[RT-AC68U] Router won't boot up (only USB 2.0 LED lights up)

[Aluminium]

I bought the RT-AC68U last December and have been very happy with its performance up until about two weeks ago. The wifi (I only use 5Ghz) stopped working on my devices even though all the lights in use on the router were still on - including the 5Ghz light. I restarted the router and it worked fine for 10-20 minutes and then the same thing happened - all lights indicated normal operation but wifi was down. This time I tried plugging in an ethernet cable and I got a link on my computer (Ethernet status was Active and Speed was 1Gbit) but no IP address. I also noticed that the LED button on the back had stopped toggling the back and front LEDs on and off.

I restarted the router like this one or two times more until it just stopped booting up! Now the Ethernet lights and the WAN light flashed on for ca half a second and then only the USB 2.0 light turned on and stayed on (I've never used the USB 2.0 port on the router). I left it like that for 10 minutes and nothing happened. If I plugged an ethernet cable in the ethernet light would light up and again I got a link on my computer (Ethernet status was Active and Speed was 1Gbit) but no IP address. I tried a few times to reset the router with the 30-30-30 method and by holding down the WPS button on boot but nothing worked.

I then turned it off and unplugged it and let it wait for 3 days untouched. When I turned it on again after the 3 days it turned on normally! All my settings were still there so no reset seemed to have happened. This was just after the latest firmware 3.0.0.4.378.4585 came out so the first thing the router does is ask me to update which I did. The update was successful and the router behaved normally for 20-30 minutes until it stopped working again the same way as before (lights seemed normal but no SSID and no IP on Ethernet).

The situation now: Now when I start the router it just lights up the USB 2.0 light and nothing else, or it lights up the USB 2.0 light for ~3 seconds and then restarts a few times until it stops restarting and leaves only the USB 2.0 light on. I do get an Ethernet link like before but no IP. I'm unable to access the web interface even after setting a manual IP on my computer to 192.168.1.x.

I did manage a few days ago, during one of the shorts periods that the router worked, to get the log so I'll post that here (I believe the first two startups in the log are from before the firmware upgrade and the rest from after). The log is too long to go in the post so it's in the attached .txt file. This has caused a lot of confusion and frustration and any help would be greatly appreciated

Thanks!

 

[mstombs]

Did it really prompt you to install a beta firmware? Latest release is Version3.0.0.4.378.4585

BUT a new firmware is not going to fix your original problem - its either configuration or hardware problem.

You should try to get it back to original factory default state with reset then minimal configuration and be prepared to return under warranty.

 

[Aluminium]

ahh sorry.. It was probably version 3.0.0.4.378.4585 like you say. I'll fix this in the original post. The thing is I'm not sure which firmware version is on the router right now.

 

[mstombs]

Your log shows 3 different firmwares - from Busybox/Linux compile timestamp

Jan  1 00:00:18 kernel: klogd started: BusyBox v1.17.4 (2014-11-11 20:26:56 CST)
Jan  1 00:00:18 kernel: Linux version 2.6.36.4brcmarm (gitserv_asus@wireless-pub1) (gcc version 4.5.3 (Buildroot 2012.02) ) #1 SMP PREEMPT Tue Nov 11 20:34:57 CST 2014
...
Apr  4 23:32:02 kernel: klogd started: BusyBox v1.17.4 (2014-11-11 20:26:56 CST)
...
Jan  1 01:00:13 kernel: klogd started: BusyBox v1.17.4 (2015-02-09 14:08:21 CST)
Jan  1 01:00:13 kernel: Linux version 2.6.36.4brcmarm (vizquel@vizquel-virtual-machine) (gcc version 4.5.3 (Buildroot 2012.02) ) #4 SMP PREEMPT Mon Feb 9 14:25:07 CST 2015
...
Jan  1 01:00:13 kernel: klogd started: BusyBox v1.17.4 (2015-03-04 12:45:36 CST)
Jan  1 01:00:13 kernel: Linux version 2.6.36.4brcmarm (gitserv_asus@wireless-pub1) (gcc version 4.5.3 (Buildroot 2012.02) ) #1 SMP PREEMPT Wed Mar 4 12:53:45 CST 2015
Apr  4 23:44:30 kernel: klogd started: BusyBox v1.17.4 (2015-03-04 12:45:36 CST)

The only messages with a valid timestamp are actually very odd - suggests a crash and restart of the log daemon. You definitely need to clear the config, maybe possible from the Asus recovery console, likely you skipped a firmware releaase which clearly says for example

ASUS RT-AC68U Firmware version 3.0.0.4.378.3813 2015/01/09
[Important] This version included AiProtection and AdaptiveQoS. After firmware updated, please press the reset button more than five seconds to reset the router to avoid some compatibility issues.

see also

http://www.snbforums.com/threads/asus-rt-ac68u-rebooting-on-its-own.15502/

 

[Aluminium]

mstombs you're right.. the log is weird. Taking your hint about the recovery mode I have managed to boot the router into recovery mode where the power light blinks slowly. If I set a manual IP on my computer to 192.168.1.x I do get a ping response from it on 192.168.1.1. I however don't have access to a Windows machine (I'm using Mac OS) to use the Asus recovery console so I looked up the tftp method for flashing new firmware.

I followed this: http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/TFTP_flash#Mac_OS_X_2 and after a few tries I managed to send the whole firmware with this output:

tftp>  connect 192.168.1.1
tftp>  binary
tftp>  rexmt 1
tftp>  timeout 60
tftp>  put RT-AC68U_3.0.0.4_378_4585-g44c234f.trx
Sent 32665600 bytes in 123.2 seconds

I let the router wait for ~10 minutes in case it was doing some installing but nothing seemed to be happening so I restarted it and now only the power light comes on and the ethernet light (ethernet cable is plugged in to my computer). The router however does not give me an IP address and I can't access the web interface (even with a manual IP of 192.168.1.x)

Now I should have 378.4585 but I don't know if the config was cleared.. How do I do that?

 

[Aluminium]

I tried flashing an old version of the firmware on the router (3.0.0.4_376_1663) and after that it manages to boot up! The boot-up takes unusually long though and after an arbitrary amount of time it freezes up just like before (unresponsive but with all lights properly on). I did manage to go into the settings and reset to factory settings (that's supposed to clear the NVRAM right?) but it had no effect. So I tried seting my IP address to 192.168.1.x and pinged the router while it was booting up. I started the ping at the same time I turned the router on and got a peculiar results.

47 seconds into the boot I get 3 replies from the router, two of which are from the first 6-7 seconds from power on (return delayed by ~40 seconds). All of these answers have a TTL of 100, which I read somewhere means that the router is in recovery mode.

78 seconds into the boot I get 1 reply with TTL=64 indicating normal behaviour but after that the interface goes down and I get no route to host. Could this be the built in switch restarting?

85 seconds in the router comes online again and I can access the admin console. It behaves normally here until at second 116 when the router becomes unresponsive with lights still on and blinking.

Any ideas why the router is freezing up like this?

PING 192.168.1.1 (192.168.1.1): 56 data bytes
ping: sendto: No route to host

ping: sendto: No route to host
Request timeout for icmp_seq 0
ping: sendto: No route to host
Request timeout for icmp_seq 1
ping: sendto: No route to host
Request timeout for icmp_seq 2
ping: sendto: No route to host
Request timeout for icmp_seq 3
ping: sendto: No route to host
Request timeout for icmp_seq 4
ping: sendto: No route to host
Request timeout for icmp_seq 5
Request timeout for icmp_seq 6
Request timeout for icmp_seq 7
Request timeout for icmp_seq 8
Request timeout for icmp_seq 9
Request timeout for icmp_seq 10
Request timeout for icmp_seq 11
Request timeout for icmp_seq 12
Request timeout for icmp_seq 13
Request timeout for icmp_seq 14
Request timeout for icmp_seq 15
Request timeout for icmp_seq 16
Request timeout for icmp_seq 17
Request timeout for icmp_seq 18
Request timeout for icmp_seq 19
Request timeout for icmp_seq 20
Request timeout for icmp_seq 21
Request timeout for icmp_seq 22
Request timeout for icmp_seq 23
Request timeout for icmp_seq 24
Request timeout for icmp_seq 25
Request timeout for icmp_seq 26
Request timeout for icmp_seq 27
Request timeout for icmp_seq 28
Request timeout for icmp_seq 29
Request timeout for icmp_seq 30
Request timeout for icmp_seq 31
Request timeout for icmp_seq 32
Request timeout for icmp_seq 33
Request timeout for icmp_seq 34
Request timeout for icmp_seq 35
Request timeout for icmp_seq 36
Request timeout for icmp_seq 37
Request timeout for icmp_seq 38
Request timeout for icmp_seq 39
Request timeout for icmp_seq 40
Request timeout for icmp_seq 41
Request timeout for icmp_seq 42
Request timeout for icmp_seq 43
Request timeout for icmp_seq 44
Request timeout for icmp_seq 45
Request timeout for icmp_seq 46
Request timeout for icmp_seq 47
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=7 ttl=100 time=41411.863 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=8 ttl=100 time=40410.833 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=49 ttl=100 time=1.270 ms
Request timeout for icmp_seq 51
Request timeout for icmp_seq 52
Request timeout for icmp_seq 53
Request timeout for icmp_seq 54
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Request timeout for icmp_seq 56
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Request timeout for icmp_seq 73
Request timeout for icmp_seq 74
Request timeout for icmp_seq 75
Request timeout for icmp_seq 76
Request timeout for icmp_seq 77
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=78 ttl=64 time=6.453 ms
ping: sendto: No route to host
ping: sendto: No route to host
Request timeout for icmp_seq 79
ping: sendto: No route to host
Request timeout for icmp_seq 80
ping: sendto: No route to host
Request timeout for icmp_seq 81
ping: sendto: No route to host
Request timeout for icmp_seq 82
ping: sendto: No route to host
Request timeout for icmp_seq 83
Request timeout for icmp_seq 84
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=85 ttl=64 time=0.590 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=86 ttl=64 time=0.365 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=87 ttl=64 time=0.189 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=88 ttl=64 time=0.297 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=89 ttl=64 time=0.282 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=90 ttl=64 time=0.186 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=91 ttl=64 time=0.412 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=92 ttl=64 time=0.656 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=93 ttl=64 time=0.532 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=94 ttl=64 time=0.361 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=95 ttl=64 time=0.313 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=96 ttl=64 time=0.280 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=97 ttl=64 time=0.409 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=98 ttl=64 time=0.317 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=99 ttl=64 time=0.335 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=100 ttl=64 time=0.265 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=101 ttl=64 time=0.285 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=102 ttl=64 time=0.361 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=103 ttl=64 time=0.323 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=104 ttl=64 time=0.395 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=105 ttl=64 time=0.407 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=106 ttl=64 time=0.292 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=107 ttl=64 time=0.436 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=108 ttl=64 time=0.323 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=109 ttl=64 time=0.381 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=110 ttl=64 time=0.398 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=111 ttl=64 time=0.296 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=112 ttl=64 time=0.321 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=113 ttl=64 time=0.378 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=114 ttl=64 time=0.334 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=115 ttl=64 time=0.320 ms
Request timeout for icmp_seq 116
Request timeout for icmp_seq 117
Request timeout for icmp_seq 118
Request timeout for icmp_seq 119
Request timeout for icmp_seq 120
Request timeout for icmp_seq 121
Request timeout for icmp_seq 122
Request timeout for icmp_seq 123
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Request timeout for icmp_seq 125
Request timeout for icmp_seq 126
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Request timeout for icmp_seq 128
Request timeout for icmp_seq 129
Request timeout for icmp_seq 130
Request timeout for icmp_seq 131
Request timeout for icmp_seq 132
Request timeout for icmp_seq 133
Request timeout for icmp_seq 134
Request timeout for icmp_seq 135
Request timeout for icmp_seq 136
Request timeout for icmp_seq 137
Request timeout for icmp_seq 138
Request timeout for icmp_seq 139
Request timeout for icmp_seq 140
Request timeout for icmp_seq 141
Request timeout for icmp_seq 142
Request timeout for icmp_seq 143
^C
--- 192.168.1.1 ping statistics ---
145 packets transmitted, 35 packets received, 75.9% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max/stddev = 0.186/2338.327/41411.863/9496.775 ms

 

[TonyH]

Hi,
Can you try another AC adapter? When I have weird problems with any thing, that is the first thing I do.
I use my work bench lab grade DC source for that.

 

[Aluminium]

Unfortunately I don't have tools like that and I don't have other AC adapters that fall within the specifications of the one that came with the router :/

 

[Aluminium]

After all this time I finally had time to contact amazon (amazon.de) and I'm sending it back (under warranty) and they're sending me a replacement.

 

[Gerald03]

I'm having the exact same problem with my ac68u rev c1 as of an hour ago from this moment x( I jus got the thing in the mail couple days ago too, ugghhhh, I'm so mad & sad now!!

 

[TonyH]

ahh sorry.. It was probably version 3.0.0.4.378.4585 like you say. I'll fix this in the original post. The thing is I'm not sure which firmware version is on the router right now.

Are you sure your AC adapter is known good? Could you try another one?