I purchased an RBR350, with 2 satellites, and I have had issues with it ever since the start. I'm currently running the latest FW. I have one satellite wired and one Wi-Fi.
Things would be OK for a few days, then after a while, devices would not be able to connect via DHCP. I'm fairly network savvy, so I have been trying to debug myself and I made some improvements, but it's still not 100%.
I have around 14 tasmota Wi-Fi light switches. I found, using Wireshark, that they were constantly bombarding the network with DHCP discover packets, and not accepting the DHCP offer from the router. I updated the FW on all of these switches, and that seemed to fix the problem. To be on the safe side, I allocated them all static IP addresses, so they would not ask the DHCP server again. I reduced the range of the IP pool to avoid any conflicts. Things have been much better since then.
Even though, I would expect such behavior not to crash the DHCP daemon on the Orbi, but anyway, I did not have time to look deeper at that point.
Today, I found my laptop would not connect via DHCP, whereas other devices were connecting with no issue. The issue was stable. I rebooted the PC to check that the PC was not at fault, and the issue persisted.
I connected using a static IP, logged into the router's debug page and enabled logging. I then put my PC back in DHCP mode and tried to connect to the Orbi a number of times to no avail. I then connected via static IP and downloaded the log.
After saving the log, I rebooted the Orbi, and all was OK, proving the issue was with the Orbi.
I have the debug log and I would appreciate if someone could look at it to see what the issue could be. I don't know enough about the processes etc. that should be running and the expected log behavior to make sense of it myself.
I have not attached the debug log here right now, in case there is any sensitive data in the Wireshark capture, but if there is someone who is willing to take a look at the logs, then please le mew know what to share.
What Firmware version is currently loaded? What is the Mfr and model# of the Internet Service Providers modem/ONT the NG router is connected too? Be sure your using a good quality LAN cable between the modem and router. CAT6 is recommended.
What is the size of your home? Sq Ft? What is the distance between the router and 📡 satellite(s)? 30 feet or more is recommended in between RBR and RBS🛰️ to begin with depending upon building materials when wirelessly connected. https://kb.netgear.com/31029/Where-should-I-place-my-Orbi-satellite 🛰️
What channels are you using? Auto? Try Auto and 48 on 5Ghz. Or try setting manual channel 1, 6 or 11 on 2.4Ghz and 40 to 48 channel on 5Ghz. Any Wifi Neighbors near by? If so, how many?
Set 20/40Mhz Coexistence to 40Mhz only. Save settings and reboot the router and satellite(s). Under Advanced Tab/Advanced Settings/Wireless Settings
Has a power off for 1 minute then back ON with the ISP modem and router been performed since last update? Be sure to restart your network in this sequence: Turn off and unplug modem. Turn off router and computers. Plug in and turn on modem. Wait 2 minutes for it to connect. Turn on the router and wait 2 minutes for it to connect. Turn on computers and rest of network.
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. Recommend setting the default DHCP IP address pool range to the following after applying and a factory reset: 192.168.#.100 to 192.168.#.200. 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. Press the back reset button for 15 seconds then release. https://kb.netgear.com/31486/How-do-I-reset-my-Orbi-system-to-factory-default-settings
I connected using a static IP, logged into the router's debug page and enabled logging. I then put my PC back in DHCP mode and tried to connect to the Orbi a number of times to no avail. I then connected via static IP and downloaded the log.
If you enabled the feature "Enable LAN/WAN Packet Capture", then the debug log will include two files: wan.pcap and lan.pcap.
Open lan.pcap with Wireshark and it should contain the DHCP conversation between the laptop and router.
I had a similar (but not exactly identical) problem with a Windows 10 laptop which was connected to an Orbi with Ethernet. I never turn my computers "off", but did close the lid when away from the laptop (cat walks on the keyboard). Every time I would open the lid, there would be no network and I would have to either (a) use the Network Troubleshooter, (b) open Network Settings to disable/enable the adapter, or (c) restart the laptop. Finally I captured the DHCP packets and discovered as you did with the switches that the laptop sent DHCP requests over and over and ignored the DHCP response from the router. A subsequent software update on the laptop resolved the issue.
I am not a fan of Netgear's DHCP software, but when it is one device having a problem....... well.
Thank you for your reply. I will answer your questions
What Firmware version is currently loaded?
As mentioned, the latest - V4.4.1.29_3.10.80
What is the Mfr and model# of the Internet Service Providers modem/ONT the NG router is connected too? Be sure your using a good quality LAN cable between the modem and router. CAT6 is recommended.
It is an o2 own branded 5G router, made by ZTE. It has built in Wi-Fi which is switched off, and DHCP switched off. It is connected to the WAN port and in a different subnet. Issues I have had in the past were the same with the modem connected or disconnected.
What is the size of your home? Sq Ft?
around 2000
What is the distance between the router and satellite(s)? 30 feet or more is recommended in between RBR and RBS
to begin with depending upon building materials when wirelessly connected.
its greater than 30 feet in a diagonal straight line to both. across floors and even in a different building in the case of the wired one.
️
What channels are you using? Auto? Try Auto and 48 on 5Ghz. Or try setting manual channel 1, 6 or 11 on 2.4Ghz and 40 to 48 channel on 5Ghz.
I have been on auto for 2.4 GHz, setting of 5GHz channel is greyed out, assume because I'm in Europe. Its set to 108(DFS) and I cannot change it. I have changed 2.4 GHz to chan 6 as per your recommendation.
Any Wifi Neighbors near by? If so, how many?
1 or 2, very low power in my house, around -90dBm
Set 20/40Mhz Coexistence to 40Mhz only. Save settings and reboot the router and satellite(s). Under Advanced Tab/Advanced Settings/Wireless Settings
Done, but if there are settings that cannot be used then this is a bug.
Has a power off for 1 minute then back ON with the ISP modem and router been performed since last update?
Yes, multiple times
Be sure to restart your network in this sequence: Turn off and unplug modem. Turn off router and computers. Plug in and turn on modem. Wait 2 minutes for it to connect. Turn on the router and wait 2 minutes for it to connect. Turn on computers and rest of network.
I think this is unnecessary, given the circumstances of my issue. Things have been working for weeks after my last changes to the Tasmota devices to static IP. Given a reboot solely of the RBR350 fixed a stable problem then I don't think my issue is related to power up sequence. Also, I don't expect a high quality router, the cost of the Orbi to be sensitive to this. If I have a power cut or breaker trip, I am not going to religiously follow a strict power up sequence every time. If the Orbi is sensitive to this I might as well throw it in the trash.
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.
Yes, multiple times
Recommend setting the default DHCP IP address pool range to the following after applying and a factory reset: 192.168.#.100 to 192.168.#.200.
Its set to 192.168.200.2 to 192.168.200.199. My static IPs are set to 200+. I don't want to change this unless absolutely necessary. Again, if settings here are not settable to what the user wants, this is a SW bug and needs to be fixed.
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. Press the back reset button for 15 seconds then release.
I factory reset the router multiple times during my investigations. Problems arising weeks after initial setup I don't believe are related to power up sequences prior to it.
I connected using a static IP, logged into the router's debug page and enabled logging. I then put my PC back in DHCP mode and tried to connect to the Orbi a number of times to no avail. I then connected via static IP and downloaded the log.
If you enabled the feature "Enable LAN/WAN Packet Capture", then the debug log will include two files: wan.pcap and lan.pcap.
Open lan.pcap with Wireshark and it should contain the DHCP conversation between the laptop and router.
I had a similar (but not exactly identical) problem with a Windows 10 laptop which was connected to an Orbi with Ethernet. I never turn my computers "off", but did close the lid when away from the laptop (cat walks on the keyboard). Every time I would open the lid, there would be no network and I would have to either (a) use the Network Troubleshooter, (b) open Network Settings to disable/enable the adapter, or (c) restart the laptop. Finally I captured the DHCP packets and discovered as you did with the switches that the laptop sent DHCP requests over and over and ignored the DHCP response from the router. A subsequent software update on the laptop resolved the issue.
I am not a fan of Netgear's DHCP software, but when it is one device having a problem....... well.
I got the capture files. It seems there is a DHCP offer that that the PC did not take for some reason. This was the same as what the Tasmota devices were doing. If there is someone that would offer to take a look at the logs that would be great.
Understand that when one device is having an issue, then it likely points to that, but how would it be explained that after a reboot of the PC and multiple adaptor disables/enables didn't fix it, but a reboot of the orbi did, that it is not the orbi that is the issue? Could the offer packet be malformed or something? This would also explain the earlier behavior of the Tasmota devices.
For this size of home, only one RBS is needed. I'd turn OFF one RBS. you maybe running into devices ping ponging around trying to lock on to the best signal and can't figure this out. There maybe too much wifi signal overlap between the RBR and RBS in such a small size home.
A factory reset and set from scratch would be needed as a last resort check.
Understand that when one device is having an issue, then it likely points to that, but how would it be explained that after a reboot of the PC and multiple adaptor disables/enables didn't fix it, but a reboot of the orbi did, that it is not the orbi that is the issue? Could the offer packet be malformed or something? This would also explain the earlier behavior of the Tasmota devices.
I am no expert, but really enjoy going "down the rabbit hole" on technical issues. Would like to compare the DHCP conversation from normal operation against when the router is powered up (and the whole network gets DHCP assignments). If the laptop ignores one offer and responds to another offer, there ought to be something different between the offers.
One thing about Netgear's DHCP process that annoys me is that it does not prioritize the LAN assignment table. Got a new camera yesterday and (before connecting at all) put it in the LAN assignment table, but made a typo on the MAC address. (teeny tiny print is my excuse.) ) So, the camera got a random IP from the pool. Corrected the typo and restarted the camera... same IP from the pool. "No, problem." Powered off the camera and set a laptop to that IP (Static assignment on laptop). Powered up camera, next sequential IP from the pool. The only guaranteed way to get the correct IP assigned is to reboot the router.
I think you are correct that Netgear's DHCP process is doing something not obvious.
