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Re: Orbi RBR50 bricked - anything I can do?

kb0wwp
Aspirant

Orbi RBR50 bricked - anything I can do?

Last night my network went down.  After some troubleshooting I found that the Orbi router was unresponsive.  But what was unusual is there was no flashing light on top.  That's usually my first clue there's a problem.

 

I tried cycling the power - nothing.

I tried pressing the reset with a paperclip for 30 seconds - the green power LED never changes.

I tried the 30-30-30 reset.  Nothing changes.  The power LED stays green.

I tried connecting direct to a laptop with a network cable.  The laptop shows "network cable unplugged" and nothing I do can change that.  So obviously I can't do the "upload firmware using TFTP client" trick.

 

Any other suggestions?

Model: RBR50|Orbi AC3000 Tri-band WiFi Router
Message 1 of 6
FURRYe38
Guru

Re: Orbi RBR50 bricked - anything I can do?

https://kb.netgear.com/000059634/How-to-upload-firmware-to-a-NETGEAR-router-using-Windows-TFTP
Need to press the reset button for 30 seconds then release, then it send to PUT the command and upload the FW. 
Make sure you enable tftp: https://www.thewindowsclub.com/enable-tftp-windows-10
Video walk through using a tftp client. Use the built in one for windows 10 though. the video is more of an example of how its done:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9DLrLQrpaw
I had a problem on a Windows 10 PC where this didn't work to use TFTP, so I switched to a WIndows 7 PC and the TFTP worked.
Mac TFTP: https://www.petenetlive.com/KB/Article/0001247


Try nmrpflash:
https://github.com/jclehner/nmrpflash


If any of this fails, the RBR needs to be replaced. 

Message 2 of 6
kb0wwp
Aspirant

Re: Orbi RBR50 bricked - anything I can do?

Is this a bot?  Because everything you suggested I already said I tried and didn't work. 🙂

 

I guess "throw it away" is my last option.  Too bad.

Message 3 of 6
plemans
Guru

Re: Orbi RBR50 bricked - anything I can do?

You tried nmrpflash? I've seen that work when tftp wouldn't

And you can try forcing an earlier firmware to it incase that was the issue. 

 

another thing you can try is swapping the power supply from one of the satellites to the router. 

Maybe the power supply is faulty and isn't letting it fully boot

Message 4 of 6
kb0wwp
Aspirant

Re: Orbi RBR50 bricked - anything I can do?

No connection to the Orbi is possible - wireless or with a network cable.  I've tried multiple computers and all say "network cable unplugged".  I have tried a different power adapter.

 

I remember decades ago having to use a "crossover cable" in situations.  Is that still a thing, or needed in this case?

Message 5 of 6
plemans
Guru

Re: Orbi RBR50 bricked - anything I can do?

When theirs corrupt firmware/bootup issues, thats what you expect. 

If you follow the guide for nmrpflash, it has you set a static ip address on the computer and try putting the router in a recovery state. 

It isn't going to show up like you expect. 

Message 6 of 6
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