RT-N66R LAN Failure

[rbeckeypa]

I am on my second N66R from Best Buy. Updated to latest Asus firmware. The LAN will not connect to either of two TP-Link switches at the other end of the house. I am using Cat6 550Mhz UTP cable approx. 75 feet. The long cable terminates at Cat6 inline coupler type keystone jack inserts and there are shorter Cat6 cables connecting the router on one end and the switch on the other. The short cables test good. The long cable works from the modem direct to the switch with the keystone jacks in place. The whole thing worked just fine three days ago with a Linksys 3200 router. Neither of the N66Rs will work with either of the switches. They also will not work with the keystone jacks. The switches are cheap and simple unmanaged switches. The keystone jacks are marked "Cat6".

The wireless network is stable but the construction of the house limits wifi at the far end. I have never had LAN trouble before. It has always been plug and go. I am at a loss. I called Asus and they said that if the ports on the back of the router work it isn't their problem. They completely ignored the fact that the same LAN worked with an aging Linksys three days ago.

Thanks in advance

 

[KGB7]

Get a test tool that will determine if your long cables are.properly terminated at both ends.

I've ran cables in office buildings, and I can't tell you how often a test tool has weeded out a single copper wire not being properly terminated.

Why your old Linksys works and Asus doesn't? As I mentioned above, if there is one single copper wire is not terminated correctly or criss crossed, then my guess that Linksys is less sensitive to Mistakes in wiring and termination at each end. So get a test tool from Home Depot.

Don't forget that residential and commercial buildings, have a different code when you terminate Ethernet cable. Router or switch don't care, but it has to be the same on both ends of the jack/cable.

Get a network Lan cable Tester.

 

[rbeckeypa]

The router will see laptop at the end of the long cable if they are directly connected to each other The connection is fast and the ping time is very low.

The router will see a switch if they are on a short cable and a laptop connected to that switch will function normally.

If the router is connected to a switch at the end of the long cable the switch activity leds appear normal but a laptop connected to the switch does not find a network.

I have another slightly shorter run not in use. It is about 50 feet. If the router is connected to this cable it will operate properly for a laptop if they are directly connected, but when a switch is inserted at the far end the laptop can't find the network. Remember that I am using two identical switches and I try both in each situation. Both work properly at the end of a 6 foot cable but not on one of 50 or 75 feet. Now I suppose you could argue that both of those long runs are funky somehow, but they were commercially produced and factory terminated. They will work properly with two different laptops and the very same switches when using the old Linksys router.

I am using keystone jacks rated for cat6. They work perfectly with the old Linksys router. Inserting one of them between the N66R router and any device at any length of known good cable severs the connection.

This behavior is the same for two N66R routers.

This morning I connected the router to a switch with a 6 foot cable. A laptop was connected to the switch and had full network access. A laptop connected directly to either of the long runs from the switch had full access to the network. Adding a keystone jack to the circuit at any place or adding a switch at the other end of the long run cuts the connection.

I am leaning toward the opinion that the N66R has a terminally flawed LAN. Can anyone suggest anything in the router settings that might help?

 

[sinshiva]

my n66r from best buy was one of the original n66 revisions with the wrong switchport; the kind designed for STP plugs which are slightly larger than UTP, so my UTP plugs sat loosely in the jack. if you feel you have this error you should contact ASUS and they will replace them for you.

 

[KGB7]

Yeah.... you already answered your own question ...

 

[rbeckeypa]

I am willing to see if a different switch would work. Can anyone recommend one they are using successfully with this router, specifically at the far end of a long cable?

Love the wifi. Will put off the keystone jack issue if I can get a working switch at the far end of a 75 foot run.