Hub One - 5GHz WiFi issue

[#1]

Here's my answers to your questions:

1. Brief description of the problem, and how is masquerades itself. What are the symptoms? How frequently does it happen?

Problem began sometime late 2020. Router was regularly kicking devices off. We rang plusnet, who told us to do a hard reset. If this didn't solve it, call back. It continued to happen so we rang back and a new router was sent.

New router was fine for a couple of days, then problem continued, including appearing to be connected but no internet signal. Also appeared as wifi connection dropping. Delving deeper, Issue was solely on devices connected to 5GHz band.

1. Do the devices having problems appear to be connected or associated with the hub?  Is the hub status indicator normal/blue when the problem occurs?

Yes hub always shows blue despite issues.

1. Do you have the 2.4GHz and 5GHz channels merged (default setting) or split (different wireless network names)? If the networks are named differently, does the problem only affect the 5GHz network?

It only affects devices connected to 5GHz channel.

1. Once the problem occurs is it persistent?  Do you have any devices wired to the router and does the problem affect them at the same time?

Wired devices appear fine but htere are non permanently wired.

1. Are you able to reproduce the problem reliably? Do you think you have a way of triggering it? [for example waking a specific device from power save mode]

No

1. Is the problem always resolved by rebooting the hub?  If so, how long does it take before problems recur?

Yes. Might be a matter of hours before it begins again.

1. If specific devices are always impacted when problems occur, please provide details of which devices are impacted and which aren't i.e. manufacturer, model, variant and operating system version.

Apple Ipads and Iphones are affected the worst, though its caused issues with smart plugs of a variety of makes, and laptops.

1. Have the devices experiencing problems recently received any patches that might correspond with the time the issue first occurred?

Not that we know of

1. Please provide a description of your home network setup and all devices in use including whether or not you're using any additional switches, Powerline adapters or wireless access points.

Basic Hub, no switches, wireless access points or powerline adapters. Many devices connected - Nest, Amazon and other smart plugs, kindles, ipads, iphones, laptops, Google Chrome

We are running firmware 4.7.5.1.83.8.263

Finally, why oh why do your technical support team not recognise this issue???? We have called many times describing the issue and they haven't once suggested this.

For the moment I have disabled 5GHz to allow homeschool/work to proceed without issue, but if there is an alternative router plusnet can provide, I would be grateful

[#2]

This afternoon we are still struggling - reset the router once as we lost all connection. Overall its been better than before, but still very unstable. Our event log is huge. I've now extended the DCHP to 21 days to see if that helps.

[#3]

I reset my Hub One to 2.5 GHz and it stayed up for three days while I waited for my second hand HH6 to arrive. It did, and it's now been running fine for a couple of days on dual band. I'll give it another couple of days then have a conversation with PlusNet. It beggars belief that despite 3 calls and a lot of wasted time reconfiguring the Hub One no-one in support fessed up this problem, despite my mentioning I'd seen reports of this on other forums. Been with them for donkey's years, but can't see myself renewing when the contract ends unless they agree that it certainly will not do and somehow make me very happy...  

[#4]

Glad I found this thread after Googling "plusnet hub wifi issues". I only just noticed that we were having problems when my wife got a new iPhone at Christmas and it wouldn't connect to the hub wifi until I rebooted it. Today by chance I saw that my phone wasn't connected to it even though the hub is only a few metres away in our home office. A long time ago I installed a Unifi WAP which is the main point for our house and I even have a 3rd older WAP downstairs as a backup. So that's why we did not notice before, although we've had all 3 points for many years and have had no issues with the Plusnet before. I see that the hub has the 4.7.5.1.83.8.263 FW which was updated on 24/03/19 so I guess it is possible it started happening then. My daughters got new iPhones too but they know how to set up their own wifi and being typical teenagers they probable didn't tell me that the 3rd one which they rarely connect to anyway wasn't working.

Anyway my point is that it took less than a minute to confirm that I was experiencing the exact same problem and disabling 5GHz instantly solved it. When I re-enabled it the problem came back and I don't want to keep rebooting the hub. Whilst its a bit irritating that I have to disable 5GHz, in my case it is an acceptable workaround so I'll live with it. I am more annoyed about the periodic PPPoE interruption due to "PPP LCP Send Termination Request [User request]" which PlusNet support blame user action for even though it often occurs in the middle of the night. At least in this case they have acknowledged the problem even if they clearly don't intend to do anything about.

BTW I have a business package with PlusNet - not that I get any better service because of it 😞

[#5]

I have now bitten the bullet and purchased a TP-Link AC1200 router. The setup was a bit iffy, but afetr I reset the router, it went like a dream. Not only is the 5GHz band much more stable, but my download speed has increased from 22-25MBs to 32MBs. Proof that the line is not at fault, but the Plusnet router was strangling my connection.

[#6]

The only reason I stick with the PlusNet hub as my router is for support. If you have a 3rd party router it just gives them another excuse to not do anything about your problem.

[#7]

Hello, I've been in contact with your Twitter team who have advised me to come here and request that the firmware update is pushed out to my router please.

1. Brief description of the problem, and how is masquerades itself. What are the symptoms? How frequently does it happen?

Connectivity just intermittently stops. My devices still show as connected to the router, the router itself has a blue light, everything looks as though it *should* be all up and running - but absolutely nothing works. Sometimes restarting my device fixes it - (it happens on various different devices, not just one) - sometimes I have to switch the router off at the wall and then back on.

2. Do the devices having problems appear to be connected or associated with the hub?  Is the hub status indicator normal/blue when the problem occurs?

Yes.

3. Do you have the 2.4GHz and 5GHz channels merged (default setting) or split (different wireless network names)? If the networks are named differently, does the problem only affect the 5GHz network?

Originally had them merged, but I was having issues on 2.4GHz where my devices would lose connection regularly, requiring several reboots of the router a day. I have since split the channels and 5GHz seems to be a lot more reliable in general, though I do continue to have episodes as described above.

3. Once the problem occurs is it persistent?  Do you have any devices wired to the router and does the problem affect them at the same time?

I don't have any devices wired in - I would prefer to have things wired in, but the location of the master socket makes this impossible.

4. Are you able to reproduce the problem reliably? Do you think you have a way of triggering it? [for example waking a specific device from power save mode]

No, it seems to happen randomly. More often than not in the evening, though.

5. Is the problem always resolved by rebooting the hub?  If so, how long does it take before problems recur?

Yes. Issue is intermittent, can happen as often as a few times a day.

6. If specific devices are always impacted when problems occur, please provide details of which devices are impacted and which aren't i.e. manufacturer, model, variant and operating system version.

HP Elitebook (work laptop), Samsung Galaxy S20, Sky Q box, Ring doorbell, any other devices as connected.

7. Have the devices experiencing problems recently received any patches that might correspond with the time the issue first occurred?

No.

8.
Please provide a description of your home network setup and all devices in use including whether or not you're using any additional switches, Powerline adapters or wireless access points.

Plusnet Hub One router for fibre connection. No Powerline adapters or range extenders used. Devices usually connected are my phone, work laptop, personal laptop, games consoles, TV, Sky box, Amazon Echo and Ring doorbell. (Though my Echo, phone, and doorbell are the only ones generally connected 24 hours a day).

Thank you.

[#8]

1. Brief description of the problem, and how is masquerades itself. What are the symptoms? How frequently does it happen?
   
   at least once a day
   
   
2. Do the devices having problems appear to be connected or associated with the hub?  Is the hub status indicator normal/blue when the problem occurs?
   
   yes they are connected to the hub, the status is blue
   
   
3. Do you have the 2.4GHz and 5GHz channels merged (default setting) or split (different wireless network names)? If the networks are named differently, does the problem only affect the 5GHz network?
   
   yes merged
   
   
4. Once the problem occurs is it persistent?  Do you have any devices wired to the router and does the problem affect them at the same time?
   
   it is persistent until I turn off 5ghz.  sometimes when I switch 5ghz back on the problem has gone away, sometimes it hasn't
   I have a powerline repeater connected which is unaffected
   
   
5. Are you able to reproduce the problem reliably? Do you think you have a way of triggering it? [for example waking a specific device from power save mode]
   
   No
   
   
6. Is the problem always resolved by rebooting the hub?  If so, how long does it take before problems recur?
   
   No
   
   
7. If specific devices are always impacted when problems occur, please provide details of which devices are impacted and which aren't i.e. manufacturer, model, variant and operating system version.
   
   Always impacted:
   Microsoft Surface Laptop 3, win10 pro
   Iphone 8 (latest ios)
   Ipad (latest ios)
   
   
8. Have the devices experiencing problems recently received any patches that might correspond with the time the issue first occurred?
   
   No
   
   
9. Please provide a description of your home network setup and all devices in use including whether or not you're using any additional switches, Powerline adapters or wireless access points.
   
   TP-link powerline adapter (only bought this last week, router problem has been happening for months)
   Iphones, Ipads, laptops, samsung tvs
   
   

[#9]

Hi

I have had this problem for a long while (12 - 18 months) and was sent to this forum thread by Plusnet Support on Twitter.

Answers to the questions are as follows:

1. Brief description of the problem, and how is masquerades itself. What are the symptoms? How frequently does it happen?  Devices drop off the wifi network, or report "unable to connect to this network" or lose internet connectivity.   Occurs every 24-48 hours and, once it's started, devices gradually start falling like dominoes - apart from a few tough guys who keep their connection until I reboot the router - see answer to Q7 below for those.
   
   
2. Do the devices having problems appear to be connected or associated with the hub?  Is the hub status indicator normal/blue when the problem occurs? The devices are connected to the hub wifi network, but not directly by cable to the hub.  The hub status indicator remains blue throughout the problems.
   
   
3. Do you have the 2.4GHz and 5GHz channels merged (default setting) or split (different wireless network names)? If the networks are named differently, does the problem only affect the 5GHz network?   I have tried (i) separating out the 2.4 GHz and 5GHz networks and, (ii) when that didn't work, disabled the 5 GHz completely as suggested by Plusnet Support.  The problems still occur - and are still occurring now, even though I only have the 2.4 GHz network active.  When I had both networks running with different names, both were affected, but the range of the 5 GHz one was so poor that we gave up using it on all devices in the end.
   
   
4. Once the problem occurs is it persistent?  Do you have any devices wired to the router and does the problem affect them at the same time?  Yes, the problem is persistent.  Devices cannot reconnect once they have lost their connection - or are sometimes able to do so for 30 seconds - a minute before losing wifi again.  I sometimes have a Windows 10 laptop connected via wired (ethernet) connection and that never loses its connection.
   
   
5. Are you able to reproduce the problem reliably? Do you think you have a way of triggering it? [for example waking a specific device from power save mode]  No.  It seems to be random, although I'd say on balance more likely to happen in the evening.
   
   
6. Is the problem always resolved by rebooting the hub?  If so, how long does it take before problems recur?  Yes, a reboot always fixes the problem, usually for 24 - 48 hours before devices start to lose connection again.
   
   
7. If specific devices are always impacted when problems occur, please provide details of which devices are impacted and which aren't i.e. manufacturer, model, variant and operating system version.  Most likely to be: iPad Air 2019 running iOS 14.3, HP Elitebook laptop running Windows 10, a second HP Pavilion laptop running Win 10, iPhone 6 running iOS 14.3.  Less common: Sony Bravia smart TV circa 2015 model, Samsung NP350V5C laptop running Windows 7.  Hardly ever: 3 different Android phones (running Android 10), iPhone 5S running iOS 14.3, HP Envy 5000 printer.
   
   
8. Have the devices experiencing problems recently received any patches that might correspond with the time the issue first occurred?  No, apart from OS updates to Win 10 and iOS as rolled out by Microsoft and Apple.
   
   
9. Please provide a description of your home network setup and all devices in use including whether or not you're using any additional switches, Powerline adapters or wireless access points.  No additional switches, powerline adaptors or wireless access point.  I did think about buying a wifi signal booster, but have not done so yet.  So in the property there is just the Hub One with its 2.4 GHz network.  The HP Envy printer also shows up on the devices as a "network" - so maybe that is a WAP?  Sorry, it's beyond my IT knowledge!

Thanks.  I have just set the lease time to 21 days to see if that helps, having been through the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz hoops to no avail.

I was also going to try our old Netgear N300 ADSL router (without its modem) connected to the Hub One modem, and disabling wifi in the Hub One, but have not done so yet.

Enrico94

[#10]

@bobpullen it looks like I have the same firmware problem as reported by others in this community. Would it be possible to get the firmware on the router updated please? (we're on 4.7.5.1.83.8.263). Thanks

[#11]

@bobpullen
I've tried all the potential fixes that I have found on this forum as well as the fixes offered up on the telephone to Plusnet. 5ghz still seperated and completely unusable. Would it be possible to update the f/w on my router. Currently running version ending .263 (since 2019)

[#12]

I'm experiencing this problem. Please update my firmware. Currently on 4.7.5.1.83.8.263

[#13]

Hi Bob and plusnet engineers, i have tried to answer your questions below, as this problem is driving my household potty while trying to work and study from home at the moment.....

What can I do to help?

We are yet to find a way to reliably replicate the problem ourselves under lab conditions, so it would be helpful if you can reply to this post answering the questions below (and providing any other detail you might think is useful!)

1. Brief description of the problem, and how is masquerades itself. What are the symptoms? How frequently does it happen? Some devices cannot connect to Wifi... comes up as authentication problem or 'no internet'... however, at the same time other devices are connected to wifi and its working OK.  It seems to affect iphones worse than android phones, in that those of us with iphones experience the 'cut-out' of wifi more frequently than those with androids.
   
   
2. Do the devices having problems appear to be connected or associated with the hub?  Is the hub status indicator normal/blue when the problem occurs?  Hub light is blue and all appears normal there.  Sometimes a restart of the hub fixes it, but  only for a few hours.  
   
   
3. Do you have the 2.4GHz and 5GHz channels merged (default setting) or split (different wireless network names)? If the networks are named differently, does the problem only affect the 5GHz network? Same name, cant tell which signal its happening on.
   
   
4. Once the problem occurs is it persistent?  Do you have any devices wired to the router and does the problem affect them at the same time? No devices wired
   
   
5. Are you able to reproduce the problem reliably? Do you think you have a way of triggering it? [for example waking a specific device from power save mode] no... completely random, but seems worse at key times when internet is busy, eg. at 8.30 in the morning.
   
   
6. Is the problem always resolved by rebooting the hub?  If so, how long does it take before problems recur?  Problems start again after a few hours maybe...  not sure
   
   
7. If specific devices are always impacted when problems occur, please provide details of which devices are impacted and which aren't i.e. manufacturer, model, variant and operating system version.  iphones seem to be worse affected in terms of frequency of this problem (iphone 8, and 8plus latest OS)
   
   
8. Have the devices experiencing problems recently received any patches that might correspond with the time the issue first occurred?
   
   
9. Please provide a description of your home network setup and all devices in use including whether or not you're using any additional switches, Powerline adapters or wireless access points. Using a wifi range extender, TP link, which gives an additional wifi named network, and one homeplug, wired into the router by ethernet...

[#14]

I too am experiencing this problem. Please update my firmware. Currently on 4.7.5.1.83.8.263.

I've never been able to reliably use 5Ghz with this router, I am therefore restricted to using 2.4Ghz which with everyone working/schooling from home is now an issue.

[#15]

Now that I posted on this thread I am subscribed and am getting e-mails when someone else posts. Part of me thinks "maybe that's good because then I'll know when a FW update has fixed it" but the other part of me thinks "this problem has been known about for ages - clearly it is not going to be fixed!" I'll leave it for a bit but I imagine that I'll unsubscribe at some point in the near future.