How many MAC addresses does the series 7 Orbi have?

[Foden]

I'd wager 10, see table below - X means the character matches exactly in the MAC address, Z means it doesn't. You can see there are groups where they match exactly except for the last 2 least significant characters.

Pretty sure that although my satellite has a wired connection the hidden SSID it would use if it was wirelessly connected is still active

Trying to get some real data on what’s going on with the Wi-Fi and trying several apps all with differing degrees of success. What Wi-Fi monitoring apps are you guys using to troubleshoot? I've looked at Acrylic, NetSpot, HomeDale, PRTG to name but a few

Any recommendations??

[CrimpOn]

You are entirely correct.  All of those mysterious MAC addresses are variations on the primary MAC address.

One issue in researching WiFi channels is that most tools are designed to identify Access Points (APs), not user devices.

The  Orbi router broadcasts SSID's on these (6) channels:

Primary WiFi - 2.4G and 5G

Guest WiFi - 2.4G and 5G

Backhaul - 2.4G and 5G (This SSID is not broadcast, but is very much "there"  Mine is named NETGEAR_ORBI_hidden41

Each Orbi satellite broadcasts SSID's on these (4) channels:

Primary WiFi - 2.4G and 5G

Guest WiFi 2.4G and 5G

In addition, each satellite communicates to the router on the 5G channel (or the 2.4G channel if 5G fails) using a contrived MAC address.

Those WiFi Analysis tools do not pick up this MAC address because it is not an AP.  It is a device communicating with the router AP.

So, if the system consists of one router and three satellites, there will be a total of 6+4+4+4 = 18 access points plus three 5G MAC addresses for backhaul.

On the original Orbi models, there is a web page "hidden_info", i.e. http://<ip of orbi>/hidden_info.htm that reveals this information.  (It is not clear to me whether the AX models have this web page or not.  I don't have one to test.)

My favorite tools for this sort of thing include:

• WiFiInfoView (Windows - free)
• WiFi Analyzer by Kevin Yuan (Android)
• Wireshark (Linux and Windows)  This is what discovered the 5G MAC used for satellite backhaul.  Filtering the Wireshark display by the MAC address I knew about showed these other MAC addresses sending packets to the backhaul Access Point MAC.

Is this the sort of information you were seeking?

[Foden]

Thanks, it is - looking more at Wi-Fi quality/availability/utilization rather than client info

My series 7 Orbi does not respond to "/hidden_info.htm" it just redirects to the main page

Best info I've seen so far is from WiF-Scanner 21.05 and Acrylic - both sadly trials. They show that the 2.4Ghz main and gust Wi-Fi are all over the place. These beign the 2 with the significant drops below - graphs are from 2 different apps to double-check their findings. Will test on a call later on and see what that looks like

[CrimpOn]

WiFi Analyzer shows similar patterns, except some of the access points do not change significantly.  If you come across an explanation for what causes the radio signals to vary in strength, please post a link.

[Foden]

Hmmmm, did a test Whatsapp and when the call dropped the graph did'nt show and drops

[Foden]

Yep, used 2 to check the results - no clue so far what causes the drops - will keep looking

[Foden]

Don’t see anything corresponding from neighbors Wi-Fi with the graph drops either

Using these apps at present

Wi-Fi Scanner

https://lizardsystems.com/wi-fi-scanner/

NetSpot

https://www.netspotapp.com/

I’ve made numerous WhatsApp calls and the recipient ends up hearing reconnection beeps after a few mins, but I can hear them talking, and the beeps, all the time. Calls ultimately fail, no signs of any drops on the graphs I’m waiting

Also tried Alexa video and voice calls and they do not suffer the same issues, even though I’m mainly using the same phone

[Foden]

Just noticed that the Netgear A6200 USB NIC will only connect to the Orbi on a 2.4Ghz channel. It's quite happy to report details from 2.4 & 5Ghz networks

I'm running Win 11 Pro, Netgear driver pack v 1.0.0.26-1 which contains driver v6.30.145.30 dated 2013-04-03 once installed

Fixed

Weird setting in the driver was the issue

• Go to Device Manager / Network Adapters / Netgear A6200 WiFi Adapter
• Click on the Advanced tab and then look for IBBS in the list of options. Mine was set to default 802.11a/b, change it to 802.11a/b/g/n Auto

As with all technology YMMV

[FURRYe38]

Gotta keep those adatper drivers up to day as well for sure. I have to check on my Intel AX210 6Ghz adapter...I see there is updates for it.