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Kumar
August 21, 2020
Question

Sonos affected by Wireless Access Point hardware change

  • August 21, 2020
  • 62 replies
  • 1543 views

I recently swapped out my 2011 access point in my bedroom used for WiFi there, and I am seeing some Sonos anomalies.

In the bedroom I have a Boost that is also root bridge, wired back to the main router in the common area, that has a Connect Amp also wired back to the same main router. I was using Airport Express in the bedroom, ethernet wire connected to the other ethernet jack on the Boost using the switch feature on Boost, to successfully obtain high speed WiFi in the bedroom - with the single band AEX set to work in access point mode, creating a 5 GHz network there. No issues with Sonos then, using either the phone or the Mac in the bedroom for control.

I replaced said AEX using a dual band TP Link access point as a drop in replacement. Now, at times, the Connect Amp disappears from the Controller as well as from the Matrix. Getting it to reappear needs a Connect Amp reboot, that works for some time.

I can’t see any logical reason for this - and when I brought the AEX back for a test, the problem disappeared.

Any reason why Sonos/TP Link are not playing nice all the time? The bedroom Sonos is supplied wirelessly from Boost, and there is no issue with that unit. Nor are other bedroom units like Firestick/Echo Show affected by the change.

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    62 replies

    KumarAuthor
    August 21, 2020

    And a perhaps related question: Invoking the matrix - now and earlier - sees wildly fluctuating response times: as low as less than a second to even a minute, or even no response at times. Why does that happen?

    jishi
    Headliner II
    August 21, 2020

    When invoking the matrix, it calls all players and asks for a snapshot of the current signal state. If one of the players have a poor connection, this page will take longer to load. 

    Which TP-link access point did install?

    Is that access point hard-wired to the Boost? 

    Are they in close proximity with each other?

    Does your Connect:AMP show no green box against the Boost in your network diagram (meaning, it is actually using the wired link?)

     

    Since the Connect:AMP is wired, wireless interference shouldn’t show this behavior, but you need to verify that it is actually using the hard-wired link.

    KumarAuthor
    August 21, 2020

    The TP Link RE 205, configured to work in access point mode.

    It is wired to the boost and is therefore effectively also wired back to the main router. 

    Distance between the two is 6 feet.

    Connect Amp shows no box to show any wireless connection to the Boost - it is therefore using the wired link.

    And as stated, the issue of the Connect Amp disappearing was not there for the Airport Express for which the TP Link is a drop in replacement - electrically and physically.

    jishi
    Headliner II
    August 21, 2020

    Ok. I have used that repeater (in repeat mode) and it had some strange issues for me. But, in access point mode it might fare better (i had trouble with the wireless link between the router and the extender).

    Some worthy notes though:

    The default IP for that device is 192.168.0.254, make sure that is not conflicting with any of your devices (mainly the Connect:AMP). Configure the extender to get ip via DHCP if not already. Even so, I think it defaults back to said address if it doesn’t get an IP from DHCP.

    This device also has a builtin DHCP-server. This is odd both from a range extender point if view, but as an access point equally weird. It is on by default apparently, and needs to be shut off. It has some auto setting which I assume would identify if there is another dhcp server on the network, but I wouldn’t trust it. The only sensible setting here should be Off. 

    Where is the Connect:AMP and the Boost connected? To a switch? 

    KumarAuthor
    August 21, 2020

    The TP link itself worked flawlessly from the start, but I only used in in AP mode - so no issues in any wireless back connections to the router since I never even investigated that aspect.

    I have set a reserved IP address for it in the Apple Time Capsule router, as I had for the Airport Express that it replaced. Tp Link is now picking up that address every time. The Connect Amp has its own reserved address, as do all my Sonos components.

    Connect Amp is connected to a switch, while the Boost is connected to the router. The switch is connected to the router, so in effect, both are connected by wire to the core network. 

    The strange thing is why all of the above was/is not an issue with the AEX. 

    I will investigate the DHCP server thing and revert.

     

    jishi
    Headliner II
    August 21, 2020

    Obviously the culprit here is the TP-Link device, which for unknown reasons are hampering the network connectivity for your Connect:AMP.

    Try moving the TP-link device (connect it directly to the router, and then via the same switch as your Connect:AMP) and see if the problem still occurs. Another test that might tell something would be to daisy chain the TP-Link into the Connect:AMP.

    If the TP-Link is doing something odd with ARP discovery and confuses the router and the switches about the path to your Connect:AMP, I would expect everything to work if it is daisy-chained with the Connect:AMP. If that is the case, I would return it immediately :)

    KumarAuthor
    August 23, 2020

     

    This device also has a builtin DHCP-server. This is odd both from a range extender point if view, but as an access point equally weird. It is on by default apparently, and needs to be shut off. It has some auto setting which I assume would identify if there is another dhcp server on the network, but I wouldn’t trust it. The only sensible setting here should be Off. 
     

    Screenshot shows that server is off; I don’t remember what it was set to before I reserved the 10.0.*.** address in my router for the TP, but it seems to be in the right state now. 

     

    **Moderator Note: Please censor personal information when posting.**

    jishi
    Headliner II
    August 24, 2020

    It looks like it is in the “Auto” setting, but decides that it should be off. Not sure when it might re-evaluate that decision, and personally I would set it to permanent “Off” just to be safe. I can’t see any situation where you would want it to act as a DHCP server (unless you deliberately want that). 

    KumarAuthor
    August 24, 2020

    The words Auto Off are not clickable unlike others that have settings/information attached to them; I tried to do just that!

    ratty
    ratty
    August 24, 2020

    The words Auto Off are not clickable unlike others that have settings/information attached to them; I tried to do just that!

    It’s in the Network section.

    However, in my experience -- albeit with a different TP-Link extender/AP -- disabling the DHCP server also disabled the DHCP client. I just set the IP to static.

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