Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)

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Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)

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Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)
Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)
2018-09-03 18:54:39 - last edited 2020-11-27 10:02:10
Model :

Hardware Version :

Firmware Version :

ISP :

Hi All,

I recently got TL-WPA8630P kit and it works great (most of the time). It's hardware version 2.0 and running latest firmware 2.0.3 build 20171018.

But every now and then, at what would appear as random times, it stops passing traffic to my router. I can ping other powerline adapters in my setup, including the one that is physically connected to my router, but not router itself at 10.0.0.1, and thus can't access the internet or the local network outside of the powerline setup. There's no indication of any problem from LED lights on the boxes or anything. It looses connectivity like that for minute or two, after which comes back to normal.

I did noticed however, that the "outage" correlates with following entry into the System Log of the powerline device:

11 days 20:26:51 DHCPS INFO DHCP server started
11 days 20:28:26 DHCPS INFO DHCP server stopped

Now, firstly I do not understand why the powerline adapter have DHCP server (i'm using my router as DHCP) and secondly, how can I permanently disable it (or stop this behaviour).

Any help would be most appreciated.
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#1
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1 Accepted Solution
Re:Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)-Solution
2020-11-27 10:01:47 - last edited 2020-11-27 10:02:10

@InternetMoon 

Good day.

Thank you very much for all your concern about this case.

May I know the model number of your power-line adapter?

How about the current hardware and firmware version?

 

There are some suggestions:

How to manually configure the DHCP server on the power-line adapter:

1. Log into the power-line adapter: https://www.tp-link.com/support/faq/1417/

2.Then Go to Device Settings > LAN Settings.

Choose static IP

(for example, if the main router LAN IP is 192.168.0.1, DHCP IP address pool is 192.168.100-254)

You could input 192.168.0.2 for power-line adapter;
subnet mask 255.255.255.0

Default gateway 192.168.0.1

Primary DNS 8.8.8.8

secondary DNS 8.8.4.4

Recommended Solution
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#13
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19 Reply
Same problem on a TL-WPA4220
2018-09-08 20:50:43
Hi,

I purchased a new TL-WPA4220 and after 12 days running without problems I lost internet connectivity. When I check the log, the TL-WPA4220 had just started a DHCP server and was issuing leases with its own IP address as the default route - which resulted in routing failure. There seems to be no interface to disable the DHCP server. I tried setting to a static address to see if the server running was linked to the client but its not. Rebooting the device did not work the first few times - the DHCP server started again (and blocked access to the real DHCP server). Eventually a reboot corrected the issue.

Firmware version is 4.0.2 Build 21080308 Rel.37064 Hardware Verison TL-WPA4220 v4.0

I feel its likely that the services started when it had a DHCP request as I had just switched on a device.

Clearly its not appropriate for this device to run a DHCP server without interface to configure and disable.

Please can you help
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#2
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Re:Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)
2018-10-01 22:43:32
Hello, we have a lot of TL-WPA4220 running on our networks and we detected the same issue on every place we have the TL-WPA4220. On logs there is an entry that says "DHCP server started" but there is no option to disable this feature. When that happens we cannot see any DHCP client on our main router. It happens on the networks that we had PLC TL-WPA4220 and the error solves temporarily when we disconnect the PLC and restart the DHCP server on the router. Anyone with a permanent solution?
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#3
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Re:Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)
2019-01-03 15:10:59

Also experiencing this issue.

 

There is no good reason to have a powerline extender/access point run a DHCP server, as it will totally mess up a network.

 

For example, if the TP-Link 8630 is brought up *after* the main network router (with a running DHCP service), all is OK, all clients seem to get their DHCP addresses from the main router. But if the router is rebooted or taken off-line for a few minutes, then the 8630 will enable its own DHCP server and start responding to DHCP requests and handing out random IPs in the original (main routers) subnet.

Whenever the main router comes online, most of the clients on the network now have IPS handed out via the 8630 DHCP, and therefore, reference the IP of the 8630 as the 'gateway' IP. But of course, the 8630 does *not* have access to the internet, so it looks like the Internet access is out (even though the main router is on the public Internet).

 

The temporary fix is to power down the 8630 and the main router, turn on the main router and let clients get their IPs from it, then power back up the 8630. But in a power outage situation, that order might not happen.

 

And it's even worse if your network has *two* 8630's on it and the main router is rebooted, as you now have *two* DHCP servers responding and referencing themselves as the gateway. Completely bonkers!!!

 

I've yet to spot a way to suppress this crazy behavior. I tried setting static IPs in the network config of the 8630, but it still turns on the DHCP server if the main router is offline.

 

Suggested fix: Make running a DHCP server a defaulted to OFF option. Or at a minimum, if there is a static IP config set, NEVER run a DHCP server.

 

 

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#4
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Re:Re:Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)
2019-01-11 11:21:26

Hi there,

 

I have the exact same issue. I purchased recently a TL-WPA8630P kit and all working good. 

After a bit of observation through my router logs it seems that the unit checks periodically if there is a DHCP server running on the network and if there isn't it will automaticcaly start its own DHCP server. 

 

The issue with that is that it will use the same subnet and advertise it's own IP as the default gateway which messes up any device that obtained a new lease while this is happening.

 

I just email TP-Link about how to disable the server from the device as I cannot find a way to do it through the web interface nor the app on my phone.

 

This is an example (just part) of the logs:

 

Fri Jan 11 08:12:38 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPREQUEST(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7
Fri Jan 11 08:12:38 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPACK(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7 TL-WPA8630P
Fri Jan 11 08:13:45 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPREQUEST(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7
Fri Jan 11 08:13:45 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPACK(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7 TL-WPA8630P
Fri Jan 11 08:14:52 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPREQUEST(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7
Fri Jan 11 08:14:52 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPACK(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7 TL-WPA8630P
Fri Jan 11 08:15:59 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPREQUEST(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7
Fri Jan 11 08:15:59 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPACK(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7 TL-WPA8630P
Fri Jan 11 08:17:06 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPREQUEST(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7
Fri Jan 11 08:17:06 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPACK(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7 TL-WPA8630P
Fri Jan 11 08:18:13 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPREQUEST(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7
Fri Jan 11 08:18:13 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPACK(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7 TL-WPA8630P
Fri Jan 11 08:19:20 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPREQUEST(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7
Fri Jan 11 08:19:20 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPACK(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7 TL-WPA8630P
Fri Jan 11 08:20:27 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPREQUEST(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7
Fri Jan 11 08:20:27 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPACK(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7 TL-WPA8630P
Fri Jan 11 08:21:34 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPREQUEST(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7
Fri Jan 11 08:21:34 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPACK(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7 TL-WPA8630P
Fri Jan 11 08:22:42 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPREQUEST(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7
Fri Jan 11 08:22:42 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPACK(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7 TL-WPA8630P
Fri Jan 11 08:23:49 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPREQUEST(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7
Fri Jan 11 08:23:49 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPACK(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7 TL-WPA8630P
Fri Jan 11 08:24:56 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPREQUEST(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7
Fri Jan 11 08:24:56 2019 daemon.info dnsmasq-dhcp[18222]: DHCPACK(br-lan) 192.168.1.229 70:4f:57:99:23:c7 TL-WPA8630P

 

K.

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#5
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Re:Re:Re:Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)
2019-03-02 12:56:18

I've been having this problem too.

 

Have you tried logging in to the web browser configuration for each wifi powerline adapter and giving each one a static IP address (obviously outside the range your router gives out)

So far I'm not seeing any more DHCP requests to the router after doing this though it's early days yet.

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#6
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Re:Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)
2020-09-08 09:13:07

 

This just happened all of the sudden while adding a third TL-WPA4220 to my network.

I have the TL-PA4010 connected to to the router so this is the kit option sharing the routers wifi and using the WiFi-move = ON.

 

Problem:

After pairing the new devices with the PA4010 Internet broke and another WPA4220 all of the sudden started sharing itself as gateway 192.168.0.254.

 

Reason:

I figured out that I failed on the pairing, holding the button on PA4010 too long, waiting for LED to start blinking.

So when I pressed the pairing button on new WPA4220 I initiaded pairing from "wrong direction/device".

 

Solution:

Just redo all the pairing with PA4010 for ALL devices. I.e I plugged the new device back in the closest outlet and it worked.

I went and got the other two (one at time!) WPA4220 and plugged in to the closest outlet of the PA4010 and paired again.

 

Voila, network restored.

Hope this helps someone as this thread helped me figure out where I went wrong in the installation.

 

 

Happy Networking everyone :)

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#7
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Re:Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)
2020-10-31 03:14:32

Same issue I think ! All my wireless devices connected to the powerline extender (AC600) works fine, but all the wired devices doesn't show up inside my real router dhcp table.

I don't see any DHCP started logs in the power extender system tools > system log, however I feel like this might be what is blocking my actual router to discover the device.

Also, inside the Status page, I see the "wireless connections" but not the "wired" connections.

If I take off the device from the extender and plug it directly inside my router it works instantly.

 

Firmware version is 4.0.2 build 20190326

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#8
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Re:Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)
2020-11-02 10:14:06

@QCK 

Good day,

Thanks a lot for your time and patience.         

Is your model number TL-WPA4220 V4-20190326?

Did you mean that all the devices(both wireless and wired connection) could get internet from the powerline adapters, but they did not show up on the router DHCP table(or just the wired client)?

TL-WPA4220 has the smart DHCP feature and if the router already enabled its DHCP, 4220 would automatically turn its DHCP off;

By the way, are you able to see TL-WPA4220 shows up on the router DHCP table;

 

Thank you very much.

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#9
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Re:Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)
2020-11-02 13:02:22

@Solla-topee Could you advise us how to disable the Smart DHCP feature? I have had to cease selling TP-Link products because this caused a problem with several different clients and networks.

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#10
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Re:Powerline adapter looses connectivity (running DHCP server?)
2020-11-07 02:56:31

How to prevent this from happen in future, any possibilty to totally disable dhcp server? same thing happen to me, totally messed up my home network.

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#11
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