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Firmware Version 4.6.8.2 bricked my RBS750

wwxxyyzz
Aspirant

Firmware Version 4.6.8.2 bricked my RBS750

I have an RBR750 and RBS750. Last week I noticed that none of my devices were connecting to my satellite. I checked the router's page and saw that the satellite was not on the network. I tried reboots and re-syncs and it would not sync or join the network.

I brought the satellite into the room with the router, it still would not sync. I then connected it via ethernet. It got an IP but still would not come online as a satellite. I logged into the web admin console. That's when I saw the RBS750 was running firmware 4.6.8.2 while my router still had 4.6.5.14.

Netgear's support site recommended putting the latest firmware onto my satellite so I pulled down RBS750-V4.6.5.14 from Netgear's website because it was listed as the Latest for my device. I used the web console to flash the RBS.

Now it's a brick. It will boot, it will eventually come up and get an IP via ethernet. But the web console's status page does not finish loading, does not report a firmware version. The fwUpdate page can be accessed via direct URL but it won't upload firmware. Factory resets don't help.

What can I do to get a working satellite? Thanks! 
I found another thread about the 750s and 4.6.8.2 today but that thread is locked.

Message 1 of 7

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wwxxyyzz
Aspirant

Re: Firmware Version 4.6.8.2 bricked my RBS750

I started going through the process for TFTP today, and had the RBS directly connected to my PC. I noticed the power LEDs weren't cycling in the way the TFTP guide suggests they would.  Out of curiosity I checked for a web server at 192.168.1.1, no answer. I checked 192.168.1.250, which I found from another post that said .250 was the default IP for Satellites that couldn't connect. No answer. Then I tried 192.168.1.28, which is the IP that the RBS was last given via DNS from the RBR. It was responding there. Also, the status page now said that the RBS FW was v4.6.5.14, which I had attempted to flash the night before but didn't seem to boot successfully over the weekend (no answer on WiFi, would only connect as a device when hardwired, and could not report its status).

But today? Today it booted up as a functioning Satellite and connected to my RBR. It's now working as part of the mesh. I don't know what's different than yesterday when it didn't know its identity. My best guess is that the firmware downgrade actually worked but something was stuck in memory or some circuitry was behaving in a bad way. After being disconnected from power and ethernet for 12+ hours, something finally dissipated?

Anyway, working somehow, for now at least.

Another interesting piece of information: Over the weekend (both when on 4.6.8.2 and half-alive on 4.6.5.14) the RBS accepted the default login credentials of admin/password.  But today it rejected those credentials and INSTEAD it accepted admin/<my personal password for the RBR>. Yeah, it went from "I only accept my default password" to "I only accept your customized password."  It almost seems like 4.6.8.2 itself made the memory unreadable in a way that survives reboots but now after a night of rest the values are readable again. Weird.

 

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Message 3 of 7

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FURRYe38
Guru

Re: Firmware Version 4.6.8.2 bricked my RBS750

Try to see if you can use TFTP or NMRPFlash to load v.14 on the RBS:

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

Message 2 of 7
wwxxyyzz
Aspirant

Re: Firmware Version 4.6.8.2 bricked my RBS750

I started going through the process for TFTP today, and had the RBS directly connected to my PC. I noticed the power LEDs weren't cycling in the way the TFTP guide suggests they would.  Out of curiosity I checked for a web server at 192.168.1.1, no answer. I checked 192.168.1.250, which I found from another post that said .250 was the default IP for Satellites that couldn't connect. No answer. Then I tried 192.168.1.28, which is the IP that the RBS was last given via DNS from the RBR. It was responding there. Also, the status page now said that the RBS FW was v4.6.5.14, which I had attempted to flash the night before but didn't seem to boot successfully over the weekend (no answer on WiFi, would only connect as a device when hardwired, and could not report its status).

But today? Today it booted up as a functioning Satellite and connected to my RBR. It's now working as part of the mesh. I don't know what's different than yesterday when it didn't know its identity. My best guess is that the firmware downgrade actually worked but something was stuck in memory or some circuitry was behaving in a bad way. After being disconnected from power and ethernet for 12+ hours, something finally dissipated?

Anyway, working somehow, for now at least.

Another interesting piece of information: Over the weekend (both when on 4.6.8.2 and half-alive on 4.6.5.14) the RBS accepted the default login credentials of admin/password.  But today it rejected those credentials and INSTEAD it accepted admin/<my personal password for the RBR>. Yeah, it went from "I only accept my default password" to "I only accept your customized password."  It almost seems like 4.6.8.2 itself made the memory unreadable in a way that survives reboots but now after a night of rest the values are readable again. Weird.

 

Message 3 of 7
FURRYe38
Guru

Re: Firmware Version 4.6.8.2 bricked my RBS750

Glad you got it working. Seems to have worked it self out. 

I believe it's not the v.2 FW thats caused this, rather the auto update system and how it was applied that causes this. NG is experienced a high volume of bad updates that was recently pushed about two weekends ago. I believe it effected users that had not manually updated to v.2 prior that actually I posted about about a week prior to NG pushing it via the auto update path. Some of us included me had v.2 loaded on our systems manually and had not seen problems as expressed by you and others. v.2 FW is ok in it self when manually loaded. What ever caused the FW updates to go bad while being auto updated is still a mystery. Not the first time auto update has caused problems.

 

Glad you got it working. Be sure to save off a back up configuration to file for safe keeping. Saves time if a reset is needed.
https://kb.netgear.com/000062080/How-do-I-back-up-the-configuration-settings-on-my-Orbi-WiFi-System
Enjoy. 📡

Message 4 of 7
hgpilot55
Star

Re: Firmware Version 4.6.8.2 bricked my RBS750

I've got the RBR850 - having the same problem.  I've read the posts re: rolling out a fix - but also read about something called a 30/30/30

 

1. using a pin, press reset for 30 seconds.  DO NOT STOP PRESSING

2.  While still pressing reset (remember, do not let off) - unplug  for 30 seconds.  DO NOT STOP PRESSING

3.  Plug back end - after 30 seconds, release pin

 

Bottom line, you're pressing the reset for a total of 90 seconds

 

When it came back online I was able to access via both the iOS app and 192.168.1.1

Message 5 of 7
FURRYe38
Guru

Re: Firmware Version 4.6.8.2 bricked my RBS750

One user mentioned pressing the reset button for a total of 1 minute got them back in to the web page.

Message 6 of 7
m3lloyello
Aspirant

Re: Firmware Version 4.6.8.2 bricked my RBS750

This is what finally worked for me, holding down the reset button on the satellite for > 1 minute.  I'm so glad I stumbled across this suggestion, I tried the 30-30-30 thing and it did not work. 

 

The satellite UI would accept my login credentials, but after that the UI would only partially load, and would show the spinning icon forever.  This was after I downgraded my satellite from 4.6.8.2 to 4.6.5.14 (which was the same version that the router was running).  I thought I had bricked one of the satellites when I downgraded.  Could not get nmrpflash to reflash the firmware on the satellite.

 

I had my satellite hardwired to the router when I did this 1 minute reset.  The router reset as well, to my surprise.  It started to light up magenta, then after a few minutes, the satellite appeared as being connected in the router's UI.  

 

I did lose the connectivity to the other satellite in the process.  I could ping the other satellite's IP address, but I could not get into the UI, and it would not sync.  I tried the sync buttons multiple times, on the satellite then the router, then vise versa (some websites said to try this as well).   A power cycle fixed the issue.

 

Is there an option to not have the system auto-update?  This has been an unnecessary ordeal. 

 

 

 

 

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