WiFi printer - losing connection (378.52_2) [solved]

[zajjar]

Hello guys,

I have noticed problems with losing connection to my printer which is connected to my router RT-AC56U (378.52_2) via WiFi (2.4).

What is going on?
When I do not use the printer for a more then one day the compuer (phone etc.) can not connect to that printer and print anything. The web interface is also unavailable.

I thought that could be a problem with energy saving from my printer but it is not!

Today when I lost the connection again I tried to ping my printer from my computer and I saw that the host is down:

# ping 192.168.1.200
PING 192.168.1.200 (192.168.1.200): 56 data bytes
ping: sendto: No route to host
ping: sendto: Host is down
Request timeout for icmp_seq 0
ping: sendto: Host is down
Request timeout for icmp_seq 1
ping: sendto: Host is down
Request timeout for icmp_seq 2
ping: sendto: Host is down
Request timeout for icmp_seq 3

OK
Next I did it from the router console and I saw diffreent result:

# ping 192.168.1.200
PING 192.168.1.200 (192.168.1.200): 56 data bytes
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=0 ttl=64 time=5.490 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=1 ttl=64 time=4.485 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=2 ttl=64 time=4.629 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=3 ttl=64 time=1.644 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=4 ttl=64 time=1.613 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=5 ttl=64 time=1.748 ms
^C
--- 192.168.1.200 ping statistics ---
6 packets transmitted, 6 packets received, 0% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max = 1.613/3.268/5.490 ms

What is going on!?
The router has connection to my printer but the computers do not see it?
What is wrong with it guys?
Is it problem with the routing?
Newest version of firmware (I did the full reset before upgrade to version 378.52)?

This is very annoying because I thought that is it a problem with my printer but is not!
With Netgear 3700 router I did not have any problems with use that printer via WiFi.

Could you help me please?

Regards.

 

[TonyH]

Hi,
So as you can see router knows printer is there but not the devices trying to print. I am using only two WiFi printers,
Brother MFC color laser and Canon AIO Inkjet. Never experienced what you are experiencing. What printer brand? In my case printer goes into stand-by(sleeps) when idle and wakes up when some one tries to print. I always give fixed IP address to printer. Are you using latest printer driver? I used these printers on several different routers. Try this before you start printing. Issue a command ipconfig /all and ipconfig/renew and see what happens.

 

[zajjar]

Hello Tony,

My printer is a full network printer Samsung ML-2955 (with wifi and ethernet port).

That printer has a Web Admin Console page available via HTTP.
My printer has set static IP address 192.168.1.200 and I also use DHCP name for that IP (the IP is set for the printer's mac address in the router DHCP page).

The printer (and its Web Admin Conosle) is unreachable for any devices in my network. Is only available from the router.
As you see I can ping on that printer from the router and also I can open the Web Admin Console page from that printer (by the download it by wget).

But, as I said I, can not ping that printer from the other devices and the Web Admin Console page is also unavailable from those devices.
When I try to open Web Admin Console page for that printer I see following error:

ERR_EMPTY_RESPONSE

I have access on the internet via that router and I have not noticed any other problems of course.

BTW, when I list ARP table on the computer I see that it is incomplete for that IP:
# arp -a
printer.localdomain (192.168.1.200) at (incomplete) on en0 ifscope [ethernet]

But in the router I see that everythins is ok:
# arp -a
printer.localdomain (192.168.1.200) at XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX [ether] on br0

Regards.

 

[zajjar]

I forgot to add guys that when I just reset the router (without doing nothing with the printer) everything goes back to the normal state.
After that the printer is available from all the devices... I can ping that printer or connect to it via the the Web Admin Console page.
...everything is OK to the next dozens of hours...

Regards.

 

[zajjar]

I have just reset the router to the factory settings... and set everything manually once again... and we will see.

 

[zajjar]

OK guys I did some tests. So when the printer is not in use for a some time the router and the clients lost the connection with it.
But after that time when I just reset the router without doing something with the printer the connection goes back.
Pleaes notice that I do nothing with the printer.

Now I put some easy script to the router's cron which will be ping the printer every 30 minutes and we will see what will happen.

 

[threepwood]

It is probably the printer not complying with all network standards, I also had this issue on my HP wireless printer whenever I switched to my ISP router instead of AsusWRT or Tomato. In my case it was caused by UPnP, being that UPnP (miniupnpd) in both these firmwares is well implemented and never had an issue with printer going into standby/waking up on them.

Do you have UPnP enabled on the router?

 

[zajjar]

No I always disable UPnP protocol.

I read now about WOL. Maybe this is right way?

BTW, as I said I did not have any problems with that printer with Netgear WNDR3700.
Maybe I should set something in Asus settings?

 

[threepwood]

You probably misunderstood what I said, it's the flaky NAT-PMP support on ordinary routers that causes some printers to drop off wireless networks. Disabling UPnP is not a solution since the root problem remains on the printer and that can't be solved, even if you disable UPnP on it (some printers don't give you that option).

Try enabling UPnP and report afterwards.

 

[zajjar]

I understand you correctly.
I will test UPnP feature... but after my ping test ;-)

But, when I used Netgear I also have always disabled UPnP feature in it and the printer works coorrectly and without any problems.

 

[zajjar]

I set the cron task which ping the printer for every 30 minutes:

# cru l
*/30 * * * * /bin/ping -c 10 192.168.1.200 > /tmp/ping.log #ping#

Now, after one day, I have the same situtation which I described in the beginning on that thread.
I see the printer from the router and I can ping it and open Web Adnin Console:

# ping 192.168.1.200
PING 192.168.1.200 (192.168.1.200): 56 data bytes
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=0 ttl=64 time=118.951 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=1 ttl=64 time=40.432 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=2 ttl=64 time=269.206 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=3 ttl=64 time=190.579 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=4 ttl=64 time=112.040 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=5 ttl=64 time=33.773 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.200: seq=6 ttl=64 time=262.461 ms
^C
--- 192.168.1.200 ping statistics ---
7 packets transmitted, 7 packets received, 0% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max = 33.773/146.777/269.206 ms

But the other devices connected to the router do not see that printer.
The ping from my computer tells me that host is down:

# ping 192.168.1.200
PING 192.168.1.200 (192.168.1.200): 56 data bytes
Request timeout for icmp_seq 0
Request timeout for icmp_seq 1
Request timeout for icmp_seq 2
Request timeout for icmp_seq 3
ping: sendto: No route to host
Request timeout for icmp_seq 4
ping: sendto: Host is down
Request timeout for icmp_seq 5
ping: sendto: Host is down
Request timeout for icmp_seq 6
ping: sendto: Host is down

This is a strange situation but is it true.
Can someone explain it? Why can I not the ping the printer from the other devices than router?


(Now I will test UPnP option).

 

[zajjar]

@threepwood you meant:
WAN -> Internet Connection ->Basic Config -> Enable UPnP?
Is that option should be turned ON?
I would not turn anything from the WAN side (from security reasons).
What has that option to LAN printer wake up events?

On my Netgear I also have similar UPnP option and I always disabled it but the printer works correctly.

 

[threepwood]

Yeah, that's the setting. I never really trialed this thing out extensively because I always thought that the NAT-PMP implementation in MiniUPnPd was the solution for it.

Can you check beforehand if switching the "Enable multicast routing (IGMP Proxy)" setting on solves this? It's located in LAN -> IPTV.

 

[zajjar]

OK, thank you, I will test it.

But all the time I have an impression that is something wrong with the Asus firmware :-( ... because always when I just reset the router without touching the printer the printer wakes up and everything goes back to normal (to the next "hang out").

 

[Marsi4eg]

I can confirm losing connection to the printer on AC66U with 378.52_2. But in my case the printer is not wireless, just usb plugged into the router and PCs using LPR protocol

When the printer was turned off for some time (last time connection was lost after ~18 hours of inactivity) - it does not print and PCs say "cannot obtain network printer info". Restarting a router solves the problem.
Also the problem does not appear if you just restart printer in a minute. Only a long time idle.

And there wasn't such a problem in earlier builds, and I think upnp cannot cause this and of course it's not caused by MULTICAST IGMP PROXY!

Will try to downgrade to 378.50 and test

 

[zajjar]

@Marsi4eg thank you for your answer. I understand that you downgrade your router firmware to 378.50 and everything works well after it?

 

[Marsi4eg]

@Marsi4eg thank you for your answer. I understand that you downgrade your router firmware to 378.50 and everything works well after it?

Need more time to test, at least 24 hours. After 6 hours of being idle (printer powered off), on 378.50 all prints OK, will look again tomorrow

 

[zajjar]

Ok, let us know how it will look tomorrow.

 

[Pene]

Same here with an USB plugged HP PhotoSmart C3180 into an ASUS RT-AC68U (378.52_2). With a D-Link DSR-250n router everything worked like a charm, now I can't reach the printer without restarting the router if I do not use it for a while (a half an hour, some hours - I do not know exactly).

 

[Marsi4eg]

Sad, but there is the same issue with 378.50