Asus RT-AX86U devices disconnecting

[newcomers]

Hi,

I have quite a few wiz smart light bulbs (20) connected via wifi but at least once a day, at least 1 bulb in my lounge (there are 6 bulbs in lounge) will go offline and I have to turn power off and on again and they instantly reconnect.
Whats strange is that these bulbs are the closest to the router (which is in the room next door) but are the only bulbs that have connection issues.

Here is a snippet from the log when it happens:

Mar 9 02:50:54 wlceventd: wlceventd_proc_event(494): eth6: Deauth_ind D8:A0:11:AE:36:ED, status: 0, reason: Disassociated due to inactivity (4), rssi:-61
Mar 9 02:50:54 wlceventd: wlceventd_proc_event(494): eth6: Deauth_ind D8:A0:11:AE:36:ED, status: 0, reason: Previous authentication no longer valid (2), rssi:-61
Mar 9 02:50:55 kernel: wl0: random key value: 4D057C143E5313220673019FB2A6A87E574B8F4940150B2F77E5D5413659C510
Mar 9 02:50:55 wlceventd: wlceventd_proc_event(511): eth6: Disassoc D8:A0:11:AE:36:ED, status: 0, reason: Disassociated because sending station is leaving (or has left) BSS (8), rssi:0

Is this likely to be a router issue or bulb issue? Is there anything I can do to stop this from happening? I was thinking of getting mesh in lounge but dont think thats the issue?

Thanks

 

[newcomers]

Forgot to say, they are connected via 2.4ghz and I have set the channel to 11 and this is the least congested. I have also assigned a static IP to each bulb but this hasnt made a difference.

 

[OzarkEdge]

Static IPs for light bulbs? Is that really necessary?

Your 2.4GHz signal can travel a quarter mile... your bulbs should have no problem in the next room.

The issue may be the bulbs, or the bulbs and your 2.4 WLAN settings, or nearby interference.

Have you tried disabling WiFi6/ax on the 2.4 band? Move the bulbs around to see if the issue is bulb or location specific? Replace the bulbs?

Are you using the router USB 3.0 port? USB3.x data rates can generate EMI that can trouble 2.4 wireless connections, particularly marginal connections.

Try some things to narrow it down but don't worry about the 2.4 signal power in the next room unless the router 2.4 radio is faulty.

OE

 

[newcomers]

Static IPs for light bulbs? Is that really necessary?

Your 2.4GHz signal can travel a quarter mile... your bulbs should have no problem in the next room.

The issue may be the bulbs, or the bulbs and your 2.4 WLAN settings, or nearby interference.

Have you tried disabling WiFi6/ax on the 2.4 band? Move the bulbs around to see if the issue is bulb or location specific? Replace the bulbs?

Are you using the router USB 3.0 port? USB3.x data rates can generate EMI that can trouble 2.4 wireless connections, particularly marginal connections.

Try some things to narrow it down but don't worry about the 2.4 signal power in the next room unless the router 2.4 radio is faulty.

OE

I set static ips to see if it would help but also to make it easier to integrate them into home assistant.

I have just switched off wifi6 and restarted router, will see how it goes.

I dont have anything plugged into the usb port.

I find it strange that its literally only the devices in my lounge that have this issue. If one fails again, I will move it to a room I know I dont have an issue with.

Say that was to work (moving to another room with no issues) what could the problem be that would only affect my lounge?

 

[OzarkEdge]

I set static ips to see if it would help but also to make it easier to integrate them into home assistant.

Side note... make sure the router DHCP IP Pool only includes IPs assigned by the router (dynamic and reserved) and omits IPs you assign on clients, if any.

I find it strange that its literally only the devices in my lounge that have this issue. If one fails again, I will move it to a room I know I dont have an issue with.

Say that was to work (moving to another room with no issues) what could the problem be that would only affect my lounge?

Perhaps radio interference... even small location adjustments can have an affect. Also make sure your AP is not co-located with other transmitters... too close may degrade things. For instance, cordless peripherals like headphones etc. that operate in the 2.4GHz range can affect nearby 2.4 comms.

OE

 

[newcomers]

Ok so I disabled wifi6 on 2.4ghz and all lights remained connected for a day and a half but today one has gone down again.

In the room in question I have 2 subwoofers (no wifi), TV, xbox, av receiver, nvidia shield, electric fire (all wifi). Do you think setting up an access point just for the lights might work? Im at a loss as to what else to try

 

[newcomers]

Forgot to mention, technical support for the bulb manufacturer is terrible.

 

[OzarkEdge]

Could it just be a bad bulb?

OE

 

[newcomers]

Could it just be a bad bulb?

OE

There are 4 that are affected but strangely all in the same room. Manufacturers are going to send 4 new bulbs to try

 

[slackjaw99]

Check out these links for tips on optimal configuration of all the ASUS wifi settings:

https://dongknows.com/how-to-fix-wi-fi-dropping-and-disconnection-issues/
https://dongknows.com/airtime-fairness-explained/
https://dongknows.com/home-wi-fi-settings-explained-and-best-tips/

If you haven't already, download a wifi analysis app for your phone (I use WifiMan from Ubiquity on my android phone). Those apps will show all the interference on the 2.4 band including bluetooth. It will guide you on which channels to pick for least congestion.

 

[tgl]

In the room in question I have 2 subwoofers (no wifi), TV, xbox, av receiver, nvidia shield, electric fire (all wifi). Do you think setting up an access point just for the lights might work?

That's a lot of gear. I'm prepared to believe that one of those devices presents some compatibility issues for the smart bulbs. If so, separating them onto different wifi SSIDs might help.

Before you spend money on a whole separate AP, though, see if moving the bulbs onto their own SSID helps. You should be able to set up a "guest" SSID for them on your existing AP.

 

[Tech9]

Those apps will show all the interference on the 2.4 band including bluetooth. It will guide you on which channels to pick for least congestion.

This a very common mistake because the apps (with few exceptions) are only showing what channels the near Wi-Fi networks are using (at the moment). They don't show what channels have more available bandwidth. Also, this is what a mobile client with weak radio and power saving sees, not the router. The best place to look is Wi-Fi Radar in Asuswrt-Merlin firmware. This is what the router sees around from Broadcom radios. Because of incorrect information understanding when the router is set to Auto it often picks completely different channels and not the ones app user expects.

It will guide you on which channels to pick for least congestion.

What's the best channel?

 

[slackjaw99]

This a very common mistake because the apps (with few exceptions) are only showing what channels the near Wi-Fi networks are using (at the moment). They don't show what channels have more available bandwidth. Also, this is what a mobile client with weak radio and power saving sees, not the router. The best place to look is Wi-Fi Radar in Asuswrt-Merlin firmware. This is what the router sees around from Broadcom radios. Because of incorrect information understanding when the router is set to Auto it often picks completely different channels and not the ones app user expects.



What's the best channel?

View attachment 48478

WifiMan shows % of channel utilization and has a much clearer saturation graph then that pic. Also, how are you going to walk around your house holding a router? Long extension cord? The whole point of using a -weak- mobile device is to emulate what all the other weak clients and IoT devices see wherever they may be located. Using this method has kept every one of my 60ish IoT and other clients connected continuously. This is far from a "common mistake". But thanks for the compliment, though.

 

[Tech9]

Also, how are you going to walk around your house holding a router?

You don't need to. The Wi-Fi router/AP is the "central point" of your wireless network. When you measure with mobile device somewhere at the edges you get distorted data. You may see neighboring networks stronger than they really are and your own AP weaker. Good for dealing with client issues.

The whole point of using a -weak- mobile device is to emulate what all the other weak clients and IoT devices see

Indeed - good for location signal strength measurement. Not good for overall Wi-Fi environment evaluation. Also, it depends who's looking at the screen and what they see there. You know stuff and may get the information you are looking for. Someone else may get it completely wrong. For that reason I don't recommend Wi-Fi Analyzer type apps. Most people don't know well how Wi-Fi works, see few networks around and tune to the worse channel no one uses for some obvious reasons they don't know about. No one is using DFS channels around. The best ones? No - airport, >1200 flights a day.

 

[Tech9]

But thanks for the compliment, though.

Seriously, write the guide for HND routers VLAN setup. I know you're not the average "let me ask a question" guy.

 

[Loukiz]

I have the same issue with the AX86u on the latest firmware.

 

[bbunge]

I have the same issue with the AX86u on the latest firmware.

Are you using the WIFI defaults? If not you should!

 

[Tech9]

I have the same issue with the AX86u on the latest firmware.

Make your 2.4GHz band more compatible with IoT devices and try again.

[Wireless Router] How to improve compatibility of IoT device with ASUS WiFi 6(802.11 ax) router? | Official Support | ASUS Global

 

[leerees]

"Downgrade" your 2.4ghz band to the bare minimum. This will reduce compatibility issues and drop outs.

Disable all modern features. For example beamforming, mu-mimo. Disable ax on this channel.

I use 2.4ghz as a legacy channel for old devices and IOT devices. On this band, reliability is more important than speed. In an ideal setting, all of the devices on this band would have low bandwidth requirements.