Updates have ruined my Sonos


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Since I downloaded the recent updates my system has become unusable. Is anyone else having the same issues?

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Userlevel 5
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Hi kieron d

Regular participants on this forum will often see a post similar to yours where following an update a user's Sonos system becomes unstable. I've seen many with 7.1 and now 7.2 a few newones have started...

I'd hazard to say that this is ...almost always... (ok... certainly very often) a result of networking challenges that arise in the environment when the players reboot themselves and request new IP addresses from the network router.

I strongly suggest you begin with assuming that an IP address conflict has occurred over your network where more than one device is using the same IP address - this creates substantial communication challenges and Sonos really requires an excellent communication environment to operate properly.


IMO the most straightforward way to resolve IP conflicts is to shut down/unplug every device on your network. Printers, computers, tablets, phones, Sonos gear, etc. etc. then power off your router and modem if different.... then restart /power up the modem, the router, and each device one at a time.... this will cause each device to get a new IP address from the router and the router should, because of the timeliness of the reconnections, avoid providing duplicates.


Network routers fairly commonly lose track of utilized IP addresses and can assign a duplicate IP address to a device on your network. An example of how this happens would be: Let's say you have a computer that connects to your network. When it does for the first time in a long time, it likely requests a new IP addresses... all is great. Now you update your Sonos products while that particular computer happens to be in hibernation mode.... if the router thinks the IP is free, it may assign that IP to one of the players. Now when the computer wakes up, it doesn't request a new IP, so sends communication across the network signed as that IP.... and thus you end up with communication problems since two devices are using the same address. I'm not saying this exactly happened, but this does happen (duplicate IP addresses) all the time and can cause challenges with devices that require high quality networking communication.


Assuming this solves your challenge.... You can avoid having this happen in the future by logging into your network router and assigning IP addresses to your Sonos gear - in fact it is good to do so for all devices that typically connect to your network. This is strongly recommended - it ensures your Sonos Gear will always operate with the same addresses and your router will know they are in use. This isn't all that hard typically, but just takes a bit of time and you will avoid this happening to you in the future. I'd suggest you pick a range for your Sonos gear well above what would typically be assigned by your router... so say, start at 192.168.1.100 and go up from there...
The update has ruined my playbar and surround setup (two play1 and sub). All other components (numerous amps and play1s) are fine.
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The update has ruined my playbar and surround setup (two play1 and sub). All other components (numerous amps and play1s) are fine.


jcr.. see my comment above... try this and post back if you don't get a resolution.

Of note: don't just reboot the problematic players... you generally need to do every device on your network since you don't know among what devices conflicts may be occurring.

There is an alternative where you would log into your router and assigning IPs - as I mention in my post above, but in some environments this can be a bit problematic when there are existing communication challenges on the network... so I always recommend a full system reboot before completing the assignment of IPs in your router.
Thanks. I have about 25 various components running on my wireless network (including about 12 Sonos components). I really have to unplug every single one to get your new update to work???? Seriously?
Thanks. I have about 25 various components running on my wireless network (including about 12 Sonos components). I really have to unplug every single one to get your new update to work???? Seriously?

It has nothing to do with the getting the update to work. The update worked fine. The problem is, your router is handing out IP addresses that are already in use. You need a network flush to clear them out. The update just exposes this condition because the Sonos devices all got new IP addresses when the update occurred.
I unplugged everything in the house including the router. Then plugged the router back in followed by the play bar. nothing changed. Now the Sonos app doesn't even recognize the playbar.
I just deleted the app from my phone and reinstalled. It recognized the playbar, started up & played fine. It then directed me to update. All Sonos components updated fine except the playbar. ERROR CODE 30.
Reset the system again. Tried to update. At first app stated no additional updates needed but wouldn't play sound bar. 2nd try - Error code 1002
This update is THE WORST!!!
Said the one guy out of thousands that have had no problem. Your network is the issue. 1002 means Sonos is timing out because of your network.
There are hundreds of thousands (millions?) of Sonos users worldwide. Every day a few have networking issues. When there has just been an update they blame the update. When there hasn't they don't. It has always been so and always will be. If you cannot get this resolved quickly by yourself, call Sonos Support when they reopen and they will sort it out.
Userlevel 5
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Hey jcr...

I get that it is frustrating that you are experiencing issues with your system. Nobody likes that. However, I'd reiterate that this is not a issue specifically with the "update".

There obviously is an issue with the wireless connectivity in your environment that I'm confident can be resolved with a bit of work and will set you up for much better experience over the long term. Because of the tight time/sync requirements for digital audio, Sonos (and any other wireless audio multi-room setup) is very demanding of wireless connectivity and network communication.

I have 18 Sonos products connected to my system, a wireless "hub" for home automation, over a dozen computers/phones, etc... I totally get the headache of a complete network reboot... Like many others I needed to do it ...ONCE... and then set up my network to properly reserve IP addresses and have had absolutely no problems since.


Many of us on this site are totally open to helping you set this up so this is the only time you have this headache.

I have a few suggestions for the stubborn SoundBar that is struggling to update, and then a few questions about how your wifi/Sonos.

First go to "About my Sonos System" and confirm the version of each player...

Each player will look something like:

PLAYBAR: YourNameForItHere
Serial Number: AA-BB-11-22-CC-33:D
Version: 7.2 (build 35339010)
Hardware Version: 1.9.1.10-1
IP Address: 192.168.1.50
Audio In:
WM: 0
OTP:

If you are not on 7.2 for any device, I recommend you physically wire that device to your router with an ethernet cable temporarily and run the update. Then place the device back in it's original position. Do this with any device that isn't updated. (Sounds like it is just your 1 PlayBar) I get this can be a pain if the soundbar is affixed to a wall... then you may wish to move your router to closer proximity if possible... post back and we can help figure out alternatives if this is a problem.

Now... as for your set-up. With this many Sonos products, I would highly recommend, if you have not already, you have them set up to create their own wireless "mesh" network that is referred to as "SonosNet". This is done by connecting any one Sonos device physically to the router with an ethernet Cable. Because many people may not want a speaker near their router, Sonos makes the "Boost" wireless product - Its primary function is to be the connected device that creates the "SonosNet" mesh network so this is why this is often called a "Boost setup" (even if not using a "boost" for the network creation - poor marketing language from Sonos if you ask me...anyway...) The use of SonosNet takes a large wifi load off your wireless router as the devices will all communicate among themselves and route internet communication through the single device connected physically to the router. One device connected is all that is needed and SonosNet is automatically created.

In the same "About My Sonos System" list mentioned above, the WM:0 indicates that this particular device is connected on the SonosNet mesh network. If connected via wifi it would say WM:1. DO all of yours say WM:0? or 1? Are they a mix?

With SonosNet enabled, you can tell Sonos which wifi 2.4Ghz "channel" you want it to use for SOnosNet. (1,6 or 11) and then you can (and should) log into your router's admin page and set the router to use one of the other two channels. This way the wireless systems are not creating noise for each other. You should make sure the Sonos product you are using to set up SonosNet is at least 3 feet away from your router and that no Sonos product (like your playbar maybe?) has any wireless device in the immediate area of it (like wireless baby monitors, or wireless DECT home phones, etc.).


To avoid IP problems in the future, you can, and should, log into your router's "admin" page and set up reserved IP addresses for all products that regularly connect to your network. Every device has a unique "MAC address" that it identifies itself by when speaking with your router (looks somewhat like what I have typed as :AA-BB-11-22-CC-33:D ). You are simply telling your router to give it a specific address every time it sees the device. Normally people place this reserved address higher" in the numbering system... so making a few assumptions about your router...you could, for example start at 192.168.1.100 and go up from there.... This may sound hard, but it really isn't... just a little time, but worth it.

Post back with your findings, tell us what is happening, how you have it set up, interesting barriers your home may have (any stone walls for example, etc.) and lots of people here can help. everyone here simply wants to help others get their system rock solid and enjoy their system as much as we enjoy ours.

Hope you are enjoying your Sunday 🙂
Userlevel 2
I am having a lot of issues after 7.2 bot the worst one is that my iOS controller usually does not find any of my speakers quickly ( one Play:3 and Two Play:1 configured as Left+Right). I am having some minor issues with the Mac OS controller but at least seems to find the speakers right after opening it withou delay. Tho avoid network issues all speakers have fixed IP address defined on my router.

Also, to my system works after 7.2 upgrade I needed to plug one of my speakers throught an ethernet cable, without doing this the controllers seems no to work fine. I pulled out the ethernet cable and right now my OSX controller is seeing my Play:3 but none of Play:1s and my iOS controller is seeing just one of my Play:1 (the left channel) but none of other speakers appears. And there is only one wifi network here created from a single router. I never had issues like this on the previous versions.
Userlevel 7
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Hi Tales, a recommendation for you is to disable the WiFi Assist on your iOS device, then re-open the app. There are steps for that here.

Also, I'd be happy to take a look at a diagnostic from there, you might just be having some interference trouble. Sometimes during the reboot of Sonos players, a router in auto-channel mode thinks the channel they were on is clear and switches, only to cause trouble when they're back up. When you're seeing your system, go ahead and submit a diagnostic from your Sonos system and post your confirmation number.
Userlevel 2
Hi Tales, a recommendation for you is to disable the WiFi Assist on your iOS device, then re-open the app. There are steps for that here.

Also, I'd be happy to take a look at a diagnostic from there, you might just be having some interference trouble. Sometimes during the reboot of Sonos players, a router in auto-channel mode thinks the channel they were on is clear and switches, only to cause trouble when they're back up. When you're seeing your system, go ahead and submit a diagnostic from your Sonos system and post your confirmation number.


Hi Ryan thank for your help. I did not had to change the Wifi assist yet. I rebooted my wifi router after posting this and the missing speaker appeared again on the controller but now as a new speaker (not being used) and not part of the stereo setup, as I didn't had time to check this yesterday and today both controllers I tested (OSx and iOS) were showing the same situation as yesterday Play:3 (bedroom), Play:1(living room), Play:1(new device not being used) so I re-configured is to create the Stereo setup and right now they seems to be working fine. Even the iOS controller is not presenting the delay to show the speakers as it was.

Three days ago I also sent a diagnostic when I started to have issues after upgrate to 7.2. Incident:170325-000578
Userlevel 3
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I found the diagnostic, I see that you had 1 of the unit's wired to the network. I would advise you to indeed go over to the Sonosnet, this because the scan results show you are using multiple access points. However, this is an unsupported network setup in combination with Sonos.
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I think I'm having a similar problem, not sure whether it was the sonos update last week or the iOS update a couple of days ago that prompted it. My playlists (various music sources) keep dropping out after one song, or mid-sing I will try rebooting everything as suggested & see if this helps.
Userlevel 5
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I think I'm having a similar problem, not sure whether it was the sonos update last week or the iOS update a couple of days ago that prompted it. My playlists (various music sources) keep dropping out after one song, or mid-sing I will try rebooting everything as suggested & see if this helps.


Hi AM_A

Yes, what you describe is a classic symptom of communication problems on the network. Try the full network reboot and post back with your results!
Userlevel 2
I found the diagnostic, I see that you had 1 of the unit's wired to the network. I would advise you to indeed go over to the Sonosnet, this because the scan results show you are using multiple access points. However, this is an unsupported network setup in combination with Sonos.

Thanks Ryan.
Yes, my setup was always like that even before I get my first Sonos. I have an Apple Airport Extreme as my Wifi provider (a pfsense server is my router and dhcp server) and + 1 airport express + 2 airport extremes on the network, only the airport extreme is used to expand the wifi signal, the express are set as client only and my play 3 was wired on one of them) after about one week post updating to 7.2 everything started to works fine again. Last week I needed to move the airport express to other rooms and changed my setup to have all sonos on the wifi directly and I had no issues also. I don't know what caused the problem I had, but it only occurred on the following days after the 7.2 update was released.
I've also had many problems since software updates. If only we could go back to the software from 2 years ago, it was perfect! It's not a IP address issue for me. All devices on my network have an assigned fixed IP address... With the current software the controller (smartphone) constantly disconnects. Radio streams for example stop and start for no apparent reason. The smartphone interface is much harder to navigate... My sonos favourites lists were deleted for an unknown reason after one update. I've no interest in creating new lists. Right now I can't play anything from the internet only music from my home library. Sonos has gone from a highly desirable 9/10 to barely usable 3/10 thanks to these
software updates...
Userlevel 7
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I've also had many problems since software updates. If only we could go back to the software from 2 years ago, it was perfect! It's not a IP address issue for me. All devices on my network have an assigned fixed IP address... With the current software the controller (smartphone) constantly disconnects. Radio streams for example stop and start for no apparent reason. The smartphone interface is much harder to navigate... My sonos favourites lists were deleted for an unknown reason after one update. I've no interest in creating new lists. Right now I can't play anything from the internet only music from my home library. Sonos has gone from a highly desirable 9/10 to barely usable 3/10 thanks to these
software updates...


Have you tried a re-boot of your system (Router, Sonos and ALL devices thereon)? There may well be network issues that will be cleared by so doing.
Yes, 4 reboots today, complete system, in fact I just turned off the mains supply. But these problems have persisted for months...
Userlevel 3
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Hi kieron d



I'd hazard to say that this is ...almost always... (ok... certainly very often) a result of networking challenges that arise in the environment when the players reboot themselves and request new IP addresses from the network router.

I strongly suggest you begin with assuming that an IP address conflict has occurred over your network where more than one device is using the same IP address - this creates substantial communication challenges and Sonos really requires an excellent communication environment to operate properly.



Nice attempt at providing help, but you have nothing in the OPs message that indicates they have an IP conflict. And then you go on for several paragraphs assuming that's the root issue.

I have static IP assignments on my network. Same IP address and DNS for every piece of Sonos gear for the last couple of years. And I have major issues with updates breaking connectivity, losing playlists, causing headaches and downtime because of the way Sonos holds you hostage with updates.

It's a faiiure of the system in general ---- not IP address conflicts, I can assure you.
In other words, quit your job, put the rest of your life on hold to listen to music out of wireless speakers. 😃
Since I downloaded the recent updates my system has become unusable. Is anyone else having the same issues?
I have owned a amp 5 for many years, The amp was wired and assigned a static ip address. There is no way ip can be shared since it is outside the shared ip range.
Amp 5 would not played for more than a few minutes. I solved that issue by creating an account with Sonos, here is where real problems started. After a few weeks amp got an update, from that moment on it was bad. Now it is useless, it won't even trun on. I am moving to old school amps that don't have a network connection now. Seems companies are following Apples lead of destroying old equipment to make you buy more. I had an amp that lasted 25 years until lightning killed.it, seems greed is stronger than lightning.