Asus GT-AXE16000 and Wake On Lan

[outlaw78]

As the title suggests, this pertains to the GT-AXE16000 and Wake on LAN...

I have an Asus Apex Encore with all the correct things on the NIC and BIOS to make WOL work. WOL DOES work on my computer when I connect to a 1Gb managed switch (TP Link) that is connected to the 10GE_2 port on the router and I use the Wake On LAN feature in the router, so I do know the packet makes it to the PC to wake it. However, when I plug directly into the 10GE_1 port with same computer, WOL does not work anymore. When plugged directly into the 10GB_1 port and the computer is off, the indicator on the network map > status page in the router shows the port as "white" (which is a "Unplugged"). If the card is still sending power or some form of a signal that it is still there when connected to the switch for WOL to work, wouldn't this also hold true for connecting directly to the 10GE_1 port? Is the switch vs the router keeping power on the cable somehow to indicate the PC is still there on the network?

I am at a loss why it works when plugged into a switch vs plugged in directly to the router.

 

[outlaw78]

I think I may have an idea on this...

When connected to the 10GE_1 port directly, when the computer shuts down, the router senses this and shuts power off to the 10GE_1 port (aka the NIC thinks the cable has been unplugged) since the data/connection lights on the NIC on the PC go out. When connected to the switch, the power stays at the port, keeping the NIC lights flashing and receiving data when the computer is off (so that it can receive the WOL packet). Is there a way to force the 10GE ports to stay powered when the PC powers off so the NIC doesn't think the cable has been unplugged???

 

[drabisan]

You're saying the 10G interface goes down when PC is down. So clearly there's no way for magic packet to reach PC's NIC.
Can you try and plug PC on a 1G link in AXE16000? I would guess that port will stay up even when PC is down.

I would expect NIC to run a full renegociation and move to link to 1G to keep it up. It makes little to no sense to have a 10G link (that uses quite a lot of power) up for WOL reasons. I don't have any idea if WOL is supposed to work on electrical 10G links. I can't see WOL working on optical 10G links. That would require to keep SFP running at all times...

 

[outlaw78]

You're saying the 10G interface goes down when PC is down. So clearly there's no way for magic packet to reach PC's NIC.

It appears so.

Can you try and plug PC on a 1G link in AXE16000? I would guess that port will stay up even when PC is down.

I have not tried this yet but was planing on it. My router is high on a shelf and hard to get to. (Unplugging and plugging blind)

I would expect NIC to run a full renegociation and move to link to 1G to keep it up. It makes little to no sense to have a 10G link (that uses quite a lot of power) up for WOL reasons. I don't have any idea if WOL is supposed to work on electrical 10G links. I can't see WOL working on optical 10G links. That would require to keep SFP running at all times...

I have a new switch coming that supports a 10G network interface with the remaining ports at 2.5gb. We'll see if that works to keep the NIC powered up since there's always power on so both the NIC and the router thinks there is an active connection. Fingers crossed. (https://tinyurl.com/5n738b4b)

Only reason I want to get that 10G port working is because I get the full (and a little beyond, 1080mb) on my 1 Gb internet connection. However, on a 1gb switch I only get 890 to 950. But when I did that, I lost the ability to WOL.

I use a VPN to link into the router and use the WOL feature to wake my computer so I can access it.

 

[drabisan]

Do 10GbE PCIe* Intel® Ethernet Network Adapters Support...

Find Intel adapters that support WoL and determine why it is not available on other adapters.

www.intel.com

Intel saying WOL and 10G are not friends sets a bit of a trend IMHO.

Idea being - is the client that has to keep the interface up at 10G or, even better, be able to renegociate lower speed before PC is shut down. If the client shuts down the interface after having it at 10G...I don't think a switch will help.

This is a valuable topic for me: I was planning to buy a 10G interface for one of my Synology. It's not like a huge investment, but I'll check with Synology if WOL will work with such adapter. I do have the option to keep a 1G interface connected between router and NAS so I would be able to use WOL. And use the 10G port for live traffic.

 

[outlaw78]

Do 10GbE PCIe* Intel® Ethernet Network Adapters Support...

Find Intel adapters that support WoL and determine why it is not available on other adapters.

www.intel.com

Intel saying WOL and 10G are not friends sets a bit of a trend IMHO.

Idea being - is the client that has to keep the interface up at 10G or, even better, be able to renegociate lower speed before PC is shut down. If the client shuts down the interface after having it at 10G...I don't think a switch will help.

This is a valuable topic for me: I was planning to buy a 10G interface for one of my Synology. It's not like a huge investment, but I'll check with Synology if WOL will work with such adapter. I do have the option to keep a 1G interface connected between router and NAS so I would be able to use WOL. And use the 10G port for live traffic.

I do not have a 10Gb NIC, only 2.5Gb. But I wanted to utilize the 10Gb Ethernet port to allow my 2.5Gb NIC to get its full benefit... I can understand the logic behind 10Gb NIC not supporting WOL since its more for server environments which are usually always "on" anyways.

I'll let you know the status. It arrives Friday.

 

[drabisan]

I didn't check the specs for Asus Apex Encore.
It may be the same problem? 2.5gbps NIC not actually being capable of WOL when working higher than 1Gbps?
There's another topic https://www.snbforums.com/threads/rt-ax86u-wake-on-lan-doent-work-on-2-5gbe-port.79987/

Shooting in the dark here! I don't know if it should work or not! Clearly if link LEDs are going dark...no way for WOL to work. I don't see the router being the problem here, client will turn off the electrical link.

 

[outlaw78]

I didn't check the specs for Asus Apex Encore.
It may be the same problem? 2.5gbps NIC not actually being capable of WOL when working higher than 1Gbps?
There's another topic https://www.snbforums.com/threads/rt-ax86u-wake-on-lan-doent-work-on-2-5gbe-port.79987/

Shooting in the dark here! I don't know if it should work or not! Clearly if link LEDs are going dark...no way for WOL to work. I don't see the router being the problem here, client will turn off the electrical link.

Well I am hoping with "Auto Negotiation" the NIC will drop to 10/100/1Gb when in an off state to allow for this. The switch I bought also supports 2.5Gb or less on the main 2.5Gb ports. In theory, with this combination, WOL should work.

If it doesn't solve it, I will more than likely send it back.

 

[outlaw78]

I didn't check the specs for Asus Apex Encore.
It may be the same problem? 2.5gbps NIC not actually being capable of WOL when working higher than 1Gbps?
There's another topic https://www.snbforums.com/threads/rt-ax86u-wake-on-lan-doent-work-on-2-5gbe-port.79987/

Shooting in the dark here! I don't know if it should work or not! Clearly if link LEDs are going dark...no way for WOL to work. I don't see the router being the problem here, client will turn off the electrical link.

WOL works like I figured it would. NIC stays connected (Flashing lights), switch says still connected as well and the switch keeps the 10_GE port alive. I now am connected at 2.5 using the switch mentioned above and still able to use WOL. It does auto-negotiate down to a slower speed (orange light when the pc is off instead of green).