Have you told Sonos your WiFi details? With a cable connected it doesn't need them and will form its own mesh network between each speaker. If you remove the cable, it needs a way to authenticate onto your network - the WiFi password.  Each speaker will then use those details to connect directly to your network/router.  With only one router, often the ‘cable’ method can be a better option as without this mesh setup (each speaker ‘talks’ to others - called Sonosnet), each one needs to be within reach of the router itself and not just another speaker.

This may help to switch.

Some of these may help

https://support.sonos.com/en-us/search?q=Wired+to+wireless

Thank you for the replies.  When i disconnect from the router my products ( which are all powered on) aren't picked up.   As soon as i hardwire a speaker to the router the whole set up appears.  When i try to add via wifi, i just receive an exclamation mark screen.  Do you have to put the speakers into some mode in order to set up again?  I am trying to avoid a factory reset.  Sonos know about my wifi and doesn't ask for a password as i think ive been through this and changed it.

Assuming you only have a single router (no extenders etc.), the you should be able to connect via WiFi.

If you have a new router this will have a new name (SSID) and password - you need to update these details in the Sonos App, have you? If so, maybe remove them and re-add them.  You are right though, avoid a factory reset unless specifically advised to do so.

As I understand it, with older devices such as the Play:1 a factory reset is required when changing routers/wifi credentials: https://support.sonos.com/en-us/article/connect-sonos-to-a-new-router-or-wi-fi-network

Or you could set the new wifi details to duplicate how the old one was set. 

Do this, it will save a lot of time reconfiguring all the devices that connect to your Home WiFi. Check your router documentation, and change the WiFi name/SSID to be the same as your old WiFi network name, and also make sure password is the same as your old WiFi password.

I may be wrong (as ​@Corry P has liked your post) but that was not my understanding.  I thought you only needed to factory reset the older devices if wiring them wasn't an option. If it is, then I thought you could follow the link I posted to switch to a WiFi setup.

Hi ​@sjw 

Good question - I’ll be happy to clarify.

Older components (those without BTLE (Bluetooth Low Energy)) must be factory-reset to join a new WiFi network, even if SonosNet is (temporarily) up. The only way around this would be to set the credentials for the new router to be the same as the last, as ​@nik9669amentioned. Please see the Unsupported Products section of our Connect Sonos to a new router or WiFi network help page for full details and best practices for these devices.

I hope this helps.

Thanks ​@Corry P .

In the link I posted, it mentions a couple of methods of doing it, one being ‘temporarily’ using a wired setup.

It then says

“If your Sonos system only contains products from the list above and you can’t wire a product to your router, you’ll need to reset each product and set them up again as a new system”.  Why does it have the ‘and you can’t wire a product to your router’ text if being able to do that still necessitated a full reset?

Is another option temporarily adding a newer device to the system and adding the details via that?  They're then ‘shared’ to the older devices at which point it can be removed (the newer device)?

Hi ​@sjw 

If you are referring to the Switch Sonos between a wireless and wired setup help page, I don’t think that page has (yet?) been adapted to account for non-BTLE products on the new app.

If you do not have any non-BTLE products, then the instructions on that page are accurate, but it does not cover switching from one WiFi to another - only going from SonosNet to WiFi, or vice versa, where an ethernet cable is going to in use at some point.

The page I linked to in my previous post is a better fit to the OP’s situation, I think - it is for new routers, rather than change in connection method.

I shall see if I can get the page you linked-to improved.

I hope this helps.

I'm talking about this link where it mentions if using older products but you're unable to wire them - and my question is ‘Well, what if you are able to?’

I think the OP is looking at doing two things though - moving from a wired setup to a WiFi one AND has a new router. They're not sure if they have previously entered WiFi credentials though… 

Sorry, ​@sjw - I forgot to answer your earlier query.

As far as I understand it, this works for all non-room-specific settings other than WiFi (ie. not the EQ, touch controls, LED, etc.), and indeed still does for newer products (assuming they support SonosNet too, that is). If this was an option, we would not be recommending factory resets, so non-BTLE products such as Play:1 must be reset to learn new WiFi credentials.

I hope this helps.

I am not sure I understand your question, ​@sjw - if the user is able to permanently wire a Sonos device to the network, ​then a Play:1 would not need the credentials - it would use SonosNet instead.

Yes, I think so. To have their Play:1s connect to WiFi and if their system has never know any WiFi credentials, they will have no choice but to reset all their speakers. If a more modern speaker could be temporarily added in order to save all the settings of the system (services, playlists and favourites), it could be moved over to the new WiFi first, then the Play:1s could be reset and added to it, picking up those settings again. An extremely agreeable friend or neighbour would be needed, however (or a new speaker and a Money Back Guarantee, but I never said that).

I think the confusion on the support page comes from the use of the word ‘temporarily’ in the following:

”If you have Sonos products that support this, you can temporarily use your Sonos system in a wired setup as a workaround.”

I certainly had the same interpretation/assumption as ​@sjw reading the support page, believing if you wired one non-BTLE device, you would then be able to update the Wi-Fi credentials on that and the other devices (whilst temporarily using SonosNet), even although the section doesn’t detail the steps to do so (because it’s not possible), but in essence it’s stating you need to use a wired setup, until you are prepared to factory reset all your unsupported devices in order to use your system again in a wireless setup.

… but they're able to ‘temporarily’ wire a device and the linked article suggests that this enables an alternative way forward (to me).

Also, when I suggested possibly adding a newer device temporarily, to update the WiFi, I thought you said that this wasn't an option, and if it was that Sonos would not be recommending Factory resets?  But the post above does suggest borrowing one to achieve this?

Hi ​@Mr. T & ​@sjw 

I think that page simply has not been updated since the change was made - I would not read too much into the exact wording there. I think the use of the word “temporarily” there pre-dates the new behaviour.

For a Play:1 (and other non-BTLE products) to learn new WiFi credentials, they must be factory reset, and taught those credentials as part of their initial setup.

Wiring the system to Ethernet permanently will negate the need to do this as SonosNet will be up, and wiring to Ethernet temporarily will help with BTLE products that support SonosNet, but will not help with getting non-BTLE products to connect to WiFi.

If a new WiFi is set to have the same credentials as the last WiFi (and if the system knows the credentials already) then none of this is needed.

I hope this helps.

Hi ​@sjw 

I did not actually respond to your earlier comment about doing this. But I see the confusion.

When I read the question from you shown above, I read it as meaning “can’t a user add the new WiFi credentials to a newer speaker and then add reset Play:1s to the system to get the credentials shared to those speakers?” Non-BTLE speakers need to be told the WiFi credentials during setup, and for each speaker. This particular setting cannot be shared to the Play:1s, no - they need to connect to WiFi before they can talk to other speakers.

However, my own post below is referring to the saving of other settings - services, playlists and favourites - on one newer speaker that needs no reset to connect to a new WiFi. It can be moved to the new WiFi and when each Play:1 is reset, given the WiFi creds and added to the system, those speakers will get those settings back, and the new speaker can be removed (if it does not belong to this system/user), reset and returned.

I hope this clears it up. If I was incorrect in my interpretation of what you were saying, my apologies for any confusion.

​@Corry P - I was referring to the new page Connect Sonos to a new router or WiFi network and the use of the word ‘temporarily’ in the section Switch to a wired setup. I can see how users could be confused reading the support page, but do now understand how it works in practice.

I'm still not clear tbh on whether or not new devices can be used, even temporarily, to help - but I'll try to phrase a question as clearly as possible…

A user has a system comprised solely of ‘older’ Play 1 speakers. It is connected by Sonosnet and has never been used on WiFi.

1. Is there any way at all to switch this setup to a WiFi setup WITHOUT resetting all of the speakers and losing all settings, Sonos Playlists etc.? (this was the one where I was wondering about temporarily adding a newer device to the system and adding the details to it.  Then maybe resetting each of the older ones with the ‘backup’ of the settings still being in the newer device.) 

2. If the same, older speakers had been on WiFi but the user needed to change the WiFi details, can this be done without resetting and losing settings?

Hi ​@sjw 

1. Not without another, newer speaker to save those settings, no. If a newer speaker is used, the one thing it cannot share with Play:1s (or other older units) is the WiFi credentials. Other settings would be preserved during this process, however, so it is preferable for anyone wanting to do so.
2. No. If it is a new router, it is easier to change it’s credentials to match those of the old router. If it is a password change for the existing WiFi, older units must be reset to accept the new password.

The crucial point is that non-BTLE speakers can only now accept new WiFi credentials as part of the Add a Product setup flow, and they have to be reset to get to that point.

I hope this helps.

My understanding would be:

1. You would add the newer device to the system (on SonosNet) and add the Wi-Fi credentials to the newer device via the app. You then need to factory reset all the older devices and add back to the system, where all settings, playlists etc have been stored on the newer device so nothing is lost.
2. No. If Wi-Fi details have been changed (and not updated to match those previously used) then to use as a wireless system, the older speakers need to be reset in order to get the new Wi-Fi credentials so all settings would be lost.

For the first question, you say that it can't be done without another, newer speaker - but that, although we're explicitly talking about getting onto WiFi, that “the one thing it cannot share with Play:1s (or other older units) is the WiFi credentials.”, so I'm not following what the new device achieves?

Or, can the newer speaker be added to the system, add the WiFi details, remove the older ones and reset them and then add them back as new devices - where they will inherit the new credentials and settings as part if the ‘Add a Product' process?   If this isn't an option then I don't understand the relevance of the new device when talking specifically about moving to WiFi...

Good grief! 

If you’re tearing your hair out in frustration over the way this thread has meandered away from your original question, ​@Duncerson, I’ll confirm for you:

With older devices such as the Play:1 a factory reset is required when changing routers/wifi credentials: https://support.sonos.com/en-us/article/connect-sonos-to-a-new-router-or-wi-fi-network

Or you could set the new wifi details to duplicate how the old one was set. 

Hi ​@sjw 

It will save favourites settings and playlists - if a system consists of nothing but non-BTLE units and they are all reset as a result, then a newer speaker that can join a new WiFi without being reset can keep these until a reset unit has been added and receives them.

I really think you should stop thinking about this until you yourself are in that position.