Deco 20 v2.6 Network Availability Issues/Firmware Update Confusion
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This is a Deco 20(US) question. I have a 3-pack of Deco 20 v2.6 mesh units purchased/installed roughly a year ago. I've slowly begun to experience (streaming) buffering and intermittent network availability problems across my home network over the past few months. I've even taken one of the mesh units offline recently because it suddenly was having trouble staying connected (3 units in mesh was really overkill from my coverage area, anyway).
I've determined that I have a good signal from my modem. My Main Deco is connected to the modem by a 3 foot CAT6 cable. The satellite unit(s) are connected wirelessly. Both my streaming devices have been rebooted multiple times without making a difference. My desktop, laptop and iPhones (2) are having connection problems, as well.
My first thought was to check on the latest Deco 20 v2.6 firmware available from TP-Link (1.1.1_20210723) and I was surprised to find it to be an earlier release than what came on my v2.6 units from the factory (1.1.3_20211103 Rel. 32888). This seems strange.
I looked at what was available for other Deco 20 versions and found that the firmware release resident on my v2.6 units is what TP-Link is offering for v2, but not for the v2.6. I'm confused.
Was the firmware release rolled back for the v2.6 because of problems? Is the later release that came on my units the reason for my network availability issues? Should I roll back to the latest firmware TP-Link is showing for my v2.6 units?
My expertise here is rudimentary, at best, and I'm not quite sure what I should do. Have any other users run into this issue? Any constructive thoughts?
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Sometimes the version number of a model may just be an indicator of where the product was manufactured or if there was a minor change to a chipset. It appears as though the firmware for 2.6 model was just not updated to match the v2 model. I have already communicated this to the team so we can update the page. As such, I definitely recommend staying with the firmware that is the most up-to-date, especially if it is currently running; if I hear that the firmware is not supposed to run on the v2 for some odd reason, I will let you know.
As for connection issues, can you provide more detail as to what happens when the disconnects happen so we can see where to start?
Are you still connected to the network? Just with no internet? Does the speed drop when it happens?
What is the status of the LEDs on the Deco nodes, Deco main node, and modem when the issue occurs?
Does it happen for all devices simultaneously?
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Thanks for the prompt response. I'll not make any firmware rollback changes unless I hear from you.
The problem is buffering when streaming that I cannot tie to a specific channel or streaming service (Netflix, YouTubeTV, Sling, etc). It can be when just one TV is streaming; or two TVs are streaming, but only one is buffereing; or two TVs streaming and both buffering. The buffereing is sometimes short duration, and other times the screens are frozen until the Main Deco is rebooted. This usually helps in the short term, but has gotten to where it is not long lasting.
When the severe buffering starts, I've tried to access the Deco 20s using the TP-Link app, but where I'm usually able to see status without logging in, I'm suddenly having to re-input login credentials, and even then unsuccessful until the buffering stops. This leads me to believe the network is down. The LEDs on the Decos remain green, though. Only when I reboot the Main Deco do I see a change there, the exception being a lag on satellites until reconnection after a reboot.
There are definitely times when my desktop or laptop seem sluggish when surfing the internet. Performance is usually quick and crisp, but occasionally it does seem to slow, so whatever is going on is affecting me there, too..
I'm using a T-Mobile Nokia 5G Gateway for my internet source, with its wireless capability disabled in favor of the Deco 20 mesh system. I've checked and double checked to ensure the Gateway wireless function is disabled.
I access the Gateway both through my desktop and the T-Mobile app, both over my home network. When the buffereing problem is light/intermittent, I'm able to connect to the Gateway, but see no anomalies re its signal metrics. When the buffering is severe (throwing more than one device offline), I'm not able to access the gateway that way, but the physical display on the gateway is still indicating a good signal. That leads me to believe it's a network issue vice internet issue.
I consistently get solid speeds from the T-Mobile gateway using Speedtest.
I'm using Apple TV 4K (2017) streaming devices on my two TVs, and I've restarted each of them numerous times hoping to fix the buffering problems. This never helps. I've a third TV with a Roku device that we rarely use. Nonetheless, it has experienced the problem, as well.
On the chance it could be an Ethernet cable problem, I've replaced the one (also CAT6) between my T-Mobile Gateway and the Main Deco. No luck there, either. The satellites are connected wirelessly.
For the record, I purchased my 3-Pack of Deco 20s new from Amazon on January 10, 2022.
Any chance anything here pops out at you?
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A few things that I would have you try:
First, make sure that all your deco nodes are running the same firmware, some features and bug fixes are only applied when all units have received an update.
Try changing the DNS settings from the default TP-Link DNS server to a common server such as Google's 8.8.8.8 to see if you are experiencing connectivity issues with the DNS server.
Next, I would try to mess around with the QoS settings on your Deco network. Either try to disable the feature, or set the expected speed above the speed given by your ISP.
When the issue occurs, can you navigate to the logs for your Deco Network and see if you can find anything abnormal. If you cannot access the Deco network without rebooting, try to access the web interface through a connected PC. If it cannot connect wirelessly, try connecting directly to the Deco network with an ethernet wire and going to tplinkwifi.net
Also. have you tried to connect your PC directly to the modem to see if the buffering persists? Since it doesn't sound like a complete disconnect from the internet, the modem would still show as connected to the internet. This would at least isolate the issue down to the deco nodes.
Have you tried to see if the speed is affected the same for local connections? such as downloading a file from one computer to another, or streaming a media file on your network.
Honestly, an easy solution for a lot of problems like this is simply to swap the main deco for a satellite node, as this will force the deco network to reconfigure the settings.
I know that Rokus and FireTVs can have problems with certain encryption methods, however, I can't imagine that this would extend to so many devices at once.
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Thank you so much. This is exactly what I needed...logical steps re where to go next.
According to the TP-Link app, my nodes are all running the same firmware, so I think I'll begin by bringing my network down and swapping one of the current satellite nodes in for the Main Deco. I'll then set the network back up from scratch. I can only hope it's as simple as that. Fingers crossed!
I'm also going step back to just two units...a Main Deco and just one satellite. In retrospect, my coverage area just doesn't warrant three nodes.
That said, if things still aren't quite right, I'll start working through your list. Hopefully, it'll be a quick fix, or at least the fix will be there.. Regardless, I'll post my results here.
Again, many thanks.
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Hi. I've worked though your recommendations, first, verifying the same firmware on each node, then resetting each node to factory specs and setting the network up again from scratch, this time with just a Main Deco and one satellite. I used the two previous satellite nodes for the new network, setting aside the previous Main Deco node.
All seemed to go well until a day later when some very minor intermittent buffering presented itself on one TV while streaming. I then modified the QoS settings, as you suggested.
That seemed to work until a day later when some minor buffering occurred again, this time on a different TV while streaming. That led me to research and figure out how to move my DNS from the default to a common server (Cloudflare). This was a solid move, regardless, as (using SPEEDTEST) more consistent and higher speeds were now evident. Thanks for that tip!
Then, a day later, after a brief bit of buffering, my network totally went down for a few minutes. During this episode, I could access my T-Mobile Nokia Gateway via desktop over LAN (hooked up through the Main Deco) during the outage. It was on and showed nothing amiss with its internet connection. However, both Deco nodes displayed solid red LEDs during the outage. I could not access either the Gateway or Main Deco via respective apps wirelessly for the duration of the outage.
Unfortunately, I did not note the time of the outage, and when I thought to look at the Deco logs later that evening, I could not pinpoint the episode easily, though error notices seemed to litter the data.
Continuing, everything worked well without my intervention, otherwise, for another day until, at ~12:03pm, with only oneTV streaming, the outage repeated itself for roughly 3-4 minutes (similar to the day before). During this time the Gateway was accessible via LAN and showed nothing unusual with its internet connection, both Deco nodes showed solid red LEDs, and all wireless devices were down,
Part of the Deco log immediately before and after the incident is shown here. Like before, the incident seemed to resolve itself, performance-wise, without my intervention.
This is very frustrating. Any thoughts?
Fri Oct 28 11:57:41 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: triggerMonSteering: Failed to get uplink rssi for C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99
Fri Oct 28 11:57:44 2022 daemon.notice nrd[12878]: estimatorPerformMeasurement: Do 11k measurement for C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99 on channel 40 from serving BSS APId 255 ChanId 40 ESSId 0
Fri Oct 28 11:57:47 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: _get_vap_status: fgets failed.
Fri Oct 28 11:57:47 2022 daemon.notice nrd[12878]: ar_apinfo_collect[line 1043]: AP sync timer expires!
Fri Oct 28 11:57:47 2022 user.notice IMPROXY: INFO[mcast_is_ex_hander@41]: Group 239.255.255.250 Group Compatibility Modeis lesser than IGMPV3
Fri Oct 28 11:57:47 2022 user.notice IMPROXY: INFO[imp_verify_multicast_addr@245]: Group address 224.0.0.251 is Local Network Control Block
Fri Oct 28 12:01:13 2022 daemon.notice nrd[12878]: estimatorPerformMeasurement: Do 11k measurement for C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99 on channel 40 from serving BSS APId 255 ChanId 40 ESSId 0
Fri Oct 28 12:01:16 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: estimatorDot11kIterateCB: Timeout waiting for 802.11k response from C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99
Fri Oct 28 12:01:22 2022 daemon.notice nrd[12878]: estimatorPerformMeasurement: Do 11k measurement for C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99 on channel 40 from serving BSS APId 255 ChanId 40 ESSId 0
Fri Oct 28 12:01:24 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: _get_vap_status: fgets failed.
Fri Oct 28 12:01:25 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: estimatorDot11kIterateCB: Timeout waiting for 802.11k response from C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99
Fri Oct 28 12:01:31 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: triggerMonSteering: Failed to get uplink rssi for
Fri Oct 28 12:04:30 2022 user.notice IMPROXY: INFO[imp_verify_multicast_addr@245]: Group address 224.0.0.251 is Local Network Control Block
Fri Oct 28 12:04:34 2022 daemon.notice nrd[12878]: estimatorPerformMeasurement: Do 11k measurement for C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99 on channel 40 from serving BSS APId 255 ChanId 40 ESSId 0
Fri Oct 28 12:04:37 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: estimatorDot11kIterateCB: Timeout waiting for 802.11k response from C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99
Fri Oct 28 12:04:43 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: triggerMonSteering: Failed to get uplink rssi for C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99
Fri Oct 28 12:04:50 2022 daemon.notice conn-indicator: Connectivity changed: OFFLINE(0x1) -> ONLINE(0x0)
Fri Oct 28 12:04:50 2022 user.notice dnsproxy: [ 6902] [dns_proxy_execFormatCmd 88] cmd: nat
Fri Oct 28 12:08:47 2022 daemon.notice netifd: wan (8641): No arp reply received for this address
Fri Oct 28 12:08:47 2022 daemon.notice netifd: wan (8641): Lease of 192.168.12.161 obtained, lease time 86400
Fri Oct 28 12:08:47 2022 user.notice dhcp: get ip info success.
Fri Oct 28 12:08:50 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: estimatorDot11kIterateCB: Timeout waiting for 802.11k response from C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99
Fri Oct 28 12:08:56 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: triggerMonSteering: Failed to get uplink rssi for C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99
Fri Oct 28 12:08:56 2022 daemon.notice nrd[12878]: estimatorPerformMeasurement: Do 11k measurement for C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99 on channel 40 from serving BSS APId 255 ChanId 40 ESSId 0
Fri Oct 28 12:08:59 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: estimatorDot11kIterateCB: Timeout waiting for
Fri Oct 28 12:13:42 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: triggerMonSteering: Failed to get uplink rssi for C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99
Fri Oct 28 12:13:44 2022 daemon.notice nrd[12878]: estimatorPerformMeasurement: Do 11k measurement for C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99 on channel 40 from serving BSS APId 255 ChanId 40 ESSId 0
Fri Oct 28 12:13:47 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: estimatorDot11kIterateCB: Timeout waiting for 802.11k response from C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99
Fri Oct 28 12:13:48 2022 daemon.err nrd[12878]: _get_vap_status: fgets failed.
Fri Oct 28 12:14:18 2022 daemon.notice nrd[12878]: estimatorPerformMeasurement: Do 11k measurement for C8:3A:6B:2E:67:99 on channel 40 from serving BSS APId 255 ChanId 40 ESSId 0
Fri Oct 28 12:14:19 2022 user.notice IMPROXY: INFO[mcast_is_ex_hander@41]: Group
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In an effort to systematically work my way through this, I latched onto your passing comment about Rokus sometimes having problems with certain encryption methods, and took both of my older Roku sticks (Model 3800R) offline. Happily, coincidentally or not, that seems to have fixed my problem. No more cutting in and out, no more buffering. It's been a week now, and all seems to be working well. Fingers crossed. Many thanks!
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