Telstra Smart Modem Gen 2

[Kev_Broady]

I tried static IP addresses but did not work for me. The only thing that works in our case is by changing the DHCP Release Time. I suspect the problem is in the firmware so we may not need to have the modem physically replaced. My concern is that despite all of us having called the support staff we still do not know if Telstra are doing anything about getting the problem fixed. I have lodged a complaint now so we will see if I get any response. It is appalling that a technology company can issue customers with equipment that is not thoroughly tested. Quality actually matters.

[ForensicsGuru]

One thing to keep on mind is that no manufacturer (including Telstra) is obliged to support obsolete devices... In my case, both the devices that do not work correctly for me on 2.4GHz are 5+ years old, hence obsolete by the term of computer industry... UNFORTUNATELY!!!

[derpster]

Kev, when you say you tried static IP addresses, did you also set the DNS manually? My static IP settings only allowed me to connect to the internet after doing so. Based on the router's default settings, the static IP settings that worked for me were:

device: 192.168.0.(2-255)

subnet mask: 255.255.0.0

router / gateway: 192.168.0.1

DNS: 1.1.1.1

[Kev_Broady]

Thanks Derpstra. No I did not do anything with the DNS settings. I will replicate what you have provided me with.

Appreciate your help. Cheers.

[Kev_Broady]

Derpster . . . sorry.

[Kev_Broady]

Hi again derpster,

Where do I find the DNS setting? There is one under the 'Internet Access' tab but it looks like this refers to the network IP not the LAN. 

Can you take a screen shot just so I don't stuff it up.

[cf4]

Derspter, is referring to setting up a static address and custom DNS on the connected device not the modem. To ensure custom DNS works should disable IPv6 in the modem. (Advanced > Local network)

To set up static IP address and custom DNS on your device do a google search for setting up static IP “operating system of your device”

[Kev_Broady]

Hi cf4 and derpster, thanks for your advice. Very much appreciated. The workarounds you and others have alerted me to have definitely stopped the dropouts (fingers crossed).

Thanks heaps.

[MattyC]

Great to hear, Kev. Appreciate your patience and perseverance in this. Please let us know if there's anything else you need. - Matthew.

[Tabion]

After 5-20 calls or web chats to Telstra
Several ideas from this thread

I have fixed my issues by placing the gen 2 smart router in its box and in the cupboard and going back to my router I have had for 5 years.

Problems havnt occurred again.

So thanks for supplying me with either a broken router that you refused to replace

Or such cheap technology that it doesn’t work as it should.

[Jono81]

That's my fix too. Works great! I'll keep an eye on this thread though too see what happens from Telstra's side. This is my first time using Telstra after 15 years ago promising I'll never use them again...

[Tabion]

I don’t ah e an issue with the service they provide me (internet) they gave me internet when no other provider could (lives out in the sticks) and their mobile coverage is bettter than others.

But the cheap and poxy hardware supplied with the internet plan is terrible

[ScrewIt]

Also having the exact same issues of constant dropouts repeating continuously all day.
Spoke to 2 people via the live chat, who didnt have a damn clue what they were talking about (one started to run thru a diagnostic on my home phone, even though I had repeatedly said the new modem kept dropping out, and that I dont even have a home phone connected) and the other asked what colour all the lights were on the front of the modem, when i replied theres only one light on the front and its green, he replied he couldnt help me and was about to transfer me to yet another person. So I hung up and called the support number that came with the phone.
Again got jostled from person to person. I kept repeating myself that I kept having to reset the modem, and then 15-20 minutes later phone and PC would just randomly drop out and not reconnect again. So they made me reset once more, we reconnected the PC and 2 phones, and the lady believed it was problem solved. Duh, its exactly what I said i had been sdoing for the previous 2 hours.
Now Pc is connected again after 2 more resets, and phone wont connect.
Smart modem? I think not.
Trained technical support? You have to be joking!
Will I be returning the modem and staying with ADSL broadband until it no longer exists? You betcha!
Telstra is an absolute disgrace,

[Stef_B]

Hi,

Apologies for the delay in our reply and to hear of the frustration.

If you're contemplating moving to another provider, please call us on 13 22 00, and say, 'Disconnect' at the voice prompt. 

You'll go through to our resolution team, who will do anything they can to assist and keep you as a customer. 

(They are open from 8am - 9.30pm AEST Monday-Saturday and 8am - 8:00pm AEST Sunday)

Please let us know how you get on and what the outcome was.

- Stef

[cf4]

@Stef_B

Is a firmware update being developed for Gen 2 smart modem’s to fix these drop outs?

[Kev_Broady]

Just to advise that it is possible to get the modem operating without constant dropouts by using a number of work arounds until Telstra get the modem firmware fixed. I have had no help at all from Telstra but with my own discoveries and then the added advice from the good folks in this forum I have finally managed to get my PC's and mobiles connected and no longer dropping off.
I completely understand and share your anger and frustration. Happy to share the workarounds if that helps.

[cf4]

I for one would be interested in know the work around you used to get internet  working with no drop outs on devices connected to the Telstra Smart modem Gen 2. Which Gen 2 modem do you have? There are two manufacturers Technicolor (DJA0231) and Arcadyan (LH1000)

[343GuiltySpark]

Hey @Kev_Broady, @ScrewIt, @Tabion, @Jono81 and @cf4 out of curiosity what types of Internet connections do you have? (Cable, ADSL, Type of NBN) Also are devices on both WiFi and Ethernet affected or just WiFi?

[Tabion]

ADSL2

Still havnt had any issues after swapping back to my old router, this old router I used for a whole year on the same plan (was just under a different name) and never had an issue, only ever had issues with the smart router

[Kev_Broady]

I was issued with the Smart Modem Gen 2 Technicolor DJA0231 on Friday 21 Dec. Firmware version 18.1.c.0241-950-RA.
In my case I noticed my mobile had dropped off and was continually trying to re-attach but had a message saying 'No IP address available' so I thought I would login to the modem and take a look at the DHCP setting on the modem.
- Login to gateway: 192.168.0.1
- Go to Advanced >> Local Network
- Under DHCP settings go to "Lease Time"
- Change 1h to 504h (this is the longest period permitted i.e. 21days)
- Press close

My hunch was that the modem was dropping devices once the DHCP Release Time expires. The default setting as delivered is only set to last 1 hour. After this time expires it drops devices (wifi or ethernet) and won't renew their IP address. I set the Release Time to the max i.e. 504h. After changing this setting I found the dropped off devices bounced straight back on within seconds and seem to stay there at least until I left the house. My Win10 based devices stay connected but android mobiles still dropped, but less often so not quite there yet.

I also turned off the 'Band Steering Enabled' to OFF. Not sure if this has helped or not to be honest but I don't need it so OFF it is.

Then I received advice from Derpster to try placing a fixed IP address for my wifi connection on each device. I have now done this it has solved the problem of the android devices dropping also.

To set up static IP address and custom DNS on your device do a google search for setting up static IP “operating system of your device”.
The static IP settings that worked for me were:
- device: 192.168.0.(in the range 2-255) - (try not to use one already allocated - Go to Advanced >> Devices to show what has been assigned to devices already connected).
- subnet mask: 255.255.0.0 (wasn't required on android)
- router / gateway: 192.168.0.1
- DNS: 1.1.1.1

I have a bit of experience with previous routers so not afraid to look at settings etc and besides if I screw up a hard reset will always put it back to delivered settings so no harm done.

Thanks for your advice too btw.
All the best.

[Kev_Broady]

I have cable.

[343GuiltySpark]

Do you have the Two box setup, where the smart Modem connects to the Netgear cable adapter

[Kev_Broady]

Yes.

[derpster]

Hi Kev, sorry for the lack of response, been at a music festival over the new year. Glad to hear my static IP suggestion helped! I've also found none of my devices with static IP set from the device end have dropped off either (including the TV). Fixed a few other issues by fully disabling IPv6 at the device end.

We shouldn't have to be wasting days on workaround solutions just to be able to access the internet. As soon as I get time to scratch myself I'm going to demand a fully functional equivalent modem from Telstra. If they refuse, I'll be lodging a case with the TIO, and Telstra can pay their $300-500 case fee on top of the cost of a working modem. It's as if Telstra doesn't realise they are legally obliged to provide customers with products that function as advertised.

[Kev_Broady]

Derpster, I am with you on this. I lodged a complaint on Friday 28 Dec 2018 and I am waiting for a call. I see you can escalate directly to the CEO, although I doubt he would give a stuff. There is no way customers should have to do this themselves. The frustrating thing is that not only are the Telstra Customer Support staff unhelpful, the moderators on this site seem to have limited responsibility for assisting even though they have read all the feedback.

I am going to write to the CEO to seek compensation for my 2 weeks of pain. I encourage others to take the time to do the same. https://service.telstra.com.au/customer/general/forms/contact-ceo-form?red=/abouttelstra/contact-us/...

[343GuiltySpark]

Hey @Kev_Broady and @derpster out of curiosity, if you guys disconnected your smart modem from the HFC cable modem and factory reset the modem (to wipe any of the changes you have made for testing purposes) does the issue still occur after an hour. As from what I've seen in here it seems to be only affecting cable customers with the two box solution and I've had no issues with my smart modem on NBN Fibre.

[Kev_Broady]

I have just sent off my complaint to the CEO.
Hopefully others will do the same. Just need to say you were sent a faulty modem and as a result Telstra are failing to deliver the service you signed up for because of the dropouts. Customers shouldn't have to be wasting days on workaround solutions just to be able to access the internet.

Is it too much to want Telstra to be better?

[Kev_Broady]

I have spent too much time already doing Telstra's job for them so I am out. Hopefully they have someone looking into it.

[derpster]

Interesting point about only the cable dual-box setup customers having this issue. What leads you to believe a modem DHCP issue would be caused by the cable adapter box? And what makes you think that unplugging the modem from the cable adapter will have any effect on the modem resetting itself? Finally what do you mean “after an hour”? Is that referring to waiting an hour to see if the DHCP leases expire?

[343GuiltySpark]

The cable adapter box is the only common link that i can see.

After a factory reset and disconnected from the cable adapter in theory it shouldn't have any problems as its designed to operate stand alone with no fixed connection on new connections. After an hour the ip address on the devices should renew and work. If it works supports my theory of the cable modem.

If thats the case Id want to see what happens after factory resetting both the smart modem and cable adapter and connecting them back up to see if that resolves the issue and the devices are able to reconnect after an hour.

Would help in narrowing down where the root cause may be.

[derpster]

Fair enough, thanks for your help. This is a long term thing though. I need a working modem asap and telstra needs to provide one urgently. Who can I contact to get this happening within 7 days? Or do I need to involve the TIO for telstra to do anything other than tell me to reset my modem, then offer to send me another of the exact same broken modem? I need telstra to deal with this by replacing my modem with a different brand/model that works. I rely on my internet connection to run my business from home.

[343GuiltySpark]

If your running a business from home on a consumer service youd be better off getting a business grade service.

[derpster]

So telstra’s response to customer issues with service reliability is to say “of course our standard home internet is not reliable enough to use for business purposes”? Your current ads boast that telstra has the most reliable network in australia. I would wager that most people running online businesses from their homes are doing so on home internet plans. This has nothing to do with the technical failures we are discussing.

[343GuiltySpark]

Thats my personal opinion. If i was running a business from home, I would be using business grade service with business grade equipment.

[derpster]

i disconnected the cable adaptor overnight and there were no issues with dropouts in DHCP mode. i've now reset both the cable adaptor and modem while disconnected from each other, and then reconnected them. will see what happens.

[derpster]

Resetting the cable adaptor box seems to have fixed the DHCP issue. Hopefully this is a permanent fix. My bet is the glitch has something to do with the initial authenticaion process (when you first hook up the cable adaptor, you have to connect to a telstra authentication site directly via the cable adaptor - without the modem - before the cable adaptor becomes active). 

I'll post back if there are any further problems.

[343GuiltySpark]

Thank you. Ill pass this fix along. If you do have any other issues please post "@343GuiltySpark" in the post so I get an email. Sometimes miss things with all of the notifications on here.

[Tabion]

How do I stop getting notifications of posts on here, feels like my thread was derailed long ago it’s not related to my problem any more,
I fixed my issue by using another modem.
I will continue to pursue a replacement for my router.
As a family member of mine got one the same day
Same plan
Same town
Different house

And has none of the issues, and both are set up the exact same

[Jupiter]

If you click on options at the top of the post you should be able to unsubscribe.

[Tabion]

Thanks

[kyles79]

Hi... can you please post if there *aren't* any further issues? I've just got my connection yesterday and it's dropped out several times (while keeping all green lights, POPO only means of getting back on track). If this solution works permanently, I'd like to know

[343GuiltySpark]

Hey @kyles79, I'd recommend factory resetting the Netgear cable modem that your Smart Modem connects to. It will automatically reconnect within 5 mins. If this does fix your issue please reply back and let me know.

[derpster]

@343GuiltySpark

Bad news, i just power cycled the modem without touching the cable adaptor. DHCP issue reared its ugly head again. I’ve just tried the following in this exact order and will post back with results:

-unplug ethernet from cable adaptor
-turn modem off and on
-reset cable adaptor and wait ~60sec for 4 solid green lights
-reattach ethernet to cable adaptor.

[343GuiltySpark]

Thank you for the update. Fingers crossed that this resolves the issue.

To clarify last light when you left the modem running in the 4G backup mode had the modem been reset before being left in backup mode and in the morning were all of your devices working.

[derpster]

@343GuiltySpark

No factory reset on modem before forcing 4G mode, all devices were connecting fine in the morning.

[Kev_Broady]

@derpsterDoes this mean you don't need to adjust the DHCP Release time or use static IP on each device if you factory reset the cable adapter?

[derpster]

Correct. The modem appears to work as it should if you follow the steps i outlined above. You need to repeat those steps, in that order, every time the modem is switched off and on again. At least that is working for me so far. Here is the process again:

-unplug ethernet from cable adaptor
-turn modem off and on
-reset cable adaptor and wait ~60sec for 4 solid green lights
-reattach ethernet to cable adaptor.

You do not need to reset the modem, only the cable adaptor.

[derpster]

Let me know if that works for you, i’m interested to know if this solves the problem. Note that waiting for the cable adaptor to fully complete the reset+reboot process before reconnecting the ethernet cable is crucial.

[Kev_Broady]

I understand the steps however the actions I have already taken are working for me. I can power off any device or combination including the Gen 2 and/or the cable adapter, start back up and all my devices jump straight on the wifi immediately. Nothing has dropped since you suggested using the static IP.

I just tried an old tablet that I have not used for months and it would not connect until I assigned a static IP address on the device, but once I did that it connected immediately and does not drop.

I am leaving well enough alone and moving on to enjoy the 5 fold increase in speed we are getting since moving to HFC.

Thanks for your help Derpster. Good luck.

[derpster]

No worries @Kev_Broady

Glad i could help. Might be worth printing out my reset steps and keeping them with the modem just in case you ever need reliable Non-static IP access, like for visitors or that pesky device that’s super annoying to configure!

Murphy’s law etc...