Merlin 386.1 Beta 4 - AiMesh 2x AX86U, Node constantly disconnecting clients

[FTC]

So you are correct. Right now, my main router is connected to the modem via the Asus OEM cat5e cable, to the node via a cat6 in the wall and cat5e oem Asus cable. i know it could be the reason, but then why is the error that the backhaul just isn't working at all from the 2.5 to 2.5 and keeps asking me for the password? i'd expect maybe a performance issue not a functionality one. it just disconnects often and asks for the password and only on the 5ghz band. it's so weird and frustrating. so right now i'll stick to essentials and just see if the current setup would allow me to get gigabit speeds. i need to find a way to test that. is there any way to test max transfer rates between the router and devices without depending on my internet connection? also i dont know whether one of the 2.5 gbe ports on the routers is defective... just annoying that i've reset things so many times, done everything the right way, put the best firmware on there and it feels like i'm trying to orient a TV antenna to catch a channel in 1985.

If connectivity is failing between the router (that does the authentication) and the node you can expect inconsistent error messages such as 'password incorrect'. I'd seriously first of all fix the part that you know is wrong (a cat5e cable in a 2.5 Mbps connection) and see what happens then...

 

[AndrewJacob]

So in the midst of my tests and finding iPerf as a method of testing throughput, I made an interesting discovery. The AiMesh failed again, and this with my current setup that was working for a few days. Not sure what to think or do anymore...

@FTC , before I go out and buy cat 6 cables, I want you to know that connectivity also just failed between the 1gb ports. And once again, it's only on 5ghz... 2.4 and wired both work flawlessly

 

[FTC]

So in the midst of my tests and finding iPerf as a method of testing throughput, I made an interesting discovery. The AiMesh failed again, and this with my current setup that was working for a few days. Not sure what to think or do anymore...

@FTC , before I go out and buy cat 6 cables, I want you to know that connectivity also just failed between the 1gb ports. And once again, it's only on 5ghz... 2.4 and wired both work flawlessly

OK so it failed *without* using the 2.5Gb ports but connecting the router (Lan port 1Gb) to the node 1Gb WAN port ? if that is the case then of course the 2.5 ports are unrelated to your problem. It could still be the cable if you did not change it, but much less likely since now you are supposedly working at 1Gbps.

 

[AndrewJacob]

Correct @FTC . When I tried the wireless mesh, it worked. When I tried the wired backhaul via 2.5, 5ghz failed at the node and would always ask for password. This never worked. Then when I switched to Lan-Wan over 1gbe, it worked for a few days and now finally started to do the same thing:/ this sounds so much like a software issue to me, but then again, somehow we have people here who have done everything the way i did and theirs work beautifully. not sure what to do anymore. as mentioned, 2.4ghz and wired networks at the node are working nicely, and the firmware seems to say that everything is working perfectly as well...

 

[octopus]

Correct @FTC . When I tried the wireless mesh, it worked. When I tried the wired backhaul via 2.5, 5ghz failed at the node and would always ask for password. This never worked. Then when I switched to Lan-Wan over 1gbe, it worked for a few days and now finally started to do the same thing:/ this sounds so much like a software issue to me, but then again, somehow we have people here who have done everything the way i did and theirs work beautifully. not sure what to do anymore. as mentioned, 2.4ghz and wired networks at the node are working nicely, and the firmware seems to say that everything is working perfectly as well...

You know only one port support 2.5Gb? (port 5)

 

[L&LD]

@AndrewJacob, I was answering when the forums were suspended for maintenance, but it seems like your issues are continuing.

Have you switched the roles the routers do? Make the node the main and vice-versa?

Buy a new cable or two to test with. Cat5e, Cat6, or Cat6a of varied brands/manufacturers. Try to not use the cables the 'developer' installed and terminated when testing.

 

[Teppka]

Correct @FTC . When I tried the wireless mesh, it worked. When I tried the wired backhaul via 2.5, 5ghz failed at the node and would always ask for password. This never worked. Then when I switched to Lan-Wan over 1gbe, it worked for a few days and now finally started to do the same thing:/ this sounds so much like a software issue to me, but then again, somehow we have people here who have done everything the way i did and theirs work beautifully. not sure what to do anymore. as mentioned, 2.4ghz and wired networks at the node are working nicely, and the firmware seems to say that everything is working perfectly as well...

I'm by no means an expert here but did have similar issue with 2x RT-AX86U in hardwired mesh with node loosing 5Ghz clients. Did you try disabling "Ethernet Backhaul Mode" while in hardwired mesh connection and then rebooting both nodes? It's in Asuswrt it's in AiMesh - System Settings. It solver my issue at least for now as I have both nodes running just fine ever since.

 

[HeadBanger]

I have had this happen with AX88U and two AX86U nodes running 386 B4(b) a few times. I posted on the beta thread about 5G WiFi going down on both the router (AX88U) and nodes (AX86U) and clients all disconnecting stating wrong 5G password. 2.4G continued to work.

The first time it happened, when switching off AiProtection every 5G WiFi client then reconnected. Switching AiP back on was OK too and it was OK for a week or so.

Last weekend it happened again whilst downloading some content from BBC Sounds to my iPhone. Switching off AiP only allowed 5G clients to briefly reconnect and it failed completely again within 5 mins and no amount of AiP toggling on/off fixed it.

I ended up reflashing 386 B4(b) on all and all clients and nodes then successfully connected to 5G once more.

It has been up and running for almost 7 days now. I hope it doesn’t reoccur but seeing as there are a few others reporting this happening it seems it may be a firmware bug.

HB

 

[kernol]

Correct @FTC . When I tried the wireless mesh, it worked. When I tried the wired backhaul via 2.5, 5ghz failed at the node and would always ask for password. This never worked. Then when I switched to Lan-Wan over 1gbe, it worked for a few days and now finally started to do the same thing:/ this sounds so much like a software issue to me, but then again, somehow we have people here who have done everything the way i did and theirs work beautifully. not sure what to do anymore. as mentioned, 2.4ghz and wired networks at the node are working nicely, and the firmware seems to say that everything is working perfectly as well...

If its any consolation ... you are definitely NOT alone in suffering this AiMesh problem with 2 x RT-AX86U's.
@L&LD is the only person I am aware of from forum posts that appears to have a stable link between AX86U Router and AX86U Node on Merlin 386.1_b4

I tried his advice on settings in this and other threads MANY times with all the permutations I could muster [lost count on the number of WiFi button resets I have done ] - all seemingly successful to start with - but all failed after some days of running. Common denominator "Wrong Password" on 5G ONLY ... .

It didn't matter whether on Ethernet backhaul or not, 1Gb or 2.5Gb] - however on 5G backhaul the link itself would fail when this password issue happened.

I reverted to stock firmware and have found better stability - so must assume that the AiMesh closed source actually provided in the stock firmware is not the same as the AiMesh included in Merlin's b4 code [or if it is precisely the same - then some interaction with other aspects of his code might be where the issue lies]. .

I am FAR from knowledgeable enough to figure out the root cause of the problem - but have every confidence that Merlin will have it sorted by the time he is able to issue his final 386.1 firmware release version.

 

[Turb-z]

I have 2 ax86u in AiMesh on beta 4 without any issues I'm using the 2.5gb port from the main router to the wan port of the node.

 

[L&LD]

I think it's worth repeating here (it's in the forums somewhere), I had to find a new Control Channel shortly after moving to 386.1 Beta 4 on both RT-AX86U's. The behavior was the same as reported here; the wrong password (for some clients).

Wi-Fi is an eternally moving target. I took the time to go through the control channels again and once I found a stable one, it hasn't changed (and the network continues to be stable).

 

[AndrewJacob]

@L&LD thank you so much for your support! Everyone else too. So this morning randomly it was working again and randomly it stopped working again. I'll take everyone's advice in steps. I'll start by disabling the ethernet backhaul mode and seeing if that solves anything. If that doesn't work, I might try the switching of the routers. I wish there was an easier way to test that hardware of the 2.5 ports is working and not defective. That being said, the wiring was terminated by myself, and I took extreme care in doing it. I used equipment to test the quality of the connection and it was good, before screwing the plates into the walls. I then also did speed tests hardwired from each female, and I was reaching maximum speeds (yes, I know 450 is nowhere near the max speed of a cat6 cable, but I don't have any clients with ethernet ports greater than 1gbe except for my QNAP NAS ). Judging from the different accounts I am getting, it seems like I'm not the only one with these issues, but then some have no issue at all. It's tough... Honestly if I had the money, I'd go Ubiquiti and call it a day. For now, I'll try to find the best sub $1000 (CAD) solution and really really hope it's the AX86 because i love it's single router performance.

As a side note, I used iPerf and got the following single router results (average with 5 streams, 30 seconds of testing each):
- Immediately beside router: 780/600 (down/up)
- Office with 2 walls about 10 feet from router: 781/608
- Bedroom on opposite side of home but same floor with 4 walls between: 674/405
- Downstairs front entrance 15 feet from router one wall between: 658/387

 

[roboots21]

Rather than rehash everything, I have been having issues that involved the 5GHz network on my AiMesh nodes. My main router never had issues, but the AX58U nodes (one last weekend, both this weekend) starting having issue with the 5GHz disconnecting clients. On Monday, I had factory hard reset all routers after re-flashing beta4(b). Everything was stable until today when my scheduled reboot occurred. Today, no 5GHz clients could maintain connection to either node. They would connect for 5 or so second, and be booted.

I flashed everything back to beta 3 today, and without a full factory reset, my 5GHz clients are all connecting as they should again and roaming works flawlessly. Based upon input in Merlin's forum as well as the stock forum, it could all be based on the updated code base used in beta 4 as well as the latest stock builds, but I'm not sure. I believe I've seen more and more reports of similar issues, but I could be wrong. A little bit more information can be seen in a couple of posts of mine in another topic:

http://www.snbforums.com/threads/tw...h-node-refuses-5ghz-clients.69441/post-654836

 

[heysoundude]

Hi everyone,

Just recently connected 2 AX86U via 2.5GBE backhaul as AiMesh, and the connection quality appears as "Great" according to the firmware.
However, when I am near the node, I get a lot of drops, very often.
Can someone help with this? Single router performance was good before connecting the second router.

View attachment 29567

View attachment 29568
My goal with this setup was to blanket the entire 2 stories in 5ghz 450mbit speeds, as well as the outdoor patio.
I have wired as many devices as possible and am not experiencing issues with the wired devices. Connection issues are only on Wi-Fi and in the living room as well as the outdoor patio areas.

Thanks,

Andrew

those are two fairly strong transmitters very close to each other. your devices are getting confused about which is closer/stronger. turn the tx power down and you'll be more than fine everywhere you want it to be and beyond. if direct line of sight were possible between router and node, I'd wager that router and node aren't even 30' apart...regardless of how much Cat6 cable runs between them. You can EASILY turn down the wifi on each of them halfway (or more) and still get better coverage than you expect, and it'll probably help with your wireless disconnects. They're built to cover 4000-5000sqft homes each, and you have 2 of them to cover a quarter or a fifth of that. one router would've been overkill.

(Nice looking place, BTW... all it's missing is a garage)

 

[AndrewJacob]

Thank you @roboots21 and @heysoundude !
So Roboots, are you using the 2.5GBE backhaul with your wired node? Just asking because my 2.5 never worked but my 1gbe lan to wan worked for a short time. Either way, I think I might try beta3 if this doesn't work. I currently connected both routers by 2.5. Considering that wired and 2.4ghz works on the node, I am tempted to assume that my 2.5 ports do not have a hardware issue.
@heysoundude , you make an excellent point! When I would walk from the kitchen to the living room, when aimesh was working, i would see my devices automatically switch to the node. ideally my node would be at max power to cover my patio and i'd reduce the transmit on the main router. However, considering the problem being password-related in its manifestation, I'm tempted to say that I don't think tweaking the transmit power (which I will probably want to do once the system is working) will solve the issues I'm having. But it's definitely something I will do later on. Even though it seems like these routers are overpowered for the space, 2 things make this power necessary in my opinion:
1- My walls have weird things in them (metal, etc.)
2- At any given time, I have 10+ wifi signals coming in from neighbours' routers etc because we are packed like sardines here.
Also, it seems like my patio doors block much of the wifi signal from getting outside, which I want to solve without installing anything on the outside because I cannot (HOA rules...)
Also thanks for the compliment on my home. Yep, there's a garage below but it isn't directly connected to my home (wish it were!).

 

[AndrewJacob]

@HeadBanger is your aimesh connected via 2.5 backhaul?

 

[heysoundude]

Thank you @roboots21 and @heysoundude !
So Roboots, are you using the 2.5GBE backhaul with your wired node? Just asking because my 2.5 never worked but my 1gbe lan to wan worked for a short time. Either way, I think I might try beta3 if this doesn't work. I currently connected both routers by 2.5. Considering that wired and 2.4ghz works on the node, I am tempted to assume that my 2.5 ports do not have a hardware issue.
@heysoundude , you make an excellent point! When I would walk from the kitchen to the living room, when aimesh was working, i would see my devices automatically switch to the node. ideally my node would be at max power to cover my patio and i'd reduce the transmit on the main router. However, considering the problem being password-related in its manifestation, I'm tempted to say that I don't think tweaking the transmit power (which I will probably want to do once the system is working) will solve the issues I'm having. But it's definitely something I will do later on. Even though it seems like these routers are overpowered for the space, 2 things make this power necessary in my opinion:
1- My walls have weird things in them (metal, etc.)
2- At any given time, I have 10+ wifi signals coming in from neighbours' routers etc because we are packed like sardines here.
Also, it seems like my patio doors block much of the wifi signal from getting outside, which I want to solve without installing anything on the outside because I cannot (HOA rules...)
Also thanks for the compliment on my home. Yep, there's a garage below but it isn't directly connected to my home (wish it were!).

Yeah, LowE/energy efficient windows and doors work both ways -keeps radiation in AND out...and wifi is EMR. and do not get me started on steel studs and framing...
But set up the Mesh and give the TX power adjustments a whack - you may be surprised that "ideal" ideas may be incorrect. I'd wager that constructive/destructive interference issues trump the firmware.
Ok, you've outed yourself as canadian...do you live within 100NM (I'm guessing much much less) of the CN tower by chance? fret not - I'm in that zone too
(a cisco-certified friend made me aware of a ubiquiti product that would likely be awesome for you: APs that fit in PoE wired standard outlet boxes. one of those in each room, another on the patio...heaven! but you could (should) put your blueprint into their wireless planner to get just EXACTLY what you want/need))

 

[roboots21]

those are two fairly strong transmitters very close to each other. your devices are getting confused about which is closer/stronger. turn the tx power down and you'll be more than fine everywhere you want it to be and beyond. if direct line of sight were possible between router and node, I'd wager that router and node aren't even 30' apart...regardless of how much Cat6 cable runs between them. You can EASILY turn down the wifi on each of them halfway (or more) and still get better coverage than you expect, and it'll probably help with your wireless disconnects. They're built to cover 4000-5000sqft homes each, and you have 2 of them to cover a quarter or a fifth of that. one router would've been overkill.

(Nice looking place, BTW... all it's missing is a garage)

How would one go about turning down Tx power on the separate AiMesh nodes?

 

[roboots21]

Thank you @roboots21 and @heysoundude !
So Roboots, are you using the 2.5GBE backhaul with your wired node? Just asking because my 2.5 never worked but my 1gbe lan to wan worked for a short time. Either way, I think I might try beta3 if this doesn't work. I currently connected both routers by 2.5. Considering that wired and 2.4ghz works on the node, I am tempted to assume that my 2.5 ports do not have a hardware issue.
@heysoundude , you make an excellent point! When I would walk from the kitchen to the living room, when aimesh was working, i would see my devices automatically switch to the node. ideally my node would be at max power to cover my patio and i'd reduce the transmit on the main router. However, considering the problem being password-related in its manifestation, I'm tempted to say that I don't think tweaking the transmit power (which I will probably want to do once the system is working) will solve the issues I'm having. But it's definitely something I will do later on. Even though it seems like these routers are overpowered for the space, 2 things make this power necessary in my opinion:
1- My walls have weird things in them (metal, etc.)
2- At any given time, I have 10+ wifi signals coming in from neighbours' routers etc because we are packed like sardines here.
Also, it seems like my patio doors block much of the wifi signal from getting outside, which I want to solve without installing anything on the outside because I cannot (HOA rules...)
Also thanks for the compliment on my home. Yep, there's a garage below but it isn't directly connected to my home (wish it were!).

I believe I am using 1GBE connection. Is there a simple way to tell? I'm not familiar with 2.5GBE connections to nodes.

 

[heysoundude]

How would one go about turning down Tx power on the separate AiMesh nodes?

I would assume from the AiMesh page of the main router - that's where you access individuals UIs as I understand it.
it would really suck if I'm wrong and you have to login to EACH UI...man there's an upgrade suggestion for Asus if I've ever seen one...