Wait a minute, where is R7960P-V1.4.1.68_1.3.28

DId they take it off? Now what?

EDIT: In their wisdom Netgear took off the working firmware V1.4.1.68_1.3.28 on the Previous Versionsof of Firmware page. LUCKILY the actual file is still here:

https://www.downloads.netgear.com/files/GDC/R7960P/R7960P-V1.4.1.68_1.3.28.zip

[SSDCarroll3]

After a recent firmware update, my router wasn't allowing me to go to the majority of web pages without sending me a DNS message saying to check for typo in website name. On the suggestion of others here, I reinstalled the older version and I seem to be back in the saddle. 

Thanks everyoen for the help.

[FURRYe38]

Putting this here for user experiences with v.84 FW.

Put my R7960P on yesterday and its' been working well.

CAX80 (Modem Mode)>R7960P(Router Mode). Armor, Circle(Parental Controls) and QoS not enabled. Smart Connect, Traffic Meter and DST is enabled. 

Manual Wi-Fi channels 11, 48 and 161

Gotta say Wifi on 5Ghz is pretty good:

No DNS issues seen as of yet. I'm monitoring for this:

Just saw one DNS Probe message while selecting a tab here in the NG forums. Though it doesn't seem to happen often, just noticed this DNS Probe message when I refreshed the NG forum web page. It flashed up on the browser quickly, then the browser continue to load the page correctly on it's own.  

I'll pass this on to NG for review. 

[NetOp]

I can confirm 100% that 1.4.2.84_1.3.42 is still BROKEN firmware! Ping your gateway and you will find >1ms latency even on a wired connection. Run DNS through the router and it will not load web sites on the first try with a timeout. If I refresh a website I get the DNS to resolve. Trace route also fails to resolve on the first attempt! The latency to the gateway on a directly connected wired connection less than 10 feet away from the router is showing Netgear Engineers are not properly testing firmware releases for routers. IS THIS PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE? This seems like WILLFUL NEGLIGENCE on Netgear's part and needs to be fixed ASAP. Even the damn wifi 10 feet away with only 2 PCs connected has triple digit ms latency at times with this firmware! No one is using the network at all right now. Netgear you must fix this!

C:\WINDOWS\system32>tracert cert.org
Unable to resolve target system name cert.org.

C:\WINDOWS\system32>nslookup cert.org
Server: UnKnown
Address: 192.168.10.1  <<< BROKEN ROUTER FIRMWARE 1.4.2.84_1.3.42 >>>

Non-authoritative answer:
DNS request timed out.
timeout was 2 seconds.

<<< DIRECTLY WIRED CONNECTION LATENCY >>>

C:\WINDOWS\system32>ping 192.168.10.1 -t

Pinging 192.168.10.1 with 32 bytes of data
Reply from 192.168.10.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.10.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.10.1: bytes=32 time=7ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.10.1: bytes=32 time=5ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.10.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.10.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.10.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.10.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.10.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.10.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.10.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.168.10.1: bytes=32 time=15ms TTL=64

[FURRYe38]

What is the Mfr and model# of the Internet Service Providers modem/ONT the NG router is connected too?

Has a factory reset and setup from scratch been performed since last FW update? A complete pull of the power adapters for a period of time after the factory reset then walk thru the setup wizard and setup from scratch.
I would power OFF the ISP modem for 1 minute. Factory reset the Orbi router and power it off. Power ON the ISP modem and let it sync. Then power ON the Orbi router and walk thru the setup wizard again using a wired PC and a web browser.

Otherwise you'll need to roll back to prior working version of FW. 

[DickScheel]

I've been following this thread for a long time, after initially updating from V1.4.1.68_1.3.28 to V1.4.2.84_1.3.42 and encountering the problems discussed here. A few days ago (April 14 2022) I saw that Netgear released a newer firmware version, V1.4.3.88_1.3.50. I hoped that this newer version would fix the 1.4.2.84_1.3.42 bug. Unfortunately, I am still encountering the same problems as we have all been discussing for V1.4.2.84_1.3.42, so I had to again revert back to V1.4.1.68_1.3.28.

[c627627]

Thank you very much for saving us all a lot of time by confirming that NETGEAR has not taken our reports seriously and has again willfully allowed this major bug to stay in place, even with the latest Firmware release.

I was waiting to see if a post like yours pops up and it did... 😞 New firmware is firmware of death again.

So what does this come down to, incompetence or are they really implementing planned obsolescence even though this router is really not that old? It will be hard not to think of this, next time we are in the market for a router. I mean by this time surely they DO know about this bug, right?

[c627627]

So I've been having a nightmare situation again until I realized that by restoring settings, I restored Router Auto Firmware Update 

Don't forget, you MUST disable it after flashing back, or else Netgear will keep updating the working Firmware with new Firmware that causes problems.

ADVANCED > Administration > Router Update >

!!! MUST SELECT DISABLE under Router Auto Firmware Update > THEN CLICK ON APPLY !!!
only
then
Browse > Browse to bug-free Firmware R7960P-V1.4.1.68_1.3.28.chk > Upload > OK

And don't forget you need an ethernet cable, wireless Firmware downgrade may not work.

[FURRYe38]

Also there is newer FW available as well. 

https://community.netgear.com/t5/Nighthawk-WiFi-Routers/New-R7900P-R7960P-R8000P-Firmware-Version-1-...

[c627627]

Yes that very same Firmware is yet another device-killing Firmware release.

It is so bad, dropped connections made me realize Auto Firmware Update got turned back on when I restored settings.

Last known working firmware is still v1.4.1.68_1.3.28 - it is no longer available on Netgear web site as a link [of course], but the actual file is still here:

https://www.downloads.netgear.com/files/GDC/R7960P/R7960P-V1.4.1.68_1.3.28.zip

[FURRYe38]

Hmmm been running v.88 on mine..only item i'm seeing is some DNS issues. That worked out by enabled IPv6. 

[c627627]

Would you kindly post how and where you fixed your DNS issues by enabling IPv6.

My old "working" Firmware V1.4.1.68_1.3.28 now cripples internet speeds completely.

Latest Firmware V1.4.3.88_1.3.50 uncripples them but my connections are often dropped and it doesn't connect to a web page unless I RELOAD the page in browser.

What can I do to make it not drop the initial connection?

[FURRYe38]

Did you factory reset the router and setup from scratch after loading v.88?

What is the Mfr and model# of the Internet Service Providers modem/ONT the NG router is connected too?

Under Advanced tab/Advanced/IPv6 is where you'll find settings.

This link is for the R8500 however UI is the same on the R7960P:

https://community.netgear.com/t5/Nighthawk-WiFi-Routers/New-R8500-Firmware-Version-1-0-2-158-Release...

---

@c627627 wrote:

Would you kindly post how and where you fixed your DNS issues by enabling IPv6.

My old "working" Firmware V1.4.1.68_1.3.28 now cripples internet speeds completely.

Latest Firmware V1.4.3.88_1.3.50 uncripples them but my connections are often dropped and it doesn't connect to a web page unless I RELOAD the page in browser.

What can I do to make it not drop the initial connection?

---

[c627627]

Yes on Factory Reset and provider is Verizon 5G At home over the air box.

[FURRYe38]

Let us know if enabling IPv6 works for you...

[c627627]

YES!

Advanced > Advanced Setup > IPv6 > Internet Connection Type > CHANGE from Disabled to AUTO DETECT > Apply

You then must REBOOT Router.

THIS FIXED my old Firmware V1.4.1.68_1.3.28.

Per your advice, I then Factory Reset the NETGEAR Router.
For whatever reason, NETGEAR then does not allow Setup from a cable connected laptop (!) and requires you use a phone, download their Android App, which mandatorily installs additional NETGEAR monitoring software without asking on your cell phone, which blankets you with all sorts of icons and warnings that look like leaches covering your cell phone.

You then start the app, which immediately tells you you may NOT use ANY Firmware except the latest regardless of if it's buggy or not, so you MUST now install new Firmware or else you may NOT setup your Router.

So now okay, I am testing the latest Firmware with your brilliant suggestion to set IPv6 to Automatic.
Of course I would like to use the latest Firmware but if it doesn't work, I will test the old one with your suggestion later. Here's hoping IPv6 was the cause.

I know it uncapped speeds on old Firmware.

Thank you.