WiFi connection problems at random

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WiFi connection problems at random

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WiFi connection problems at random
WiFi connection problems at random
2022-03-16 11:16:51
Model: Deco M9 Plus  
Hardware Version: V2
Firmware Version: 1.5.6

Hi all,

Hoping for some suggestions to help fix my problem.

 

Set-up

  • 3 x Deco M9 Plus 
  • Main Deco is in router mode, connected to Virgin media hub
  • around 20 devices using the network, iPhones, TVs, laptops, games consoles etc
  • recently upgraded to firmware 1.5.6

 

Problem

  • seems to have started happening since I upgraded my set-up to 1.5.6. Previous versions seemed fine and now wishing I hadn't upgraded.
  • seemingly at random, certain devices can no longer connect to the WiFi whilst majority of devices continue to work perfectly.  Repeatedly toggling WiFi settings on the device does not do anything, nor does switching to use the guest network or rebooting the device
  • I have to reboot the main Deco in order for the device to connect, which is far from ideal
  • doesn't appear to be any pattern that causes this - affects different devices at different times

 

Ideas/What I've tried

  • toggling the settings for a device to use the Mesh or not - no difference
  • enabling fast roaming - no difference
  • just rebooting satellite decos - no difference
  • changed the DNS gateway from blank to be the main Deco ip - no difference
  • running the network optimisation - no difference
  • looked through the Deco logs but couldn't spot anything definite as they are far from friendly, but I suspect this is some problem with the Deco not providing IP addresses to the devices when they attempt to connect ?
    • Tue Mar 15 09:38:16 2022 daemon.err udhcpd[9340]: no free IP addresses. OFFER abandoned

 

Has anyone else experienced this and/or have any suggestions to fix ?

Can I downgrade from this version safely ? (be great if you could do this via the app).

 

Thanks

 

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#1
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Re:WiFi connection problems at random
2022-03-16 14:14:06

  @Zarquon 

 

The error message you see could be Deco running out of IP addresses to allocate to devices. If this what really happens, symptoms you described and temporary fix (Main Deco reboot) do fit this. 

 

The cause of this may be your mobile devices randomizing their MAC addresses, forcing Deco to allocate multiple IP addresses per each mobile device, during short period of time.

 

There are different ways to fix that, but to verify if this is really the only issue with your Deco mesh, see this FAQ: How to change LAN IP address of Deco? Follow it, but instead of changing LAN IP address - change only Subnet mask. I am guessing it is currently 255.255.255.0 - then, choose 255.255.0.0 and see if it helps. That will significantly increase number of IP addresses Deco can allocate to devices, and if all problems go away after that - you can research other fixes for "MAC randomization," or just keep that one.

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#2
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Re:WiFi connection problems at random
2022-03-16 14:44:46

  @Alexandre. Thanks, have made change you suggested, will let you know if this helps.

 

If it is down to exhausting IPs through Mac randomisation, just surprised I didn't notice this before. It could be coincidence but it only seems to have been problematic since the 1.5.6 upgrade.

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#3
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Re:WiFi connection problems at random
2022-03-16 14:57:07

  @Zarquon 

 

I hope that change works.

 

It is possible that just around Deco firmware 1.5.6 upgrade you also got iPhones upgrades that make iPhone treat each WiFi node as an individual network. The point of MAC randomization is to prevent smartphone tracking. When smartphone moves through huge WiFi mesh (such as large shopping mall) and if it does not change MAC when switching between WiFi mesh nodes, iPhone owner movements are quite trackable through the whole area. Map MAC address to person's face image taken by security camera at the entry to the shopping mall, and you will know exactly who that person is and how that person moved through the mall. 

 

Alternatively, something in Deco firmware 1.5.6 may have forced iPhone treat different Deco mesh nodes as independent and individual networks, thus forcing randomization every time iPhone moves between WiFi nodes.

 

Whatever trigger is, if MAC address randomization is root cause of issues you described, it would be easy to find a fix or workaround. For example, at my house, for every new device I allow to join my Deco Main Network, I disable MAC randomization in that device for my network SSID.

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#4
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