Question

Nokia internet freeze

  • 10 August 2023
  • 3 replies
  • 84 views
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I’ve had T-Mobile home internet for a few years, and overall it’s been quite satisfactory. A heck of a lot better than the CenturyLink DSL that was our only option before that. We have the Nokia trash can. Recently we’ve been having a problem where the internet is blocked a few times a day, and it can be cleared up with a reboot. T-Mobile replaced the Nokia, and it’s still happening but maybe only once a day. Looking for a diagnosis and possible solutions. Here are the details:

Downstream from the Nokia is an unmanaged gigabit ethernet switch and an Eero mesh network, so I have a double-NAT. Most devices are connected to the Eero via wifi or ethernet. A handful are connected to the Nokia by wifi, which is a “hidden” signal. A few are connected to both, so the ethernet IP is 192.168.4.xx and the wifi is 192.168.12.xx 

When I contacted T-Mobile and they did a diagnostic and couldn’t find a cause at the tower or upstream. When chatting with tech support, I suggested maybe it just has a cache that’s not clearing and gets clogged up, or something like that, and they thought that seemed plausible. The tower is a little less than a mile away, flat ground, direct line of sight from Nokia through a window to the tower, obstructed only by trees.

When blocked, web browsers show a “can’t connect to the server” page, and streaming from the web freezes. The Eero routers flash a red light and the GUI shows no internet connection. In the WiFi preferences on Apple devices it shows a “no internet connection” warning regardless of whether the device is connected to the Nokia or the Eero.

I connected my laptop to the ethernet on the Nokia and the Nokia wifi. The Nokia GUI says it’s connected to the internet. If I run a web diagnostic tool, I can’t ping outside servers. I’ve monitored the signal statistics, and there’s no difference between when it’s up and when it’s blocked. I did notice that the “secondary signal” sometimes connects to two different bands, but there’s no correspondence between the connected band and when the problem happens.   

Notably, the LAN traffic still works fine even when it can’t reach the internet. On both the Eero and the Nokia networks I can stream local content from my media server, access file directories, operate smart devices, and so on. This suggests a modem problem, not a router problem. 

So, any ideas what could be causing this? Any suggestions for additional diagnostics I could run? I considered trying the Arkadyan, but since the Nokia provides excellent speeds and was perfectly reliable for a couple of years, I wanted to stick with what I knew. (Also, I wanted the web GUI and ability to turn off Wifi broadcasting). 

3 replies

copz1998
Userlevel 5
Badge +8

@Bff I suspect that your internet signal is not “blocked” on occasion. The cell tower and your gateway are stationary devices, so unless a large concrete or steel building rises and falls occasionally, then your problem lies elsewhere. We should focus on your layout.

I have a similar setup as yours, but I am using a Netgear MR60 mesh wifi router setup. Over the past year I have checked my signal 1-2 x daily and is predictable and good. 

See the following thread with a customer with a similar problem: 

On the gateway, you can delete your SSIDs so it is notifying to spool out access. Then, setup your Eero as the main internet access for all household devices. Make sure an ethernet cable connects the gateway to the Eero. then, setup SSIDs for 2.4Ghz and 5ghz bands separately (some devices like cameras, printers and thermostats like 2.4Ghz). And consider setting up the security on the 2.4Ghz with WPA only, they can only handshake on weak security protocols.

Let us know if this works for you.  

I am not a T-Mobile employee, but like helping others.
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@Bff I suspect that your internet signal is not “blocked” on occasion.

 

Agree. I don’t see any sign of signal problems. My signal is not strong, but it is always steady and my speeds are excellent. There’s no difference in signal strength when the internet is great and when it’s blocked.

 

On the gateway, you can delete your SSIDs so it is notifying to spool out access.

 

So, I have kept one SSID on the Nokia active, but hidden, so I can bypass the Eero for trouble shooting. This has been fine for the past two years, so I can't see why it would suddenly start causing problems. 

I don’t understand what you mean by “notifying to spool out access.” If all the SSIDs are inactive, does the router treat the ethernet traffic differently than it does when one is on?

 

Then, setup your Eero as the main internet access for all household devices. Make sure an ethernet cable connects the gateway to the Eero.

That’s what I have set up: 

Gateway → ethernet → Eero 6 → unmanaged gigabit → ethernet → second eero 6/client devices

 

then, setup SSIDs for 2.4Ghz and 5ghz bands separately (some devices like cameras, printers and thermostats like 2.4Ghz). And consider setting up the security on the 2.4Ghz with WPA only, they can only handshake on weak security protocols.

Unfortunately, the Eero GUI is just as restricted as the Nokia, and I can’t configure the SSIDs separately. In order to connect light switches, etc., I have to go through a stupid process: first, I turn on a 2.4 Ghz band on the Nokia that has the same SSID and password as the Eero. Then I turn off the Eero completely. I connect the switch to the Nokia SSID, so it saves that SSID and password. Then I turn the eero back on and deactivate the Nokia SSID. The switch uses the saved the SSID and password connect to the Eero. 

 

Let us know if this works for you.  

Well, this set up worked for me for two years. But the problem started about 3-4 months ago. 

copz1998
Userlevel 5
Badge +8

 - I don’t understand what you mean by “notifying to spool out access.” If all the SSIDs are inactive, does the router treat the ethernet traffic differently than it does when one is on?

          My error - it should read - delete the gateway SSID so that it is NOT accepting requests to spool out IP address. If devices see the SSId exist, they will want to connect. Deleting it all together will eliminate SSId bands/frequencies stepping on each other. 

Hummm, do you recall what might have changed over the last 3-4 months? If you are not married to the Eero, consider going to a different wifi router and testing it. Worst case scenario, it doesn't work and your return it to BestBuy, Amazon, etc. 

I am not a T-Mobile employee, but like helping others.

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